Page 44 - ElectriCar Magazine

The 1.9 second figure for 0–60 mph seems reasonable given the estimated battery weight is 1,836 lbs
An upcoming All-Electric battery-powered four- seater sports car made by Tesla, Inc. Tesla has said it will be capable of 0 to 60 mph in
1.9 seconds and 0 to 62 mph in 2.1 seconds, quicker than any street legal production car to date at its announcement. The Roadster is the successor to Tesla’s first production car, which was the
2008 Roadster.
Tesla indicated that Roadster sales will begin in 2020,
although not before the Tesla Model Y goes on sale. Musk has said that higher-performance trim levels will be available beyond the base specifications.
In 2011, at the end of the production run of the original Tesla Roadster, Elon Musk suggested that a new version of the Roadster, without the Lotus chassis, would return to production by 2014. The new Roadster was first teased in 2014.
In 2015, Musk suggested a new Roadster in 2019, capable of faster acceleration. A tweet by Elon Musk in 2016 reconfirmed a second Roadster was in the works, but still “some years away”.
The Tesla Roadster release date has been somewhat vague, but Musk promised at a Tesla Design Studio event that it would hit the roads in 2020.
The 2020 version of the Roadster was shown in a surprise moment at the end of the Tesla Semi event in 2017, during which a Roadster was driven out of the back of a semi-truck trailer to the song “Sabotage”. Musk explained the concept as: “The point of doing this is to give a hardcore smackdown to gasoline cars. Driving a gasoline sports car is going to feel like a steam engine with a side of quiche”. The car will retail for upward of 200,000.00; test rides were given at the event for those who immediately paid the first 5,000.00 of a 50,000,00 deposit to pre-order the vehicle. Additional information followed after the teaser, such as the various world-record speeds Tesla said it will break.
In June 2018, Elon Musk revealed a potential feature called
“SpaceX option package” for the Roadster. This would add around ten cold gas thrusters to the car to improve maneuverability; it would comprise an electric pump to recharge an air tank used to provide compressed air flowing through propelling nozzles to generate a cold jet thrust. The air tanks, based on “Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel” also used in the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, would replace the back seats. The thrusters would be used to improve cornering, acceleration, top speed, and braking. Working pressure would be 10,000 psi.
Pre-orders of the Roadster began in 2017, with a 50,000.00 deposit required. Tesla owners taking part in the referral promotion program began accumulating discounts toward the purchase of a Roadster based on the number of referrals. Those reaching 55 confirmed referrals obtained a one- hundred percent rebate toward a future Roadster purchase.
The base model was expected to sell for 200,000.00 but the first 1,000 to be produced, the so-called Founder’s Series, will be priced at 250,000.00. Full payment would be required to pre-order the latter vehicle.
The second generation Tesla Roadster is a 2+2 roadster with a removable glass roof. It was designed by Franz von Holzhausen, who formerly worked at Mazda and Volkswagen. The Roadster has a 2+2 seating arrangements, with smaller rear seats for two passengers.
The Roadster has three electric motors, one in front and two at the rear, allowing for all-wheel drive, and torque vectoring during cornering. Tesla said that the vehicle had a 200 kWh battery, which is twice the capacity of the Tesla Model S P100D, and giving a 621 miles range on one charge at highway speeds. Tesla stated that the torque at wheels was 10,000 Nm. The rear wheels are larger than the front wheels.
At the 2017 unveiling, Tesla claimed the Roadster’s acceleration will be 0–60 mph in 1.9 seconds and 0–100 mph in 4.2 seconds
Its claimed 0 to 1⁄4 mile, time will be under 9 seconds,
42
ElectriCar Magazine
0 to 1⁄4 mile and time under 9 seconds with a top speed above 250 mph