Holy cow... so I checked out Tesla S in person today, I had no idea.

[Zeze]

So I went to the mall thanks to my wife. Lo and behold, there was a Tesla 'store' doing the promotion and basically showing off the car.

Yes I've heard about it, read about it, and watched videos of it online, but it never clicked until I saw it in person. THIS CAR IS TOTALLY EMPTY because it's totally.. electric.

I mean holy cow- that moment when my genius brain finally registered it.

THIS IS THE HOOD, LOL.

And this is the trunk space, WTF

My stupid brain finally realized what it thought it knew all along. This is no quasi-electric car like Chevy Volt. It's 100% electric with a true 250~ mile range.

No transmission
No cylinders
No 'engine'
No gas tank
No exhaust
98 miles per cost of one gallon
NEVER set foot in gas station again.

It's just this:

That thin panel of battery sits nicely at the bottom providing amazing low center of gravity (the car still weighs 4200~ lbs).

:wub:

And as we all know, this car is a BEAST in performance. It's not some whimpy electric car.

Wow, I'm not really a car person. I was thoroughly amazed.

 

[mnewsham]

Yup, waiting for the new midrange model in a few years. Should be fun!

 

[TheVrolok]

If I had a fair bit of disposable income, I'd buy one in a heartbeat. Awaiting the midrange.

 

[JEDI]

hm.. what happns if u get in a car accident and crack the battery panel?
game over? buy another Tesla S?

 

[boomerang]

hm.. what happns if u get in a car accident and crack the battery panel?
game over? buy another Tesla S?

They catch on fire because Tesla only single wraps their batteries. It's been said it's a fatal flaw that may push them over the edge. Recent crashes resulted in fires because the batteries were punctured.

If it doesn't catch on fire it would be totaled as the cost to repair will be too high. Then, there will be that pesky fee to dispose of the car. Your local junkyard isn't going to take it. But, if you can afford the car, you should be able to afford all that.

 

[natto fire]

They catch on fire because Tesla only single wraps their batteries. It's been said it's a fatal flaw that may push them over the edge. Recent crashes resulted in fires because the batteries were punctured.

If it doesn't catch on fire it would be totaled as the cost to repair will be too high. Then, there will be that pesky fee to dispose of the car. Your local junkyard isn't going to take it. But, if you can afford the car, you should be able to afford all that.

It is only two crashes that have resulted in fires, and to be fair the most recent one probably would have resulted in a fire with an ICE powered car too, and this "fatal flaw" must not be that fatal if the NHTSA and NTSB are not launching a full scale investigation into it.

How many Teslas have you had to dispose of exactly, and how much is the fee? Is there a possibility that the scrap parts and materials are worth more than this fee you just made up? Lead-acid wet batteries are bought by core buyers no matter what condition. If you extend this logic to much more precious Li-ion packs do you honestly think no one in the recycling world is going to want the valuable materials from those batteries? I'm sure my local junkyard would be foaming at the mouth to get one of these if the price was right to resell the parts. Then again I have actually working in the auto salvage business and I know how it operates at least a higher scale place that dealt with insurance companies.

Not trying to be a cheerleader for Tesla, but FUD is bad enough with a well-established manufacturer, really dangerous for a company trying to get an innovative foothold amongst the dinosaurs. I will gladly edit my post if you can show me where someone was actually charged to "dispose" of their Tesla car or battery pack. Or there is a formal investigation into the security of the batteries.

 

[boomerang]

It is only two crashes that have resulted in fires, and to be fair the most recent one probably would have resulted in a fire with an ICE powered car too, and this "fatal flaw" must not be that fatal if the NHTSA and NTSB are not launching a full scale investigation into it.

How many Teslas have you had to dispose of exactly, and how much is the fee? Is there a possibility that the scrap parts and materials are worth more than this fee you just made up? Lead-acid wet batteries are bought by core buyers no matter what condition. If you extend this logic to much more precious Li-ion packs do you honestly think no one in the recycling world is going to want the valuable materials from those batteries? I'm sure my local junkyard would be foaming at the mouth to get one of these if the price was right to resell the parts. Then again I have actually working in the auto salvage business and I know how it operates at least a higher scale place that dealt with insurance companies.

Not trying to be a cheerleader for Tesla, but FUD is bad enough with a well-established manufacturer, really dangerous for a company trying to get an innovative foothold amongst the dinosaurs. I will gladly edit my post if you can show me where someone was actually charged to "dispose" of their Tesla car or battery pack. Or there is a formal investigation into the security of the batteries.

I'm not interested in defending or tearing down Tesla. When you hit debris in the road and the battery pack is punctured and catches on fire it's totally false to say a conventional car would do the same.

I can't find a place to take the Li-Ion battery I just replaced in my laptop. But you're certain that a junkyard would be foaming at the mouth to take one from a Tesla.

Well OK then, we're along ways apart on our beliefs. Best to leave it at that.

 

[halik]

It is only two crashes that have resulted in fires, and to be fair the most recent one probably would have resulted in a fire with an ICE powered car too, and this "fatal flaw" must not be that fatal if the NHTSA and NTSB are not launching a full scale investigation into it.

How many Teslas have you had to dispose of exactly, and how much is the fee? Is there a possibility that the scrap parts and materials are worth more than this fee you just made up? Lead-acid wet batteries are bought by core buyers no matter what condition. If you extend this logic to much more precious Li-ion packs do you honestly think no one in the recycling world is going to want the valuable materials from those batteries? I'm sure my local junkyard would be foaming at the mouth to get one of these if the price was right to resell the parts. Then again I have actually working in the auto salvage business and I know how it operates at least a higher scale place that dealt with insurance companies.

Not trying to be a cheerleader for Tesla, but FUD is bad enough with a well-established manufacturer, really dangerous for a company trying to get an innovative foothold amongst the dinosaurs. I will gladly edit my post if you can show me where someone was actually charged to "dispose" of their Tesla car or battery pack. Or there is a formal investigation into the security of the batteries.

I find it really strange that rabid fanbois come out of the wood work whenever any remotely valid criticism of the design is put forth.

If you happen to jump a curb or something and puncture the battery pack, you're f'd. Simple as that.

 

[unokitty]

Lithium Ion Batteries - Nail Penetration Test youtube video.

Just a data point.

Uno

 

[EagleKeeper]

So I went to the mall thanks to my wife. Lo and behold, there was a Tesla 'store' doing the promotion and basically showing off the car.

...

I mean holy cow- that moment when my genius brain finally registered it.

So you have finally realized that there are side benefits to having a wife :wub: :thumbsup:

 

[Kaido]

I find it really strange that rabid fanbois come out of the wood work whenever any remotely valid criticism of the design is put forth.

If you happen to jump a curb or something and puncture the battery pack, you're f'd. Simple as that.

I'm curious to see how the battery pack fares as more of these get on the road. The underbody of the car has a 1/4" metal plate to act as armor for the battery, so it's pretty durable in most situations. The first fire was the result of a large piece of metal punching a 3" hole in that armor with 25 tons worth of force. The second fire was from the car hitting a raised pedestrian crossing, taking flight, and crashing into wall & tree. So both fires resulted from very specific, violent events. There have been plenty of Tesla crashes and only two fires that we know of. Here's a thread with lots of Tesla crash pictures - none of the other ones have caught on fire at all:

http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/19373-Model-S-accidents

I am a huge fan of electric cars, but those fires sure look pretty scary to me. Can you imagine what would happen if the electronic system got shorted out somehow? Would you be able to escape? I'm sure there are backup manual mechanisms, but even the exterior door handles are flush with the door and only open when you walk up to the car with your key via a motor, so what happens if your car starts burning and you're stuck inside and all of the electronics fail? Those fires just burn & burn & burn & burn. I hate to say that someone will eventually be roasted alive in one, but chances are that it will happen, and it will be horrible

 

[Kaido]

Lithium Ion Batteries - Nail Penetration Test youtube video.

Just a data point.

Uno

I don't know who Caleb is, but he needs to make electric car batteries

 

[mmntech]

If I made a lot more money than I do now, this would hands down be my summer car. Every performance test I've seen of the Model S is nuts. My big concern though with EVs is how you heat them in the winter. Since electric heat is such a big current draw.

 

[KeithP]

...and this "fatal flaw" must not be that fatal if the NHTSA and NTSB are not launching a full scale investigation into it.

And there is no chance they would be looking the other way because the administration desperately needs a success story for their green loans program?

-KeithP

 

[foghorn67]

I would rather have a "quasi-electric car like Chevy Volt".

 

[yottabit]

So I went to the mall thanks to my wife. Lo and behold, there was a Tesla 'store' doing the promotion and basically showing off the car.

Yes I've heard about it, read about it, and watched videos of it online, but it never clicked until I saw it in person. THIS CAR IS TOTALLY EMPTY because it's totally.. electric.

I mean holy cow- that moment when my genius brain finally registered it.

...
Wow, I'm not really a car person. I was thoroughly amazed.

Glad it could bring some enjoyment to you I had a similar experience (as somewhat of a car buff) when I first saw the Model S at a Tesla store last year. One thing different I noticed is back then they used to let anyone sit in it, and now they have crushed velvet rope all around it and you have to ask to get close to it. Kind of lame.

Also, don't let your joyful experience be ruined by asking the Tesla Sales "Engineers" any relatively technical question. The only thing they seem to be able to do is spout off marketing taglines. That was the saddest part about visiting the Tesla store IMO.

 

[natto fire]

I'm not interested in defending or tearing down Tesla. When you hit debris in the road and the battery pack is punctured and catches on fire it's totally false to say a conventional car would do the same.

I can't find a place to take the Li-Ion battery I just replaced in my laptop. But you're certain that a junkyard would be foaming at the mouth to take one from a Tesla.

Well OK then, we're along ways apart on our beliefs. Best to leave it at that.

Yeah, I wasn't implying it was in the exact same manner, and I realize a fire fueled by a Li-ion battery pack is more "scary", just that a violent car crash is a violent car crash. So in that I was wrong, and even though there are over 150,000 car fires a year, we don't have the data necessary to say which propulsion method is more prone to fire.

I merely have a problem with skipping that scientific step (collecting data) and proclaiming electric cars are more unsafe because of battery fires.

For your laptop battery, it does cost money to do it that way. Not sure where you are in Michigan but most larger cities have some kind of battery recycling program, and around here they take them at Staples, as long as it is less than 12 pounds. I was referring to the entire car and not just the battery pack when I made that comment about

I find it really strange that rabid fanbois come out of the wood work whenever any remotely valid criticism of the design is put forth.

If you happen to jump a curb or something and puncture the battery pack, you're f'd. Simple as that.

At the risk of sounding more rabid when I was just asking about the expense of disposal, I do see where I misspoke in that a punctured floor is a lot more serious if you have a bunch of lithium in the floorboard.

I guess time will tell how venerable the design is, it certainly is not looking the best right now. A violent road car crash is a violent car crash in my eyes, and if someone is doing triple digit speeds and expects to walk away from the crash they should have their licenses permanently revoked.(excluding race cars) Everyone complains that cars are too heavy, but they also want to be able to drive them off a cliff and still catch their dinner reservation.

And there is no chance they would be looking the other way because the administration desperately needs a success story for their green loans program?

-KeithP

That is a possibility, but it is also possible we are not using some sort of highly efficient energy source because Big Oil kept the technology under wraps too. Your scenario is much more likely than mine, but they both share their root in speculation.

 

[Vetterin]

My neighbor bought one over the summer and I have been in it a few times. While yes, it is nice and quiet and smooth, I still keep thinking to myself that there are a lot of options you can consider for $75,000 (like a $40,000 car and gas for the rest of your life).....

 

[twinrider1]

I was going to joke that I'll get a Tesla when Rock Auto sells parts for them. So I check and they actually do have a Tesla section.
Ok, it's just wiper blades, but it was more than I expected.

 

[Ventanni]

My neighbor bought one over the summer and I have been in it a few times. While yes, it is nice and quiet and smooth, I still keep thinking to myself that there are a lot of options you can consider for $75,000 (like a $40,000 car and gas for the rest of your life).....

Extremely valid point. The same can be said for gas-to-gas price comparisons too, though. I've thought of getting something like a used 2012 Nissan Altima for roughly $12-15k in nice condition, or picking up a used 2005-2006 Ford Explorer or Expedition since people are practically giving them away for free. Despite their lousy mileage and higher maintenance, it would take quite a while for the SUV to exceed the cost of the example Altima.

Just for kicks, I started wondering how much fuel the military goes through in some of its flights. For the amount of fuel it takes to fly the B-52 for 12 hours, I could drive around at normal mileage in my 1995 Pontiac Grand Am for just over 10 years. Pretty insane!

 

[Vetterin]

Funny you mention that as I flew in B-52's in the late 60's to mid 70's. Actually, A B-52 goes through roughly 400 gals/hr per EACH engine (X8) or enough fuel in ONE HOUR to run an average car 100,000 miles.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

My office recently moved and my partners and I now pay a shit-ton to park in the basement. Because of the price most of the cars are pretty nice, and my 3 series is definitely a fairly pedestrian car compared to some of the stuff. There is a 997 Turbo, a Jag F Type, and a white Model S. I really really like the Model S for what it is, and if cost were no object and I had an enclosed garage I would not hesitate to lease one.

 

[zoiks]

I'd probably get rid of my g37 and my wife's IS250 and get one. Can't since we live in a condo and there isn't any outlet nearby.

 

[JTsyo]

...
It's just this:

...

Those motors look like scaled up versions of what were in my RC cars as a kid.

 

[smackababy]

My office recently moved and my partners and I now pay a shit-ton to park in the basement. Because of the price most of the cars are pretty nice, and my 3 series is definitely a fairly pedestrian car compared to some of the stuff.

I know the feeling. =( My A5 is like a Camry compared to the cars that park near me. There are a few S classes, an M6, two Maseratis, a 911 Turbo S and an Aston Martin in here with me. =(

I like the Tesla from a technology standpoint, but from a looks standpoint, the rear end kills it for me. It just looks crappy. A ton of people have them around here, so I see them all the time.