Tesla Roadster official figures released
Up until now, Tesla Motors have only been able to make claims on their Roadster’s performance and range figures based on projections, so many people were skeptical about all this talk of 250 mile (400 km) range and 4 second 0-100km/h sprints. Well, official figures have now been released.
In his blog, Tesla Motors engineer, Andrew Simpson has explained the test procedures used to complete the Roadster’s performance and range validation. Basically, they took a prototype model, specced it just the same as a final production version (or added ballast to make up the weight of production features that haven’t yet been added), and then drove a series of real-world test routes on the open road to test the range; and a number of sprints on a closed runway to test the acceleration and top speed. I’ll let you read the specifics on Simpson’s blog - let’s get down to the nitty gritty: range and speed.
Acceleration: 0-60mph (96 km/h): < 4 seconds
Top speed: 130 mph (208 km/h). According to Simpson, continued running at its 130 mph top speed puts considerable mechanical and thermal stress on the motor, so production versions will be limited to 125 mph (200kmh).
Range: 264 - 427 km. Driving style and conditions obviously affect the car’s range. The car’s official EPA combined cycle figure is 245 miles (406 km). Below are the various scenarios that the Roadster was subjected to:
* 427 km of conservative urban driving in the suburbs around San Carlos (a best-case scenario)
* 368 km from North Lake Tahoe to San Carlos with two occupants plus luggage
* 363.2 km of highway cruising on the I-5 freeway, south of Stockton
* 355 km including sporty driving from San Carlos to Santa Cruz via the hilly Skyline Blvd, and highway cruising from Santa Cruz to San Carlos via Hwy 1, San Francisco, and US 101
* 340 km, 334 km and 325 km of highway cruising with A/C using I-280, Hwy 85 and US 101
* 298 km of aggressive driving on I-280 and the round trip from Woodside to San Gregorio Beach via Hwy 84
* 264 km of impatient commuting, aggressive stops and starts, high speeds, and air conditioning on from Saratoga Gap to San Carlos via Hwy 9, Hwy 85 and I-280 (a worst-case scenario)
These are very impressive figures, and a typical commuter should be confident that he/she can realistically attain 400 km on a charge. On the negative side, production’s been slightly delayed. Tesla says that the first 50 units will roll off the production line in Q1, 2008, with the rest following later that year.
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