If immitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Jaguar must be grinning ear to ear now. The above is not a facelifted Jaguar XF but is in fact the eagerly awaited Tesla Model S electric car, which has been unveiled to world press today.
Tesla claims a maximum 300 mile (483 km) range, but the baseline model will come with a battery pack capable of 160 miles and there is also a 230 mile version. These battery storage systems range from 42kWh to 70kWh and greater, made out of 8,000 cells. These batteries are housed in the car’s floor. Power from the batteries are channeled to the road via a 9-inch liquid-cooled electric through a single-speed transaxle gearbox.
The 9 inch motor can take the Tesla Model S from 0 to 100km/h in under 6 seconds, and will have an electronically limited top speed of 210km/h. Stopping power is provided by Brembo Monobloc calipers with 6 pistons and 4 pistons for the front and rear respectively. The front discs are floating slotted 405x34mm 2-piece discs while the rear are 380x28mm slotted discs.
The batteries can be charged via either a 120V, 240V or 480V power outlet, with the 480V taking only 45 minutes to a full charge. There is of course no country in the world with a 480V system, so this requires a special QuickCharger.
Unlike many electric sedan cars which batteries take up the bootspace, because the Tesla Model S was designed ground up to be electric-powered, there is a proper boot space. Tesla claims a 50 inch LCD TV, a mountain bike and a surfboard can fit in the car all at once.
The in-car entertainment system centers around a 17 inch touchscreen in the center dash area which also shows various vehicle information. You can also surf the internet via the built-in 3G data system and access HD and satellite radio.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the Model S is priced at US$49,000 (nearly RM180,000) after a US tax credit of US$7,500 for the baseline model. 160 miles would cost only US$5 in terms of electricity! The company also claims the car’s floor-installed battery packs can be swapped out in less than the time it takes to fill a full tank of petrol, so in the future you could actually go to “battery stations” and swap out your batteries for a freshly fully charged new set instead of stopping and waiting for a full charge.
While now we’ve seen photos and read the details, there is still quite some time to go before the first Model S rolls off the production lines in late 2011. Looking at the gloom and doom in the US, Will Tesla still be around? Their press release says the company “believes” it is close to receiving US$350 million in federal loans to build the Model S assembly plant.
Future production models will come with an all-wheel drive option. One good thing is that right hand drive models will be available, so those with money (and refuse to drive an electric Persona) can start looking at the AP dealers in 2012!
Look after the jump for a full gallery of the Model S.
[zenphotopress number=99 album=201]
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I want to see who will bashed this car.. Fully EV right… go proton
Top gear has just shown the tesla in the last episode. Not that reliable kind of car this tesla. Well if you can shop for batteries, then how would you know that you are not getting bad battery packs instead?
damn..i thought it was jaguar..nice design..btw..im not a big fan of electric car…
Maserati GT-ish front
Jaguar XF back.
it does looks the part.
Awesome.
Anyways we'll judge it fulll on after it's really being launched.
looks more like maserati than a jag tho
Reliability comes with time. When they build enough of them to work out the kinks, you'd get reliability….assuming if they learn from mistakes.
Though could have even hit a lower price point leaving out all the fancies, but given this is targetted at the premium market (ironically – for people that can afford gas) it is understandable.
But one thing with Tesla though, their estimated retail prices from now to launch could balloon if the Roadster was any indication.
And Toboogen, you're just asking for it. Proton don't learn from mistakes, they just make things worst over time. But I do hope that this Detroit Electric JV will work things out. The market will polarize into full EV for low range applications and Fuel Cell for long range application….say give another 25years.
A fitting name for an electric car. The father of AC current would have pulled the energy right out of the air instead. There are two electric cars in Oakridge TN. They have been there for years. By the way the neculear bomb along with other top sercret technologies can be found in Oakridge TN.
whatever name.. it is still an india mari car
india mari pale bapak ko
the charging rate is 45 minutes if 480V… wah.. almost same voltage for industrial usage
Wow electric car also so powerful, using 19" rims somemore !!
Now I think the petrol price will not go back up so high anymore once there are more and more such electric car.
[quote comment="225032"]whatever name.. it is still an india mari car[/quote]
Where do you get that kind of information?
[quote comment="225032"]whatever name.. it is still an india mari car[/quote]
free.. are you saying that this car is from india?
is it true? if i'm not mistaken it's from the US…
Anyway i like the idea of changing the battery at the station… no need to
wait for a long time to charge.. stop.. replace.. pay and go…
reminds me a little bit of the Vanquish
No need to bash this car, there is nothing with taxpayer.my and proton. So expensive, come to Malaysia may 2x price or 3x with racing type, better wait for proton electron neutron, and those with money please stay with this car, you should be a best taxpayer.
Awsome but damn copycat. The range able to cover is great too..
"The company also claims the car’s floor-installed battery packs can be swapped out in less than the time it takes to fill a full tank of petrol, so in the future you could actually go to “battery stations” and swap out your batteries for a freshly fully charged new set instead of stopping and waiting for a full charge."
Hey , good idea. Instead of waiting for the battery to be fully recharge, we can just replace it with a fully recharged one available at nearest recharging station. It'll save time. Just like installing new battery in your torch-light or whatever battery powered devices.
But obviously we do need a huge space to store the batteries.
So sad.. I tot last year the G promise that no more AP's after 2010.. Seems that will continue forever.. Thanks to NEP & cronyism..
Anyway this car if i not mistaken is not cheap! Almost USD50k! But this car really look more green luxury sedan.. Charge fast too! Hmm… This is what i call a real electric car! So flexible and cheap to charge it!
[quote comment="225046"][quote comment="225032"]whatever name.. it is still an india mari car[/quote]
Where do you get that kind of information?[/quote]
I think what he means is the shape of the car look like a Jaguar own by Tata…
[quote comment="225026"]
And Toboogen, you're just asking for it. Proton don't learn from mistakes, they just make things worst over time. [/quote]
very interesting comments. would definitely want your opinion on why you think that, especially based on the stuff proton are doing today. why are they not learning from their mistakes, and why what they're doing today will lead to worst things to come in the near future.
wonder what platform the S is based on.. any idea paul?
looks like jaguar xf on the side, maserati on the front and aston martin from the ass.
mish mash, but does look good.
of course, no one knows how reliable batteries are in a car so we'll have to wait and see who is the guinea pig that gets to test this car.
looks like the aston martin 4 door rapide plus maserati & XF styling ..
not bad ..
hope they will be more reliable ..
the tesla roadster that top gear showed is quite useless ..
Other car manufactures did advance = good
Proton did something new = bad?
outdated minds.
[quote comment="225140"]Other car manufactures did advance = good
Proton did something new = bad?
outdated minds.[/quote]
childish and pathetic minds…..
Some people think Tesla based on Lotus = get based from Proton…hahah…
This seems a nice car, and if current import model continue, that car should be selling @ $50K x 3.8 = 190K x 2 (tax) = RM380K…that's how BMW 3 price comes as $30K x 3.8 = RM114K x 2 (tax) = RM 228K…
It proverb is "Poor people eat expensive rice" situation.
Some volts powered ego demonstrated here!
It is not a bad thing for EV companies to borrow chasis from other car makers, so they can focus more on the drive train + battery, thats the point of EV, you can always have different design anytime.
an electric car…why not using regenerative brake?should extend mileage per charge,more efficient energy consumption
The Roadster uses regenerative braking, so I believe that the Model S should have it too.
Btw, to the guy about Topgear reviewing Tesla’s Roadster, that was BS. For some reason, they decided to show what would happen if you were out of battery …. The Tesla reps just drove the Roadster off the set after recording, no problems.
Problem is not sure if they have enough funds. They were hitting down low on cash previously. Hopefully they’ll manage to work things out! If Model S is a success, they’ll then work on another model, about half the price of Model S.
A solar tapped/ powered/ charged electric capsule is ideal!
It’s 2013. No news yet :( Sad…
Tesla motors wont be in Malaysia. not in the near future. even now they are having problem coping with the demand in US and Europe. production is slow due to battery etc. supercharging stations and other facilities are too much of capital investment to reach our shore. im just hoping that soon there will be a Malaysian version of elon musk.