5 ms·

Tesla Model S Unveiled

80 points by martythemaniak 18y ago

2cool 18y ago
looks good from design view, also I would like to see some cool looking but cheaper electric roadsters as well!
- frisco 18y ago
  It's a beautiful car, for sure.
dtap 18y ago
Late 2011 is a long time from now. Two and a half years is a lot of time to get behind schedule, especially for Tesla. I sincerely hope it comes out awesome but am highly skeptical.
papersmith 18y ago
More pics: http://www.autobloggreen.com/photos/tesla-model-s-live-reveal/ http://www.autobloggreen.com/photos/tesla-model-s-live-revea...
dskhatri 18y ago
A 45 min. fast charge sounds impressive. I would think that would require much more current than a typical household outlet is able to supply. Does anyone know if the current Tesla roadster come with a charging station? And how is that connected to the household mains? [update: I found some forums mentioning that charging the current roadster in 3.5 hours requires the installation of a 240V/70A charging station in your garage/home] [update 2: Here's the High Power Connector: http://shop.teslamotors.com/products/high-power-connector http://shop.teslamotors.com/products/high-power-connector. It's connected directly to the breaker panel in the home]
- ams6110 18y ago
  The 45 minutes is for a partial charge. Still, 300 miles beats the heck outta the 40 promised by the Volt.
  - josefresco 18y ago
    Volt will be out first, and Tesla could be gone before they are ever able to ship even 1 of these. 2.5 years from now when/if this thing actually surfaces we'll have lots of hybrid/electric choices.
    - spectre 18y ago
      Tesla's biggest problem will be mass production. (They have made about 300 cars) Large companies like Chevy can have significantly greater production capacity.
      - dkokelley 18y ago
        Has Tesla even considered outsourcing the manufacturing? I'm sure lots of people in Detroit would be more than grateful to be paid to make cars that are already sold. I wonder if capacity is not the problem, but that the Roadsters just take that long to actually make.
        pingswept 18y ago
        They've not just considered outsourcing the manufacturing, they did it from the start. Lotus makes the cars in England. According to Wikipedia: "The car is assembled at the Lotus factory in Hethel, England, with drivetrain components and body components supplied to the factory by Tesla. . . Tesla Motors' plant in Taiwan manufactures the motors and the Energy Storage Systems (ESS) was initially manufactured in Thailand during development and then moved to San Carlos, California, after production started. Chassis are manufactured in Norway. SOTIRA, in St. Meloir & Pouancé, France, create the RTM carbon fiber body panels. The Roadster's brakes and airbags are made by Siemens in Germany and crash testing was conducted at Siemens as well" Confirmation of the Lotus relationship from Tesla here: http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=7 http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=7
- derwiki 18y ago
  Top Gear had a very un-inspiring review as well. It lasted 55 miles going around the track, and then required 16 hours to recharge. I suppose Tesla is counting on most of us -not- driving like Clarkson. [Tesla's response to the review: http://jalopnik.com/5112828/tesla-issues-response-to-top-gear-review http://jalopnik.com/5112828/tesla-issues-response-to-top-gea...]
mikepellon 18y ago
It will be interesting to see if amongst these early electric vehicle manufacturers a de facto battery/charging interface standard can be established. I can see that widespread adoption would be difficult to achieve if consumers cannot reliably charge their vehicles in a number of charging station locations because of properity hardware barriers, etc.
- froo 18y ago
  I think this would be a good start, but I think for the sake of convenience I would like to see something more along the lines of wireless power like Intel have been playing around with. http://blogs.intel.com/research/2008/08/you_have_to_see_thiswireless_p.php http://blogs.intel.com/research/2008/08/you_have_to_see_this... I would like to see power companies deploy these wireless charging substations in parking garages and in people's homes and perhaps have it so that the vehicle has it's own power meter - something similar to what you would see on a home now, so that multiple vehicles could be filling up at the same point perhaps and each is generating their own bill which could be paid at the end of the month? similar to how homes work. That way, the need to "fill up" is removed, making it more convenient than a typical car, which I think might help adoption rates more than just saying it is a more eco-friendly car.
  - alooPotato 18y ago
    Have you seen www.betterplace.com? Their basic idea is to have a standard set of batteries which can be topped up at charging stations at home, work, and elsewhere. For longer trips, there are automated battery switching stations. From the how it works section: "For trips longer than 100 miles (161 km), battery switching stations will be available roadside. Stations are completely automated, and the driver’s subscription takes care of everything. The driver pulls in, and the depleted battery is quickly replaced with a fresh one, without anyone having to leave the vehicle. The process takes less time than it does to fill a tank of liquid fuel. "
- torr 18y ago
  The answer is not faster charging, but rather, swapping out a depleted pack for a fully-charged one. Standardize on a form-factor for battery packs that mount on the underside of the vehicle, which can then be hot-swapped at service stations in under a minute. Hawaii seems to already be testing this out... (don't have the link handy)
ungerik 18y ago
Video of the Tesla Model S http://twurl.nl/ds6e3l http://twurl.nl/ds6e3l
quizbiz 18y ago
What about non-luxury battery based?
- ibsulon 18y ago
  That's Tesla's ultimate goal. They're still working out the details
- cubicle67 18y ago
  They think most buyers will prefer the luxury batteries
- jpd 18y ago
  Well, Miles Automotive is working on a sub $40,000 car. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/xs500_electric_car_miles_ev.php http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/xs500_electric_car_m...
- 2cool 18y ago
  Thumb up! I would really like to see something like this!
jhawk28 18y ago
7 seats? Where are the other 2?
- cubicle67 18y ago
  It comes with a trolley that hooks on the back :P The other two are rearward facing behind the second row, similar to what Volvo did for a few years in some of their station wagons
dotmatrix 18y ago
LOVE THE FISHER CAR more...Way cooler
sgrove 18y ago
I think California has done a good thing in wooing Tesla to build the model S here. If nothing else, it should serve as a beacon to engineers interested in designing clean-tech - working on anything else will seem boring and old hat for most. The ripples of the tech being located here could very well serve as the impetus for the next rise in California's economy.

2cool 18y ago

looks good from design view, also I would like to see some cool looking but cheaper electric roadsters as well!

frisco 18y ago
It's a beautiful car, for sure.

dtap 18y ago

Late 2011 is a long time from now. Two and a half years is a lot of time to get behind schedule, especially for Tesla. I sincerely hope it comes out awesome but am highly skeptical.

papersmith 18y ago

More pics: http://www.autobloggreen.com/photos/tesla-model-s-live-reveal/ http://www.autobloggreen.com/photos/tesla-model-s-live-revea...

dskhatri 18y ago

A 45 min. fast charge sounds impressive. I would think that would require much more current than a typical household outlet is able to supply. Does anyone know if the current Tesla roadster come with a charging station? And how is that connected to the household mains? [update: I found some forums mentioning that charging the current roadster in 3.5 hours requires the installation of a 240V/70A charging station in your garage/home] [update 2: Here's the High Power Connector: http://shop.teslamotors.com/products/high-power-connector http://shop.teslamotors.com/products/high-power-connector. It's connected directly to the breaker panel in the home]

ams6110 18y ago
The 45 minutes is for a partial charge. Still, 300 miles beats the heck outta the 40 promised by the Volt.
- josefresco 18y ago
  Volt will be out first, and Tesla could be gone before they are ever able to ship even 1 of these. 2.5 years from now when/if this thing actually surfaces we'll have lots of hybrid/electric choices.
  - spectre 18y ago
    Tesla's biggest problem will be mass production. (They have made about 300 cars) Large companies like Chevy can have significantly greater production capacity.
    - dkokelley 18y ago
      Has Tesla even considered outsourcing the manufacturing? I'm sure lots of people in Detroit would be more than grateful to be paid to make cars that are already sold. I wonder if capacity is not the problem, but that the Roadsters just take that long to actually make.
      - pingswept 18y ago
        They've not just considered outsourcing the manufacturing, they did it from the start. Lotus makes the cars in England. According to Wikipedia: "The car is assembled at the Lotus factory in Hethel, England, with drivetrain components and body components supplied to the factory by Tesla. . . Tesla Motors' plant in Taiwan manufactures the motors and the Energy Storage Systems (ESS) was initially manufactured in Thailand during development and then moved to San Carlos, California, after production started. Chassis are manufactured in Norway. SOTIRA, in St. Meloir & Pouancé, France, create the RTM carbon fiber body panels. The Roadster's brakes and airbags are made by Siemens in Germany and crash testing was conducted at Siemens as well" Confirmation of the Lotus relationship from Tesla here: http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=7 http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=7
derwiki 18y ago
Top Gear had a very un-inspiring review as well. It lasted 55 miles going around the track, and then required 16 hours to recharge. I suppose Tesla is counting on most of us -not- driving like Clarkson. [Tesla's response to the review: http://jalopnik.com/5112828/tesla-issues-response-to-top-gear-review http://jalopnik.com/5112828/tesla-issues-response-to-top-gea...]

mikepellon 18y ago

It will be interesting to see if amongst these early electric vehicle manufacturers a de facto battery/charging interface standard can be established. I can see that widespread adoption would be difficult to achieve if consumers cannot reliably charge their vehicles in a number of charging station locations because of properity hardware barriers, etc.

froo 18y ago
I think this would be a good start, but I think for the sake of convenience I would like to see something more along the lines of wireless power like Intel have been playing around with. http://blogs.intel.com/research/2008/08/you_have_to_see_thiswireless_p.php http://blogs.intel.com/research/2008/08/you_have_to_see_this... I would like to see power companies deploy these wireless charging substations in parking garages and in people's homes and perhaps have it so that the vehicle has it's own power meter - something similar to what you would see on a home now, so that multiple vehicles could be filling up at the same point perhaps and each is generating their own bill which could be paid at the end of the month? similar to how homes work. That way, the need to "fill up" is removed, making it more convenient than a typical car, which I think might help adoption rates more than just saying it is a more eco-friendly car.
- alooPotato 18y ago
  Have you seen www.betterplace.com? Their basic idea is to have a standard set of batteries which can be topped up at charging stations at home, work, and elsewhere. For longer trips, there are automated battery switching stations. From the how it works section: "For trips longer than 100 miles (161 km), battery switching stations will be available roadside. Stations are completely automated, and the driver’s subscription takes care of everything. The driver pulls in, and the depleted battery is quickly replaced with a fresh one, without anyone having to leave the vehicle. The process takes less time than it does to fill a tank of liquid fuel. "
torr 18y ago
The answer is not faster charging, but rather, swapping out a depleted pack for a fully-charged one. Standardize on a form-factor for battery packs that mount on the underside of the vehicle, which can then be hot-swapped at service stations in under a minute. Hawaii seems to already be testing this out... (don't have the link handy)

ungerik 18y ago

Video of the Tesla Model S http://twurl.nl/ds6e3l http://twurl.nl/ds6e3l

quizbiz 18y ago

What about non-luxury battery based?

ibsulon 18y ago
That's Tesla's ultimate goal. They're still working out the details
cubicle67 18y ago
They think most buyers will prefer the luxury batteries
jpd 18y ago
Well, Miles Automotive is working on a sub $40,000 car. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/xs500_electric_car_miles_ev.php http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/xs500_electric_car_m...
2cool 18y ago
Thumb up! I would really like to see something like this!

jhawk28 18y ago

7 seats? Where are the other 2?

cubicle67 18y ago
It comes with a trolley that hooks on the back :P The other two are rearward facing behind the second row, similar to what Volvo did for a few years in some of their station wagons

dotmatrix 18y ago

LOVE THE FISHER CAR more...Way cooler

sgrove 18y ago

I think California has done a good thing in wooing Tesla to build the model S here. If nothing else, it should serve as a beacon to engineers interested in designing clean-tech - working on anything else will seem boring and old hat for most. The ripples of the tech being located here could very well serve as the impetus for the next rise in California's economy.