Tesla adds more powerful Roadster Sport to lineup

Tesla has delivered 150 all-electric Roadsters to its first lucky customers and still has another 1,100 or so eagerly awaiting their chance to hop behind the wheel of the $100,000 sports car, but despite the backlog the company has decided to add a new model to its lineup. The new car is called the Roadster Sport and it is essentially a more powerful version of the existing Roadster. The Roadster Sport has 15% more peak power than the 248hp (185kW) Roadster and will go from 0-60mph in just 3.7 seconds (the standard model takes 3.9 seconds). Tesla Roadster

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Tesla Model S sedan could have swappable battery pack

There are three main obstacles to making electric cars a viable alternative to those powered by internal combustion engines: the weight, cost and range of the batteries. Internal combustion engines have range limits based on the size of their fuel tank, but it only takes a few minutes to dump 10-15 gallons of liquid fuel in the tank and be on your way. It takes hours to recharge a battery. Fast charging systems are being developed, but they will require new infrastructure for the high currents and voltages required. The cost issue also works against range. You can reduce cost with a smaller battery, but you know what happens then. A battery with more range is both heavier and more expensive. How about a smaller swappable battery? That's one of the possible alternatives that Tesla is considering for the Model S sedan. This brings a whole different set of problems with it. Even smaller batteries will weigh several hundred pounds, making them difficult to handle. There are also safety issues with handling high voltage batteries. You also need a distribution infrastructure for the batteries and automakers have to standardize on common pack formats to make the whole idea viable. It's not like popping into a drug store for a set of AAs for you camera. Tesla's bright idea just goes to show that electric cars have a long way to go before they can replace internal combustion engines completely. [Source: Inside Line]

 

Porsche buys a Tesla Roadster for competitive research

Researching the products of competitors, even to the point of purchasing and then carefully analyzing each piece, is a common practice in the auto industry, especially so at the bleeding edges of performance and technology. Porsche's purchase of a Tesla Roadster is therefore unsurprising, except that it indicates a dissatisfaction with the eRuf 911 recently revealed in concept form. The move also indicates work on Porsche's own lithium-ion-powered electric vehicle is still at such a nascent stage that it can benefit from such research. Tesla Roadster

 

Tesla Motors applies for $400 million government aid

Fledgling electric car company Tesla Motors has encountered financing problems recently, prompting the firm to apply for a $400 million aid package from the Department of Energy. The DOE has already approved a $25 billion loan package designed to help American manufacturers create more efficient vehicles, but there are rumors that the rules of the loan could be altered to help the Detroit 3 carmakers remain viable. News of Tesla's $400 million request came directly from the horse's mouth, with Tesla's vice-president of corporate development, Diarmuid O'Connell, hinting that if government aid is not forthcoming then Tesla may have to shut its doors. Tesla Roadster

 

Tesla Roadster tuning by Brabus | Essen Motor Show 2008

We present you yhe live pictures with the Brabus tuning program for Tesla Roadster presented at Essen Motor Show 2008! BRABUS is the first tuner that modify an electric car. Yes, BRABUS is tuning electric vehicles. But what does that entail? Swapping the standard, no [...]

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Clarkson fires back over Top Gear Tesla controversy

Tesla Roadster Extending the controversy between Tesla Motors and Top Gear even further, Jeremy Clarkson has offered his own opinion regarding the issues of the Roadster's battery capacity and brake failure while being run 'round the Top Gear test track. Remember that the BBC already admitted that neither of its test cars actually ran out of juice, suggesting that the scene was filmed to show what would happen if it actually had. Clarkson's comments don't quite jive with that assessment, though, as he says, "We never said once that the car had run out of power. The car had to be pushed into the warehouse because you are not allowed to drive cars into a building. We calculated that it would have run out of power after 53 miles but they can't argue with that because that is a fact." One area on which we agree with Clarkson is that it doesn't matter why the Roadster's brakes failed. Clarkson says, "Nobody gives a flying **** how the brakes failed. Whether it was a blown fuse or not, they were still not working." On the other hand, whether the now infamous scene of the electric car being pushed into a garage was to show what would happen in the event of a drained battery or because Clarkson wasn't allowed to drive it into the building (seriously, when did that ever stop them?), that image is now indelibly etched into the minds of Top Gear fans, for better or for worse. Thanks for the tip, Doug! [Source: Telegraph]

 

Tesla Roadster runs quarter-mile in 12.7 seconds

Just how quick is the Tesla Roadster now that it's been blessed with version 1.5 of its drivetrain? Pretty dang quick, as a recent 12.7-second blast down the quarter-mile will attest. The first powertrain that was installed in the electric car used a two-speed transmission, while the latest v1.5 needs just one speed for seamless power delivery from zero to the car's top speed. That should make the Roadster an excellent bracket car, especially considering it was able to put down such impressive numbers with a novice racer behind the wheel who posted a relatively poor .764 reaction time. Its terminal velocity was nearly 105 miles per hour, and whatever car happened to be in the lane next to the Tesla got its butt kicked by an electric car. What's this world coming to? Some of us here at Autoblog team who've actually driven the Tesla Roadster, myself included, were surprised by this quick performance, but the proof comes courtesy of a scanned time slip from California's Infineon Raceway, which you can click at right to enlarge. Thanks for the tip, JP! [Source: Tesla]

 

Tesla secures $40 million in financing

Tesla Roadster v1.5 Despite recent negative news surrounding Tesla Motors, the all-electric automaker has just secured $40 million in financing to move forward with ramping up production of its battery-powered sports car, the Tesla Roadster. It was just last month when Tesla was unable to secure a $100 million investment round and was forced to cut nearly 25% of its work force. The failure to fund also slowed work on its second model, an all-electric sedan known as the "Model S." The San Carlos, California-based automaker has more than 1,200 orders for the $109,000 roadster, but has delivered just over 50 to date. With early transmission problems solved and plenty of cash on hand, the high-profile automaker seems to have finally found itself in a position to zip forward. Gallery: 2009 Tesla Roadster v1.5 [Source: Automotive News, subs. req'd]

 

BBC responds to Tesla's Top Gear complaints

We've been following the roller-coaster ride that Top Gear's recent test of the Tesla Roadster has turned into with interest. Since Clarkson's video review first aired, reactions to the way the Tesla was presented have been mixed, and much of the debate has centered on one particular scene where the Top Gear crew can be seen pushing one of their Tesla test-cars into the garage after apparently running out of juice... except that it never happened. The BBC has released a statement admitting that Clarkson's tester still had power left and the scene was filmed to show what would happen if the battery had actually been depleted. Regardless, "Top Gear stands by the findings in this film and is content that it offers a fair representation of the Tesla's performance on the day it was tested." So far, we've heard no word on whether offering "a fair representation" includes future reviews of petrol-powered cars that include scenes of each one being pushed into the garage after not running out of gas. Thanks for the tip, Doug! [Source: Register Hardware]

 

Tesla Model S Sedan Teaser

Silicon Valley's Tesla Motors has released a teaser photo of their model S sedan, which has been delayed by the company's financial and leadership crisis. The model S was originally slated to go into production in 2010 with a 225 mile range on a single battery charge, all for a estimated price of $60,000. Founder and current CEO, Elon Musk, stated that the sedan would be delayed until the company receives loan guarantees from the US Department of Energy and investors loosen up their terms. With the delay, the model S will face new competitors such as the Chevrolet Volt, Honda Insight, and the redesigned Toyota Prius, all of which will cost significantly less then the Tesla. Musk doesn't seem too concerned, but potential investors most likely are. Extensive cost cutting has led the company to close their research and development center in Michigan and layoff a large number of employees. The only good news is that the $100,000 Tesla roadster currently has 1,200 backorders and is now profitable. We won't be seeing the whole car until the Geneva Motor Show, next March. In the meantime, this is probably just the first of a series of teasers that will appear to keep the publicity pot boiling.

 

Tesla Roadster v1.5 2009

This is the results, briefly test drive a genuine production model with the latest transmission and software updates (aka "powertrain 1.5"). Check out our round-two impressions after the jump. Tesla Motors revealed latest Tesla Roadster, dubbed v1.5 because of its new single-speed transmission. While Tesla went through some teething issues with its early two-gear transmission, this one is identical to the "problem solved" production version now being delivered to customers. Mid-mounted in the chassis is a 248-hp electric motor hooked up to the new single-speed fixed-gear Borg-Warner transmission.The Tesla Roadster is actually built on a Lotus Elise platform. Originating in England, the bare extruded aluminum chassis is shipped to Tesla's brand-new assembly facility in San Jose, California. Upon arrival, it is mated with an electric motor (shaded in gray and located between the rear wheels in the above image), 6,831 individual microprocessor-controlled liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery cells (in purple), some seriously sophisticated electronics (in green), and all of the other go-fast components needed to make a proper sports car. With all 992 pounds of batteries hidden under the custom carbon fiber body panels, the Tesla Roadster weighs about 2,700 pounds.