By now, most of the world knows that battery electric vehicles are quick in a straight line. No longer the reserve of tuned Dodge Chargers or Ford Mustangs, American drag strips now hum to the sound of Plaid Mode Teslas.
But, in order to be truly adopted by motoring enthusiasts, you need more than eye-watering acceleration. You need brakes that cause the seatbelt pre-tensioners to spring into action and handling that you can feel through your buttocks.
I write this just weeks after the Model S Plaid set an electric production car record around the Nordschleife. But for me, the first BEV that shifted the performance car paradigm was the Porsche Taycan.
Here was something volt-powered that offered repeated launches without over-heating and a lap of the Nürburgring without going into limp-home mode. Both of these qualities helped it to appear within GT Sport, and this week’s online ranked racing features one of Porsche’s greatest achievements – making electric cars fun.
Here’s the GT Sport Daily Race setlist for the week commencing 4th October 2021.
Race A is with the said Taycan, the top-of-the-line Turbo S no less. Sure, while the massive carbon-ceramic brakes would stop a 911 on a dime, in the heavy-weight Taycan you’ll have to use a much earlier braking marker. But the pace and grip levels are both high enough for some fun.
Place 12 of them on the short variation of the Red Bull Ring and you have yourself a race. A silent race, but still a race.
Race B is a more traditional, hydrocarbon-burning, affair. Spa, Gr.3 (read GT3) cars and a free pick from your garage. No electrons here, just the glorious noise of combustion chambers exploding and pistons turning. Unless you select the rotary Mazda, but let’s not get bogged down in semantics…
There’s no strategy in this one, so just three quick laps in equal machinery to dust off the Monday-morning blues.
The third and final race on this week’s menu is, as always, a longer race with a strategy play. This time it’s at the lesser-spotted KYOTO DRIVING PARK – YAMAGIWA+MIYABI II. That name is a mouthful, but it perfectly encapsulates the fictional Japanese venue that joins together two tracks into one sprawling venue.
Just eight laps around here in any Gr.4 of your choosing makes for a 25-minute race. Racing Hard tyres are mandatory, but tyre wear and fuel usage are both active, so keep an eye on your levels.
Full details of each race are below, and the playlist will next reset on Monday 11th October 2021. All this arrives after the announcement that Gran Turismo 7 be releasing in March 2022 and a recent update to GT Sport improved online lobby performance.
Race A
Car: Gr.X – Porsche Taycan Turbo S ’19
Track: Red Bull Ring Short Track
Laps: Seven
No. Of Cars: 12
Duration: 15 Minutes
Tyres: Racing Medium
Fuel Consumption: None
Tyre Wear: None
Start Type: Grid Start
Race B
Car: Gr.3, any
Track: Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Laps: Three
No. Of Cars: 16
Duration: 15 Minutes
Tyres: Racing Medium
Fuel Consumption: None
Tyre Wear: None
Start Type: Rolling Start
Race C
Car: Gr.4, any
Track: KYOTO DRIVING PARK – YAMAGIWA+MIYABI II
Laps: Eight
No. Of Cars: 20
Duration: 25 Minutes
Tyres: Racing Hard
Fuel Consumption: 2x
Tyre Wear: 4x
Start Type: Rolling Start
