Four-seat sports car gains 10,000NM tri-electric propulsion, 1,000km driving range and top speed in excess of 400kph.
That’s a nice-looking car!
This is Tesla’s all-new Roadster which is a sports car complementing the existing Model 3 and S saloons, as well the Model X SUV. It made a surprise debut alongside Tesla’s new truck in the US this week.
Although the Roadster name might be familiar to some ears, this new version has nothing to do with the original one built from 2008-2012. The brand’s first car was actually based on the Lotus Elise albeit with Tesla’s own electric propulsion.
The latest Roadster is a 2+2 sports car whose roof can be removed in Targa-style. Note the interior which features a large central touchscreen in the Tesla fashion and a futuristic steering wheel with no buttons in sight (and probably no airbag, as well).
How fast can it accelerate?
Tesla hasn’t talked much about the technical credentials of the drivetrain and only says the Roadster has a tri-electric motor capable of a massive 10,000Nm of torque.
The drive system is most likely to be all-wheel-drive with two motors driving the rear axle that should also be able to act as torque-vectoring control for enhanced handling. As seen in the details of the pictures provided by Tesla to the media, there are Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres and carbon-ceramic brakes.
Tesla says the Roadster can accelerate from 0-96kph in 1.9sec and 0-160kph in 4.2sec. The company adds that it can crack the quarter-mile run in 8.9sec, a new record for cars. Top speed is rated in excess of 400kph.
With the availability of 200kWh battery pack, the Roadster is claimed to have a touring range of 1,000km, another new record for battery electric vehicles.
That’s quite impressive. How much does it cost?
Tesla vows the Roadster will go into production in 2020 with an initial price tag of $250,000, which translates to an on-road price of some 17 million baht in Thailand when taking import tax and excise rate for BEVs into consideration. After the producing the first 1,000 cars, Tesla adds that the price will drop to $200,000 (around 13 million baht).
That kind of money puts the Roadster into Thai price territory of the Porsche 911 GTS and Mercedes-AMG GT, both with traditional internal combustion engines. Which doesn’t sound that bad, because the Tesla is not only the faster one but probably on a different plane when it comes to the driving experience.
More interesting to see is how Tesla can meet its production plans for the Roadster. The Model 3, which has received an overwhelming amount of orders during its introduction, has yet to be delivered to all customers who have already made a deposit.
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