Page 45 - ElectriCar Magazine
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  with a top speed above 250 mph. If the production Roadster achieves these performance numbers, it will outperform the supercars and would set new production car records, none of which had yet done better than 0–62 mph in 2.0 seconds or 9.0 seconds in the 1/4 mile. Referring to the performance may improve in the production model and that the stated numbers refer to the anticipated “base model”.
Analysis: The estimate as to range per charge is optimistic. In an article titled Tesla’s Newest Promises Break the Laws of Batteries, the claimed battery capacity would require batteries that would be too large for the Roadster’s small frame.
A mechanical engineering professor said that the 1.9 second figure for 0–60 mph seems to be reasonable given the estimated battery weight of 1,836 lbs. He added that the feasibility of the acceleration claim assumed suitable tires would be available for the required traction.
Nearly two years later, the production car is still in the works, but according to the electric car manufacturer’s chief designer, we’re in for a real treat when it’s totally ready. Franz von Holzhausen recently joined the Tesla-centric “Ride The Lightning” podcast and von Holzhausen spoke to the production Roadster for the first time in a while.
Not only did he call the electric sports car Tesla’s “halo” model, but he also promised the production car will be better in every way compared to the
prototypes the company has paraded
Roadster’s dramatically angled roofline. Tesla’s signature interior design that is almost completely free of buttons is likely. In the concept’s design a large touchscreen appears to be built right into the panel that connects the dashboard and the center console, with the opportunity for storage behind it. We’ll believe all of this when we see it.
With a battery pack of 200 kilowatt-hours, the Tesla Roadster is set to travel a staggering 620 miles on a single charge. That’s more than double range found on the Tesla Model 3 long-range edition, which offers 310 miles. Musk has teased further refinements, as the current Roadster battery is just two Model S P100 packs strapped together, which allows for Tesla to double the modules without packaging and other components. Musk claims that the company could make efficiency savings of 10 or 20 percent on the 4.5-inch rise in height simply from the bigger packs.
The Roadster is able to accelerate from 0-60mph in 1.9 seconds, making it the quickest production car ever created, outsprinting vehicles like the Bugatti Veyron or Koenigsegg Agera RS. Though there are definitely some impressive competitive answers to the Roadster on the way the vehicle has garnered the world’s attention.
Sporting the familiar Tesla face on an aerodynamically- styled body, the American supercar will match record performance with record efficiency. The Roadster will boast seating for four and feature a removable glass roof
that stores in the trunk.
Tesla Model S continued from page 31 significant part of the elements from old batteries, approaching a “closed loop” in which old batteries are turned into new batteries.
The Automotive Science Group published the result of a study conducted to assess the life-cycle
of over 1,300 automobiles across nine categories sold in North America. The study ranked the Model S as the best environmental performer in the full-size cars category. Based on the assessment of life-cycle environmental footprint, the study concluded that the increased environmental impacts of manufacturing the vehicle are more than offset with increased environmental performance during operation. For the assessment, the study used the average electricity mix of the U.S. grid
A study by the Union of Concerned Scientists found that an electric vehicle in the United States with similar efficiency to the Model S is responsible for the production of the same amount of CO2 as a gasoline-powered car that gets 34 to 115 MPG, depending on the source of electricity in the region in which the car is being charged. The study estimated that nearly half of Americans lived in regions where an electric vehicle would result in less emissions than a 50 MPG hybrid vehicle. A study by Union of Concerned Scientists found that in the US regions where the Model S is popular, the sixty-eight percent higher manufacturing emissions are offset within a few years of average driving. During their lifecycle, EVs emit about half the amount of comparable fossil cars. The report assumes electric materials are recycled at a rate similar to other cars, but excludes the problem of battery disposal, “because there are sparse data on how industry is currently recycling batteries or intends to do so in the future”.
Tesla Model S continued on page 84 43
around in recent years.
That seems like a tall order since the
prototypes already run 200 kilowatt- hour batteries which is good for 620 miles of range, according to Tesla, and its electric motors (three of them this time to create an all-wheel-drive system) produce enough power to propel the electric car to 250 mph. The 0-60 mph sprint should happen in 1.9 seconds.
Von Holzhausen wouldn’t elaborate
on what areas engineers and designers are focusing on to create an elevated production Roadster, but he said it’s “evolving” as it inches toward production. Tesla previously promised those who plunked down a deposit of $50,000 that they’d receive their electric supercar in 2020. At some point, owners will need to pay the remaining balance: $200,000, making a total price of $250,000.
When this new version of the 2020 Tesla Roadster was unveiled as a concept in 2017, Tesla founder Elon Musk touted some rather lofty pie-in-the-sky performance numbers, including a claimed zero-to-60-mph time of 1.9 seconds, a top speed of more than 250 mph, and a quarter-mile time of just 8.8 seconds. Musk also said that all-wheel drive will be standard; Tesla’s mainstream EV models utilize two electric motors, one at the front and one at the rear, to achieve all- wheel drive, so we expect the same setup will be found in the Roadster. The 200-kWh battery is said to provide up to 620 miles of range, but certainly that number will be achievable only under very light use; hitting the track for some flat-out hot laps will result in a shorter range-per-charge.
For now, the 2020 Roadster is a concept and in the past, Tesla concepts and concepts from most every other auto manufacturer, have changed drastically during their development into production models. The Roadster concept’s interior can be opened to the elements by removing the glass- panel roof and stowing it in the trunk. There are four seats, but the rears look like they will be quite cramped given the
JUNE 2020
With a battery pack of 200 kilowatt-hours, the Tesla Roadster is set to travel a staggering 620 miles on a single charge
  









































































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