Over the last few years it’s become increasingly clear that anything a gas-powered car can do on the road, an EV can, too. And now this is starting to become true on the race track as well.
The latest proof: An all-electric dragster just topped 200 miles per hour. The historic run, which happened at the Tucson Dragway in Arizona earlier this month, was captured on video and posted to YouTube.
Driven by Steve Huff, the Current Technology 2.0 racer hit a top speed of 201.07 mph (at the 2:00 minute mark), covering a quarter mile in just 7.52 seconds in just its second run of the day. That breaks the previous record of 189 mph, which Jalopnik reports was set last year by drag racing legend Big Daddy Don Garlits in his “Swamp Rat 38” dragster.
But the most stunning aspect of the clip isn’t how fast Huff’s car travel. Instead, it’s the eerie lack of sound as his EV speeds down the strip. It’s hard to think of a better example of just how much quieter electric motors are than an internal-combustion counterparts, even when producing 2,400 horsepower and 2,000 lb-ft of torque.
Of course, while 200 mph is a huge milestone for Huff and electric drag racing, it also highlights how far EVs still need to go. The record for the fastest official Top Fuel dragster run belongs to Tony Schumacher, who hit 336.57 mph at the NHRA Arizona Nationals in February 2018. So, only 135 mph to go, gents.
