51 ms·
Tesla Roadster
- ukulele 9y ago0-60 in 1.9 seconds is ABSURD
- piinbinary 9y agoI think the range is even more impressive
- perlpimp 9y agoshould come with the warning to consume food or beverages before the test drive.
- robertkrahn01 9y agoWell, maybe afterwards is safer.
- ta33 9y agowow i had to reread that, thought it was kmph.. silly me
- patman81 9y agoWow, that‘s more than 400km/h
- walrus01 9y agothat's a significant challenge from a friction/grip/tire treat compound (and electronic traction control) perspective, no matter what kind of AWD systems is in place...
- frik 9y agoI wonder how a AWD system works, when the Roaster has 3 motors (according to the Tesla live stream today only 3 motors). Why not 4 motors, one for each wheel.
- phantom_package 9y agoand 250mph+ top speed is PLAID
- tempestn 9y agoIt has twice the wheel torque of a Hellcat, but the traction is impressive too. Obviously making good use of that AWD.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- alexanderstears 9y agoIt's darn near the limit of what we can do with current tire technology, don't be surprised if this drops - all we need is a tire that can deal with it. You're right that it's absurd but most sports cars can do 60-0 in about the same amount of time, it's interesting to think about running that acceleration in the oppisite direction.
- benjaminl 9y agoThe Tesla Model S P100D has the exact same 0-60 and 60-0 times. So Tesla has already achieved that, but with a much heavier car.
- robotresearcher 9y agoI can't find better than 2.28 seconds documented. http://www.motortrend.com/cars/tesla/model-s/2017/2017-tesla-model-s-p100d-first-test-review/ http://www.motortrend.com/cars/tesla/model-s/2017/2017-tesla...
- dEnigma 9y agoThe parent just wanted to point out that braking is just as fast as accelerating. They didn't mean to say that the Model S can accelerate as fast as the new Roadster.
- benjaminl 9y agoYes exactly. I was just pointing out that Tesla has already managed to make a car that had acceleration times equal to stopping times. With this purpose built performance car I would expect nothing less. The Model S will of course not match up to the new Roadster. Being traction limited 0-60 is nothing new for high performance sports cars, the difference is that using an electic motors, the power output can be modulated on a millisecond by millisecond basis. So the electric car can live on the ragged edge of traction eeking out every last newton. ICE cars on the other hand use motors that throttle responses that are orders of magnitude greater. Restricting how much the the traction envelope they can use. Which is why their 0-60 and 60-0 times tend to be different.
- cperciva 9y agoTo be precise, 1.44 g. For comparison, a Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket -- without payload -- at takeoff mass has 1.19 g of thrust.
- King-Aaron 9y agoI used to navigate/copilot a 480ci methanol powered jet sprint boat, Group-A class. It would pull just over a G accelerating, and did the 0-100kph sprint in 1.9 seconds. That boat could also do 100kph-to stop-to 180 degree turn - to 100kph the opposite direction in about three seconds. (This is something unique to jetsprint boats, they can pirouette like nothing I've ever experienced). That pulled insane G's, so much so that you needed the HANS device around your neck to stop the weight of your helmet breaking your neck. Imagine having to strap into a HANS device to drive a road car. I want this future.
- avar 9y agoFor those that are unaware, all rockets then rapidly increase their G. For example the Saturn V had 1.20 g at takeoff but climed up to 4-ish: http://www.braeunig.us/apollo/saturnV.htm http://www.braeunig.us/apollo/saturnV.htm Someone on the Saturn V started experiencing more G than the Roadster about a minute into the launch. When you move a building-sized fuel tank under its own thrust it's going to start off slow, but accelerate as more fuel is burned.
- saagarjha 9y agoPlus I'd expect thrust to be kept low until clearing the lower atmosphere so it's not all lost on drag.
- MarkMc 9y agoSo your body experiences 1.44 g horizontal plus 1 g vertical, giving total 1.75 g. Is that right?
- ssijak 9y agoIs today 1. April?
- acchow 9y agoI didn't hear any rumors about this at all. Is Tesla more secretive than Apple?
- shmerl 9y ago> 250mph Metric system, where are you?-)
- mali9 9y agoHow are they going to keep up with production on Roadster when Model 3 production itself is slow and low ?
- tempestn 9y agoIt's $200k, so presumably the volume won't be too high. (Which sadly means it's unlikely to depreciate into my price range any time soon!)
- irq 9y agoEasily. The Roadster will have far fewer customers than the Model 3. They just won't have to build as many. Sure, the Roadster probably takes a bit more labor to build than a Model 3, but probably not by much.
- steego 9y agoAre you asking how they're going to prioritize manufacturing a car with huge margins over the low margin car? I guess we'll never know.
- rkowalick 9y agoAn 8.8 second 1/4 mile is crazy for any car, let alone a stock one.
- gok 9y agoLove it. Perfect showmanship to hype up the truck then announce this. Hope they stay solvent long enough to ship it.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- pilingual 9y agoIt would seem over 200 mph isn't useful, except the Boring company could change that. A private tunnel could enable such leisurely travel for only cars that had level 3+ autonomy safety features.
- coryl 9y agoAt this price point, the target market probably isn't prioritizing for usefulness / raw utility as a purchasing criteria.
- kayoone 9y ago200mph top speed is just a consequence of the base abilities of the car, it does not really matter in practice, but the fact that the car is capable of doing it shows that it is really powerful and very aerodynamic. Besides far away niche uses like tunnels under LA and autonomy, in Germany you could drive 200mph if you find a good stretch in the early morning ;)
- ardit33 9y agoThe Tesla roadster specs are insane! No exotic carmaker will be able to match it (taking price as a consideration). (no Ferrari, or Lambo, can get that close. This is Formula 1 acceleration speeds). Plus 620 miles of range, and it is a 4 seater. Expensive as hell, but this is exotic car territory. Base Specs Acceleration 0-60 mph1.9 sec Acceleration 0-100 mph4.2 sec Acceleration 1/4 mile8.8 sec Top SpeedOver 250 mph Wheel Torque 10,000 Nm Mile Range 620 miles Seating 4 Drive All-Wheel Drive Base Price $200,000 Base Reservation $50,000 Founders Series Price $250,000 Founders Series Reservation (1,000 reservations available)$250,000
- glandium 9y agoI wonder at what speed you get that range. Those specs are in Bugatti Veyron league, even beating it at acceleration (for 1/8 the price tag), but at full speed, the Veyron empties its full tank in... 12 minutes. I'll let you calculate how many miles that is at 250mph.
- taneq 9y agoI seem to recall reading that the Veyron's tyres will disintegrate after 15 minutes at top speed, but that's OK because it only carries fuel for 12 minutes.
- chrisper 9y agoAlso I wonder how many times you can accelerate like that... maybe only once with full charge?
- lathiat 9y agoThe Model S can seemingly do it quite often, Tesla Racing Channel does it quite a bit. You will thermal limit at some point but having twice the battery capacity is probably helping there.
- DennisP 9y agoThe Porsche CEO has been sorta claiming that but it doesn't make sense to me. The kinetic energy of your car at a given speed is the same, regardless of how fast you accelerated to get to that speed. Do batteries waste more energy when you drain them faster? They can't waste a large portion of battery capacity, because the heat from that much energy getting wasted would blow up the car.
- bwang29 9y agoI'm thinking what this means to gas car makers. Wave 1: "It's all about legacy and prestige, not speed/acceleration". Wave 2: "The track handling isn't all that good, how can drivers take that corner at full power without losing traction". Wave 3: "Alright, we will go electric too".
- alexanderstears 9y agoIf this thing has torque vectoring and does a 9 second 1/4 mile, it's going to drop at wave 2. But wave 3 is already here - a lot of smaller companies are talking about making their own electric vehicles. If batteries become commodities, it's going to reduce the R&D cost of making a road legal car by an order of magnitude. We're just waiting on the batteries.
- bonestamp2 9y agoI wonder if GM (or Tesla) will sell crate batteries the way they sell crate engines? Everyone will be drooling over the next big battery they release the way motor heads drool over crate engines. They'll need a reasonably standard size/configuration to be successful, and they could sell the motor, power management and PCM to go with it.
- kmonsen 9y agoGM doesn't make batteries, the Bolt is almost a LG car.
- makomk 9y agoGM make batteries in much the same sense that Tesla do - the cells are bought in from LG, but the battery engineering, testing and integration work is done in-house. (Maybe even more so than Tesla's given their explanation for the Model 3 delay.) I believe the motor is simply bought in from LG though.
- alexanderstears 9y agoThey could, but they're functionally middlemen for Panasonic, LG, and Samsung (which are the 3 big EV battery manufacturers). I'm tangentially involved with hot rodders, and a lot of them have spent some time thinking about adding some amount of electrification to their vehicles. Hot rods usually have thermal management problems for their engines and they run the risk of overheating when they're crusing around car shows / parades. Some folks think a small electric motor and battery would be a good way for them to drive short distances slowly and save the engine for higher torque demands.
- beedogs 9y ago$250k and it looks like a Nissan Z. Honestly, the old model roadster looked much more distinctive.
- simonbarker87 9y agoThat’s because the old one was a Lotus body and they have a very disinctive look - this look is more inline with Tesla style.
- pasta 9y agoDistinctive like a Lotus?
- samhunta 9y agoLooks nothing like a Nissan Z in my opinion.
- johnwheeler 9y ago0-60 in less than 2 seconds. that’s insane.
- Animats 9y agoDoes this mean that Tesla is pivoting from their attempt to produce a medium-priced car in quantity and going back to hand-building high-end cars? Tesla is good at high-end, low volume products. But the Model 3 production fiasco shows they don't know how to do what Detroit and Wolfsburg and Toyota City do. This is in a way a step backwards. Tesla is going back to targeting the 1%. There are lots of little supercar companies. It's not that hard to build an electric supercar in tiny volume. I know some people who've done it. It's fun, and there are idiots with too much money who'll buy the thing. But it's a waste of engineering talent which should be getting the volume product out the door.
- audunw 9y ago> But the Model 3 production fiasco shows they don't know how to do what Detroit and Wolfsburg and Toyota City do. What fiasco? It was obvious from the start that their schedule was wildly optimistic. But that's probably just Elons way of pushing workers as hard as possible. It's way too early to call the Model 3 a success or failure. Of course it takes a few months to ramp up and stabilize production. It's their first truly mass produced car, and there's a lot of differences from their previous model. Not to mention that they're using a brand new battery. Let's wait a year to call the Model 3.
- simonh 9y agoIf it's that obvious, how come Tesla didn't know that? Contending that Tesla is incapable of comprehending basic, obvious facts isn't a great way to promote confidence in the company.
- simonh 9y agoIf it's that obvious, how come Tesla didn't know that? Contending that Tesla is incapable of comprehending basic, obvious facts isn't a great way to promote confidence in the company. We're a long way from fiasco territory, sure, but it's also pretty clear Tesla are still quite a way off from getting their production process under control.
- 9y ago
- wybiral 9y ago"quickest car in the world" is an interesting choice of word. Is that to stand out from the slogan tropes like "fastest car in the world" / "fastest in its class"?
- azhenley 9y agoI think they are getting at a subtlety between being fast (speed) and being quick (acceleration).
- delish 9y ago“Quickest” in auto-journalism typically refers to acceleration. So 0-60. “Fastest” typically refers to top speed. So e.g. 250mph.
- wybiral 9y agoThanks. I didn't know that distinction.
- noodlenoises 9y agofast--top speed. quick--acceleration. Bugatti probably has them beaten on top speed. This roadster doesnt look very stable at 200+ mph with its short wheelbase.
- jsight 9y agoI would really love to know how they are getting such a large battery capacity in a vehicle of this size. Is this a generational leap in energy density? What kind of materials are being used here?
- greglindahl 9y agoDouble-thick battery? The current battery is one level deep and is pretty thin.
- jsight 9y agoThis car is smaller than a Model 3, though, and the 3 can only fit <80kwh.
- thebluehawk 9y agoMy brother pointed out that other Tesla cars (even the semi they announced) have a "front trunk". This one's hood is seamless. Our theory is that under the entire front hood is batteries.
- kbd 9y agoMakes sense to help weigh down the front too (so as not to go airborne while doing 0-60 in 1.9s).
- kijin 9y agoI wonder what happens when one of these cars crashes head-on into something. The front of a car is supposed to act as a crumple zone. Batteries aren't very good at crumpling.
- ygra 9y agoNeither are internal combustion engines. What crumples are structural supports, not all the components within. And if they go that route I guess they'll go with slightly different battery chemistry as well to avoid a fire. They might have to do so anyway to sustain power output.
- evanlivingston 9y agosolving the world's important problems.
- danappelxx 9y agoSorry, 10,000 nm of torque? This can't be real. edit: misunderstood
- oppositelock 9y agoThat's wheel torque, not engine torque. Existing high power cars, like the Hellcat, exceed that number, at least in first gear. Hellcat makes 10875 Nm (8021 ft-lb). That's 650 engine torque at peak, * 4.71:1 first gear ratio * 2.62:1 rear axle ratio. Of course, electric engines have much flatter torque curve, so they'll be at torque peak all the time until they exceed pack wattage limts.
- danappelxx 9y agoAhh, that makes more sense, then. Thanks for clarifying!
- TadasPaplauskas 9y agoWheel torque is not the same thing as engine torque. I'm pretty sure the confusion is intentional, since it's the first time I see wheel torque advertised for any car.
- benjaminl 9y agoI always wondered why engine torque was put on the spec sheet. Since geering can turn that engine torque into any number you want at the wheels. Wheel torque seems much more relevant.
- travisjungroth 9y agoWheel torque isn’t really that important since you don’t know what speed it’s being delivered at. The only thing that really matters is horsepower since you can gear for torque and you can assume the engineers did a decent job with the transmission. That being said, peak torque is a good indicator of low rpm horsepower on internal combustion engines. Low rpm horsepower is good for sustainable work (like towing) or street power.
- gt2 9y agoOff topic, but really nice website.
- nodesocket 9y ago200K is actually good value, seeing as gas supercars that are near it in terms of performance (except slower) often cost over $1M. EDIT: Tesla probably should fix their homepage going to a what appears to be the live stream page. I'd have to imagine they are losing valuable pageviews and sales. Tesla.com should be redirecting to either the Semi or Roadster landing pages. Screenshot: https://imgur.com/a/L9oN5 https://imgur.com/a/L9oN5
- lafar6502 9y agoI dunno. check the value of previous model of tesla roadsters and if their owners want to keep them
- Sohcahtoa82 9y agoYes, we should totally judge the next gen Roadster based on the first gen one. Ignore the advancements in battery tech and other lessons Tesla has learned in the nearly 10 years since the first Roadster.
- lafar6502 9y agoThey haven’t learned how to produce cars, that’s sure. And judging by the past, your car will become outdated and obsolete in 5 years.
- gersh 9y agoAre they selling the reservations now? Is this about getting more cash to keep funding their operations?
- azifali 9y agoThe specs are insane but it would be better if Tesla focuses on getting its mass market car out in the market, in the hands of consumers.
- sxates 9y agoTaking reservations for 1000 founder series cars at $250k each up front means they're pre-selling $250,000,000 worth of product at least 2 years out. Kind of smart.
- lost953 9y agoThis feels like slide ware to me, and I know Tesla has achieved its goals in the past, but color me at least a little skeptical.
- sergers 9y agoI'm a Tesla skeptic for model 3 success, but this is badass. If I was in the market for a car that I couldn't take advantage of driving legally, and had 200k laying around, would definitely buy lol
- hw 9y agoWould ludicrous mode for the roadster go 0-60 in 1 second? the 620 mile range is super impressive. How??? Or is it just that the roadster is super light?
- jabretti 9y agoYou'd think that the ability for the wheels to deliver power to the ground has to be the limiting factor at some point.
- travisjungroth 9y agoMost sports cars are at that point at low speeds and either need a skillful foot or an electronic system to prevent burning out. A 1.9 second 0-60 is pretty much the limit on street tires (and requires AWD). Someone will take it even further by putting drag slicks on there.
- grkvlt 9y agoThe statement from Elon Musk at the car's announcement was 'Has anyone here watched Spaceballs? What's faster than Ludicrous? That's right, Plaid!' So in the Roadster, there is a 'Plaid' mode which enables the 0-60 in 1.8s acceleration, accompanied by suitable graphics on the 17" screen ;)
- dmode 9y agoBold prediction: if they manage to produce a battery capable of 620 mile range promised, it will essentially be game over for ICE cars. My bet is that next generation of Model S and X will easily be in the 400-500 mile rsnge.
- chrismcb 9y agoWhen the battery can be refilled in minutes, it will be game over. Until then...
- thebluehawk 9y agoAs a Tesla Model S owner, you really don't need to fill your car in minutes. It's a totally different (but not bad) mindset. Every morning my car is full, because I plug it in in my garage. So if I don't go more than 260 miles that day, it's plugged in the next night. It doesn't matter that it takes a few hours. My gas car was just sitting in the garage each night anyway doing nothing. How many hours does your car sit idle per day? Probably way more than enough to charge it for your daily driving. For road trips, there are super chargers. I was a bit worried, after hearing all the fuss about range anxiety and all that. Overall, charging has just been such a non issue.
- erik_seaberg 9y agoI've never had a private garage, much less a locked one I could rewire. If Tesla wants to go mainstream they need to handle apartment parking.
- BHSPitMonkey 9y agoMy apartment offers EV charging parking spaces, though they cost a bit more than the others. I don't think this is a terribly new or radical concept.
- tazjin 9y agoHere in Norway it's common for apartment buildings that have parking spots to have electric chargers outside and that seems to be working fine.
- csomar 9y ago0-60 in 1.9s for $200k that is affordable by a good range of people. I can see disasters happening with this car as young dudes lose control when they accelerate. There has to be some serious A.I to prevent this.
- travisjungroth 9y agoThat has been an issue with sports car since they came into existence. I imagine AWD and TCS will make this much more controllable than most.
- largote 9y agoYou don't use AI for that, you use a bunch of sensors and adaptive power or braking vectoring. Calling some heuristics "AI" is a massive stretch.
- alkonaut 9y agoIt could use some image recognition perhaps. "Detected male driver 18-25".
- speeq 9y agoClose up video of Tesla Roadster launching from zero: https://twitter.com/DavidHodge/status/931391188065705984 https://twitter.com/DavidHodge/status/931391188065705984
- shash7 9y agoThat's some unreal level of acceleration. Never seen anything like it.
- rippsu 9y agoelectric dragster 0-100 in 1s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LQXB1DX-2Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LQXB1DX-2Q
- ioulian 9y agoWow, the shape change in the tires is crazy, didn't know that the effect is so big.
- hyperpallium 9y ago> 3000ftlbs torque off the line, equaling zero to 60 miles per hour in 1.0 second flat
- lathiat 9y agoSomething that really impressed me is how smoothly the Model S launches in the Wet, see here: https://youtu.be/iyXSJAICaBc?t=210 https://youtu.be/iyXSJAICaBc?t=210 [Real Time @ 3m30s] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNzLTW_l2q0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNzLTW_l2q0 [Slow Motion] Elon talked during some event how the latency / response time of the torque control in the Tesla drive-train is ridiculous compared to gasoline and for that reason even RWD models should handle well in the snow. To be fair, some people talk about the (at least older) RWD models being a bit crazy on Snow/Ice. I can only assume that the newer models are much better and the Roadster likely better again - plus it's actually AWD but anyway the point was more about the torque control :) By comparison one of the kings of Launch Control is well known to be the Nissan GT-R. You can see in this wet launch that while it still does a great job, it definitely has some spin as it basically intentionally causes a loss of traction at the start, calculates the traction available based on the acceleration it does get to then adjust the power output and differential splits. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTJGE0wzJpE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTJGE0wzJpE For other really fun scientific/computerised stability control, this video about the Koenigsegg Agera R is great: https://youtu.be/SywqgH7n-5g?t=34 https://youtu.be/SywqgH7n-5g?t=34 It shows him literally reefing the wheel side to side at 1m15s while full throttle. Even my 2009 Evo X has surprisingly good stability management in the wet - and it is now probably nearly 2 decades old technology behind any of these other cars and only a 50k car not a 200k-1m car. Still crazy and computers are amazing.
- hu3 9y ago0-60 mph in 1.9 sec This might sound really stupid. But isn't performing such acceleration on a daily basis close to the limit of harming one's health? I mean micro concussions for example. Really curious because that acceleration is amazing!
- Blazespinnaker 9y agoYou'd probably go through tires before you'd hurt yourself.
- smitherfield 9y ago>But isn't performing such acceleration on a daily basis close to the limit of harming one's health? Yes, and also the health of nearby drivers, bystanders and inanimate objects.
- shaneos 9y agoYes, that's a real problem. I took my Model S P85D to the track (fun, but felt really heavy in corners) and had a concussion for 3 weeks afterwards. And that was just Insane mode, not even Ludicrous. The Roadster should come with a health advisory
- rifung 9y ago> had a concussion for 3 weeks afterwards Should this be "a concussion with symptoms which lasted 3 weeks afterwards"? I thought a concussion was the traumatic injury itself. Either way I hope you are ok!
- Devthrowaway80 9y agoF1 cars accelerate faster than the Roadster's advertised numbers and the drivers don't wander around constantly concussed. I am curious how you managed to get a concussion in a heavy sedan that can only maintain 0.87g of lateral grip. Were you in a collision?
- tomseldon 9y agoSimilar acceleration figures to a litre sportsbike (though the new Roadster takes it to a faster level again, but still in the same ballpark). The acceleration is mind-bendingly fast at first, but after a while, you get used to it and it just feels kind of normal. I can't imagine the new Tesla being any different. Not to play down the achievement at all, those stats are amazing! But highly doubt there's a health risk associated with some mild longitudinal G forces, assuming you're in otherwise good health.
- staunch 9y agoApple needs to buy Tesla and run it better than Elon Musk can right now. He's overloaded himself with responsibilities. Apple could do a lot of good by applying their skills to such an important problem. And Tesla's have been called "laptops on wheels" which has some truth it. They have the money, people, and management skill to do it well. Tesla has the industry lead that Apple needs to get in the race. First thing Tim Cook would do is cancel the semi project, I'd guess. But maybe not.
- nodesocket 9y agoI'd say Elon is doing just fine. The semi business long term could be a game changer that propels Tesla beyond a car company. Think fleets, partnerships with FedEX, UPS, DHL, long haul companies, van lines moving companies, Amazon deliveries. Lot's of very lucrative business opportunities. Also, the pickup truck market in the United States is huge, Tesla is getting into that as well.
- doug3465 9y ago> First thing Tim Cook would do is cancel the semi project, I'd guess. Why?
- johansch 9y agoIt's too utilitarian and not aspirational enough.
- gear54rus 9y agoAnything but apple, that would be the worst that can happen. I hope they don't teach Tesla with their closed consumer enslaving "tech"
- telltruth 9y agoYeah, and the first thing Jonny Ivy would do is make car more thinner and beautiful while completely screwing up battery life and usability. No thanks. If it was in my hand I will take iPhone out of Apple (or wherever Ivy is employed) and give to Musk instead.
- tdiggity 9y agoI wonder what the handling will be like. Teslas on the track have had over heating issues, and cornering performance has been just average at best. Not every exotic car owner (Ferrari, Lambo, Mclaren) brings their car to the track, but I feel like a good % do. When you own a 200k car, you don't drive it to the grocery store because it attracts too much attention, and you worry something bad will happen to it. Edit: For more clarification on the grocery getter comment: As an owner of an older exotic car, I've seen that most do not drive their exotics that much. 1-5k miles max/year. The cheapest insurance policies won't let you drive it to any public parking lots. And policies from the normal companies will cost $3-8k in large metropolitan areas for 40-50 year olds. So where do you go? You make excuses to drive it. Cruise to a friends house, drive in the mountains, or to the track if you have time. Daily errands are for your other car. Why risk it. Elon's a pretty good showman, and he makes me feel like I could do anything with this car! But, alas, 200k, I want it to be perfect forever. Even used in 5 years @ 130-150k.
- smitherfield 9y ago> But, alas, 200k, I want it to be perfect forever. Even used in 5 years @ 130-150k. The good/bad thing about electric cars is that they're sort of like computers right now (they're getting twice as good every 1-2 years), so I expect they'll depreciate more along the lines of used smartphones than (the existing market in) used cars.
- Already__Taken 9y agoSomething like this I bet the value evaporates just like the manufacture warranty on the battery.
- tomcam 9y agoWhat would be even cooler is if they could build the cars they’ve already taken money for, and service the ones they have already sold.
- fivesigma 9y ago3 motors. Some kind of torque vectoring deal in the rear wheels? Like the Electric AMG SLS.
- robotresearcher 9y agoMusk says so, yes.
- DenverR 9y agoThey clearly learned the power of the preorder with the Model 3! This is a great way to raise funding without going back to the equity markets. Say they can fill up all the founder series slots along with 5,000 regular slots, that’s $500,000,000. Smart :)
- scott_karana 9y agoThe S and the original Roadster had highly publicized pre-orders too... nothing new for them. ;)
- wintermute2001 9y agoAm I the only one who's worried that Tesla is really starting to bite off more than they can chew? Right now their finances are a mess, they are publicly struggling to produce their most important car ever, their CEO is spending time figuring out how to dig holes underneath LA...and now they're announcing a semi truck and a roaster in the same day? Don't get me wrong, Teslas are incredible cars. But this seems like an overreach considering they are struggling to figure out how to meet demand on the Model 3. It's also insane to announce this car with what boils down to a bunch of CGI! These are some very bold announcements and there isn't much explanation for how these goals will be met. I hope this all turns out as advertised, but I'm very skeptical.
- tdiggity 9y agoFounder series limited to 1000 requires full deposit, that's $250 mil Base model requires $45k deposit. Not sure what semi requirements are. Even if they are biting off more than they can chew, they can gauge reaction and devote more/less to this. I'm thinking that these ventures give their engineers a space to get really creative and push the envelope. And, these advancements make their way into the mainstream models.
- aerophilic 9y agoI think that may be the core point of why they are doing this. They are in a cash crunch, if they get enough deposits it can certainly help their bottom line... without dilution.
- doikor 9y agoDeveloping a car like to a car to that state (drivable at the event) will have taken 2 or 3 years already so I doubt it originally started as a fix for cash flow.
- aerophilic 9y agoAgreed, but I would be surprised if that didn’t play into the math. One of Elon’s greatest strengths is to think ahead strategically and position himself for maximum upside towards his goals. So yes, I am sure he didn’t think he would need this to help with Model 3, but I am sure he knew he would need more cash on hand to make another “big bet”. Unfortunately it looks like this cash will go to current projects rather than a brand new initiative. Unless of course this was to help with Tesla Semi...
- urda 9y agoTesla can barely ship the Model 3, and now they're adding yet another consumer vehicle to the lineup? Tesla's vision is completely scattered. I have little faith in them at this time since they can't deliver the "economy" Model 3, but now suddenly have the bandwidth to develop, engineer, ship, and maintain yet another car? Tesla, ship the Model 3 at scale and then we'll talk.
- jsolson 9y agoThat was my initial reaction, but it leads to a question: do you stop doing R&D (and shed talent as a result) because production in another part of the company is blocked by some (hopefully transient) supply chain issue?
- urda 9y agoPreface: I don't have any stake in Tesla's success or products. If I was a consumer sitting on a Model 3 reservation I would be pissed that they are taking yet more money for yet another car they can't seem to ship at scale. This makes Tesla look like they care little, because after all they already have your Model 3 money.
- ktta 9y ago>If I was a consumer sitting on a Model 3 reservation I would be pissed that they are taking yet more money for yet another car they can't seem to ship at scale. I mean, by the same reasoning, Model S owners should be pissed, Model X owners should be pissed too. But the money from both seems to have made Model 3 possible.
- urda 9y agoTrue I haven't even touched on them either! Tesla has yet to prove they can build cars at scale, they are nothing compared to current auto manufacturers. I think they are biting off more than they can chew.
- 9y ago
- kibwen 9y ago> 0-60 MPH in 1.9 seconds For comparison, a top fuel dragster does 0-60 in 0.5 seconds.
- robotresearcher 9y agoAnd then needs its engine rebuilt. Also, the tires are lit on fire before launch...
- jxramos 9y agoI was wondering recently what happened to all the first generation roadsters? I used to see them frequently enough but they've been hiding from the road a long time it feels.
- microtheo 9y agoThose acceleration figures are meaningless. The Chiron isn't the best car on a circuit for example. I would be interested to see this car compete against say a gt3 on a track like Nürburgring :)
- StavrosK 9y agoCircuit performance is meaningless. I'd like to see the gt3 accelerate to 100km/h under 2" for example :)
- microtheo 9y agoI mean what's interesting is handling, behavior in curves, power consistency, steering accuracy. Weight could be a drawback. Acceleration isn't the only metrics. Those are some reasons Porsche is considered to be making good cars.
- greglindahl 9y agoDrag racing is meaningless? I totally get that you might not personally like it, but meaningless?
- ConsumerLed 9y agoRolling acceleration and track handling are more important than Drag racing. Bit fed up of 0-60 times being such an important feature. 50-70 more important, handling a bit more important again. And of course for most people build quality, running costs and environmental credentials.
- largote 9y agoStill to see if it can do it over and over again like the sports cars it's billed to compete against.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- anonytrary 9y agoThis is half the top speed of a plane. Insane.
- Robotbeat 9y agoHigher top speed than a Cessna.
- zabana 9y agoThat front-end tho
- gigatexal 9y agoWant! Man. This is so cool!
- nepotism2018 9y agoI'm hoping they actually tested that 250mph+...I'm no expert but that car looks bit too light and short to do that speed...can't see how it will stick to the road...unlessssss...they want it to fly away :)
- lwansbrough 9y agoThe battery probably has some good weight to it.
- puranjay 9y agoI'm no engineer, but if you generate enough lift with some add-on wings, will this thing go airborn?
- mnw21cam 9y agoMostly, you want to generate a load of lift downwards to keep the thing attached to the ground. But to answer your question, if you define "enough" as "enough to make it go airborne", then yes. You would then have to be very careful to make sure it is actually stable in the air, or the results could be very non-pretty. And then you also have the problem of keeping it going fast in the air, when previously your only forwards force was provided by the wheel contact with the ground.
- _pmf_ 9y agoI wonder how long the trick of masking problems with announcements will work.
- Beltiras 9y agoI don't need to live in a house when I have a car like this do I? Think the wife will buy that argument for selling the house and buying this car?
- convery 9y agoI'm curious about the claim that it fits 4. Because my friend has a late 90's firebird that while having 4 seats, it's clearly made for children / teens. So any information if the backseats in this model is made for adults?
- ZeroGravitas 9y agoHe was relatively clear that it will be 2+2 rather than four full size seats: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2%2B2_(car_body_style) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2%2B2_(car_body_style) So, it'll be cramped back there for larger adults.
- the_rosentotter 9y agoThere has got to be an astroturfing campaign going on here, or the HN crowd is a lot more naive than I thought. Seriously, no one is concerned that Tesla is announcing, not one, but two new products, while they are failing to deliver on all three they are currently producing (in terms of production ramp-up)? What matters more than anything to Tesla is production at scale, but they are busy promising ever more fantastic new products that will distract even more from hitting core goals. Every announcement from Tesla seems more like flimflam at this point, hardly better than an ICO (with preordering and everything). That's not even getting into Elon Musk's ever expanding personal commitments with Tesla, SpaceX, Boring company, Solar City and what have you, each making bold new announcements every other week, like saving Puerto Rico (and Australia too, while we're at it).
- kamaal 9y agoI guess that is the genius of Elon Musk. He has already failed once, was bankrupt and almost broke. And struggled to make rents and has climbed out of it. Failure doesn't mean much for people like this, they win a lot of things along the way even if they fail.
- AndrewDucker 9y agoTesla seem to be doing ok in Puerto Rico: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/tesla-puerto-rico-electricity-childrens-hospital-san-juan-solar-power-restored-elon-musk-project-a8021716.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/tesla-puert... Australia work is 80% complete: http://reneweconomy.com.au/musk-says-tesla-big-battery-now-80-complete-20896/ http://reneweconomy.com.au/musk-says-tesla-big-battery-now-8... There are definitely issues with the Model 3 - but I'd imagine that the production line for the Semi will ramp up significantly after the Model 3 is working, and will involve an entirely separate team. https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2017/11/teslas-hell-threatens-its-future/ https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2017/11/teslas-hell-threatens-its...
- monk_e_boy 9y agoExactly. I've working in a few places that when product slips management panic and throw more bodies at it. Then the team swells with sales people, admin assistants, shop floor dudes... and none of them have a clue what is going on or what to do to help. All while management is shouting and the project is slipping more. Better to let the team crack on and fix all the issues. Pay them well.
- erikb 9y agoWhy are they introducing a new car? Have they solved the model 3 deployment problems already?
- Gravityloss 9y agoAnybody know why Tesla didn't solve model 3 production scaling issues by subcontracting to someone who could do a "running start"? I would imagine a large portion of the car is relatively standard, being made of steel, mass produced components etc.
- Robotbeat 9y agoBecause Tesla's real value is production scaling innovation itself.
- macns 9y agoI'd like to see this kind of battery tech on a lowest-end, lowest-cost mass production car with a 2-3k mile range on a single overnight charge. For my usage in the city, this would mean I'd charge every other week. How far are we from such a feat I wonder, and, can't help but speculate as to why we're not.
- petsagouris 9y agoNo rear view mirrors ?
- ZeroGravitas 9y agoTesla has been trying to get laws changed to allow them to replace side mirrors with cameras, as it's a major pain point for aerodynamics.
- ccozan 9y agoAll nice and good. We see the EV revolution in front of our eyes. But nobody speaks about the EV infrastructure.
- zerostar07 9y agoAt least for the roadster, it doesnt seem to matter that much. The people who will buy this will do it for the flashy logo and the ridiculous (And dangerous) speed of course.
- ccozan 9y agoTrue. But the revolution is simply the battery. They claim ~1000km on one charge. This is impressive and might do something about the missing infratructure.
- Robotbeat 9y agoTesla also announced the semi truck "Megacharger." 400 mile range (at less than 2kWh/mile) in 30 minutes. That's about 1.5MW. One and a half Megawatts. Made feasible by using a Tesla stationary battery to buffer the load to the grid and/or solar panels. And a flat 7 cents per kilowatt-hour.
- jesusthatsgreat 9y agoWhy is it that concept car designers insist on not adding wing mirrors or else tiny little stalks that are significantly smaller than production wing mirrors? Every damn time...
- JohnGB 9y agoIn this case, it's probably due to aerodynamic considerations.
- averagewall 9y agoOh no, they're doing what all the other carmakers do and reuse the same name for completely different cars whose only thing in common is to target the same market segment. We'll have to call this the 2020 Roadster.
- romanovcode 9y agoWow, 200k for a car is pretty expensive.
- oblio 9y agoThe cars this model competes with are at least as expensive, if not more.
- romanovcode 9y agoGotta be honest here, if I would won a lottery to pick a car for 200k I would choose between Porche GT, Mercedes AMG or BMW M3 any day over this tesla.
- dEnigma 9y agoThe Bugatti Chiron they used as a direct comparison in the unveil costs 2,7 Mio USD.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- gargravarr 9y agoThe specs are astonishing, and I believe they can deliver. The original Roadster is the iconic car that made electric vehicles cool. Would be nice if they could get production of the Model 3 properly ramped up so us peasants who've been drooling over performance electric cars since before we had our driver's licenses can actually get our hands on them...
- hsnewman 9y agoIn my humble opinion, the 1st roadster was much, much better looking.
- badloginagain 9y agoAt what speed/acceleration can you put wings on the thing and be able to fly? I wouldn't put it past Elon for his master plan to include flying cars.
- mschaef 9y agoIt'll be interesting to see if they can keep the battery power output up for a sustained length of time. Acceleration numbers are all well and good, but racetrack performance is about sustained high-load operation, and Tesla has had some trouble there: http://www.thedrive.com/news/5207/this-video-reminds-us-that-the-tesla-model-s-is-an-awful-track-car http://www.thedrive.com/news/5207/this-video-reminds-us-that... https://insideevs.com/expected-tesla-model-s-fails-lap-nurburgring-full-power-video/ https://insideevs.com/expected-tesla-model-s-fails-lap-nurbu... Then again, how many people actually care? I don't think they'll have trouble finding buyers.
- crispyambulance 9y ago> Then again, how many people actually care? I don't think they'll have trouble finding buyers. You're right, the actual performance doesn't matter for the buyers of such cars. All supercars are playthings for folks with money burning holes in their pockets. Pure luxury, thrill and ostentation. The vast majority of these cars will be slogging it out in mind-numbing stop-and-go traffic just like the rest of us. Sure, there may be an occasional opportunity to make a dramatic passing maneuver on a pristine highway against a driver that doesn't think he's racing-- big whoop.
- jfoster 9y agoI don't see autopilot or any sort of autonomy mentioned for the new Roadster. That sort of makes sense, but I'm also a bit disappointed about it.
- grkvlt 9y agoToday, the fastest lap time of the Nurburgring by an electric car was set by a Tesla Roadster driving itself round the track in 8m30s. The autopilot software developers are said to be 'very proud' of the achievement.
- RickJWagner 9y agoHmmmmm. Tesla seems on the edge of imploding, financially. Then they announce this. (With reservations starting at $200k.) I wouldn't put retirement money on that one.
- jsoltren 9y agoNo side view mirrors! That helps tremendously with aerodynamics. I wonder if they used cameras and displays. Even the new Ford GT has mirrors.
- jabretti 9y agoLet's see if that makes it from prototype to production, though; if you could meet the legal requirements with cameras and displays I think someone else would have done it by now. Concept cars often lack mirrors, or have ridiculously small mirrors that wouldn't be legal. Apparently car designers really just don't like adding them.
- ascari 9y agoElectric motors are absolutely better compared to combastion engines. But Guys, please don't compare apple to oranges. Tesla is no match to Ferrari nor McLaren. Ferrari's main intention is to build a car that has a good cornering on track. 0-60 is for muscle cars which you can compare to SRT Demon. All these Bugattis, Koenigseggs are a bunch of unsteerable rockets on tracks. Last but not least you know how Koenigsegg ended up in Nordschleife.
- bigboy678 9y agoWhile the specs of this car are no doubt impressive i wouldnt say no one can compete with them. Porsche is/has been working on a high end electric car for quite a bit and they have specifically said they would challenge Tesla with it. Porsche also is someone who knows how to build high end cars and with their racing heritage i wouldnt be suprised if in 2020 they take some wind out of Teslas sail
- bigboy678 9y agoWhile this cars specs are no doubt impressive I wouldnt say no one will be able to challenge them. Porsche has been working on a high end electric car for a while and they specifically said they would challenge Tesla. Porsche can build some nice high end cars, and with their racing/electric technology i wouldnt be surprised if in 2020 they take some wind out of teslas sail
- dalbasal 9y agoI guess that kind of language is always going to represent some hyperbole. People like porsches. That said, the stats posted here are faster than any car you can currently buy. Porsche have a very fast supercar at the top of that list now, but it's not as fast as this roadster (again based on the table in this link) and costs 3-4 times as much. The kind of cars that approach the performance suggested here are generally very expensive, very low volume "Sheikh" cars. Tesla is claiming that they beat all of them, for a lot cheaper. If so... I wouldn't want to be a Porsche dealer in 2021
- agumonkey 9y agoSo basically Musk unveils future products of lesser demand but probably higher profit so he can raise Tesla stock value a bit and also grab some preorder cash flow and help Model 3 while it's stuttering ?
- mcs_ 9y ago0-60 1.9 Why is this still a thing?
- bearbearbear 9y agoI really want people to knock it off with the low effort titles on HN.
- Unklejoe 9y agoHas the 8 second quarter mile been confirmed to be done in stock trim (i.e., no special tires or other modifications)? The reason I ask is because that is EXTREMELY impressive. I tune EFI systems on race cars as a hobby, and any car in the 8 second range usually needs to run slicks or drag radials to have enough traction. Even all wheel drive cars (GTRs, DSMs, EVOs, etc.) usually run 4 slicks once they get to that speed. It seems very hard to make a pass like that on regular street tires, even with AWD. EDIT: To add, I'm not knocking Tesla here, as there are very few cars that can actually run an 8 second pass off the showroom floor without any modifications at all. Even if they had to put slicks on the car to reach that time, that still puts it on par with 1000 HP dedicated drag cars.
- Florin_Andrei 9y ago> I tune EFI systems on race cars as a hobby, and any car in the 8 second range usually needs to run slicks or drag radials to have enough traction. Right, but you're comparing what is ultimately powered by the good old Karl Benz design from the 1880s, burning dinosaur juice, that has zero torque at zero RPM, needs to shift gears multiple times, and is about as responsive to control inputs as a cow munching on marijuana leaves - with a very different thing powered by something that has maximum torque at any RPM, has no gears, and responds to control inputs extremely quickly and with immense precision.
- rthomas6 9y agoEven if the difference was that drastic, none of that accounts for the fact that tires only have so much friction.
- Florin_Andrei 9y agoYeah. Nobody claimed that magic was at work here. Current tire technology has certain limits imposed by physics. But I suspect electric cars can get quite a bit closer to those limits, with a much faster traction control loop.
- Unklejoe 9y ago
- maxxxxx 9y agoThis doesn't really makes sense as a sports car if you want to do anything but go straight. If they had wanted good handling they should have gone for half the range and saved the weight.
- ender89 9y agoPutting a license plate on that would be like putting braces on the mona lisa.
- evo_9 9y agoGreat another car for the super wealthy. I thought Tesla's mission was to take on the GM's and Toyota's of the world. I'd personally be more excited if they announced an affordable Tesla SUV.
- zionic 9y agoOh wow, I had no idea a company Tesla's size can only focus on one thing at a time! Meanwhile in reality they're ramping their most affordable car ever.
- amelius 9y ago4 seats, but somehow I doubt it has more legspace than the average budget airliner.
- api 9y agoWell here's my "exit event" car, should such a thing ever happen. :)
- yoda_sl 9y agoStumble on this video from last night where a few lucky invitees could feel the experience of riding in the new Roadster. https://youtu.be/C6nN-GlghAc https://youtu.be/C6nN-GlghAc
- gist 9y agoMultiple Porsche owner here. The acceleration on the Roadster is great obviously, however the sound of a car (or in this case lack of it) is definitely a factor in the experience.
- namlem 9y agoTesla should make a Formula E car. Clearly they have the tech.
- grkvlt 9y agoIt's interesting that people are so quick to dismiss this as merely a rendering, with the videos being CGI. Is that because the videos are 'too good' perhaps, or it just looks too much like a racing game car on the X-box? You'd have to deliberately ignore the fact that there were real cars presented at the announcement, for instance. Also interesting is that because the acceleration is so fast, there were accusations of the video being sped up at that point - people couldn't believe it was real. Are HN readers getting more skeptical of TSLA because of its recent financial and production issues, and this is showing in the cynical comments here?
- bllguo 9y agoOh please. I should hope that people aren't so intoxicated on the Kool-Aid that when Tesla claims the Roadster outperforms the fastest production cars in the world, people want to dig deeper. You're seriously implying that blindly accepting what they say is better?
- grkvlt 9y agoNo, no - it's just the 'only exists in CGI' I have an issue with, since people are arguing against factual evidence. But, this is a prototype, so of course I expect the performance figures are going to change, and speculation about that aspect is par for the course and I have no problem with that.
- bllguo 9y agoAh, fair enough. Apologies for an unintentionally hostile tone.
- dmcginty 9y agoI'd really like to see a clearer shot of the steering wheel (steering device?) I'm curious why they decided to go with something that looks more like a plane's yoke than a normal wheel. Is this something that's common with supercars?
- pwaai 9y ago1.9 seconds That's what caught my attention the most. This is unheard of in a production car. I'm also generally very excited that Lamborghini is also experimenting with electric power. We might be entering a new breed of electric supercars. the 3 second line used to be the gold standard but it seems like electric cars are aiming for sub 1.5 second range....that is insane acceleration.
- DKnoll 9y agoThe production Dodge Demon can do 0-60 in 2.1-2.3s. Good, yes, but not unheard of.
- dsfyu404ed 9y agoA lot of people seem to have an electric car fetish that is blinding them to the amount of work that went into the chassis and suspension design which is the real achievement here. If you have 1000hp available at any speed not going at least reasonably fast would be an achievement. Putting 1000hp to the ground at really low wheel speeds in a semi-production ready (let's not kid ourselves, nobody is going to be sending a $200k+ car off the line in high volumes) chassis is the interesting thing here.
- lafar6502 9y agoHey, how do you call a guy who takes people money for future orders without delivering on the ones already taken?
- Hurtak 9y agoAre people just not testing their websites on non Apple devices or why are there 2 vertical scrollbars next to each other?
- kwhitefoot 9y agoBut you have to get out of the car and remove the roof to use it as a convertible. Then I think I'd stick with a BMW 438i convertible which takes the entire roof down at the push of a button in about 20 seconds. Driving isn't all about acceleration.
- scott_karana 9y agoModern Corvettes, and classic Porsche 911 Targas all have similar roofs. They are less practical, but lighter, and sell well.
- ChicagoDave 9y agoI thought this was hacker news. Not gearhead news. (:
- didess 9y agoTesla is true leader in car.I just love it.
- wpdev_63 9y agoIt's a bit unbelievable they were able to double the range of the already highly efficient model S... Maybe a significant reduction of weight + increase in battery? Whatever it is, it's amazing that they were able to pull it off.