Shocked by the new Roadster rolling out of the Tesla Semi!

[brianman]

Yeah, but the original Tesla Motors concept was to start at the top of the market and work their way down. This is not working its way down.

I think you somehow missed a product called Model 3.

Powerwall and powerpack weren't described directly in the Secret Plan. Ditto for solar tiles. Ditto for Model X. Ditto for the semi. Ditto for the Tesla pickup. Tesla can do more than the Plan describes; broaden your perspective.

 

[brianman]

Curious about the statement by ELON, you can drive one of these with your regular driver license. Typical commercial license not needed? no airbrakes... no 18 gears to shift... just massive size...

I thought that statement was about the Pickup not the Semi.

 

[mongo]

Has anyone guessed how you fit 200kWh in that form factor and also not have it weighing ~8,000lbs? Major chemistry breakthrough?

Based on the pack weight of 1,200 lbs for 85 kWh, a 200 kWh pack would weigh ~2,800 lbs. Where is the other 5,200 pounds coming from? That is more than the curb weight of a P85D (4936).

 

[WannabeOwner]

just a power pack that does a few launches?

In the Drag Times test-drive (video) the driver said he had been doing, and would continue to be doing, launches "all night long".

 

[EinSV]

As Elon said, the Roadster is a hard-core smackdown to ICE.

Is it really a mystery why the guy who named himself after a component of gasoline and the other guy with the gas-hog truck as his avatar are spewing so much negativity about it?

 

[Saghost]

The negativity is from being wasteful. I expect to see Tesla criticized for this. How can you have a mission of changing the world and fighting climate change, etc etc
and then turn around and spend all of this time, energy, and by the way a carbon footprint, to produce a car that is just a plaything for a rich guy?

The stone age didn't end due to a lack of stones. It's very hard to change the world by making people feel guilty.

This car does two or three things for Tesla.

It's the final nail in the "EVs are slow, ugly, short ranged over size golf carts" coffin, helping EVs seem cool and exciting and getting them reviews and articles and mind space for folks that would never buy a car that expensive, but wouldn't have considered a Model 3 before they heard about this car - a classic halo car.

It supports their mission of moving the industry to sustainable transport by forcing all the exotic car makers to up their game - the performance and price point are way outside of their normal realm, and they will have to make better cars or cheaper cars to compete - and the most likely way to make cars that can compete is to electrify, a trend you already see across the top end (Porsche 918, LaFerrarl, etc.)

It's arguably also a stealth financing round - this month, they'll make $250 million from the founder's reservations alone that they don't have to pay back with deliveries for three years.

 

[Kipernicus]

The negativity is from being wasteful. I expect to see Tesla criticized for this. How can you have a mission of changing the world and fighting climate change, etc etc
and then turn around and spend all of this time, energy, and by the way a carbon footprint, to produce a car that is just a plaything for a rich guy?

Because advances in technology tend to trickle down to everyday cars. If they can pack 200kWh and 10000Nm of torque into a (hopefully) lightweight sportscar, and build a semi truck with 500 miles range at 80k GVW, it's not too hard to imagine a pickup truck with enough torque and range to pull a gigantic boat for 300 miles and up hills at 65mph.

 

[gregd]

The negativity is from being wasteful. I expect to see Tesla criticized for this. How can you have a mission of changing the world and fighting climate change, etc etc
and then turn around and spend all of this time, energy, and by the way a carbon footprint, to produce a car that is just a plaything for a rich guy?

I disagree. We were all taught that the only way to be green is to sacrifice and not have fun. It was almost a religious thing. What Tesla is demonstrating is that you can actually have fun and be green at the same time. When you have a drive train that's as efficient as an electric one, stomping on the "gas" doesn't kill your "gas" mileage like it does in an ICE. The only thing you are wasting is a small bit of heat, and a good bit of your tires . Physics works.

Yoda was right. We have to unlearn what we learned. And what a fun way to do it!

 

[chadever]

Has anyone guessed how you fit 200kWh in that form factor and also not have it weighing ~8,000lbs? Major chemistry breakthrough?

Well, the new 2170 cells are 46.6143% larger by volume and only 16.6667% larger in diameter. That alone should allow a 25% increase in energy. Given moderate improvement in chemistry and a more efficient layout of the cells and I can image a 50% increase on kWh.... but 100% over the Model S?

That's insane. It's ludicrous. It's... plaid?

Tesla has to be switching to solid state batteries or they are using an insane amount of silicone. My guess is solid state from a 3rd party supplier. They'll phase out the 2170 in 2025 as they start to produce their own solid state. Sooner if Panasonic will take it's equipment back.

Our Model 3's are dinosaurs before they even hit production.

 

[Hank42]

I'm still grappling with what Niel deGrasse Tyson has to say about 1.9 0-60

https://jalopnik.com/neil-degrasse-tyson-gives-us-a-detailed-breakdown-of-na-1599651603

 

[Barklikeadog]

I disagree. We were all taught that the only way to be green is to sacrifice and not have fun. It was almost a religious thing. What Tesla is demonstrating is that you can actually have fun and be green at the same time. When you have a drive train that's as efficient as an electric one, stomping on the "gas" doesn't kill your "gas" mileage like it does in an ICE. The only thing you are wasting is a small bit of heat, and a good bit of your tires . Physics works.

Yoda was right. We have to unlearn what we learned. And what a fun way to do it!

I'm talking about the aluminum production, steel production, etc. everything that goes into manufacturing this car. At the end of the day, it's still a car
and it is still very dirty to build. I might as well buy a burned up 250,000 piece of coal, put it in the garage and rub it with a diaper.

 

[mdevp]

Based on the pack weight of 1,200 lbs for 85 kWh, a 200 kWh pack would weigh ~2,800 lbs. Where is the other 5,200 pounds coming from? That is more than the curb weight of a P85D (4936).

Oh, my bad, i thought a P100 pack weighed 1500lbs, times two. But I guess my major point is how you fit 200kWh in that small form factor.

 

[WarpedOne]

Anyway wonder what they will badge the new one with

A Tesla logo.
Anything else would be excessive.

 

[mongo]

Oh, my bad, i thought a P100 pack weighed 1500lbs, times two. But I guess my major point is how you fit 200kWh in that small form factor.

Yeah, especially if they keep them under the floor. Tubes of cells?

 

[gregd]

I'm talking about the aluminum production, steel production, etc. everything that goes into manufacturing this car. At the end of the day, it's still a car
and it is still very dirty to build. I might as well buy a burned up 250,000 piece of coal, put it in the garage and rub it with a diaper.

I guess I don't see this car as any dirtier to build than any other similarly-sized car (e.g. the Model 3). It has more battery cells, yes, but they should last that much longer before range becomes a killer issue, and are presumably still recyclable as other lithium cells are. Given that I need a car, why not this one?

 

[Electroman]

$200 kWh in that thing? You mean like FSD?

Waiter! can I have what Mr. Musk has?

 

[bonnie]

$200 kWh in that thing? You mean like FSD?

Waiter! can I have what Mr. Musk has?

So I take it that you didn’t put a deposit down.

 

[oktane]

The secret they’re not disclosing is that the performance numbers are not sustained. Wish I had known my P100DL would start feeling sluggish below 75% battery.

 

[Cloxxki]

In the Drag Times test-drive (video) the driver said he had been doing, and would continue to be doing, launches "all night long".

A powerpack can charge at a very high rate. Could be hooked up to two superchargers if so desired. But interesting tidbit nevertheless.

 

[Gra55h0pper]

I’m still waiting to see the EAP/FSD deposit come to fruition. Anyone who gives Tesla $50k or $250k interest free is crazy. If they tske your deposit it’s cusromsry for the deposit to garner interest that can be applied to the purchase.

Kickstarter payments do not typically pay interest do they? Nor are they 100% refundable?

Of course, it's a lot more money but that's a relative thing. A homeless person will probably call anyone who buys a Tesla (any kind) crazy...

Tesla positions it more like a "reservation" fee. You buy a position in line. And as we all know ramping production is a slow process (whether it's a high volume car like the model-3 or this roadster), there's value to that.

The only reason to call it "crazy" that I can see if is Tesla would go under. In that case, the money is gone in an instant...

Ok, call me crazy...


EDIT: Forgot one thing. The reservation buys you 2-3 years of pure anticipation towards being one of the first to own this marvel (in the knowledge that you can always opt out in case something unanticipated comes in between). And that's.... Priceless!!