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Los Angeles Roadster Road Show
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graham
Active Member
Tesla event in Hawthorne
Apparently there was a minor Tesla event in Hawthorne yesterday:
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_10772658
Not all the details are accurate, so I am not sure how much to trust the numbers. But I think this is the first we have heard the number 40 cars as having been delivered.
The 220 mile range is out of date, so I am not sure how much to trust any other number.
Apparently there was a minor Tesla event in Hawthorne yesterday:
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_10772658
Not all the details are accurate, so I am not sure how much to trust the numbers. But I think this is the first we have heard the number 40 cars as having been delivered.
The 220 mile range is out of date, so I am not sure how much to trust any other number.
Another non buyer scores a drive.
*************
Plug In America's president, Linda Nicholes, passed along an invite for a free test drive of a Tesla Roadster. I was scheduled for noon today at the Hawthorne Airport just a few miles east of LAX. The Tesla folks had five roadsters inside the gate next to the runway where private aircraft were taking off every few minutes. Not coincidentally, this was next door to Elon Musk's Space X, his rocket company that recently had its first successful launch.
One Roadster was hooked up to a noisy generator getting charged up while the rest of the sporty two-seaters were either being driven or were parked inside a small hanger. I recognized one of them as "P1", the first production Tesla and Elon's personal Roadster. I got some pictures of it, but it was clear that wasn't the one I'd be driving.
A handful of red-shirted Tesla employees made sure I was legally allowed to drive in California and then directed me to Bob Sexton, Chelsea's husband, who then checked me out on the controls. I was told to turn it on, much like my RAV EV, except instead of a single beep, there was a pleasant 2 second long musical scale that indicated the car was ready to go.
Now, I've ridden in the Roadster on 3 occasions, but this was the first time I was behind the controls. They didn't even get in with me to make sure I didn't drive out on the runway to race the Gulfstreams. I was on my own with the world's fastest EV. All Bob said was to keep it between the red cones they'd lined up.
The first section was the straightaway, maybe 100 meters or so, and then came a series of very tight curves that required some paying of attention. I was told I had five laps and to go as fast as I wanted. :~)
The first time around, I tested the acceleration just a little since I knew it was way more than I'd ever had under my own power before. The response was amazing! Under about half power, the car bolted forward like a slot car on a track. I was almost into the curve before I knew it and immediately let off the juice. The regenerative braking is stronger than on my RAV, so I was slowing before I could even touch the brakes. Handling through the curves was very responsive, it's a Lotus after all, arguably the best handling car on the planet.
For the subsequent laps, I drove ever faster, keeping in mind that this was a car selling for north of $100K and not something to risk crashing. I glanced at the speedo a couple of times and saw that I was hitting close to 60 mph, not terribly fast, but you must consider that this speed was achieved in about the first 70 meters of distance. With practice I could go faster, but I was afraid of not making the turn. Alas, the 5 circuits were over in short order and I reluctantly had to park it and get out. BTW, as has been written by others, ingress and egress are somewhat difficult, but definitely worth the effort. As for women in short skirts... good luck.
I was barely out of the car when Zak Edson approached me and asked if I wanted to go for another ride, this time with him behind the wheel. He made some comment about having a bit of experience putting the car through its paces. I wasn't about to turn down that offer, good thing, too, since this was way more fun than driving it myself. Zak floored it and we had to be going close to 70 right up to the first turn. I could not believe we'd make the turn without crashing, but as soon as he hit the brakes, we decelerated quickly, tires squealing and the G forces keeping me from doing anything but screaming in delight. We'd hardly survived that turn when Zak floored it again for the next turn and then once more. He completed the course in probably 60% the time I took, and I wasn't poking along!
I was giggling like a little girl when we pulled up to the stop. I couldn't believe the car would handle turns at that kind of speed! ...
******
He included pictures of a white, black (Elon's) and a red car.
*************
Plug In America's president, Linda Nicholes, passed along an invite for a free test drive of a Tesla Roadster. I was scheduled for noon today at the Hawthorne Airport just a few miles east of LAX. The Tesla folks had five roadsters inside the gate next to the runway where private aircraft were taking off every few minutes. Not coincidentally, this was next door to Elon Musk's Space X, his rocket company that recently had its first successful launch.
One Roadster was hooked up to a noisy generator getting charged up while the rest of the sporty two-seaters were either being driven or were parked inside a small hanger. I recognized one of them as "P1", the first production Tesla and Elon's personal Roadster. I got some pictures of it, but it was clear that wasn't the one I'd be driving.
A handful of red-shirted Tesla employees made sure I was legally allowed to drive in California and then directed me to Bob Sexton, Chelsea's husband, who then checked me out on the controls. I was told to turn it on, much like my RAV EV, except instead of a single beep, there was a pleasant 2 second long musical scale that indicated the car was ready to go.
Now, I've ridden in the Roadster on 3 occasions, but this was the first time I was behind the controls. They didn't even get in with me to make sure I didn't drive out on the runway to race the Gulfstreams. I was on my own with the world's fastest EV. All Bob said was to keep it between the red cones they'd lined up.
The first section was the straightaway, maybe 100 meters or so, and then came a series of very tight curves that required some paying of attention. I was told I had five laps and to go as fast as I wanted. :~)
The first time around, I tested the acceleration just a little since I knew it was way more than I'd ever had under my own power before. The response was amazing! Under about half power, the car bolted forward like a slot car on a track. I was almost into the curve before I knew it and immediately let off the juice. The regenerative braking is stronger than on my RAV, so I was slowing before I could even touch the brakes. Handling through the curves was very responsive, it's a Lotus after all, arguably the best handling car on the planet.
For the subsequent laps, I drove ever faster, keeping in mind that this was a car selling for north of $100K and not something to risk crashing. I glanced at the speedo a couple of times and saw that I was hitting close to 60 mph, not terribly fast, but you must consider that this speed was achieved in about the first 70 meters of distance. With practice I could go faster, but I was afraid of not making the turn. Alas, the 5 circuits were over in short order and I reluctantly had to park it and get out. BTW, as has been written by others, ingress and egress are somewhat difficult, but definitely worth the effort. As for women in short skirts... good luck.
I was barely out of the car when Zak Edson approached me and asked if I wanted to go for another ride, this time with him behind the wheel. He made some comment about having a bit of experience putting the car through its paces. I wasn't about to turn down that offer, good thing, too, since this was way more fun than driving it myself. Zak floored it and we had to be going close to 70 right up to the first turn. I could not believe we'd make the turn without crashing, but as soon as he hit the brakes, we decelerated quickly, tires squealing and the G forces keeping me from doing anything but screaming in delight. We'd hardly survived that turn when Zak floored it again for the next turn and then once more. He completed the course in probably 60% the time I took, and I wasn't poking along!
I was giggling like a little girl when we pulled up to the stop. I couldn't believe the car would handle turns at that kind of speed! ...
******
He included pictures of a white, black (Elon's) and a red car.
Sure that P1 was used for this event? Wasn't this at the SpaceX office so isn't it simply possible Elon was at the office and thought he could show off the car with the other Roadster?
Cobos
Cobos
Elon's car was there on Saturday also. No one was allowed to drive Elon's car, it was just there for show. I was told that he was in meetings at SpaceX all day.
One of the Tesla guys said that we might get a tour of spaceX, but I had to leave:frown:, so I don't know if the tour ever happened.
The cars on Saturday were Black (Elon's), White, and Silver.
Last edited:
Aren't those pix Doug previously posted (at the airport with orange cones) from Saturday? So was the red car there earlier, then left?
Maybe they rotated cars during the day for recharging?
They're marked as being taken and uploaded on Monday the 20th, but could have been taken anytime before that, so I don't know.
LA Drive Event on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
"Pics posted in this thread sure look like silver to me."
Your lack of information does not constitute a mistake on my part.
Looks to me like it was 3 days. I was told that Elon's car was driven at the event. Don't know what day the white one was there.
Your lack of information does not constitute a mistake on my part.
Looks to me like it was 3 days. I was told that Elon's car was driven at the event. Don't know what day the white one was there.
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graham
Active Member
Ah... the one poor review on Tesla handling in the universe, and TTAC jumps on it.
Tesla Death Watch 30: "Violent Understeer" | The Truth About Cars
So this is the first review I have read which mentions "Violent Understeer" (which seems like an oxymoron to me -- or perhaps the name a of a really cool band).
I certainly didn't notice it on my test drive... but of course that was on an early model, and not on a closed course. I have read other reviews where people complain that the Roadster understeers slightly compared to the Elise, but that is not the tone of the review.
Anyone else heard of this problem?
Tesla Death Watch 30: "Violent Understeer" | The Truth About Cars
So this is the first review I have read which mentions "Violent Understeer" (which seems like an oxymoron to me -- or perhaps the name a of a really cool band).
I certainly didn't notice it on my test drive... but of course that was on an early model, and not on a closed course. I have read other reviews where people complain that the Roadster understeers slightly compared to the Elise, but that is not the tone of the review.
Anyone else heard of this problem?
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