Oct 6 2006 - Tesla Roadster is a first performance electric car manufactured by
Tesla Motors
The high-performance, zero-emissions 2007 Tesla
Roadster, was unveiled before a throng of well-wishers, car buffs,
and potential customers Wednesday evening during Tesla’s
“Signature One Hundred” event at Barker Hangar. More than 350
invited guests spent the evening learning about the new sports car,
speaking with Tesla Motors executives, and going for rides along the
tarmac at the Santa Monica Airport, adjacent to the event. Many
signed up to be among the first to take delivery of the Tesla
Roadster, becoming Signature One Hundred Members.
Celebrities in attendance included actor Ed Begley Jr., producer
Richard Donner, businessman Michael Eisner, PayPal founder (and
Tesla Motors Chairman) Elon Musk, Participant Productions’ Founder
and CEO Jeff Skoll, also of eBay fame, and producer and car
collector Joel Silver. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
stopped by prior to the evening’s activities to learn more about
Tesla Motors and the Roadster.
Specifications |
Engine |
|
3-phase,
4-pole Electric Motor |
HP |
248 BHP |
Displacement |
-- |
Torque |
180 lb-ft |
Weight lbs (kg) |
-- |
Acceleration 0-60 mph |
4 sec. |
Top speed |
130 mph |
Driveline |
-- |
Price (approx) |
-- |
“We’re
thrilled to have the support of top people from so many different
industries,” said Martin Eberhard, CEO of Tesla Motors.
“High-tech, CleanTech, entertainment, automotive, you name it.
It’s gratifying to have others realize the significance or what
Tesla Motors is doing.”
The electric-powered Tesla Roadster boasts a top speed of more than
130 mph and a range of 250 miles on a single charge, a combination
heretofore unseen in a mass-produced electric vehicle. Its extended
range is due to its state-of-the-art lithium-ion Energy Storage
System. The Tesla Roadster is capable of accelerating from 0-60 mph
in about four seconds. “The Tesla Roadster delivers sports car
performance without using any gasoline,” said Eberhard. “This is
what we hoped to achieve when we started the company three years
ago, to build a car with zero emissions that people would love to
drive.”
Using a unique two-speed manual transmission, the Tesla Roadster’s
power comes from a 3-phase, 4-pole AC induction motor coupled with
the Power Electronics Module (PEM) which provides multiple
functionality of inverting direct current to 3-phase alternating
current, the charging system, and the regenerative braking system.
The Roadster’s Energy Storage System (ESS) provides power to the
entire vehicle, including the motor. Its durable, tamper-resistant
enclosure includes: 6,831 lithium-ion cells; a network of
microprocessors for maintaining charge balance and temperature among
the batteries; a cooling system; and an independent safety system
designed to disconnect power outside the enclosure under a variety
of detectable safety situations.
The Tesla Roadster comes complete with its Electric Vehicle Service
Equipment (EVSE), a home-based charging system. An optional mobile
charging kit, for re-charging while away from the EVSE, also
features this automatic disconnect system. Charging the Tesla
Roadster takes approximately 3.5 hours. The Tesla Roadster is
capable of driving up to 250 miles (EPA Highway) on a single charge,
a range roughly triple that of previous mass-produced electric
vehicles, like General Motors’ EV1.
“It didn’t make sense to sell a car that couldn’t go 90 miles
on a charge. You’d spend more time charging the old EVs than
driving them,” said Eberhard. “Lithium-ion technology, which has
been proven in many different applications, has allowed us to
achieve exactly what we thought it would in terms of power, range
and efficiency.”
The body design of the Tesla Roadster, which included a
collaborative effort by the company’s employees, has been headed
by Barney Hatt, Principal Designer at the Lotus Design Studio in
England. The result is a sleek, stylish sports car that will appeal
to enthusiasts and environmentalists the world over. Tesla designers
and engineers have gone to great lengths to ensure that not only is
the Tesla Roadster safe to drive, but also when charging the
performance electric car, at home or on the road. Their goal is to
not only meet, but to surpass the rigorous standards of the Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, or FMVSS, as implemented by the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
Tesla co-founders Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, who serves as Vice
President, Engineering, have brought together a team of automotive
industry veterans plus Silicon Valley electronics and Internet
engineers to bring the Tesla Roadster to life.
Research and Development for Tesla Motors is based at the Corporate
Headquarters in San Carlos, Calif. Engines are manufactured at
Tesla’s facility in Taiwan, and assembly takes place at Tesla’s
plant in England. Eberhard and Tarpenning provided the early funding
for the company, and were joined in 2003 by Musk, CEO of SpaceX, who
is the major investor in the company and serves as Chairman of Tesla
Motors.
Musk worked with Eberhard and Tarpenning to attract more investors
and approach Venture Capital firms, and in June 2006, Tesla Motors
announced that the company had secured and additional $40 million in
financing led by Musk and VantagePoint Venture Partners, one of the
largest CleanTech investors in the Silicon Valley.
Deliveries of the Tesla Roadster are expected to begin next summer.
Tesla Roadster Technical Data:
Motor
Type designation: 3-phase, 4-pole electric motor
Max net power: 185kW
Max rpm: 13,500
Efficiency: 90% average, 80% at peak power
Front Suspension:independent; upper and lower wishbone; co-axial
coil
spring/telescopic damper unit; anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: independent; upper and lower wishbone; co-axial
coil
spring/telescopic damper
Dimensions:
Overall length (in. / mm):155.4 / 3946
Overall width - incl. mirrors (in. / mm):73.7 / 1873
Overall height (at curb weight) (in. / mm):44.4 / 1127
Wheelbase (in. / mm):92.6 / 2352
Track - front (in. / mm): 57.6 / 1464
Track - rear (in. / mm): 59.0 / 1499
Curb weight: Around 2500 pounds (subject to complete safety and
durability testing)
Standard features:
Twin airbag, seat belt retractors
4 wheel ABS
Traction Control
Cruise Control
Central door locking
Alarm & Immobilizer
Homelink® device
Electric windows
Air conditioning
Heated Seats
Radio + 4 speaker audio kit with iPod interface
Half leather trim
Full carpet set
Passenger Footrest
Black soft top
Sun Visors
7 spoke forged alloy wheels
Locking wheel lugs
Tire Pressure Monitoring System
Tire Inflator
Cold weather ESS heater kit (sub zero charging)
Home based charging system (EVSE) with integral safety features
Unique headlamp assemblies using proprietary HID low-beam and
halogen high-beam lamp units
LED taillights, rear and side marker lights
Incandescent front directional indicators and marker lights.
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