Last week Tesla asked me if I’d like to take the new Tesla Roadster Sport for a day to see what I thought. This is the newer Tesla Roadster that shaves 2/10 of a second off the 0-60 time, and the car is a couple of inches bigger than the original (making it possible for me to fit my 6′4 frame into it comfortably).
I agreed immediately. The only rules were that only I could drive it (some nonsense about insurance), and I had to have it back by 6 pm. I did return the vehicle on time, but as you can see from the video just about everyone from the office and most of my friends came by to take it for a spin, too.
I’ve been in a Tesla before but this is the first time I’ve driven one. With no gears and a silent motor, the experience is like driving a golf cart. At least it would be if golf carts could hit 100 mph on the freeway on-ramp and hug the road like it was glued there.
Thanks Tesla. Sorry about that scratch in the bumper.
Video care of Animoto. Which rocks.
| Specifications |  |
| Model: | 2010 Tesla Roadster Sport |
| Vehicle Style: | 2-seat, open-top, rear-drive sports car |
| Price: | Base Price: $121,000 (car we drove: $155,850) |
| Motor: | 375 volt AC induction air-cooled electric motor with variable frequency drive |
| Power: | 288 HP (215kW) @ 4,400-5,800 rpm |
| Torque: | 295 ft/lb (400 Nm) @ 0-5,100 rpm |
| Transmission: | Single speed fixed gear with electrically-actuated parking lock mechanism and mechanical lubrication pump |
| Suspension: | Four-wheel independent. Upper and lower unequal length wishbones. Co-axial coil spring/adjustable telescopic damper. Adjustable sway bar. |
| Brakes: | Hydraulically operated. Tandem master cylinder with vacuum servo and anti-lock braking system. Front and rear ventilated disc. Cable operated self adjusting hand brake on rear calipers. |
| Performance: | 0-60: 3.7 seconds Top Speed: 125 mph (electronically limited) |
| Dimensions: | Wheelbase: 92.6 inches Length: 155.4 inches Width: 72.9 inches Height: 44.35 inches Weight: 2723 pounds |
| Battery: | Custom microprocessor-controlled lithium-ion battery with 6,831 individual cells |
| Battery Consumption: | 29 kW-hr/100 mi city; 32 kW-hr/100 mi highway |
| Expected Battery Life: | Seven years or 100,000 miles |
| Range: | 244 miles |
Nice cart – still not sure if these e-cars are really more energy and enviro. efficient than combustion engines (in total – including production and so on).
b.t.w. who is blondy? and why has she no techcrunch videoblog?
this videoblog would be a nice addition to the “ask uncle mike” thing.
don’t be the creepy guy.
Okay, that was funny.
It’s already been well established that electric cars are far more environmentally friendly and efficient than combustion engines.
http://en.wikip...ki/Electric_car
Get educated…. and stop spreading misinformation.
I tend to believe they are a little better environmentally but there is some huge variability based on the source of electric power used to charge the battery. I’m also not the biggest fan of all the heavy metals used in the batteries.
Questioning electric cars as the be-all and end-all of green transportation is not “spreading misinformation”. Sounds like you just want to silence dissent.
I am a big fan of electric cars and really happy that a small start-up in California is able to design such cars.
The source of the electricity is one part of it, its efficiency and the whole system. While there might be some issues that you refer to, electric cars such as Tesla are somewhat better for the environment and human health than ignition engines-driven cars for the current electric system. If the electric system is updated (USA-wide integrated grid, renewables, etc.) battery-electric vehicles become immensely beneficial compared to ignition cars.
Electric grid aside, the comparison between different types of non-ignition-based cars (battery, hydrogen, hybrids, etc.) becomes really tricky. Really tricky. One Carnegie-Mellon study (name evades me) derived how Prius-type cars are much price-effective to balance three goals: energy independence, cleaner air, and balanced economics.
I can only be jealous of Michael having driven history now.
Most hydrogen cars and ALL hybrids (by definition) ARE ignition based.
Your combustion engine is a flaming pile of shit. Even with all of the the technological advancements you are not hitting anything near 30% efficiency. A tesla uses a pile of crap electric motor, drive and batteries yet can hit upwards of 80-90% depending on driving conditions.
I don’t buy the excuse of where the energy comes from, not only are power stations WAY more efficient than an ICE at creating energy, but WE CAN NEVER GET OFF DIRTY FUELS IF WE DO NOT STOP USING GAS IN OUR CARS. Solar and wind are right around the corner and can be put to MUCH better use if we have capable electric cars.
Jim
solar? lmao
if you knew the efficiency of even the best solar panels you would be laughing like i am
Solar and wind are an environmentalist fantasy. Our only possibility of getting off oil in the next 50 years is nuclear.
HAHAHAHA Both of you are idiots! The best solar panels are >30%, but what happens to that energy if you don’t use it??? IT HITS THE EARTH and either stays or gets reflected back. Who cares what the efficiency of it is if there is no consequence to the waste???? ONLY time efficiency matters is say when you are dumping green house gases into the atmosphere.
Dumb ass. FYI I am an Electric Power Engineer. I know BOTH solar and wind well. Both will become very popular in time, 10-20 years.
Jim
Citing Wikipedia does not make one educated.
Bashing Wikipedia does not make one educated, either.
It would have been funny if you’d taken it to Maaco or one of those cheap paint shops, had it ‘fixed’, and then seen if Tesla ever asked you about the damage.
No burnouts? Lame.
jealous.
Cool, but math doesn’t work for:
$155,000 / 100,000 mile lifespan = $1.55/mile
For that price I could get a $50,000 sports car that gets 10/mile gallon and still have $55,000 left over after driving 100,000 miles (even when gas hits $5/gallon). And, my car would still work!
You could get a really cheap car that would last more than 100k miles.
You don’t buy expensive cars because of their life expectancy. You buy them because they are awesome to drive.
You can replace the battery when it wears out and get another 100,000 miles. The old one can be dismantled and the chemicals recycled. Apart from that, the car has virtually no maintainence. A new battery is $30,000 now but likely to be much less in 7 years time.
F*&# Me. Wish I was in the office when this happened…
You mean the model I bought last year for well over $100,000 is now out of date?
Loved the TechCrunch reserved parking shot.
$155K? For a car that goes nowhere if you forget to plug it in that’s a bit steep. A 911 Turbo can be had for much less and doesn’t have a 100,000 mile life time.
The Tesla is a joke, sorry. If they can figure out how to make batteries that’s charge in a few minutes and don’t weigh hundreds of pounds and aren’t toxic plus a guarantee that the original power source is renewable energy then Electric cars may have a future.
I wouldn’t call it a joke. It certainly is a novelty, and is probably very fun to drive.
If memory serves me, 100,000 miles is when the battery has 80% of its orig. charge max charge. And as has been said, its ONLY the battery. Electric motors don’t fail like ICEs and will go and go and go and go. If one of those motors goes before 1,000,000 miles, there was a manufacturer’s defect or the controller fucked up and put way too much current in it for an extended amount of time and melted the insulation. Odds of that happening: 0.
I suppose they could also use an under rated motor, but they would find out about that pretty quick in their testing. Definitely would not be able to be air cooled.
As appealing as this car is, I’d still hold off even if I had the money. The range is the worst part.
I can’t even drive to LA in 244 miles so how long does it take to charge? If it charges in an hour ok fair enough, 6 hours then no thanks.
Having a 1,000 mile range on these cars would really put a hole in gasoline powered cars, well that and if it was 100K cheaper.
this is nice but it just looks like a bad lotus design to me but oh so many american cars are just bad designs…
oh wait who did Tesla use for the base… lotus…
Lotus did much of the development work on Tesla’s Roadster using a modified Elise chassis, and – to this day – still undertakes initial assembly of the Roadster at its Hethel-based factory. Chrysler’s Dodge Circuit is also based on the Lotus Europa chassis.
you want a electric car do you ?
http://www.scri...34205/Evora-Vva
regards
John Jones
http://www.johnjones.me.uk
I’m just going to keep reposting this image until you guys either leave for good or start to get what silicon valley is all about.
Surely silicon valley is not about getting 500M dollar bailouts to build the next gen Edsel.
+1 Thank you.
That was for Mike’s not Rainer’s comment…Don’t stop believing…
+1 Thanks for the motivation!
A performance car without an exhaust roar is sorta like having sex with ear plugs in. Sound is a huge part of both experiences and the louder the better for me.
You just have not driven one yet. And frankly, one that exploits electric motors is not really out yet. In the world of electric motors 1000ftlbs is a joke.
At that point, if you still need vibrations and noise. Go get a vibrator and stick it up your ass. Have it vibrate faster as speed increases. You could even have it “shift” and revert to a slower vibrations at speeds/throttle inputs. Even downshift to get yourself off real quick.
Jim
Congrats Jim – you win the most offensive person of the week award for Techcrunch
Here’s what the experts think of the Tesla:
http://motormou.../tesla/roadster
It’s averaging an 85, which ties it with the MINI E for best-reviewed electric vehicle
Interesting site MM – Loved Clarkson’s review. I actually saw that episode of Top Gear (thank you BBC America!!) but never saw the writeup.
good editing. horrible footage. who was holding the camera? michael j. fox?
We could only have been so lucky to have MJF recording that … video was a real waste of time but I’m glad they got to have some fun driving a neat little car! I wish the little guys could ever get a chance to play with neat stuff like this …
wow.. you earned that name, Dick.
I’m really enjoying my new Tesla. http://img21.yf...com/i/c64x.jpg/
I want it in black!
First off… how about adding some commentary to your video and maybe let’s hear the sound of the car instead of playing some stupid corny music to the video??
Secondly, $130k can buy a whole lot of Porsche or new Audi supercar.
130k can buy a lot of things. But it does not buy history. That is what I see in Tesla.
Of course, a Porsche, Audi, maybe an Austin-Martin, can be more appealing than Tesla for some people. But I am a kid that wants to play with the new toys.
I wish this group the best of luck. i would like to see what these cars are all about in person.
Want!
I think you should’ve given Daniel Brusilovsky a chance to drive the thing.
Pretty sure that Tesla did not think TechCrunch is now a car review site. They did this for PR, and PR they got.
this is my favorite part of that car:
http://christin...over-but-not-fb
…i took it right before a drive around the block in Dan G’s …that thing is not a golf cart. it’s a freakin’ space shuttle. i almost threw up my ramen and spicy tuna rolls racing down little tokyo.
Golf carts are always fun.. and one that can go 0-60 in 3.7 seconds has got to be in FUNNER
All that and not one single clip of a burnout or hard acceleration? Comon.
Sweet wheels. Pity bout the battery still though.
Without meaning to criticize you, I am shocked you let everyone drive it even though you knew it wouldn’t be insured. What if someone got hurt seriously?
i like living dangerously. that’s just how I roll.
plus, i’m pretty sure Obama would take care of them. He cares.
Those drivers’ insurance would cover the “someone getting hurt” even if it wasn’t their own car they were driving. With major insurers at least.
It’s Tesla’s extra insurance that was gonna cover the extra-expensive *car* if Mike crashed it, probably. And if one of his friends crashed it, Mike can afford the car, I’m sure.
I was just driving behind a Tesla in southeast Pennsylvania this week. Never expected to see one of them over on this coast.
Mike,
As much as a love animoto and all (I did a write up about it for an entrepreneurship class at Purdue 2 years ago, loved it then and its only gotten more awesomer) but that doesn’t really count as a review…
Got anything more coming for us?
Jim
Just my two pennies about electrical powered cars, solar and wind technologies. An argument I saw that made a lot of sense.
Do you remember how computers were when we first invented them? They where big refrigerators the size of a room, slow, sucked a lot of energy and expensive as hell.
How are they now? Yeah, you probably know how they are now.
This are emerging technologies, therefore more expensive, and maybe not that efficient. But give them a decade or two, and this things will be freaking awesome.
If people like Tesla Motors continue to create and innovate in this areas, this technologies will be more efficient and cheaper.
Would this be cosidered something like a palm pre review unit?
The Tesla is an amazing vision of the future. A prototype that you can buy right now. They are bound to become a lot cheaper and reliable soon.
But i still don’t see why this would beat hydrogen… It allows you to refuel your car in minutes and the actual cars out there are a lot cheaper than this souped up electric lotus.
Hydroden-based cars might do well in the future. Actually, the hydrogen is used to generate electricity on the go, similar to a battery. So both battery-electric and hydrogen cars have electric motors, bringing them closer together.
For now, there are not that many hydrogen stations around, while batteries and outlets are common.
one of these would be great for drive-bys. no one can hear you coming, so you just accelerate up behind them and BAM! quickly and quietly speed away. I’m predicting tesla will be heavily invested in by mobsters…
sorry, replace drive-bys with running people over. drive-bys would work too I suppose…
True or False: Fat people need more leg room than skinny people.
Though not required, your answer should come with explanation.