Jim writes in cartalk: http://www.cartalk.com/content/tesla-model-s-preparing-launch http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/model-s-efficiency-and-range Is anyone here planning to go for this? I think Greg in SD is the earliest delivery in TMC. Of course we would need rules.
Elon's tweets regarding this in early May when he and JB posted that Model S efficiency and range blog: Twitter 10 May Elon Musk Elon Musk @elonmusk Meant to say: prizes for first 10 who do 400 miles in Tesla w/o recharging, not nonstop, which would require diapers 9 May Elon Musk Elon Musk @elonmusk Model S exceeds 300 mile range target! Prize for the 1st person to do LA-SF nonstop (400 miles) Model S Efficiency and Range | Blog | Tesla Motors
People coming from LA to do a factory pickup. Imagine the discipline it would take to do the 400 mile hypermiling your first big drive. If the prize was another Tesla...
I wonder what roads you could take that would safely allow you to travel 40 mph or maybe less and still land someplace where you could charge?
Hwy 1! But, the hills might be a range-killer though. The rightmost lane on US-101 may not be that bad as most of the heavy and fast traffic will be on I-5.
You could easily cheat and spin the wheels while the car is held stationary. Either by suspending the car or driving on a treadmill like apparatus
Tesla will catch you out with the full car logs coupled with GPS data! Or, they'd expect you to start from Palo Alto HQ and end up in Hawthorne or the other way around.
Agreed. They should use the GPS data to see that you've actually driven a reasonable route. Which means driving around a track or around your block wouldn't count either.
I was driving on Hwy 1 north with our Volt on Saturday and the electric range was much less than I expected. The hills are really a problem there.
Take 101 for the Rabobank chargers just in case and do it at night so you can drive slow enough. My house to the Tesla LA store is 408 miles.... So you're talking what... 10 hours w/ a few stops?
That would be a big trip. I guess it would be safest to have someone follow you behind with their hazard blinkers on and have a tow truck on standby.
Having the wind behind you would be huge. Remember 60 mph with a 20 mph tail wind is the same ad 40 mph in still air! Also high altitude for low air density. I think traveling east from Denver or Calgary would be a good run (not that I live there). Charging at the end could be problematic, but one could scope out an RV park.
Sarasota to Dania Beach and back, just over 400 miles, elevation less than 65ft all the way, and nobody in Florida will see anything unusual in a car doing 40mph on the I-75 (although I might have to disguise myself as an old lady or put Canadian plates on the car!).:biggrin:
And if you had two trucks in front and back you could draft the S and go a bit faster. Option 2 has all ten new S owners drafting to LA.
This would be awesome. Model S owners should get together and form a train, taking turns with who is in front. That'll turn some heads.
10 owners can win, so just make sure the peleton is no larger than 10! I think the best place to set a record is starting in Byers, Colorado and heading east on US Highway 36 towards St. Joseph. That's 520 miles of straight, flat road, descending from 5,200 ft to about 1,000 ft. Choose a day with strong winds, drive conservatively (possibly with police escort to ensure you never need to stop), and you might just be able to get all the way to St. Joe's.