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Elon Musk, the Chief Executive of electric car maker Tesla, unveiled a surprise new vehicle on Thursday night - a roadster that he said would be the "fastest production car ever" made.

Capable of going from 0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds, the Tesla Roadster would be the first such car ever to break the two second mark, the entrepreneur said at a launch near Los Angeles.

He also said it would climb from 0 to 100 mph in 4.2 seconds and clear a quarter mile in 8.9 seconds. "This will the first time that any production car has broken 9 seconds in the quarter mile," he said

With a 200 kilowatt hour battery pack, the Tesla Roadster will have a range of 620 miles on a single charge - another new record.

"The point of doing this is to give a hardcore smackdown to gasoline cars," he said.

“Driving a gasoline sports car is going to feel like a steam engine with a side of quiche.”

Production of the new car, an updated version of Tesla's first production vehicle, is expected to begin in 2020.

Its top speed was not revealed, but he hinted it was "above 250pmh". The current world record for a production car is 277.9mph, held by the Agera RS by Sweden’s Koenigsegg.

The car, which will have a base price of $200,000, was unveiled theatrically during the launch of a prototype electric big-rig truck, dubbed the Tesla Semi.

Above 250 huh? Can it keep it up for the entire Southern 500?

Niche toys, that is all. Maybe someday.

To be fair, any super car is a niche toy no matter the propulsion system.

If it comes close to hitting those numbers it will be a huge smack down in the super car world. The Konigsegg Agera cost over 10x as much!

But...How does it SOUND?

The sound is a LOT of the experience. To me the electrics may be the wave of the future but not in MY future. I'll stick to evil gasoline.

My car will go 0-60 in 3.6 seconds. I know what that feels like-- it feels fast!. But it's slow compared with 1.9 seconds-- which must feel like being steam catapulted off a carrier deck.

Could never afford one! But if trickle down economics lets the 620 mile range batteries move to a much lower cost unit it would be in the offering! Noise I get from my radio.
Thought I'd add a pic with the sunroof removed.

Call me when it's really available. Ask all of the thousands of potential customers who have made big deposits on the Tesla Model 3, which is already a couple of years overdue, when they think they will really get their cars.

I want one!!!

Yeah, but I can "recharge" my gas powered car in a couple minutes.

Me likey. Me wanty. Way out of my price range.

H&K-Guy

quote:

0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds

He also said it would climb from 0 to 100 mph in 4.2 seconds and clear a quarter mile in 8.9 seconds.

This has zero interest in my demographic or zip code.
now the 620 mile charge does sound interesting.....wonder what the cruise speed to achieve that might be....it's a long way between charge stations in Oregon Outback country.

quote:

Originally posted by Fla. Jim:
...The car, which will have a base price of $200,000...

Think of how much it would cost without all the government subsidies Tesla has gotten these last few years! I imagine Ferrari and Aston Martin could get their prices down a bit with that kind of backing.

And who ever heard of a semi that was limited to 500 miles range, followed by a recharge of indeterminate time?

quote:

Originally posted by signewt:

quote:

0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds

He also said it would climb from 0 to 100 mph in 4.2 seconds and clear a quarter mile in 8.9 seconds.

This has zero interest in my demographic or zip code.
now the 620 mile charge does sound interesting.....wonder what the cruise speed to achieve that might be....it's a long way between charge stations in Oregon Outback country.

Yeah, of all the stats on this car, the range is the most intriguing. It means that the technology is catching up with public demands in the electric options.

Do I want one? Oh hell no! At my age I'd kill myself in the first week but it would be a hell off a way to go.

Jim

I love the idea, but until they make something that can haul feed and hay, 4x8 boards and mulch? It isn't hitting me on my "buy" button.

Cue that pic of the Prius being recharged with a gas powered portable generator.

He can't manage to reliably mass produce the cheap model he pre-sold thousands of and he's debuting big rigs and sports cars. I have respect for his business acumen and entrepreneurial talent but I think he needs to work on the basics before moving on to the next big idea. I've aways been very impressed by what he's been doing at space-x though, thats for sure.

Elon Musk:

quote:

"The point of doing this is to give a hardcore smackdown to gasoline cars," he said.

“Driving a gasoline sports car is going to feel like a steam engine with a side of quiche.”

No Elon, no smackdown awarded here until you do this on the vehicle's own capabilities... without massive Government subsidies.

Do it on your own money, deliver what you have promised to the poor suckers who have put down deposits, then show me how the net/net manufacture, purchase, life cycle expense, repair costs, disposal fees for the expended battery packs, etc. pencil-out in Tesla's favor... and are such a wonderful improvement for our environment.

Then maybe we can talk about "SmackDowns"

In the meantime, don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way to your next overstated press conference.

Just a question I've never seen answered and surely never put in a TV commercial. How much does it cost to recharge the electric cars? The Volt, the Leaf, and now these luxury style cars? Its got to be a simple equation, one that seems to be hiding. Once a week or so I fill up my gas tank and it costs between $25 and $30. I assume the electric cars will need recharging every evening or two. Sure, where you live and your cost per killowatt hour will be involved.

So does it coat $5 a month or $25 a week?

I just ran an all electric boat that's 28' long. It has 2 50 amp shorepower cables to recharge it. The range isn't anywhere it needs to be, with 2 BMW lithium ION batteries....boat is all carbon fiber and costs $450k At 30 mph it can go 20 miles, at 10 mph it can go 40 miles.....it was a novelty. NOW, if Tesla's battery technology has come so far to give this car a 650 mile range, that is REALLY SOMETHING that can benefit a lot of other areas.

^^^^
Good question. How many pounds of coal are burned every time Johnny "Me So Green" needs to get to work?

ETA: A 600 plus range at what speed? Stop and go? Highway? Combination? Figure in Boston traffic on the upper deck on Friday afternoon?

Treat these exciting 'introductions' as nothing more than they were intended....as distractions. Tesla has proven itself incapable of delivering serious volumes of Model 3's, which were to be its bread and butter. Musk is bleeding cash big time with his Solar City and SpaceX ventures, and although the accomplishments of SpaceX have been impressive, there's no cash flow forthcoming from that venture for some time yet. And Solar City is a huge gamble in that government subsidies to keep it going are likely not going to be there with this administration. Solar without subsidies has proven time and again to fail spectacularly.

So I see a man showing the gullible a sports car and a big truck, neither or which are likely to ever be built, while failing to answer the biggest question of all...Is the Model 3, the future of Tesla, already a failure?