Tesla Model S: 0-60 in 2.5s, 762HP (Now w/ Fart Mode)

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Tesla Model S – Click above for high-res image gallery

It’s been a long and difficult road, but Tesla Motors has made it to unveiling No. 2. After a lot of hype and delivery of 250 Tesla Roadsters, the company’s Model S was unveiled today in Hawthorne, California. Tesla was incredibly careful about not leaking a lot of information before today – designing the Model S at a high-security rocket facility helped with that, but we still got a peek a few hours ago – and now that it’s here, we love what we see. As for new information on the Tesla For The Rest Of Us (sort of), follow the jump for all the details and check out the gallery of high res photos below.

We have just listened to the panjandrum Elon Musk and the car’s designer speak about the new Tesla S sedan, and these are the things to know about the first mass-produced highway-capable electric car: production will ramp up to 20,000 units annually by the end of the first year of production; after the $7,500 tax break, the Model S will start at just under $50,000 – $49,900 to be exact; and 440-volt charging will be available. That base price is for the 160-mile range pack; a 230-mile range pack and a 300-mile range pack will also be available.

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Some other fast facts:

  • The car fits seven people and their luggage: five adults and two children in rear-facing seats under the hatch inside, with luggage in the boot up front.
  • If not people, it can fit a mountain bike with its wheels still on, a surfboard and a 50-inch television at the same time.
  • The dashboard screens were installed to rid the interior of buttons. The 17-inch main display is fully 3G and Internet capable.
  • The 300-mile range is possible (vs the Roadster’s 244-mile range) because the S has 8,000 battery cells vs. 6,000 in the Roadster, the batteries have been improved in mass and volumetric performance, and there is more advanced cell chemistry in each cell, and the S has a cd of about .27 vs. the Roadster’s drag coefficient of .35.
  • On a 220V outlet, the car can be recharged in 4 hours.
  • Option packages are being decided, with the only initial option being the battery pack. Customers will also be able to buy the 160-mile pack and rent the long range pack for a trip.
  • They are finalizing the warranty, and expect it to be 3-4 years for the car and 7-10 years for the battery pack. They expect replacement battery packs to come in at “well under $5000” according to Elon.
  • The quickness: the standard S will get to 60 in 5.5 to 6.0 seconds. A coming sport version will get to 60 in “well under five seconds,” Musk says.
  • The car will get a single-speed transmission.
  • The body panels and chassis will be primarily aluminum, with a total weight of just over 4,000 pounds, about 1,200 pounds of that being battery mass.
  • For infrastructure, Tesla is working with a government-affiliated partner to set up battery changing stations at various locations. They will be able to change the battery in 5-8 minutes, “quicker than filling up your car with gas.”

According to Tesla’s numbers, buying a Tesla S will save you $10-$15K vs a comparably priced gas-powered sedan when gas is $4 per gallon. For an equivalent comparison, you’d have to lease a $35,000 gas-powered car. The biggest hitch: the car doesn’t go into production until Q3 of 2011.

Looks great… a nice maserati look to it

Top gear had a tesla review on mondays show. If you didnt see it , well lets just say that lotus had a chance but lost. Nice car tho and If it continues to be more affordable it might make a good impact on the market. If I did have the ability , Id get one

Car does look nice…

i really like it.

seems like they could get more out of it with a transmission with more than one gear. One would figure for 50k you could get an actual transmission, along with the leather wrapped dash.

I was looking at that dash picture and the date on the screen cant be right. it says Thursday March 2X 2009. It appears to be an 8 or 9, but either way thats wrong. hmm…

Looks beautiful, Tesla is so impressive. I’d expect the Tesla sedan to be stripped electronically, ie minimal speakers analog everything power nothing, but that car is loaded.

Travis - They tried 2 gears with the original and couldn’t get it to NOT break. IIRC

hmm, I wonder why. Is it because of the instant torque or what?

^that has a lot to do with it. You also have to realize that it is fairly unnecessary on an electric motor, and will only produce more drivetrain loss.

I think that we are seeing the future of everyday cars here gentlemen.

it clearly says Thursday Mrch 26th 2009 :picard:

which was today. which was when it was revealed. which was when the pictures were taken. :fail: !!

Let’s see a 300 mile range with luggage and 3 passengers.

Still looks great, Porsche should take note compared to it’s newest shitbox.

very nice

awesome, I love it.

I like it, for 50k and a 300 mile range will make it a serious competitor if gas goes up again, would make a great daily driver

hottt

I read somewhere that Tesla was taking orders for cars it had NO means to build…

It’s definitely a cool car, though.

Does anybody know who supplies the batteries? Are they still using laptop battery packs?

7 people…wow

Yes, it beat the Lotus, but then it ran out of charge after 57 miles on the track, so they got a back-up, which also ran out of charge, then the first one broke, so they were sitting their doing nothing with two cars that they couldn’t drive.

Not exactly a resounding endorsement of the reliability or actual range ability.