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Electric Vehicles (batteries)
The Tesla Roadster (TeslaMotors) Wow, what a car! Well, now that I've said that, let me explain why? First of all, one look at this car it's love at first site. It's beautiful to look at, and that's not all, it actually has the performance to match. Check out these stats! This thing is 100% electric and has the equivalent power of 248 HP. It can go from 0-60 in 3.9 seconds (supercar performance) and it gets 244 miles (average) per charge, which in money terms comes out to be just cents per mile.
The Tesla Roadster is a compact & relatively heavy 2 seat electric version of the British Lotus Elise, with an automatic transmission and a PEM (power electronics module) that controls the motor torque, charging and regenerative braking. But this isn't just an electric motor hooked up to a battery, this vehicle is high tech, and from the looks of practical for mass production. The power (electricity) comes from packs of Lithium-Ion batteries (same as in your computer but many more - approx. 7500) put together in series and parallel in order to increase voltage and ampacity to drive the electric motor. The motor by the way is relatively small for a car with such performance. It's about the size of a watermelon, and weighs only about 115 pounds. Below are 3 videos that review the Tesla Roadster in detail. The 1st is from Tesla Motors and is basically an audio-visual introduction to the car. The 2nd is a driving review and the 3rd is a Tesla Roadster being delivered and enjoyed by it's new owner. This next video shows the car being driven in California. Next video is from an owner taking delivery and his first impressions.
So there you have it! A great car, that's already being sold around the world, and reasonably practical. So what's the bad news? Well, it costs about $100 K, which doesn't really make it affordable for an average Joe to go out and buy. On the other hand, it was never intended to be another Toyota Prius, but rather a Green alternative to a Porsche or Ferrari. Let's face it, this isn't exactly a practical car to take shopping, but if you're interested in high performance and helping the environment, then this is it. Would I buy one? Yes definitely, especially now that they're in mass production (at Lotus levels not GM), and reasonably affordable. And the thought of just plugging this thing at night, only to have a full charge waiting for another 250 thrilling miles in this beauty, is just so tempting. Hopefully, the price of Lithium-Ion batteries will drop enough to start selling these cars at a more affordable price. Stay tuned!
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