Fighting the skeptics
In Detroit Tesla could be expected to fire on all cylinders to draw attention to its role as pioneer in the clean machine category. But the focus of all eyes was the naked frame of the long awaited Model S, complete with battery array and drive-train. For a good while there was a lack of news concerning this project, but now it stood for all to see, to confound the skeptics who had come to expect little from the announced Model S. Technology about which chief Peter Rawlinson was happy to provide details about Tesla’s new baby. He also announced that the final prototypes were on the road and that the design process had been concluded. And next year they want to start making deliveries.
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- The Tesla Model S will reach a hundred kilometres an hour in under six seconds and is to have a top speed of 200 kph. The range will be up to 480 kilometres.
An almost unbelievable price
For five thousand Dollars would-be owners can put their names on a waiting list. Another shock for the skeptic, the cost of the entry model is to be about 49,500 Dollars in the United States (almost 37,500 Euros). This is an amazing price tag for a roomy seven-seater sports limousine, running exclusively on electricity, but reaching a hundred in under six seconds and with a top speed of 200 kilometres an hour.
480 kilometres range
In an aluminium casing almost as long as the car itself are seven thousand lithium ion laptop batteries. Nick Sampson, a Tesla engineer, revealed that the energy capacity is between 80 and 90 kilowatt-hours, three times as much as claimed for the Nissan Leaf. When series production starts there will be three battery options for ranges from 260 (162 miles) to 480 kilometres (298 miles). Plugged into a high voltage current source a Model S should be 80% re-charged in 45 minutes.
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- The basic model will provide a total of 850 litres of load capacity in front and rear compartments. And the spacious vehicle offers enough room for five adults and two children.
Five adults and two children
To achieve a range of 480 kilometers a second battery pack will be installed under the hood at the front. The basic version of the Model S will nevertheless have room for 850 litres of cargo in the two compartments. And the big Tesla will have space for five adults and two children. Given that the heavy drive train components are positioned behind the rear axle, the Model S will have a weight distribution of 46 to 54 percent.
A solid foundation
Tesla’s ambitions seem more realistic after last year’s sales on the market of shares to Daimler, Toyota and Panasonic and the 465 million Dollar loan from the US Energy Ministry. The research department is well resourced and the finance, PR and marketing operations are running at full speed. The factory in which the Model S will be built is buzzing like a beehive. There is widespread hope that the launch of the second Tesla will be a success although there is also the awareness that there is still much to be done before the world’s first fully electric sports limousine is declared a winner.
