Tesla Model 3 Beats Acura NSX With Twin Turbocharged Engines In Drag Race [Watch]

An all electric four-door sedan versus a two-seat gasoline-electric hybrid sports car in a hell-for-leather drag race. Why not?

That's where the Tesla Model 3 Performance and the Honda Acura NSX come in. But before telling you about the races, let's get into some specifics about these two machines.

The lineage of the Honda Acura NSX two-seat, mid-engine sports car dates back to 1984. But the Acura NSX of today is no longer an all-ICE (internal combustion engine) beast.

Its current iteration, the 2019 Acura NSX, is a gasoline-electric hybrid sports car with two electric motors in the front and one in the rear. Running at full capacity, the petrol engine and the electric motors combined allow the 2019 Acura NSX to generate a maximum of 600 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque.

Two of these motors form part of the "SH-AWD" all wheel drivetrain along with the rear-mounted twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 gasoline engine. Power is sent to all the wheels via a nine-speed DCT (double clutch semi-automatic transmission).

The motors allow the Acura NSX to sprint to 60 mph from a standing start in just 2.7 seconds. The hybrid’s top speed is placed at 191 miles per hour. The fact the electric and gasoline motors generate more torque than most ICE sports cars makes the Acura NSX a far more worthy opponent for any Tesla in a drag race.

Electric carmaker Tesla said it boosted deliveries of its most affordable vehicle, the Model 3, as it delivered a surprise profit in the past quarter. AFP / JUNG Yeon-Je

On the other hand, the Tesla Model 3 Performance packs two motors (one attached to each axle). It can sprint from zero to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds. Because of a recent over-the-air update, however, the Model 3 saw its performance improve by 5%.

Tesla owners checked out this claim and proved it was more than true. The update allowed their Teslas to breach the three-second barrier.

Car news and review website Top Speed recently ran an Acura NSX one-on-one against a Tesla Model 3 Performance. There was supposed to have been only one race but the loser of the first race demanded a re-match and he got it.

The first race saw the Model 3 easily beat the NSX. The Model 3 sprinted off the line faster and held onto the lead to win despite a late surge by the NSX. Apparently stung by the loss, the NSX demanded a second race, which he got.

The second race again saw the Model 3 faster off the blocks but falter at the quarter mile mark when the NSX found more than enough juice to speed by it for the win.