Posted by
Misc | 20 Jul 06 | Comments (7) | Stumble
We've never featured a car on MoCo Loco for a multitude of reasons (we're more interested in the home + there are plenty of car blogs) but will make an exception because of what Martin Eberhard of Tesla Motors calls "punishment cars". Punishment cars are former electric cars that were "slow, cramped, spartan" that looked like electric cars. Martin has made a sports car that goes 0-60 mph in four seconds, and more importantly, looks like it guzzles gallons of gas. It doesn't. It's all electric. I won't dwell on the details, there are many, read the scoop/exclusive in Wired magazine. So what of "punishment cars"? The Tesla illustrates the power of design to transform. What should "normally" be a sensible electric vehicle, is now a hot car. Design communicates. It's hard to imagine today that something desirable for, let's say it, it's sex appeal, can also be sustainable. The Tesla is proof that you can get your cake and eat it too, design plus sustainability that doesn't look sustainable. This is how the rest of the world will adopt sustainable products and practices, by buying products that look great, work great and leave a small footprint. Sustainability is a feature, not a product.
My favorite feature? The gas cap for recharging.
while i think this is a great step in the right direction regarding electric vehicles, i must say the design is pretty mediocre. i mean, i understand that Lotus and their engineers helped with the design, and that they based it on the Lotus Elise/Exige platform. but honestly, it looks like an electric version of the Elise. sure, there are some subtle changes here and there, but for the most part, it's an electric Elise. even the name on the back of the car is placed EXACTLY like the Elise, but instead of "Lotus", it says "Tesla". i feel they could've put more design work into the body, differentiating it to make it look like a whole, new vehicle.
Man, that's the kind of cake that I'd like to have and eat.
I'm not the kind of guy that needs the speed, but I do need something that doesn't look goofy. Gizmodo reports that the Tesla is rumored to cost around $100k. Ouch! There go my dreams.
I have seen some electric cars that I find moderately attractive, but nothing yet that is a bullseye. A sleek, black Tesla sure does come close, in my opinion.
That's sexy. Why should good design be on only expensive / high-end cars.
I've seen so many ugly cars... did they deliberately make them look ugly, look like how much they cost?
Well put, if this is the automotive future I'd say we're in good shape. I do wonder about the ability of any electric vehicles to offer decent AC. The daily temp where I'm at right now is a tad under 100F with near 100% humidity on a regular basis. Even a regular gas-powered car labors to cool things down, and if my understanding is correct an AC system eats up an enormous amount of battery juice.
To TR: The Telsa Roadster body is unique and completely different than an Elise. The rear end of the two cars looks completely different and the nomenclature is completely different. The Tesla body is 100% carbon fiber, the Elise is fiberglass. The Telsa Roadster is 5" longer and has a 2" longer wheelbase. Yes the chassis is based on the Elise but it is substantially re-designed to carry the additional weight and size of the battery pack. Also the sills are lowered 2".
Regarding AC: The Tesla Roadster has excellent AC because the compressor is powered by a 400v motor that runs at a continuous speed. The range is calculated with AC on because the AC is also used to cool the battery pack.
the sickest car you will ever see