UK Sunday Times

malcolm · Jun 22, 2008

Four articles on electric transportation in today's edition:-

http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/news/article4187546.ece

Our friends electric - Times Online

Smart Fortwo ED: It’s a total shock I love it review | New Car Reviews - Times Online

http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/features/article4176474.ece

The first one is in the main paper the other three are in the "In Gear" motoring/gadgets supplement.

However, in the print edition, the first article includes a chart of basic stats for four EVs; the G-Wiz the Mega City, The Smart ED and the, quote, "Tesla Sports". This entry simply states 125mph top speed, 220 mile range and "Available in the UK in 2009"

Petrol prices are forcing brits to take a serious look at EVs. This is a great opportunity to get the Tesla name out there, without the usual "we work with Lotus" negotiation-opener. Clearly the UK press are happy to print articles on EVs - even Vicki Butler-Henderson does a re-hash of her Fifith Gear review of the Smart ED.

At least one Roadster will be back in the UK over the next few weeks for the Salon Prive, Goodwood Festival of Speed and the British Motor Show, so I hope these appearances will be matched by print articles on the car.

While the number of Roadster owners is so low, this is the ideal opportunity for that long-term test. It would be geat if Tesla were prepared to cover the cost of installing a fast charger in the garage of - ideally - one of the Top Gear team.

May not be possible - but someone needs to write that "Living with the Tesla Roadster" article.

dpeilow · Jun 22, 2008

Unfortunately they perpetuate this myth in the first article:

In spite of their drawbacks – such as short range and puny acceleration – electric cars are more economical and environmentally friendly than fossil fuel-burning vehicles.

We also have to get this standardised:

By the end of next year, about 1,000 of the bays are expected to be installed across the country, with 200 in London and smaller networks in other conurbations...

The charging points have a normal three-pin socket inside a locked box. Recharging takes about two hours.

Stardard 13A sockets will not be good enough for high-power cars like the Roadster to charge in a working day. At the very least they should be fitting 32A commando type sockets (better still the 70A chargers). I presume the car's onboard charger can handle 32A, 240V if available?

malcolm · Jun 22, 2008

dpeilow said:
I presume the car's onboard charger can handle 32A, 240V if available?

Yes, no problem. Because of the links with Lotus, the car is UK-ready in terms of charging and EU-wide homologation rule-changes from April 2009 takes care of the rest.

I agree that these articles are full of the same old stuff - but rising petrol prices changes the context. It's the opportunity which they represent rather than the current lack-lustre content.

Say "EV" over here and most people automatically think of "G-Wiz". By the end of this summer it really should be "Tesla Roadster".

doug · Jun 22, 2008

dpeilow said:
Stardard 13A sockets will not be good enough for high-power cars like the Roadster to charge in a working day.

I don't know... if it's 13A at 240V, over an 8 hours workday that's almost 25kWh. That's enough to drive the roadster for 100 miles.

doug · Jun 22, 2008

Malcolm, I think you might have missed this one:
"Stand back, it’s the charge of the supercars"
http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/article4181848.ece

What's nice about this article is that it's about supercars, not EVs. Telsa just happens to be the only EV mentioned.

Alfa Romeo 8C Spider
...
Aston Martin V12 Vantage RS
...
KTM X-Bow
...
Mercedes SLR McLaren Roadster
...
Tesla Roadster
If you don’t believe electric power has any place in a supercar, the Tesla Roadster could well change your mind. Far from being as unwieldy as a giant Duracell battery, the Tesla manages to shoot from standstill to 60mph in an electrifying 4sec, handles sublimely (indeed, like the Lotus Elise, with which it shares its aluminium underpinnings) and turns heads in a way that no G-Wiz ever could. The only snag is the price. At roughly £50,000, it’s not cheap — particularly not when you can buy a Lotus Elise for just £23,550.
But then, in view of the price of fuel these days, perhaps Tesla is set to strike oil (so to speak) and plug into a new generation of eco-minded, wallet-conscious sports-car drivers.

doug · Jun 22, 2008

malcolm said:
While the number of Roadster owners is so low, this is the ideal opportunity for that long-term test. It would be geat if Tesla were prepared to cover the cost of installing a fast charger in the garage of - ideally - one of the Top Gear team.

This would be nice, but I'd prefer they wait till Drivetrain 1.5 is installed for Top Gear. Would love to see the Stig take the Roadster around the Top Gear track. I think the long-term test, however, is probably better done by a car show/magazine that is more about reviews and less about entertainment.

dpeilow · Jun 22, 2008

doug said:
This would be nice, but I'd prefer they wait till Drivetrain 1.5 is installed for Top Gear. Would love to see the Stig take the Roadster around the Top Gear track. I think the long-term test, however, is probably better done by a car show/magazine that is more about reviews and less about entertainment.

I agree.

The new series of Top Gear started last night and in the introduction about what is coming up in the next 6 weeks, Tesla was not mentioned.

dpeilow · Jun 23, 2008

The only snag is the price. At roughly £50,000, it’s not cheap — particularly not when you can buy a Lotus Elise for just £23,550.
But then, in view of the price of fuel these days, perhaps Tesla is set to strike oil (so to speak) and plug into a new generation of eco-minded, wallet-conscious sports-car drivers.

I see the Sunday Times has made the mistake us British Roadster fans made earlier - namely taking the Dollar price and applying the current exchange rate.

The Roadster will more likely be over £80,000+VAT (17.5%) here. That moves it from merely expensive to astronomical when compared with an Elise. Even with fuel at the price it is now in the UK, the Roadster would not pay for itself in a typical lifetime. Buyers must therefore look at this in more than financial terms. It's a pity - at £50k I would have already got my cheque book out, but at circa £100,000 I will be waiting a while yet.

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