Tesla Roadster: Lotus Elise-based
How do you fancy an electric Elise? There's one being made and it's due out soon.
This battery-powered, carbon fibre-bodied sports car, made by Tesla in California, uses a 3-phase, 4-pole electric motor with max net power of 185kW -- that's equivalent to 248bhp -- and a torque curve that starts at 175lb-ft at zero rpm. It weighs just 1,136Kg.
As a result, the company quotes a 0-60mph for the Roadster of four seconds, illustrating the torque as follows: "A favourite trick here at Tesla Motors is to invite a passenger along and ask him to turn on the radio. At the precise moment we ask, we accelerate. Our passenger simply can’t sit forward enough to reach the dials."
Battery life is said to be over 100,000 miles with a full charge of the lithium-ion pack lasting 3.5 hours, or about 250 miles. It uses regenerative braking to help recharge the battery, with a full recharge taking about three hours. It's said to cost about 0.6p/mile to run. According to the company, "packed away in the trunk is an optional mobile-charging kit that proves very useful while away from home."
Why do it? Here's what founder Martin Eberhard said in his blog: "We at Tesla Motors love cars. We love to drive; we appreciate beautiful and fun cars. And Tesla cars are built for people who love to drive. So our optimisation is not for ultimate low cost, but rather for performance, aesthetics, and sex appeal."
Eberhard does admit in the company's forum, in which reaction to the news of the car is hugely positive, that the chassis is from the Lotus Elise, although in his blog he only said: "We designed the Roadster around high-performance chassis technology licensed from one of the world’s finest sportscar companies." The company's forum mentions the Lotus link several times including this comment: "I’m surprised you haven’t focused more on the collaboration with Lotus with regards to design and chassis engineering, as the prospect of driving a battery powered Lotus is one that will surely have eco-friendly car enthusiasts falling over themselves with excitement."
The car is set to be available early in 2007, and there's more on the company's site.
Can Lotus be persuaded to sell it over here? We can't wait.