Morning After Thoughts -
1. I am going to pass over any discussion of batteries and pack size, charging and cables, production and pricing, as I think we have a good understanding of both what we do and do not know, and need await further revelations.
2. The demonstration and verification of the fully-loaded 500-mile trip matched my and I believe our collective very high expectations. There remains some clarification needed in the distribution of rig versus payload weights but we have enough ancillary information, like the Jersey barrier hauling, to demonstrate payload is similar enough to that of a traditional semi so as to make any such difference pale to insignificance when compared to cost of operation.
3. As preliminary to #4, below, here are some data. The most common heavy-hauling engine in the NoAm market is the ISX15 from Cummins, providing up to 600HP and 2,050 ft-lbs of torque. Its "total package", which includes filters, belts, alternators, radiators....but NOT liquids (coolant, engine oil) weighs, per Cummins, 3,200 pounds...and they also exclude another 240 lbs. for the aftertreatment system - the mandatory pollution control systems (also dry; I've no knowledge amount how much DEF is required). The most common automatic transmission for a Class 8 is Eaton's; their 10-, 15- and 18-speed versions weigh between 716 and 770 pounds, plus tranny fluid. For now, I'm going to add a conservative 100 lbs of fluids, and that gets us to 4,200 pounds. Add bell housing, drive shafts and transaxles. Oops - no can do; it will take too much time...but those puppies are heavy. Eight hundred pounds won't cover it, but I'll use that number just to get us to a round 5,000 pounds. ===>2.5 tons<===.
4. This brings me to the revelation that was for me the single most impressive point of the demonstration. That Tesla is using three almost* off-the-shelf Model S/X plaid motors, each weighing a mere 100 pounds**....and only one of them as the "highway drive unit"...to haul 82,000 pounds at highway speeds is a staggering display of the virtues of Tesla's approach. Tweaking slightly what @unk45 wrote earlier today, that Tesla can iterate development and production that much more quickly and efficiently and cheaply across a 12-decade old industry's spectrum of transportation by using pre-existing parts is, for me, the star of last night's show.
*Explicit wording of the demonstration: "Essentially we're using the Plaid Model S / Model X power train". Italics are mine.
** Ingineerix's teardown gave a 99-lb weight to the motor, and 110 pounds to the single-speed transmission and inverter. The semi's transmission, and especially those of the two acceleration "100% delinkable" drive units as shown last night, will differ slightly from those of the Models S & X - viz Watch Dissection Of Tesla Model S Plaid Front Drive Unit
1. I am going to pass over any discussion of batteries and pack size, charging and cables, production and pricing, as I think we have a good understanding of both what we do and do not know, and need await further revelations.
2. The demonstration and verification of the fully-loaded 500-mile trip matched my and I believe our collective very high expectations. There remains some clarification needed in the distribution of rig versus payload weights but we have enough ancillary information, like the Jersey barrier hauling, to demonstrate payload is similar enough to that of a traditional semi so as to make any such difference pale to insignificance when compared to cost of operation.
3. As preliminary to #4, below, here are some data. The most common heavy-hauling engine in the NoAm market is the ISX15 from Cummins, providing up to 600HP and 2,050 ft-lbs of torque. Its "total package", which includes filters, belts, alternators, radiators....but NOT liquids (coolant, engine oil) weighs, per Cummins, 3,200 pounds...and they also exclude another 240 lbs. for the aftertreatment system - the mandatory pollution control systems (also dry; I've no knowledge amount how much DEF is required). The most common automatic transmission for a Class 8 is Eaton's; their 10-, 15- and 18-speed versions weigh between 716 and 770 pounds, plus tranny fluid. For now, I'm going to add a conservative 100 lbs of fluids, and that gets us to 4,200 pounds. Add bell housing, drive shafts and transaxles. Oops - no can do; it will take too much time...but those puppies are heavy. Eight hundred pounds won't cover it, but I'll use that number just to get us to a round 5,000 pounds. ===>2.5 tons<===.
4. This brings me to the revelation that was for me the single most impressive point of the demonstration. That Tesla is using three almost* off-the-shelf Model S/X plaid motors, each weighing a mere 100 pounds**....and only one of them as the "highway drive unit"...to haul 82,000 pounds at highway speeds is a staggering display of the virtues of Tesla's approach. Tweaking slightly what @unk45 wrote earlier today, that Tesla can iterate development and production that much more quickly and efficiently and cheaply across a 12-decade old industry's spectrum of transportation by using pre-existing parts is, for me, the star of last night's show.
*Explicit wording of the demonstration: "Essentially we're using the Plaid Model S / Model X power train". Italics are mine.
** Ingineerix's teardown gave a 99-lb weight to the motor, and 110 pounds to the single-speed transmission and inverter. The semi's transmission, and especially those of the two acceleration "100% delinkable" drive units as shown last night, will differ slightly from those of the Models S & X - viz Watch Dissection Of Tesla Model S Plaid Front Drive Unit
