Tesla Motors
BY J. MICHAEL RIVERA
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For now, Tesla Motors is the only automobile manufacturer to make a highway-capable electric vehicle. And what a vehicle it is. The Tesla Roadster is a sleek, ground hugging all-electric vehicle that beat a Porsche GT3 recently on a test track, yet has a smaller carbon footprint than a Toyota Prius. The roadster is capable of going from zero to 60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds. A sport model will begin delivery in June with a jaw-dropping 0-to-60 time of 3.7 seconds.
With a range of 200 miles and a recharge time of 3.5 hours, the Tesla Roadster has the reliability of a daily driver, wrapped in the skin of a six-figure sports car.
Tesla Motors’ ability to deliver such an exclusive product, timed with the global economic crisis and the concern over greenhouse gas emissions, has put the automobile manufacturer in the catbird seat.
“For customers who refuse to compromise between performance and efficiency,” said Tesla Motors spokesperson Rachel Konrad, “the Tesla Roadster is their only option and will remain so for at least several more quarters as other automakers scramble to catch up.”
Driving an electric car offers acceleration and torque without the occasional lag and wind-up of internal combustion engines. The Tesla Roadster has no gears or clutch, only a single-speed gearbox. There are high-performances that can out-accelerate the roadster, but “to truly wring out all their performance you need to be a professional driver with perfect clutch work and laser-fast reflexes,” Konrad said. “Because the Roadster has only a single-speed gearbox, anyone with a driver’s license – even people who have never before driven a manual transmissio can enjoy wicked-fast speed.”
For those who still aren’t convinced that an electric car can rise above the cute-but-styleless Prius, or the clothes-iron shaped Honda Insight, the Tesla offers a downright sexy option. And it has to be head-turning to compete with non-electrical sports cars.
“Tesla’s purpose was to shatter stereotypes of what an electric vehicle looks like and how it performs,” Konrad said, “and it must compete on performance, handling, styling, fit and finish with established internal-combustion engine cars in the low six figures.”
With a range of 200 miles and a recharge time of 3.5 hours, the Tesla Roadster has the reliability of a daily driver, wrapped in the skin of a six-figure sports car.
Tesla Motors’ ability to deliver such an exclusive product, timed with the global economic crisis and the concern over greenhouse gas emissions, has put the automobile manufacturer in the catbird seat.
“For customers who refuse to compromise between performance and efficiency,” said Tesla Motors spokesperson Rachel Konrad, “the Tesla Roadster is their only option and will remain so for at least several more quarters as other automakers scramble to catch up.”
Driving an electric car offers acceleration and torque without the occasional lag and wind-up of internal combustion engines. The Tesla Roadster has no gears or clutch, only a single-speed gearbox. There are high-performances that can out-accelerate the roadster, but “to truly wring out all their performance you need to be a professional driver with perfect clutch work and laser-fast reflexes,” Konrad said. “Because the Roadster has only a single-speed gearbox, anyone with a driver’s license – even people who have never before driven a manual transmissio can enjoy wicked-fast speed.”
For those who still aren’t convinced that an electric car can rise above the cute-but-styleless Prius, or the clothes-iron shaped Honda Insight, the Tesla offers a downright sexy option. And it has to be head-turning to compete with non-electrical sports cars.
“Tesla’s purpose was to shatter stereotypes of what an electric vehicle looks like and how it performs,” Konrad said, “and it must compete on performance, handling, styling, fit and finish with established internal-combustion engine cars in the low six figures.”