What’s ‘Ridiculous’? Well, for starters, the performance of my 2023 Tesla Model 3 ‘RWD ‘standard range’ is ‘ridiculous’ at 5.6 seconds from 0 to 60 mph. For a Tesla, that’s ridiculously slow, but when compared to most ICE cars on the road, it’s pretty quick, ridiculously so.
So, like the Tesla Model S Plaid (which is ridiculously fast at 2.1 seconds 0 to 60 mph), I thought I needed a badge to place on the boot of my car to indicate just how ridiculous it is. The Plaid badge looks like this:
And my ‘Ridiculous’ badge looks like this:
And here it is on the boot of my car (TSLA is not my actual plate number, but it should be):
So now for a little back story. I didn’t know till recently that the idea of branding my car as ‘Ridiculous’ was not an original idea. So let me introduce you to a movie from 1987 titled ‘Spaceballs‘. This is a VERY strange movie, but after watching it I realized that Elon must have watched it a while ago as well, and hence the concepts of ‘Ludicrous’ mode and ‘Plaid’ were ‘borrowed’ from this film. In addition, my use of ‘Ridiculous’ mode was also used, so I can no longer claim that as my idea. Bummer…
If you have a few minutes, check out this short excerpt from the film that will help make sense of all this nonsense: Spaceballs (4/11) Movie CLIP – Ludicrous Speed (1987)
So, having watched the ‘Ludicrous Speed’ segment on YouTube you now understand the references. Now to add a bit more context to the discussion, I have already disclosed my car’s 0-60 mph acceleration time at 5.6 seconds, and the Model S Plaid time at 2.1 seconds. That’s some difference. But what you might not know are the performance numbers for the Model S and X models equipped with ‘Ludicrous Mode’, and the difference between Ludicrous and Plaid.
Let’s start with Ludicrous: “The Model S and the Model X, among others, can be equipped with a performance boost called Ludicrous Mode. It’s simply a mod that boosts the car’s acceleration.” (source)
- 2017 Tesla Model S P100D ‘Ludicrous’ – 0-60 mph 2.4
- 2020 Tesla Model S Performance ‘Ludicrous+’ – 0-60 mph 2.4
- 2017 Tesla Model X P100D ‘Ludicrous’ – 0-60 mph 2.8
- 2020 Tesla Model X Performance ‘Ludicrous+’ – 0-60 mph 2.6
And now for Plaid: Unlike Ludicrous and Ludicrous Plus, which offer a burst of extra power, Plaid’s maximum thrust is always available. As with the Ludicrous and Ludicrous Plus modes of yore, the Plaid grade doesn’t gain additional performance by increasing battery size. Instead, it does so by adding a third electric motor.
- 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid – 0-60 mph 2.1
So now you know! When you see the badge on the rear end of my car, you can say ‘That’s just Ridiculous’ and you’ll be correct.
Note: In case you were wondering, the 2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance is not called the Ludicrous, but it does have several performance-enhancing features:
- Top speed – The Model 3 Performance has a top speed of 162 mph.
- Acceleration – The Model 3 Performance can accelerate from 0–60 mph in 2.9 seconds, which is 0.2 seconds faster than the previous model.