Xiaomi SU7 Ultra Vs. Tesla Model S Plaid: Performance, Price, And Top Speed, Compared

First unveiled in October 2024 and officially released on the Chinese market for about $73,000 on February 27, 2025, the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra represents the latest (and perhaps one of the greatest) in the ever-evolving race to the top for EV hyper-saloons. The brand-new flagship of a company best-known for its smartphones hopes to once again raise the bar for combining luxury with blistering performance, a standard currently held (at least in the United States) by the Tesla Model S Plaid, costing around $90,000. So how does Tesla measure up in a direct comparison with its overseas competitor? In short: it simply blows the Tesla's doors off.

The Xiaomi's power output is no joke, to the tune of 1,527 horsepower (stated 1548PS). Much like just about every other vehicle in this class, though, the SU7 Ultra is truly a solid lump of a car, weighing an approximate (and hefty) 5,200 pounds, despite its heavy usage of carbon fiber. So it's noticeably heavier than the Tesla, which still reaches a chunky 4,776 pounds. But with only 1,020 horsepower, the Tesla has a significant disadvantage in terms of power/weight ratio –- essentially, the Xiaomi might as well have a Mercedes-AMG GT auxiliary engine attached to it, as far as the Tesla's concerned. So with all other factors being equal, there's simply no fair competition between a Xiaomi and a Tesla in a pure acceleration test. It's also noticeably faster in a straight line than the Tesla, reaching 217 miles per hour, as opposed to the Plaid's claimed 200. And, as mentioned before, it's significantly less expensive, too. But is that really all she wrote for this comparison? Let's examine the facts.

Where the Plaid excels most isn't its performance, per se -– though the numbers are certainly formidable. 1,020 horsepower isn't something to scoff at, that's for sure. But ultimately, the Plaid is still a Model S, a modular platform designed as a luxury, efficient, and comfortable sedan. That isn't to say that the performance is an afterthought –- after all, Tesla went through great lengths marketing the mythical sub-2 second 0-60 time (which has since been debunked –- the real 0-60 time is more like 2.15 seconds). Still, these are unquestionably supercar-killer figures in a four-door sedan. That's mighty impressive, but it still doesn't touch the Xiaomi's figures, assuming those are accurate.

Beyond all that, however, the Plaid might hold an advantage at least in the refinement and luxury department. Despite the many claims of lackluster build quality, the Model S remains a feature-rich, comfortable, and highly practical platform. It boasts one of the world's best aerodynamic coefficients for a passenger vehicle, with extensive design studies culminating at an outstanding .208 C/D. That's on-par with the Lucid Air, and lends the Model S in general to feature excellent (though not best-in-class) range for an EV.

Moreover, Tesla has produced the Model S since 2012 -– that amount of development time on a single generation results in a well-refined platform, with most shortcomings and strengths intimately understood by both the community and manufacturer. That level of certainty isn't present in something brand-new like the Xiaomi, and for many potential buyers, might be worth the additional $17+ large tacked on to the MSRP.

The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra's performance easily triumphs over the Plaid. In fact, it's effectively competing in a class above, being more comparable to a Porsche Taycan Turbo S. The Chinese EV boasts a tri-motor setup that propels the full-size sedan from 0-100km/h (0-62 mph) in just 1.98 seconds, and utilizes a claimed 3.74m² of carbon fiber to help shave off some additional weight. But it's still unquestionably a heavy beast.

However, the SU7 still can (literally) run laps around the Tesla on the circuit. Xiaomi claims that the platform already touts numerous records, including the fastest production car to lap Shanghai International Circuit (the time was 2:09.44), and a race-prepped prototype lapped the Nürburgring in 6:46.87 –- smashing the previous sedan and EV records. In other words, a sedan from a Chinese smartphone company lapped the 'Ring (in damp conditions, too) faster than a Rimac Nevera hypercar. Yes, really: here's the video.

The SU7 owes this performance to aerodynamics far surpassing the Tesla, which is built for drag-coefficient. Instead, the Xiaomi features up to 628 pounds of downforce from aerodynamic elements on the production model, brute-forcing the range to make up for it –- 385 miles, versus the Tesla's 348. Basically, the Xiaomi handily beats the Tesla in almost every metric, coupled with a less-expensive cost to boot. And assuming the SU7 arrives stateside, it'll still likely outperform Tesla's cost despite the tariffs, considering the Model S's price will rise because it utilizes around 20% imported components. That leaves the decade of development time behind the Model S as the main factor in Tesla's favor, which the SU7, being Xiaomi's first EV, obviously lacks.