100% electric, 0-60 in 4sec. It's Tesla Motors
09-06-2006, 07:55 AM
#2
I wonder how many 0-60 runs you get before needing a charge? How long at 120 or above?
And is that with the a/c on when it's 90 or more outside?
Once it's out of charge, you can't just pull into a station and go again in 10 minutes, but must leave the car on the charger for a while.
Essentially it's a Lotus Elise chassis with some specially cooled super-slick laptop batteries hooked together. 1000lbs of batteries + electric motor(s). A normal car engine often weighs 400 to 500lbs depending on size and accessories. Fuel tank obviously adds some more.
Besides, the electricity to charge it has to come form coal, gas, and nuclear plants which run at a peak efficiency of 35 to 40% before transmission losses via power lines, battery efficiency, and electric motor efficiency are factored in. Gas engines are usually running in the 30 to 35% efficiency range while mounted in a car. So you might save polluting in an urban area, but the overall level of pollution is probably the same - or worse when you factor in the production and disposal of batteries.
They tried electric cars at the turn of the last century and the downsides caused them to go away. Until we have a renewable source of electricity, I see electric cars as a PR exercise.
Besides, a supercar that just whirs at full speed? ;-)<ul><li><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/nizam/.Movies/f355-1.mov">yeeeeehaaaaaawwwwww!</a></li></ul>
Once it's out of charge, you can't just pull into a station and go again in 10 minutes, but must leave the car on the charger for a while.
Essentially it's a Lotus Elise chassis with some specially cooled super-slick laptop batteries hooked together. 1000lbs of batteries + electric motor(s). A normal car engine often weighs 400 to 500lbs depending on size and accessories. Fuel tank obviously adds some more.
Besides, the electricity to charge it has to come form coal, gas, and nuclear plants which run at a peak efficiency of 35 to 40% before transmission losses via power lines, battery efficiency, and electric motor efficiency are factored in. Gas engines are usually running in the 30 to 35% efficiency range while mounted in a car. So you might save polluting in an urban area, but the overall level of pollution is probably the same - or worse when you factor in the production and disposal of batteries.
They tried electric cars at the turn of the last century and the downsides caused them to go away. Until we have a renewable source of electricity, I see electric cars as a PR exercise.
Besides, a supercar that just whirs at full speed? ;-)<ul><li><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/nizam/.Movies/f355-1.mov">yeeeeehaaaaaawwwwww!</a></li></ul>
09-06-2006, 08:53 AM
#3
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Another neat toy for the mega-wealthy. Which is okay but...
that is pretty much all it is. I think it goes 200 miles between charges and has to be at the "homebase" charger to charge in a reasonable amount of time. If you plug it in to 110V AC it takes a day.
It is a neat toy though I could think of a couple of other automotive toys that would be in my garage first if I had $100,000 to play with.
It is a neat toy though I could think of a couple of other automotive toys that would be in my garage first if I had $100,000 to play with.
09-06-2006, 10:43 AM
#4
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ruin a lotus while you're at it
You can't track that car for very long... 250mi worth of gasoline doesn't last long on a road course... 250mi worth of batteries even with regenerative braking isn't going to last more than one or two 30min sessions. Then you get to wait 4 hours while the cells recharge... at the end of the day's 4 sessions (4pm) you get to wait another 4 hours before going home at about 8pm. Otherwise there is the ever present risk of breakdown due to exhausted cells.
So essentially the car is no longer useful for what it was engineered for. BRILLIANT!
So essentially the car is no longer useful for what it was engineered for. BRILLIANT!
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