Not, obviously, for same reasons you do. You, or someone like you, want a battery-powered Tesla Roadster because it’s a way cool concept boasting bleeding edge technology. Or maybe you just like sexy sports cars. Or perhaps you’d like to bask in the glory of the world’s best eco auto bragging rights (i.e. get laid). As a free marketeer, I’m good with any of these motivations. As a Porsche Boxster S owner, I’m not bothered (I’ve already found my dream date). But as the publisher of this website, I want a Tesla Roadster BAD. I want to reveal the truth about the EV-- whatever that may be.
User comment: By: seoultraindoug, charging a battery is not like filling a tank. You can't just take the energy capacity of the battery and divide it by the power input to get the charging time. IIRC, the way most batteries recharge is logarithmic. That is, a dead battery will charge rapidly at first, but as the charge approaches 100%, the charging rate will decrease. Now, if Tesla said something like "the battery can reach an 80% charge in 3 hours", that would be reasonable (many mp3 players make similar claims). However, for that large a battery to be fully charged in 3 hours? pretty unbelievable.
User comment: By: doug"Prove it." I thought I just did.
User comment: By: Paul NiedermeyerRF: I assume that would eat into range, BIG style… No more than with the two speed. It takes x amount of current to accomplish, either way. They just found an electronic way around the initial perceived benefits of a two-speed tranny. They should have done this in the first place. Certainly, fast driving runs down the range.
User comment: By: LandcrusherRF, Having watched a LOT of aviation companies go through the exact same process as Tesla, and then having them fail, I share your pain. I lost sales to these scammers. Both because people were watching and waiting, or they gave the idiots their money, or they refused to put down a deposit on one of our new designs despite the fact that we had a solid track record. What's amazing is that some of us can seemingly see through the delays and ofuscations, and some cannot. I made a bad call on one of my competitors who actually did make it to market, but their plane is still having problems. OTOH, I made the right call on over a dozen players in only a few years. Why do people want to bet so much money on such long odds for something that really isn't all that revolutionary?
User comment: By: Robert Faragodoug: The charge time is just a simple math problem. The battery pack holds about 53 kWh of energy. So if all you've got is a wall outlet, say 120 Volts at 15 Amps (which gives 1.8k Watts), it will take about 30 hours to fully charge the pack from a state of depletion. To get a full charge in 3.5 hours, Tesla's home charging unit would have to provide about 15kW of power. At 240 Volts, that's less than 70 Amps, which is perfectly reasonable for a unit that's professionally installed by an electrician. Of course if you're using the car for your daily commute of say 50 miles, you'd rarely be charging from empty. Prove it. If not you, them.
User comment: By: doug"And no one– I repeat no one– has tested the Roadster's batteries' recharge time." Again with the charge time. I don't see what the big deal is. I've said this before, but I guess it's worth repeating here: The charge time is just a simple math problem. The battery pack holds about 53 kWh of energy. So if all you've got is a wall outlet, say 120 Volts at 15 Amps (which gives 1.8k Watts), it will take about 30 hours to fully charge the pack from a state of depletion. To get a full charge in 3.5 hours, Tesla's home charging unit would have to provide about 15kW of power. At 240 Volts, that's less than 70 Amps, which is perfectly reasonable for a unit that's professionally installed by an electrician. Of course if you're using the car for your daily commute of say 50 miles, you'd rarely be charging from empty. I'd be skeptical of companies that claim 5 or 10 minute charge times. The equipment (cables, electrical isolation, safety interlocks, feed from the power plant, etc) you'd need to safely carry electrical energy at that rate is impractical in a home setting.
User comment: By: Robert FaragoPaul Niedermeyer: They've increased the voltage draw, so even with the one-speed transmission, they're quoting 0-60 in 3.9 seconds. I assume that would eat into range, BIG style... SunnyvaleCA : Range: Rich people rarely drive themselves 200 miles in a single day. Given the interior space and stiff ride, these same people will probably want to take a huge SUV for such a trip anyway. The range might be an issue for a racetrack, though. It's not the facts that bother me (much), it's the constant misrepresentation of the facts. The entirely theoretical not-to-say completely misleading 211 EPA range is on their website.
User comment: By: Paul NiedermeyerSunnyvale: How fast does it accelerate with the 1-speed anyway? They've increased the voltage draw, so even with the one-speed transmission, they're quoting 0-60 in 3.9 seconds.
User comment: By: William C MontgomeryI insisted we start the Tesla Death Watch. I prefer "Tesla Afterbirth"
User comment: By: SunnyvaleCAThe 250-mile range is now 211 miles in "EPA Combined"- despite the fact that the EPA doesn't have an electric vehicle mpg protocol. And no one– I repeat no one– has tested the Roadster's batteries' recharge time.Given the price, interior space, and stiff (aka "sporty") ride, I can almost guarantee you that every [future] Tesla owner will have multiple vehicles. Charge time: 20 seconds flat! 10 seconds to plug it in at night and 10 seconds to unplug it before your drive off in the morning. If you forget to plug in, then just take one of your multiple other vehicles instead. Range: Rich people rarely drive themselves 200 miles in a single day. Given the interior space and stiff ride, these same people will probably want to take a huge SUV for such a trip anyway. The range might be an issue for a racetrack, though. I'm more intrigued that they haven't resolved the transmission problem. That to me means you can't call it fully birthed yet. How fast does it accelerate with the 1-speed anyway? Would it be humbled in a straight line by a $27k Mustang? How about a Lotus Elise?
User comment: By: Robert FaragoZCline: As I'm a red-green color blind social liberal who's raised four Barbie-loving girls, I've got no problem with pink. Thanks for the kind thoughts.
Visit here to subscribe to these commentsUser comment: By: ZClineRF, If i were a rich man, I'd use my rich guy skills (money) to get you a roadster. In my sick sense of humor though, I'd get you a pink one.
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