Production/Delivery Status

[SByer]

@James; Apologies! Didn't get a chance to remove the hardtop last weekend. Still figuring out what the temporary storage arrangement will be until the storage bag is available.

 

[DrComputer]

I was also told there would be no 500s made when they skip to 2010 but we have at least seen VPs with 501 and 502. (maybe that's why. They did not want only one customer 500 out there) It actually seems very clean to give the VPs all the 500 series numbers and they could do the same skip from 2010 to 2011 for another 100 (or 99) consecutive VP series. I wonder if they will ever sell any of them?

Hmm, not sure that is true since I was told that my 2010 will be production number 516.

 

[TEG]

Other things I gleaned stopping by the store:

#1: There is some sort of construction project going on. Maybe they will install their own dyno or more lifts?
#2: They seem to be finishing up with the 2008s and there could be a slight pause as they reset to get 2010 drive-train installation going. (Maybe this would be a good time for them to take care of any remaining upgrades from DT1.0 that didn't get done yet?)
#3: I took a picture of the Orange/Gray roadster (inverse) twins next to each other. I am going to check with the owners if it is OK to post it, or if they would rather wait to do it themselves.

 

[Lancelac]

Thanks Graham
I was told to expect an October 2009 delivery date. I was also told if I lock in my options it could be as soon as early September

Every time I check it seems my delivery date slips further. My car (#690) won't go into production until about July 1st (it isn't even set yet), which means I'm now looking at Sept 1st delivery or thereabouts. I wouldn't set your heart on an early Sept delivery if you are just getting ready to lock in, regardless of what Tesla says...

 

[efusco]

friend of a friend in Michigan just took delivery of a silver/gray Roadster! I've asked for details, but still waiting.
Update: This was number 442

 

[bolosky]

I'll write up what I think about the suspension once I take the drive. I doubt that the car will have the 2010 interior, though. They told me that it's a prototype (VP16). Maybe I'll see some other 2010's around that I can get pictures of, though.

I had my drive in VP16 yesterday. It's a glacier blue Roadster with the variable suspension. They had the suspension set to somewhat stiffer than the non-variable ones. To change the setting, you have to reach around under the car and mess with stuff, which we weren't able to do, so we only got to check out the one setting.

I decided that since I knew no one else was driving that car (and because we arrived early and it was ready) that I'd try a little different route than the standard Sand Hill Road test drive that they suggest. We took Page Mill Road up into the mountains. It's a twisty 2-lane road that climbs from less than 100 feet at the freeway to over 2200 where we finally turned around. That is, it's just perfect to try out a suspension.

I could tell that it was handling a little better than the standard one, but it was really hard to tell how much since my first drive was most of a month ago and on a much more forgiving course. I think that to really understand it, you'd have to switch it around and drive over the same road multiple times in a row.

I managed to get the PEM into thermal torque limited mode. You really can tell the difference, and although it's still a fun car when it's limited, it's really not the same. I was a little surprised about how easy this was to do, but I guess when you figure that I'd hauled it up 1500' of curves, it was a little more than you'd do most days. This wasn't a problem on the way down, of course, but we got stuck behind a Chevy Cobalt, which somewhat limited what I could do.

I didn't get any interior pictures of '10s, they told me that they didn't have any I could see. Also, we saw three custom colors all lined up on the drive outside the showroom (the copper one, the lime green one and another that I forget), but they were gone by the time I parked and got my camera. They said that there's a production slowdown as they switch model years, and that engineering wants to have some time with the first '10s to make sure that they're right before they ship any/build them out. There were way, way fewer cars on the floor than in April when it was nose-to-tail.

 

[TEG]

It seems those first new 2010 cars (VIN501, 502, etc.) are really more like EPs (engineering prototypes) than VPs. It sounds like the engineers need to make sure all their 2010 changes work properly on some experimental cars before they ramp up production.

 

[vfx]

Coupl'a people are asking.

Our car shipped to LA over the weekend. Work precludes picking it up until end of the week. They seem to be very happy about that.

 

[ra-san]

VFX, does that mean you are going to do the rally this weekend with the new car?

 

[vfx]

VFX, does that mean you are going to do the rally this weekend with the new car?

Fingers are crossed.

 

[doug]

500th Roadster delivered

Green Car Advisor




Tesla Motors - Press Releases
Tesla Motors Delivers 500th Roadster

Tesla Motors Delivers 500th Roadster

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A New Jersey philanthropist was the 500th person to take ownership of a Tesla Roadster, an important milestone for the world’s leading electric vehicle manufacturer.

Martin Tuchman, former chairman and CEO of Interpool, is chairman of The Tuchman Foundation and a board member of The Parkinson's Alliance and Parkinson's Disease Foundation of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York. He plans to charge his Roadster partly with solar energy thanks to photovoltaic panels he helped install throughout his hometown of Kingston, NJ.

“My Roadster drives like a dream -- it’s amazing,” said Tuchman, a former automotive engineer and owner of a 1967 Mercedes 250 and a 1993 Jaguar convertible. Tuchman converted his 1937 Chris-Craft into an electric boat so he could take it on nearby Lake Carnegie, which prohibits gas-powered boats. He plans to use his Roadster as his primary commuter car.

Tuchman took delivery of a Twilight Blue Roadster last weekend, a few weeks before the anticipated opening of a Tesla showroom in New York’s Chelsea Art District. Greater New York is Tesla’s largest market outside of California, and local EV owners enjoy numerous incentives.

Zero-emission vehicles are exempt from New Jersey sales, use and luxury taxes. Single occupants of alternative-fuel vehicles may also use the high-occupancy commuter lanes on the New Jersey Turnpike. These incentives are on top of a $7,500 US federal tax credit, which fully applies to all Tesla Roadsters.

Tesla will also soon be opening stores in Chicago, London, Seattle, Miami, Washington, Monaco and Munich. Tesla will begin deliveries in Europe this summer.

San Carlos, Calif.-based Tesla is the only production automaker selling highway-capable EVs in the United States or Europe. The Roadster beats nearly every other car for acceleration yet is twice as energy efficient as a Toyota Prius. It costs roughly $4 to refuel and can be completely recharged in as little as 3.5 hours.

Michael van der Sande, Tesla Senior Vice President of Global Sales, Service and Marketing, called the 500th delivery an important symbol for the world’s newest production automaker.

“We now have more than 500 real-world customers providing valuable feedback on our cars and contributing to Tesla’s spirit of continuous improvement,” van der Sande said. “We intend to leverage our first-mover advantage and continue to build brand loyalty for years – from our 500th to our 500,000th delivery.”

 

[TEG]

Do we know anything about logistics for European delivery?
It would be a shame to ship gliders over here to install drive-trains, only to send them back to Europe again. I hope they have plans to do drive-train installs in Europe for Europe bound cars.

Also do we know anything about spec differences for European roadsters versus North American roadsters?

 

[dpeilow]

Tesla delivers 500th Roadster - [Tesla Roadster] - MotorAuthority - Car news, reviews, spy shots

 

[vfx]

Picked up #500 last night. Wife and I took turns driving it home. Both of us were terrified. She said she had never driven more defensively in her life.

It's wet and rainy here and we need a full charge (120V only) for the rally tomorrow so no driving it today. (!)

Meanwhile our cats broke it in first thing this morning with muddy paw prints over every horizontal surface. (when will that cover be ready?)

]

Looks a lot different in person.

​

 

[TEG]

Congratulations on finally getting your car!!!

 

[DDB]

Picked up #500 last night. Wife and I took turns driving it home. Both of us were terrified. She said she had never driven more defensively in her life.

It's wet and rainy here and we need a full charge (120V only) for the rally tomorrow so no driving it today. (!)

Meanwhile our cats broke it in first thing this morning with muddy paw prints over every horizontal surface. (when will that cover be ready?)

]

Looks a lot different in person.​

That was a fantastic description! Most truthful so far.

 

[graham]

Congratulations on your car vfx!

Let us know how the rally goes!

 

[doug]

Tom and Cathy Saxton get their Radiant Red Roadster VIN217 -- Delivered yesterday afternoon. Congratulations!

I'll let tomsax post whatever details when he gets a chance.

 

[TEG]

Phew. Glad to see that get delivered! Order in the universe is restored.

 

[graham]

Congratulations to Tom and Cathy!

Boy that was a long time coming, glad it finally arrived!