Tesla Aims For $30,000 Price, 2017 Launch For Model E 247
An anonymous reader writes The biggest complaint about Tesla Motors' electric vehicles is that they're far too expensive for the average motorist. The Roadster sold for $109,000, and the Model S for $70,000. Chris Porritt, the company's VP of engineering, says their next model will aim for much broader availability. The compact Model E aims to be competitive with the Audi A4 and BMW 3-series, which both start in the low $30,000 range. To reduce cost, the Model E won't be built mostly with aluminum, like the Model S, and it will be roughly 20% smaller as well. The construction of the "Gigafactory" for battery production will also go a long way toward reducing the price. Their goal for launch is sometime around late 2016 or early 2017
As a Quebecer... (Score:4, Informative)
I'm pretty jealous of American billionaires who *do* things. Our billionaires mostly do things like wearing clown noses in space or union-busting convenience stores.
With our hydro electric resources, we should be pioneering electric cars.
But no, *doing* things is not in our culture. Corruption, incompetence and thinking small, that's Quebec.
Re:As a Quebecer... (Score:5, Informative)
Our billionaires mostly do things like wearing clown noses in space or union-busting convenience stores.
Oh, the U.S. has plenty of those too: 6 of the top 10 richest Americans have either the surname "Walton" or "Koch", and they do roughly the same kinds of things with their money that someone like Péladeau does. One of the remaining four has the surname "Ellison", and his visionary thoughts mostly involve yacht races.
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Elon Musk is south african.
Re:As a Quebecer... (Score:5, Insightful)
"With our hydro electric resources, we should be pioneering electric cars."
Montreal citizen here...
We did. In mid-90s Hydro-Quebec developped an electric wheel hub. Tech derived from that research (TM4 engine, 96% efficiency) is now being tested by the Societe de Transport de Montreal for buses. I've seen one of those buses, and besides being ugly as hell they do the job and are *completely* silent (besides being too low for sidewalks and curbs while turning :).
Will they be reliable during the cold-as-hell north-pole winter? I dunno, but as a geek I can appreciate an all-electric bus.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T... [wikipedia.org]
What I'm still wondering is why they don't use hybrids. A city bus would be the *perfect* application for an hybrid vehicle. All that stop-and-go would help keep the battery running, and the Diesel engine would recharge the battery if it gets too low. Combined with the fact that Bio-Buses run on biodiesel made from (mostly) trash, that would seem like the logical application.
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Nah. We re-elected the same ones responsible for CEIC...
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"no money will be recovered, taxes will not go down, services won't improve."
More money will be taken, taxes will go up, services will go down. FTFY :)
Sometimes I wonder... (Score:2)
Re:Sometimes I wonder... (Score:4, Informative)
He's planning on a big exit in 15 years or so. To Mars.
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Judging from his words and actions, it's seems unlikely to me that he'll exit as long as there is still potential to change the world. Once electric cars are common (and they will be if the current trends in battery tech and oil prices continue) then I could see him exit to pursue other things. But we're a long way from that happening.
Profit before subsidy? (Score:2)
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You can't selectively remove one subsidy from one end but not do the same to its competitors.
Tesla enjoys those subsidies as well. The problem here is that up to 25% of its revenue on this particular vehicle will be due to a single, not very well protected subsidy source.
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I just did the calculation for myself, and compared to my $15k 40mpg Hyundai, and given the amount of gas I go through on a weekly basis, if I pay sticker price for the model E it will be just about at the break even point. Any subsidy is just gravy. My current car is only 2 years old, so I won't be in the market for a while, but I'll definitely take a long hard look at a Tesla when I am.
I can't be that unique. Hopefully this car will find it's niche.
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I doubt most people put 160k miles on a car before they get rid of it. So for them, lifetime costs of the Hyundai would be cheaper than that of the Tesla even if the Tesla had zero energy cost per mile driven.
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Ha, well 40mpg is highway. My commute is 16 city miles round trip, all of then city miles, where I get substantially less than 40mpg. What it boils down to is I'm paying $200/mo car payment + $120/mo for gas. If I could trade that for $300/mo for the car + cost of electricity, I think it would come out basically even, especially if maintenance cost are lower or the car lasts longer than a comparable gas vehicle.
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I think it would come out basically even, especially if maintenance cost are lower or the car lasts longer than a comparable gas vehicle.
The big unknown with electric cars is that battery pack. I gather that's roughly a quarter to a third of the cost of the Tesla presently. Maybe the "Gigafactory" will knock that down a lot.
Re:Profit before subsidy? (Score:4, Interesting)
I just did the calculation for myself, and compared to my $15k 40mpg Hyundai, and given the amount of gas I go through on a weekly basis, if I pay sticker price for the model E it will be just about at the break even point. Any subsidy is just gravy. My current car is only 2 years old, so I won't be in the market for a while, but I'll definitely take a long hard look at a Tesla when I am.
Don't forget to factor in maintenance where the all electric vehicle will be cheaper. The estimated cost for 4 years of maintenance on a Tesla S is $1900. Compare that to $3316 for the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and $3417 for the regular Hyundai Sonata. Maintenance costs for the Hyundais are from cars.com's "Cost of Ownership" page for each model. Maintenance costs for the Tesla are from Tesla motors. For more equitable "levels" of cars, the Hyundai Equus has a 4 year maintenance cost exceeding $6000.
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while something like and F350 is clearly a utilitarian vehicle, a Hummer is simply a loophole to have the taxpayer fund your luxury vehicle.
I wish I knew what percentage of F350s were actually ever used for something you couldn't do with a Tundra or a Taco, but I'll bet you it's pretty goddamned low.
Not Aluminum? Not a good sign. (Score:4, Interesting)
Aluminum is as cheap as steel if you make very many vehicles, because of various advantages in the production process. It's also cheaper to recycle than steel, which in addition to its many other advantages is a big reason why the industry is headed in that direction. Ford is even going Aluminum for the F-150, and other models are likely to follow as they have become pretty well bloated and bringing the weight down is mandatory for meeting future mileage targets.
If they plan to make many cars, then Aluminum should not really make the car cost more, especially starting from a blank sheet. And it really is a superior material in every way except repairability, and who repairs cars with any notable damage any more anyway? They just get written off and broken down for parts.
Re:Not Aluminum? Not a good sign. (Score:5, Interesting)
It's weaker, so the weight savings on major structural components isn't as great there. But I agree with you, I find this an odd move on their part. Unless they've got something out of left field in mind, like a composite frame.
I really despise steel. I just got back from walking over to a muffler repair shop to have them fix a flange that's rusted away for my pickup. : One of many, many parts that's had to be swapped out over the past year due to rust damage. Oh, I better go back out and spray bolts on my Insight with some rust remover after I submit this post... got to do that daily now for a week or so or those rusted-to-hell bolts are going to strip when I remove the cover to change out the gasket. And the Insight is an "aluminum" car - but the engine is still mostly steel.
I'm building a house now and am even looking to avoid steel in the concrete. For the foundation, we're just going to use fiber for reinforcement. For the walls (assuming the engineer signs off on it) we're going to use basalt fiber rebar. Most people don't realize that when you design a concrete wall, you decide how long it's going to live. The cement carbonates at a relatively constant rate (give or take somewhat depending on various factors like moisture), a given depth per year, which brings it down to a more neutral pH, which then when it gets to the steel allows the steel to rust (the highly basic environment normally protects it). When steel rusts it expands nearly tenfold, and thus the wall spalls out and is ruined. The lack of use of pozzolan in concrete because everyone wants it to harden super-fast so they can finish and move on to the next project only makes the problem worse. Roman concrete (with a volcanic ash pozzolan and no steel) has lasted for thousands of years, but little that we build today with concrete will last even 100, and in hostile environments (for example, bridges near the ocean) you may only get a couple decades. Basalt rebar should hopefully allow for the durability of ancient concrete while allowing for the tensile strength of modern concrete (my home is also going to have a vaulted structure to keep as much force as possible as compressive force, which concrete naturally tolerates well), and I'm going to use a pozzolan (basalt dust), which minimizes the CO2 footprint as well as increasing ultimate strength, durability, and watertightness. Oh, and my gravel/sand will also be basalt, and it's being built on basalt bedrock. ;) Mmm, lava....
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I'm building a house now and am even looking to avoid steel in the concrete.
I'm not an expert, but the steel is protected from corrosion in most forms of concrete due to the mildly alkaline chemistry of the concrete. And if you throw on sacrificial metal [wikipedia.org], you can keep that steel corrosion-free indefinitely.
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Gee, I wish I'd written something like:
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I had a to swap the anode on a 4 year old water heater for example because of the water composition here.
This. The anode can be replaced in certain situations. I know they do it for bridges (at least when the anodes aren't stolen for the metal content).
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And the Insight is an "aluminum" car - but the engine is still mostly steel.
Well, I sure hope I one day get to the point where I get to enjoy driving it instead of regretting my purchase, but this is why I bought an A8. It's almost all Aluminum, except for subframes. Even where I've seen corrosion on hardware, it's come off easily. On the other hand, I've already had to do two heli-coils on the engine. One of them might have been my fault, but I don't think so. The other I'm quite sure wasn't, I was nowhere near the spec when the threads stripped.
I sure hope this Aluminum F150 kick
Who designed this one? (Score:2)
I do like the idea of finally seeing a RWD sedan for $30k or less for sale in this country again, though. The big 3 have been completely ignoring this market for a long time and the Asian car makers have basically never ev
Re:Who designed this one? (Score:5, Insightful)
That's an interesting opinion, considering the planned revealing is at the Detroit auto show in 2015.
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Shortening a car is usually bad for aerodynamics, which is bad for range. Lowering the roofline reduces the frontal area, which increases the range, but are you sure there'd be enough headroom if you did that?
Re:Who designed this one? (Score:4, Funny)
Can I borrow your time machine please?
The main problem with all elec (Score:3, Insightful)
Eventually that issue will change. But for today, how can I buy an all electric if I have no where to plug it in?
Even if it were sold for $300, I still cannot plug it in!
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Umm. No.
I drive a all electric Nissan Leaf, and I don't even have a garage. I have outlets on the outside of my house, and the Leaf charging cable is prob at least 15 ft long.
I charge at night with no garage.
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Day 1, I opened the garage door, pulled the minivan in..."OK, this isn't going to work well"
lawnmower, bikes, tools....or the car. One or the other. The cars, being hardshelled devices, survive outside much better than all the other things.
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I hope they're planning another model after that (Score:3)
So... is there going to be a compact Model LC for the sub-30K$ market? A car for the majority of drivers?
Re:I hope they're planning another model after tha (Score:5, Informative)
So... is there going to be a compact Model LC for the sub-30K$ market? A car for the majority of drivers?
I'm sure they are. They started with the premium sedan Model S, then next is the Model X SUV, then this 30k Model E. The trend is definitely towards more affordable vehicles. You just need to establish yourself as a solid manufacturer first with high-profit sales. The success of the 70k+ Model S has helped to fund the factory to allow them to build the cheaper models to come.
It just takes some time.
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It's gonna take a long time until I can get a Tesla moped...
20% smaller? Not likely (Score:2)
I'm awaiting model "i" (Score:2)
I would be "inexpensive." I know we're a way from that at the moment. But while we note that progress is being made and at the same time, the slow (!) march in progress of more affordable, inexpensive, mass-produced solar and other at-hand, non-centralized power continues, I always feel we're on the cusp of a major paradigm shift. Still... we're beyond the year 2000, no flying cars and no serious advancement since the 80s really. I may be dead before real change is allowed to occur.
I want an electric Model T (Score:2)
Yes and I want it in black.
Chevy Volt is a good compromise (Score:3)
For folks who want an electric now, the Chevy Volt is basically one for about 40 miles and then it switches over to gas for longer trips. It's a little small for some folks but being a hatchback, you can actually carry quite a bit of stuff provided you are not carrying passengers and price wise it's actually pretty close to $30K as well. I've owned mine for the last 2 years and it's turned out to be a much better car than I even thought.
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Informative)
Musk has mentioned [insideevs.com] in the past a range of around 200 miles.
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:4, Insightful)
If they go with steel instead of aluminum that'll probably cost them about 10% range (matters less for big structural elements, but overall it has a significant weight difference), which means more batteries. Seems weird that this would work out to be overall more economical.
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Since the time that the S has come out, battery technology has gone significantly further... I'm sure that by the time this hits the road it will be far enough to compensate the difference in material...
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The question is not whether you "can", it's what it costs and what constraints it imposes. It's possible to make an EV that goes a good chunk of a thousand miles, it'd just be a totally impractical absurdly-expensive monstrosity.
No question that batteries are advancing - usually a gravimetric energy density doubling every 8 years or so. But the trend for volumetric isn't as impressive, and the price changes per watt hour are far less predictable. Sometimes the next generation which improves your battery sta
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Unlikely. Battery technology has only improved 5% annually over time without using exotic substances.
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So 2 years would be enough to offset the extra weight of steel?
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OK, so even at 5% per year, in the 5 years between the model S and the model E (assuming it comes out in 2017), that's almost a 28% cumulative improvement.
I'm not sure how much more weight a steel vehicle typically is vs an aluminum one. I know the 2014 F-150 weight roughly 5000 lbs, and on the 2015 F-150 the use of aluminum is supposed to knock off about 700 lbs compared to the 2014. So in that case, that's less than a 20% increase in weight by using steel rather than aluminum. On top of that, with all the
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Battery power grows about 5% every 5 years. maybe.
You are off by an order of magnitude for battery power.
Right now using the latest battery power the tesla S might get an additional 10% range. maybe if you are lucky and careful.
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They might be able to go with aluminum skin and select non-structural parts with a steel body. Several Japanese and a few European luxury cars use this technique. The Infinity G / Q series uses aluminum hoods (and skin?) with steel bodies for
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I'm not an electrical engineer or anything but I keep thinking that a high performance gas or diesel generator should be able to charge one of these while driving and get good mileage {much higher than a regular gas engine} and better range. Doesn't the chevy volt already do this?
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:4, Informative)
That's certainly possible, yes. It's sometimes called a "series hybrid". While conventional "parallel" hybrids have both gas and electric engines connected to the drivetrain, in a series hybrid the drivetrain is 100% electric, but there's also a gas generator that feeds into the electric system when needed.
Whether you should call that en electric vehicle or not seems to depend on what proportion of the energy is expected to ultimately come from gas vs. wall charge. If most of the energy comes from gas, then it's just a different configuration of hybrid vehicle. Diesel trains work that way, for example (electric drivetrains powered by a diesel generator), and are not considered electric trains. On the other hand, if it runs mostly electric and there is a tank just used for occasional range-extension, those are being marketed as "extended-range electrical vehicles".
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I looked it up the chevy volt gets about 38 miles electric and about 380 mile on a full charge and a full tank of gas... I'd probably just go over the electric range by a few miles everyday which is fine if it got 60 miles electric I'd have to make sure I used the gas engine occasional to make sure it didn't have problems.
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True, that's why I like electric mowers and weed eaters.
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True.
But as of now, the problem with electric-only is recharge time. I can fuel my car in 5 minutes (and give it 600KM range). Let me put at least 300KM in 10 minutes in an electric only, and they will take off. Yes I know about Supercharging stations, but until I can do the same at most gas stations, electrics will stay a niche application. Add solar panels to the car, the possibility of hooking up a range extender (generator), the possibilities are there.
Gasoline's energy density is pretty much why it's a
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You can fill your car in 5 minutes and go another 600KM. You can battery swap a Model S in 90 seconds and go another 500KM. Or you can wait 20 minutes and get a supercharge that will get you 250KM for zero cost.
Seems like the electric car not only meets your expectations, but rather exceeds them.
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You can fill your car in 5 minutes and go another 600KM. You can battery swap a Model S in 90 seconds and go another 500KM. Or you can wait 20 minutes and get a supercharge that will get you 250KM for zero cost.
Seems like the electric car not only meets your expectations, but rather exceeds them.
In theory. I mean, there are more than 100,000 gas stations in the United States, compared to how many Tesla supercharging/swapping stations?
Don't get me wrong; I think electric is here to stay and will win out in the long run... but to say it meets or exceeds expectations of convenience is not right.
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You don't need as many supercharger stations, though, because they're not a direct replacement for gas stations. Mainly, the expectation is that you will charge your electric car at home overnight, starting each day with a full charge. Public charging stations, then, are only required if you will be driving a great distance.
Gas stations, on the other hand, are effectively the only way to refuel your gas car, so there needs to be a larger number of them.
If you get enough supercharger/swap stations to cover a
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Actually, it takes a long, long time to get your Model S battery swapped.
Since none of the battery swap stations are actually open, you'll have to sit there and twiddle your thumbs till they finish building it.
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There's a limit to how many amps you can dump in a battery without severely shortening its capacity to hold a charge (not withstanding the heat and other problems related to running hundreds of amps on a connector)
That and the fact that you have people who forget to remove the nozzle before leaving the gas station. How many of these people will a supercharging station fry?
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That and the fact that you have people who forget to remove the nozzle before leaving the gas station. How many of these people will a supercharging station fry?
None. An electric car will not move while still plugged in.
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The Volt is a clusterfuck (it's a parallel hybrid, you know, with a stupidly complex gearbox), but trains are very cost and maintenance sensitive. A true serial hybrid car can be quite simple, with the generator being a small, (relatively) lightweight, replaceable unit (unlike a train, it could be full electric 95% of the time).
A Tesla Model S with a 30 HP genny up front would eliminate all range anxiety and still be a perfectly usable car if the gas engine broke. But that's the key, it needs to be an ele
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The BMW i3 already does this. Its got a 66HP 0.4L generator that operates as a true series hybrid. The 1.9 gallon tank gives you an additional ~92 miles of range.
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As does this Mazda 2 prototype with 0.33 litre rotary engine. http://www.autonews.com/articl... [autonews.com]
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Cool! If only it weren't a frat-boy-M-W.
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"The i3 performance in range-extending mode may be more limited than when it is running on battery power, as BMW clarified that the range extender is designed not for long-distance travel but purely as an emergency backup to keep the electric system going until the next recharging location." from the same article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B... [wikipedia.org]
Neither are 100% what I was thinking but they may eventually be. The chevy volt is close but the 48 mile all electric range is a little to short for my use {more l
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People will like the smaller car and lower price,but if it doesn't have the range... they will not flock to it...
A lot of families have more than one car. You could have a large, gasoline powered car to go visit Aunt Mabel or on a camping trip in the Grand Canyon, and a smaller electric car for commuting, runs to the supermarket, etc. The hope is that eventually electric vehicles will have the range, rapid recharge rate, and charging infrastructure that they can compete with and replace gas engines; in the meantime the technology may already be mature enough to compete in particular niches. The nature of disruptive te
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Interesting)
I've always wondered how big of a generator you would need to keep an electric car running continuously, and whether it would be feasible to just tow it behind you on a trailer. Maybe make those available to rent so that people can make long trips on their electric car. It would probably be cheaper to rent than an actual car, and the money you'd save from using an electric car for most of the year would easily offset the cost of renting the generator once in a while.
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Insightful)
Or you could rent a car for the few times year you need to travel more than 200 miles. Some people almost never travel that far. Some people go that far every weekend.
From discussing this very solution, it seems people (At least american flesh-people) are very opposed to the notion of renting a car for the purpose of driving long-distances, or carrying large things around or just about anything.
Instead, most insists on having a vehicle that can solve every imaginable situation, even if most of these situations come up once yearly (or even not-at-all).
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Insightful)
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You nailed it.
(Honestly I think he just likes driving a big ass truck, and the boat is an excuse.)
No, but you did.
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(Honestly I think he just likes driving a big ass truck, and the boat is an excuse.)
I think somebody is compensating for something.
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At least the sports car guys can claim to actually drive their cars in the intended fashion on a regular basis, and put money back into society with speeding tickets. Maybe w
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Insightful)
I disagree. Most people don't have a car that can move furniture or large appliances. They just pay to rent a vehicle for those occasions. I find it odd that they don't apply the same logic to EVs. No car solves every imaginable situation. A good furniture mover's not likely to be an affordable commuter. Both will likely suck on the track. All three of those will likely suck off road. Etc. Vehicles come in radically different varieties for precisely that reason.
Actually, my preferred solution for EV range is like the AC Propulsion Long-Hauler trailer - a small self-steering (aka, easy to drive) genset trailer. You could own one, rent one, borrow one, have a group of friends/neighbors that share one, whatever. You've got range when you need it, and are otherwise you're pure electric and not having to haul around an engine that you don't use and which takes up space and weight in your vehicle (aka, PHEV).
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I've always wondered how big of a generator you would need to keep an electric car running continuously, and whether it would be feasible to just tow it behind you on a trailer. Maybe make those available to rent so that people can make long trips on their electric car. It would probably be cheaper to rent than an actual car, and the money you'd save from using an electric car for most of the year would easily offset the cost of renting the generator once in a while.
It might be cheaper, but for now certainl
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The trailer thing is perfectly feasible. The tzero [wikipedia.org] had one.
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If you are on a long trip, you are usually passing filling stations: very few people do 200 miles entirely on back roads. And good safety means that you should take a break about every 150 miles or so. So, as soon as filling stations do electrical recharge, the problem goes away for drivers not trying to keep going avery minute of the day. The problem is always chicken-and-egg: until people have the cars, the charging station will not exist.
In the Chicagoland area, they have a number of oasis situated on the expressway [illinoisoases.com] that have food, restrooms, gas. I imagine if the tollway authority added charging stations to the parking area, you would see an uptick in adoption. I know other metropolitan areas have the same type of setups; a few strategically place charging stations could start turning the tide.
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Well, that's only partially correct. Drunk driving and speeding tickets will have no effect on your insurance because both of those issues apply to the policyholder and any additional named parties, not to the vehicle. Since your buddy isn't on your insurance, he gets the premium penalty for the DUI, not you.
In the event of an accident, the driver's policy covers bodily injury while the owner's policy covers physical damage. Typically, your insurance company would also seek partial compensation from your fr
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That is not true. If the driver is not the owner, but was authorized to drive the car by the owner, then the owner's insurance covers. It doesn't matter if the driver was named on the policy. If the driver drives without the owner's permiss
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The recognition of how long it would take to replace the current driving stock versus Tesla's manufacturing capacity was one of the reasons for opening up their patents.
Re:What about range on this smaller car? (Score:5, Funny)
People will like the smaller car and lower price,but if it doesn't have the range... they will not flock to it...
And cargo capacity, don't forget that. This is why I always drive a Peterbilt. First, it's crucial that I can drive 3000 miles with no load, because I reckon some day I might need to drive all the way across the country without stopping.
A semi in that case is handy because I can fill up the back with energy drinks to keep me awake, and a portacabin so I don't have to waste valuable time finding a restroom at a stop.
But the cargo is what's really important. I once thought I would have to move house. It turns out I didn't in the end, but the thought of the panic I would have undergone had I not owned a semi made it all the more worthwhile!
Oh and it's a vocational model on the off chance I might need to move house to somewhere without a paved road.
Honestly, until I see them building small "cars" with this kind of cargo capacity I just don't see people flocking to them.
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Range anxiety is common - nearly everyone has it. We went from 2 gas to 2 electric only cars and we had it for a while at the start too. Eventually you know exactly what you can and can't do in the car, just like how you know how your ICE performs accelerating and handling on different roads and how far/long you can go on a tank of gas. It is amazing how quickly you stop caring about range when you buy a car that meets your 99% case. Our leaf gets ~75mi in our area/climate on an 80% charge. You get hom
Re: The big picture (Score:3, Funny)
Elon said at the last shareholder meeting that Ford wouldn't let them use the Model E name as they already have a trademark on it therefore "Ford is killing SEX"
http://youtu.be/VvWDBnhe588
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Tesla Model S, E and X ? there must be some joke in there ...
I'm sure the creator of Virgin Galactic wouldn't think along those lines.
*Wonders how many slashdotters would buy a Model S, E, and X.*
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What will it be called? Thatâ(TM)s something we think itâ(TM)s impossible to say at the current time, but weâ(TM)d be keen to hear your nominations for suitable names nonetheless.
Since nobody outside of Tesla has a clue what this car will be called, "Model E" is better than nothing.
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Since that announcement, more than a few car forums have taken to calling it the Gen 3 or Gen III.
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It's Tesla Motors, so why not "Model T"? Oh, wait...
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And yes, when driving across the US, you DO have to be concerned about range
How often do you drive across the US?
Out of all your friends and family, how often do they drive across the US?
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How often do you drive across the US?
Why does it have to be across the US?
The problems start when you have to drive more than about 100 miles. Yeah, you can do 200-300 miles in a Tesla (depending on model) but then you have to start to think about things like do you need a heater/ air con/lights? Will you be able to recharge at your destination? If not, is there a supercharger en route? How much distance does that add? Hoe much time does that add?
So, forget trans-USA road trips. Just imagine a 100 mile each-way trip to a meeting somewhere (
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Let's see...
I make 500+ mile trips 8-12 times per year.
In addition, about once a week, I have to drive 100 miles or so.
An electric car (other than a Tesla) would require me to rent a car 60 times a year (plus or minus a few), a Tesla would require me to rent a car 8-12 times a year.
Somehow, I can't see spending $70K on a car and still having to rent one maybe once a month, or spending $30-40K on a car and still having to rent one weekly.
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I saw a Tesla store in Reykjavík the other day. Haven't seen a Tesla on the roads, but still, neat to know that they're here. :)
Iceland = poster child for EVs (Score:2)
You should offer a service: if one of us is feeling guilty about burning gas, but we're not sure if using electricity from gas, oil or nuclear, we can offset our carbon footprint by buying you a Tesla that you can run on 100% guaranteed green* Icelandic geothermal power.
(*well, all those volcanos and geysers probably pump out obscene amounts of CO2 and radioactive shit, but that's not humanity's fault and they're still gonna do that if you don't harvest the energy).
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Nope - those are "Falcon-wing" doors on the Model X. Look it up on Tesla's website and I think you'll find that someone parking too close shouldn't be a problem.
These are not your gull-wing doors of the 80's, and yes we have learned.
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Why does everyone assume gull-wing doors are somehow particularly bad at this?
Here's a video of a guy opening one next to some truck [youtube.com] or a wall [youtube.com]. If it does require any more space than a regular door, it's not significantly so, but I doubt even that is the case. Remember that a door is maybe 10-15 cm thick, so that's the minimum you'll need to have for a single mm of clearance with a regular door, not to mention all the inches for your fat ass.
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Another consideration is the size reduction, 10% smaller is not a good thing for Americans. I weigh about 200lbs and because of the way the steering wheel adjusts in the model S I can't physically fit in the driver's seat. I have actually sat in the car so I think the steering wheel could be designed to tilt instead of just going in and out a few inches. The model S is not a large car to begin with, if you make things smaller still you are greatly limiting your market from the majority of Americans.
Huh? The MS has tilt and telescoping steering wheel. The MS is a big car. It doesn't look it, but the interior and trunk space is of a full-size car.
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I thought Tesla had turned the corner when it comes to electric car styling. I see that thought was a bit premature.
It seems that when vehicle manufacturers cheapen up a car, the first thing they throw out is looks. I understand why attractive women are expensive, but I don't see why the same rule has to apply to cars.
Interesting comment considering no one has seen the Model E yet. Can I borrow your time machine, please?
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Just centralizing pollution, horrid efficiency (fossil base to movement) and further stress on power grid. An electrical car is tolerable as soon as it's operated FULLY on renewable sources, e.g. the sun AND has an acceptable range (600km at 140km/h == 86 m/h).
Has been debunked already. Even when operated on 100% coal power, the Model S produces 1/2 the pollution of a small economy gasoline car.