Items tagged with tesla roadster
Tesla is on a mission to deliver its mainstream electric vehicles like the Model 3 and the Model Y to as many people as possible. Unfortunately, to reach those goals, the company’s more ambitious projects like the Semi and Cybertruck have taken a back seat on their way to production. Both of those vehicles have been delayed until at least 2022. Now, the company’s second-generation Roadster is getting another delay of its own. Tesla CEO Elon Musk originally announced the Roadster in late November 2017 and said it would enter production in 2020. But, as is typically the case with new Tesla launches, 2020 came and went with no production window in sight for the Roadster. Now, Elon Musk...
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We all knew that the second-generation Tesla Roadster was going to be a performance monster aimed at crushing any potential competitor. At the time, Tesla CEO Elon Musk claimed that the Roadster would be capable of going from a standstill to 60 mph in just 1.9 seconds. However, Musk confirmed this week that the electric car would be capable of nearly halving that time with an optional space-age package. A prototype Roadster is currently on display at Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, and the plaque below the vehicle reads as follows: Demonstrating the versatility of electric power and adding extra distinction to the car's already high performance, an announced SpaceX package would outfit...
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Move over Tesla Roadster; there is a new hypercar on the horizon that is aiming to take the world by storm. And rather than coming from some no-name company with grand [and unobtainable] ambitions, this new vehicle comes from legendary British carmaker Lotus. Witness the Evija, which is said to be Britain's first ever all-electric hypercar. It will feature a lightweight carbon fiber monocoque chassis with total vehicle weight of just 3,700 lbs with its battery pack installed. Speaking of the lithium-ion battery pack, it has a total capacity of 70 kWh according to Lotus (for reference, the upcoming Tesla Roadster has a 200-kWh battery pack). Lotus says that the Evija has two in-line axial electric...
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There's no question that Tesla is at the top of electric vehicle (EV) field with respect to battery technology, performance and efficiency. However, a number of companies -- most recently, Rivian -- are looking to challenge the American automaker. The latest is Piëch Automotive, a startup helmed by Toni Piëch. The company's first vehicle is the Mark Zero, and it's quite the looker with its shapely curves, low hood line, and large wheels filling out the fenders. At first glimpse, you'd be forgiven if you mistook this EV for an Aston Martin. In fact, the vehicle is quite conventional in the looks department, and if we didn't already know that this was an EV (and paid...
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It seems as though everyone is gunning for Tesla these days, and given the American EV company's success, it's understandable. Just yesterday, we reported that Nissan is actively developing the IMs to rival the Model 3 and Model S. Now, it's being reported that Audi has given the green light to produce the PB18 e-tron supercar that was first unveiled back in August. Bram Schot, who serves as Audi's chief in The Netherlands, told Auto Week NL that it will produce an extremely limited run of the vehicle. Just how limited? Schot stated that the German company will produce around 50 units. The PB18 e-tron would most directly compete with Tesla's second-generation...
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Japan's Aspark Owl Electric Hypercar To Throwdown With Tesla Roadsters At 0 To 60 In Under 2 Seconds
When it comes to electric vehicles with breakneck acceleration, Tesla often comes to mind thanks to vehicles like the Model S and Roadster. However, a Japanese company, Aspark, is looking to put those EVs to shame. We present you with the Aspark Owl, a low-slung electric hypercar that features one electric motor per axle. When combined, total system output comes in at 430 horsepower and 563 ft-lbs of torque. While that might not sound like a lot compared to the combined 691 horsepower and 792 ft-pound of torque for the Model S P100D (which also features dual motors), the Owl only weighs 1,874 pounds (compared to nearly 5,000 pounds for the Tesla). That allows the Owl to hit 60 mph in under...
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Well, SpaceX has done it! The company's monstrous Falcon Heavy rocket lifted off from the LC-39A launchpad at Cape Canaveral this afternoon, sending CEO Elon Musk's personal Tesla Roadster on an elliptical orbit around the Sun and Mars. There were many unanswered questions before the launch and skepticism, with Murk especially worried about vibrations and the interplay between the three boosters at launch. However, things apparently went off without a hitch. As scheduled, two of the Falcon 9 boosters performed boost back burns once separated from the central booster, and made perfect simultaneous landings back at Cape Canaveral Air Force based on the Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2 pads. The...
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All eyes will be on Cape Canaveral early Tuesday afternoon when SpaceX will attempt to launch its long-awaited Falcon Heavy rocket. The company's existing Falcon 9 rocket is pretty much a known quantity at this point, and had a stellar record in 2017. However, strapping together what are essentially three Falcon 9 cores and launching the whole shebang into space is an incredible engineering feat that even SpaceX CEO Elon Musk isn't certain that his company can pull off tomorrow. However, if everything does go according to plan, SpaceX will attempt another first -- it will try to recover all three boosters after successfully pushing its payload into orbit. According to SpaceX, the two side boosters...
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A few weeks ago, Elon Musk announced his plans to launch a Tesla Roadster into space on the maiden flight of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket. Musk stated in a tweet, "Payload will be my midnight cherry Tesla Roadster playing Space Oddity. Destination is Mars orbit. Will be in deep space for a billion years or so if it doesn’t blow up on ascent." It seemed like an absurd thing for Musk to announce, and many took it to be a joke. After all, why would he want to send an electric car into orbit around Mars? But, given that Musk doesn't expect that Falcon Heavy's first launch to be a resounding success, it's within reason that Musk wouldn't mind parting with what was Tesla's first ever production...
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We knew that Tesla was working on a second-generation Roadster as the spiritual successor to its very first electric vehicle, but we didn't expect to see it unveiled last night during the equally big Semi event. But here it is in all its battery-powered glory, and it sure is gorgeous. Although it's still called the Tesla Roadster, this next generation concept remains more of a "targa" than an actual "roadster" per se, but that's just arguing semantics. Regardless, the concept takes the best of Tesla's current design language and mixes in enough of an exotic flair to challenge the likes of Porsche and Aston Martin. Inside, you'll find Tesla's usual minimalist interior complete with an F1-style...
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When Tesla Motors made a wave of announcements yesterday relating to its hot-selling Model S — including a new single-engine 70 kWh variant, an optional 90 kWh battery, and “Ludicrous Mode” — we overlooked an extremely tantalizing bit of information that CEO Elon Musk dropped at the very end of his blog. “There is of course only one thing beyond ludicrous, but that speed is reserved for the next generation Roadster in 4 years,” said Musk. Yes, you heard that right. Tesla is making a second generation Roadster and it will be here before the end of the decade. The first generation Roadster went out of production in 2012 after a four-year run, and was very loosely based on the Lotus Elise. The Roadster,...
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