The most revolutionary new car I've driven in years

[AnotherClarkey]

Igurisu said:

Does anybody have any information about the expected life of the Battery? I looked at the Tesla website but all it says is "Battery lifetime is affected by two things: age and the energy it delivers over the years". I understand that there aren't enough in the market, or old enough to judge the average lifetime, but I do wonder where the need for one will kick in.

I still have the issue with EV's that if the battery has a 5 year life (for example), who would ever buy one at 4 years old unless it was discounted enough to allow for battery replacement. Given the (expected) large costs for batteries it seems like an open ended time bomb to me.

If taking the cars on a battery lease scheme as now available from some manufacturers, at least you know that big bill isn't waiting for you in a few years.

I think some of the battery worries are mitigated by the pre-purchase option for a new battery (in the USA at least). A new pack under this scheme will be $10000 (60kWh pack) or $12000 (85kWh pack) which they will supply when the original craps out after the 8 year warranty has expired.

Even at todays prices that is only the cost of petrol to do less than 30000 miles in a remotely comparable car.

[h0b0]

I took a look at one yesterday. It's going to have to be a considerably cheaper than the $104k it's up for sale at

[cptsideways]

A very simple solution to that RETARDED stupid touch screen would be a simple rubber overlaid cover with holes much like a phone cover. That way you only get to touch the bits you need, with the buttons beneath. There is no way on gods earth I'd buy one with a screen like that, I bet it is horrendous at night, the driver would be lit up like a christmas tree.


Otherwise its a fab looking thing,

Incredible to see its the best selling car in Norway, though I'm sure its something to do with their taxation system.

[98elise]

AnotherClarkey said:

Igurisu said:

Does anybody have any information about the expected life of the Battery? I looked at the Tesla website but all it says is "Battery lifetime is affected by two things: age and the energy it delivers over the years". I understand that there aren't enough in the market, or old enough to judge the average lifetime, but I do wonder where the need for one will kick in.

I still have the issue with EV's that if the battery has a 5 year life (for example), who would ever buy one at 4 years old unless it was discounted enough to allow for battery replacement. Given the (expected) large costs for batteries it seems like an open ended time bomb to me.

If taking the cars on a battery lease scheme as now available from some manufacturers, at least you know that big bill isn't waiting for you in a few years.

I think some of the battery worries are mitigated by the pre-purchase option for a new battery (in the USA at least). A new pack under this scheme will be $10000 (60kWh pack) or $12000 (85kWh pack) which they will supply when the original craps out after the 8 year warranty has expired.

Even at todays prices that is only the cost of petrol to do less than 30000 miles in a remotely comparable car.

EV's and Hybrids have been around for over a decade now. Batteries seems to be very reliable (less than 1% failure rate). They can also be refurbed relatively cheaply (in the hundreds not thousands).

If a traction battery dies on an 8 year old car, then you will be replacing cells or blades, not whole packs. If you go to audi and ask for a new engine on an 8 year old car, it may well cost 1000's , however your first thought would be to replair the old one.

Modern ICE's are very expensive to fix. We have an 02 mondeo. Cost for supply only of a new fuel pump....£300! supply and fit a new clutch £900.

With regard to Tesla's, they have a system for replacing discharged battieries with fresh ones in a couple of minutes. I'm not sure how that ties in with battery life, ie in a single long journey you would be changing the battery pack every 250-300 miles.

[jhoneyball]

Regarding tesla battery swap. Its not been well reported, but I believe that if you go to one of these swap stations and it takes your battery away and gives you another one, you have to go back within a short period of time to get your original one refitted. Otherwise there is a big charge. If you thinik about it, if they didnt do this, then you could just swap your aging battery for a newer one