Tesla Motors: Model S

[notoriousb]

http://www.teslamotors.com/models/index.php

100% electric
300 mile range
45 minute quick charge
0-60 in 5.6 seconds


Look how hot that looks. Tesla will be making an affordable electric car to compete with the civics, 3's etc soon. Now if they make one with half the looks as this I'll buy it in a second...

Now, what did Mazda do? They put a smile on the front and increased the engine size to 2.5L.

GOODJOB!

[dentinger]

i drove the tesla in forza2.
sooo weird. 2 gears, and dead quiet. i kept hearing the ferrari in the distance, and always thought he was right on my tail.

[Chester_Lampwick]

I don't know. Sounds kinda fishy to me. 45 minute quick charge? I guess that's if you have the 480V charger... who has 480V into their house? I've never seen that, do the electrical utility companies even offer this? I doubt that many parking lots will install charging stations. Battery swap in 5 minutes is cool, but wouldn't that make for less than ideal placement in regards to weight distribution or passenger compartment intrusion? It might take all day to get to a station that could swap a pack for you.

7 passengers? Really? I could see it being a 6 passenger, maybe. Is there a third row?

I don't know. It wouldn't make much sense for me to buy one at $49,900 USD. I might save $1000, to $1500 max in fuel per year. I didn't spend that much on my last two cars combined.

The day is coming for electric cars, I suppose. At this point it still isn't an economically sound idea, but rather an eco fashion statement.

[rick10]

49 900 base price so add about 5000 if you want something decent .. that makes it 55 000 and i m guessing that is us dollars so make it around 65000 canadian then add taxes and all and it will be close to 70 000 canadian ...you can get a brand new civic , mazda , corolla for half that .... so is it really worth spending 35 000 more in a car to save gas??? .. average person spends 1500-2000 a year in gas so you will need about 10-15 years to see your savings ... not worth it if you ask me ....

[Darkfrosty7]

lol looks good... but i think i've seen this before in a james bond movie... ahem

[dentinger]

49 900 base price so add about 5000 if you want something decent .. that makes it 55 000 and i m guessing that is us dollars so make it around 65000 canadian then add taxes and all and it will be close to 70 000 canadian ...you can get a brand new civic , mazda , corolla for half that .... so is it really worth spending 35 000 more in a car to save gas??? .. average person spends 1500-2000 a year in gas so you will need about 10-15 years to see your savings ... not worth it if you ask me ....

correct, but if your buying a 70,000 dollar car, thats also in high end mercedes/bmw range. those cars use premium, and they dont have tiny 4cyls.
i can see the more wealthy people buying this car, then the average joe.

[rick10]

correct, but if your buying a 70,000 dollar car, thats also in high end mercedes/bmw range. those cars use premium, and they dont have tiny 4cyls.
i can see the more wealthy people buying this car, then the average joe.

yea but then again the whole purpose of this design is to save money by using electricity therefore this company is aiming this car for the average joe... Plus if you can afford to buy a high end mercedes , bmw i really dont think you are in any need of saving money .... Irs like some rich guy buying a 70 000 $ corvette and then say he can not afford gas ...

Until a company produces a electric car that cost somewhat the same as the mazda , honda and corolla these cars won be big in canada

[dentinger]

thats true.
but think of all the celebrities and the whole pruis hype?

and if all goes well, the chevy volt will be out soon enough.

[5_Alive]

What a beautiful car. Its a mix between a Maserati & an Aston Martin.

I have no clue where you can seat 7 people though. The price also includes the $7,500 tax credit.

I'd take one for sure. I think it would be kind of eerie driving down the road and not hearing anything but subtle tire thud.

[dentinger]

im guessing 2 front, 3 rear, plus 3 rear facing.
or 3 front, 3 rear, 2 rear facing.

i'd love to drive one. dont electric cars have crazy torque?

[Chester_Lampwick]

i'd love to drive one. dont electric cars have crazy torque?

Yes and no. I mean since the car has only one gear range, I'm sure that it will be geared sufficiently high so as to have a good top speed. Of course it's the torque that affords not needing a gearbox.

[FLIPDADY]

Wrong section.:whoa

[Flagrum_3]

I don't know. Sounds kinda fishy to me. 45 minute quick charge? I guess that's if you have the 480V charger... who has 480V into their house? I've never seen that, do the electrical utility companies even offer this? I doubt that many parking lots will install charging stations. Battery swap in 5 minutes is cool, but wouldn't that make for less than ideal placement in regards to weight distribution or passenger compartment intrusion? It might take all day to get to a station that could swap a pack for you.

7 passengers? Really? I could see it being a 6 passenger, maybe. Is there a third row?

I don't know. It wouldn't make much sense for me to buy one at $49,900 USD. I might save $1000, to $1500 max in fuel per year. I didn't spend that much on my last two cars combined.

The day is coming for electric cars, I suppose. At this point it still isn't an economically sound idea, but rather an eco fashion statement.

Do you guys actually read the stuff or just glance over it? I'll agree about the charging part, but you never know!! Thier battery technology might be way more advanced then most 'electric' vehicles being spawned right now, hense the higher cost!!...It also states 7 people, but as 5 adults, two children!....Having the battery pack under the floor is 'ideal' for weight distribution and centre of gravity.....Only save $1000 a year???, doesn't add up.If you travel 300mi (480km) a week it'll cost you $5 with the Tesla, that's $260/year.If you travel 300mi per week on gas with your 3, it'll take about approx 42 litres and at .97 a litre, that's like $41wk/$2132yr....plus no oil changes or cel lights to deal with....and that's assuming gas won't go back up again to say $1.50 alitre or almost $7 a gallon. LOL.

Governments are offering incentives of up to $10,000 to purchase "All electric" vehicles.That cuts the price down substantially for those who can afford a new vehicle.But the point is thier market target, which is older wealthier individuals who care about the environment, that's who I see driving the Prius's the most!!...Once enough of these folks have purchased the vehicle, the unit price will start to come down as with all technologies.

With technology advancements the way thier going in ten years 'electric' will probably dominate.


_3

[Chester_Lampwick]

I don't know. I probably drive 15,000kms per year. According to the TDI Clean Diesel Comparator (http://www.tdicurious.ca/tdi-clean-diesel-comparator/) that will cost me about $1,100 per year. If the Tesla cost nothing for fuel, that's the most I could save.

I'd need 12 year financing too. Do they offer 0% on 12 years? If not, the cost of borrowing will be huge, probably another $10,000 in interest by adding a second mortgage.

I also need to look at the other costs. Maintenance should be little, but repairs could be costly once out of warranty. What about insurance? I'm sure $50,000 exotic sports car insurance could be $1000 year more expensive than an economy car.

What is going to be the all in cost per year for a car like this to suit my needs? That's the question.

Oh and on the CEL light statement. Sure there is no engine to check, but a car has many other systems. How about anti-lock brakes, airbag, power steering, A/C. I'm optimistic, but I wish I had your rosy outlook.

I do wish we'd let Chrysler and GM go under, or at least stop propping them up. It stifles innovation from guys like Tesla. Lets face it, the car market is pretty saturated. That means less potential customers for upstarts.

[notoriousb]

It's meant to compete with the BMW 3 series I think --and other luxury sedans.

I'm waiting for the their next car -- which is the affordable family sedan -- it'll look better than the 3 ... and it'll be all electric.. IM IN!!

[notoriousb]

I don't know. Sounds kinda fishy to me. 45 minute quick charge? I guess that's if you have the 480V charger... who has 480V into their house? I've never seen that, do the electrical utility companies even offer this? I doubt that many parking lots will install charging stations. Battery swap in 5 minutes is cool, but wouldn't that make for less than ideal placement in regards to weight distribution or passenger compartment intrusion? It might take all day to get to a station that could swap a pack for you.

7 passengers? Really? I could see it being a 6 passenger, maybe. Is there a third row?

I don't know. It wouldn't make much sense for me to buy one at $49,900 USD. I might save $1000, to $1500 max in fuel per year. I didn't spend that much on my last two cars combined.

The day is coming for electric cars, I suppose. At this point it still isn't an economically sound idea, but rather an eco fashion statement.


NOOOooo.. on a 240V receptical -- the one ur dryer uses. And it's a luxury car -- not a civic. It's meant to compete with the luxury sedans... But they will be making a more affordable car soon.

[notoriousb]

yea but then again the whole purpose of this design is to save money by using electricity therefore this company is aiming this car for the average joe... Plus if you can afford to buy a high end mercedes , bmw i really dont think you are in any need of saving money .... Irs like some rich guy buying a 70 000 $ corvette and then say he can not afford gas ...

Until a company produces a electric car that cost somewhat the same as the mazda , honda and corolla these cars won be big in canada

It's faster than all those cars...

[tkdm3]

As Chester_Lampwick said, I don't think this car will be marketed to "Average Joe". Here's what I'm thinking.

Unless you're willing to pay a premium for the zero emissions, this car isn't for you. At least not today... but as the company starts to make some money off of all the R&D they put into this product, the price will come down as well.

My $0.02.

[Aitch]

Dave Coleman posted an article recently about battery charging technology where he described an impressive breakthrough at MIT. Basically two guys found one of the bottlenecks to electricity when charging a traditional lithium ion battery, and increased the charging efficiency by 36x. Coleman mentions that this type of charging capacity isn't something that the current electricity grid could handle (eg for cars charging at home) but that future "gas" stations could charge up capacitors overnight, and allow you to charge up your car in 10-15 minutes when you're away from your house and need a fast charge.

Its a really good read on the two technologies MIT has recently pioneered which could easily be applied in the next few years. Linky (http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/tabid/59/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/1288/Technobabble-Electric-Cars-and-Turbos-how-MIT-is-Going-to-Save-The-World.aspx).

[notoriousb]

As Chester_Lampwick said, I don't think this car will be marketed to "Average Joe". Here's what I'm thinking.

Unless you're willing to pay a premium for the zero emissions, this car isn't for you. At least not today... but as the company starts to make some money off of all the R&D they put into this product, the price will come down as well.

My $0.02.

What you mean, of course it won't be marketed to the average joe -- it's a luxury sedan (Think BMW 3'series). Why doesn't anyone get this? lol.


It goes faster than all sedans in it's class and it looks better than most of everything beneath it.

[Chester_Lampwick]

Why does everyone think I don't understand it? I do understand their motivations for making a car like this. If they make a car that resembles a Geo Metro, that has a top speed of 70mph, with a 100 mile range, people will have a poor regard of EVs. I understand this, however I think this may be overcompensating to the extreme. Maybe this won't be a car for the masses, but maybe it will be the car that changes attitudes. I hope...

There are still some major engineering hurdles. A car like this may work well in California, but might not work too well up here. I think most batteries have a greatly diminished capacity when cold, for instance.

[Fuman]

I did a research project on this, over the past 2 months.
Pros: Good range per full charge, good looks, good power

Cons:
You can't travel with it at least not long distances (i.e. Going to Quebec City)
ONE forward gear (they had problems with shifting. Too much torque and the transmission ends up breaking)
Engine loses power after 6000 RPM ( at least on the Tesla Roadster, the Dyno chart is on their website)
Hefty Price tag of $50,000.

Additional Future Costs:
Need for new batteries
Charging your car isn't free, cheaper but not free
If the amount of EV vehciles goes up, before Power Stations can keep with demand using clean methods, why not just buy a gas/diesel vehcile?

Unproven characteristics:
reliability.

[Aitch]

Just some friendly observations:

Cons:
You can't travel with it at least not long distances (i.e. Going to Quebec City) Requires new network of fast-charge stations (as I mentioned above)
ONE forward gear (they had problems with shifting. Too much torque and the transmission ends up breaking) I believe Tesla is now upgrading to newer 2-speed transmissions in the Roadster, which were delayed by the reliability problems you mention.
Engine loses power after 6000 RPM ( at least on the Tesla Roadster, the Dyno chart is on their website) True, but the advantage of electric motors is that they are like insane diesels, massive torque down low which really gets them moving. You don't have to rev high and you still beat the crap out of other cars getting up to speed.
Hefty Price tag of $50,000. Not too bad for a luxury electric 4-seater.

[Fuman]

Forgot instant torque in Pros.
To my knowledge, it is still single gear in Model S, not sure about the roadster (google came up with nothing)
Fast charging stations won't be available. There is new technology from MIT that makes it possible, but I don't think Tesla is working with them, at least not yet.

Battery exchange stations might be available, the Model S is designed to be able to swap batteries within 5 minutes.

[Aitch]

True about the fast-charging stations; obviously not much is in the works now but with the work coming out of MIT there is the possibility that they could be designed and built relatively quickly if the market were to change fast enough to drive it.

Essentially the technology is almost available for fast charging, so if new EVs were designed to take advantage of it, it is more likely that market demands would drive a new network of fast-charge stations.

[x_o_k_x]

Looks like Aston Martin very sexy look

[trulankan]

this car looks sexy and 400hp for an all-electric!! i would love to drive this. it has already won motor trend car of the year for 2013 apparently


http://cnettv.cnet.com/cnet-road-tesla-model/9742-1_53-50132356.html

[Aitch]

Threads merged. Search, people. SEARCH.

[trulankan]

Threads merged. Search, people. SEARCH.

i did do a search tho and didnt come up with anything, might have made a typo i guess lol

[proDJtege]

Doing a test drive on the model S tomorrow... Just to see if I like it enough to want to own the upcoming Model 3

[Z00mer]

Doing a test drive on the model S tomorrow... Just to see if I like it enough to want to own the upcoming Model 3

Careful man, ever since I test drove the S and had it part time for work I've been dead set on buying one. Motortrend tested the 0-60 at 3.8 seconds all without launch control or any fancy gizmos, you just put your foot to the floor.

Today the AWD Dual Motor version is getting released (most likely based on leaks) , should being the 0-60 even lower and make it an even more attractive choice.

[Z00mer]

http://i.imgur.com/CNdqUuC.jpg

I can definitely see where you're coming from

[DDUKI]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/15/01/07/06c579a4a0484037a732c9464685cd5e.jpg


Anyone going this? Too bad it's on Friday...

[proDJtege]

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/15/01/07/06c579a4a0484037a732c9464685cd5e.jpg


Anyone going this? Too bad it's on Friday...

Really late reply, but ...

Yea I went to the Collingwood test drive for the MOdel S 90D. It ruined all ICE cars for me. I am now ready to buy a Model 3 or a CPO Model S.