Tesla Model S: The Classes and Options

Tesla has become world renown for their superior performance electric vehicles. The Roadster put them on the map as the first production electric car that was actually refined, cool, and exciting. The heir to the awesome electric car throne, the Model S, will finally be delivered in 2012. The Model S sedan is targeted at electric vehicle fans with funds and maybe a couple kids. Remarkably, the base model will remain under their original target price of $50,000, at $49,900 after the $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicles purchased in or after 2010.

Tesla is providing a slew of classes and options for this electric sedan in hopes of capturing the absurdly rich and the upper middle class market share, so read closely.  There are four classes of Model S: the Model S (plain, vanilla), the Model S Performance, the Model S Signature, and the Model S Signature Performance. On top of that, the plain Model S version has three, liquid cooled, lithium ion battery options, at 40, 60, and 85kWh. The other three classes (Performance, Signature, Signature Performance) all have the 85 kWh battery, standard, which pushes their ranges to a whopping 300 miles per charge. The 40 kWh option gives 160 miles and a 0-60 of 6.5 seconds, the 60 kWh battery puts out 230 miles and 5.9 seconds. The 85 Kwh pack gives you a 0-60 in 5.6.  With the performance option that drops down to 4.4 seconds.  The Signature label  doesn’t necessarily enhance performance, but they are limited edition and available mid-2012, a few months earlier than the non-Signature class.  They also carry about a $30,000-$50,000 premium over the base model.

All of the Model S classes will feature a 17-inch touch screen monitor which will contain media, GPS, and communications.  The 200 watt stereo system will have radio, satellite radio, and USB ports.  No CD player though, that’s so 20th century.

If you opt for the Signature series, you get the Tech Package standard, which includes xenon lights, keyless entry, LED foglamps, turn by turn navigation, power rear liftgate, back camera, rear USB ports, homelink, and electrochromatic side mirrors.  A premium stereo system is also standard in the Signature class, and 1,000 bucks otherwise.

All Model S cars plug directly into 110 and 240 volt outlets with the Universal Mobile Connector and adapters. The High Power Wall Connector, which installs in your garage, enables cars equipped with Twin Chargers to charge twice as fast as cars equipped with a Single Charger.  Cars equipped with a 60 or 85 kWh battery can use Tesla’s network of Supercharger stations.

Hope this helps clarify the many options and models of the Model S.  For more information, visit Tesla’s Specifications page.

Oncars.com’s Sweet Model S Video Preview

OnCars.com has produced a very informative and stylish video preview of the Tesla Model S. It is split into three parts: Design, Pure Electric, and Showtime.

Part 1: Design

Franz Von Holzhouzen, Chief Designer of the Model S Project, and Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, provide an in-depth description of how the electric drive train allows for unique design opportunities. I was unaware that the battery pack flat between the wheelbase this time. The Tesla Roadster’s is a vertical box located in the rear portion of the car. Also, the Model S has many hidden design elements that reduce the drag coefficient, like the retractible door handles, flat underbody, and air diffusers.

Part 2: Pure Electric

Elon and Franz emphasize the importance of keeping the Model S purely electric as apposed to creating a hybrid sedan ala the Fisker Karma. With a 300 mile range, the Tesla Model S should have no trouble being a daily driver, and will hopefully extinguish any doubt in the minds of those who don’t believe electric cars are fully capable vehicles.

Part 3: Showtime

This covers Elon’s appearance on Letterman and reactions from New York City.

Tesla Motors to Receive $465 Million Loan from the Government

From: OnCars.com

DoE giving boost to start-up electric car company

The DoE loan is reported to be $465m. Added to the $50m invested last month by Daimler plus the debt and equity already invested in the company, Tesla now sports a $700m capital war chest. Tesla plans to use $365m of the DoE monies to bring the Model S into production with the remainder going to customer power train development.

The sticker on the Model S should come in around $50k, or roughly half the price of the groundbreaking Tesla Roadster which absorbed all upfront development costs for the sporty little electric car.

Full Details on Telsa Model S

Jalopnik has a great article on the Tesla Model S unveiling today. They also took several photos of the electric family sedan at the event. These are the most current car specs as well as production and release dates:

Via Jalopnik:
Tesla claims the Model S sedan will be produced at a rate of 20,000 units per year, with an expected 3rd quarter of 2011 start of production and an expectation of mid-2012 for when they hope to hit that 20,000-per-year number.

The Tesla Model S Sedan will supposedly have a 300 mile range from its floor pan-located, easily removable battery pack which Tesla claims will have a quick-charged capability allowing it to partially charge in just 45 minutes. The company is considering renting customers a long range battery pack for long trips. The regular batteries are available for lease and are expected to last from 7 to 10 years depending on use, but expect closer to 10 for normal use. The entire car will be covered under a warranty, the length of which is expected to be between 3 and 4 years.

The interior features 2 LCD screens, one displaying the gauges and one mounted centrally featuring a full touch screen.

Sport and AWD models are being planned, but the stock model can run 0-60 MPH in 5.5 seconds using its single-speed transmission.

The Tesla Model S will be built in Southern California, while the drive train is manufactured in San Jose. Although we initially believed they might be using a Mercedes platform, but we’re now told personally by Tesla’s Elon Musk the platform is their own design and they plan on manufacturing it themselves. Where they’ll come up with the tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars necessary to accomplish that is anyone’s guess.

Official Photo of Tesla Model S

Last August, I posted about the rumors swirling that the Tesla Model S would look the Aston Martin Rapide concept. Then in October, a “rendered speculation” was created that led many to believe the car might look otherwise. But the rendering seemed to deviate from what Tesla spokesmen claimed would be a large four-door hatchback sedan. Also I found it doubtful that the company would build a car with an obvious Asian sportscar influence in the design.

But the Model S peaking out from under the tarp in Tesla’s official teaser photo very much resembles the Aston Martin Rapide.  Right down to the fender side vents.  Obviously, the Model S will look slightly different when it finally unveiled.  But until then, this is probably the best estimate of what the 4-door electric sedan will look like:

Tesla wants some of that money too.

With loans to the Big 3 all but signed for, Tesla Motors feels they deserve a piece of the government handout pie. Tesla’s Vice President of Business Development, Diarmuid O’Connell, blogged about how it was a bad idea for the Big Three to get money that had been set aside in the December 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), specifically Section 136. Section 136 set up the Advanced Technology Vehicles Loan Program (ATVMLP), and Tesla opposed taking money that was supposed to make cars cleaner and instead use it to just keep the Big Three operating.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk told the Detroit Free Press that if the electric car maker doesn’t get a $350 million loan from the government, then the Model S will be delayed and San Jose plant won’t open. Musk said that with $350 million, Tesla could sell 20,000 electric sedans a year by 2011. “We can’t move forward with that without a major amount of capital,” said Musk. “If we don’t get any government funding, then what we need to do is we need to wait until the capital markets recover, which could be a year or two years from now.”

I sure hope the government does the right thing by helping a company with a proven track record of providing energy efficient vehicles. Sadly, the way things are moving right now, this will probably not happen soon enough.

Sources: Detroit Free Press, Autobloggreen

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