Elon Musk Reveals Details On Upcoming $35,000 Tesla

Wierdo said:
Supposedly it's newer batteries and from their future manufacturing giga-plant project. Apparently they're also promising owners of the older Tesla model to have batteries available with that technology that increases the range to 400 miles.
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I hope...
 
Xrave said:
I'm eagerly awaiting the reviews to see how well the $35k car will perform.

However $35k probably isn't a real expectation.

The Model S is ~$80k, but in order to get the full range you need to drop the extra $25k on the better battery, so now you're at ~$105k. Then add more money for the super charger that can charge it in 45 min.

The comment from Musk about the $35k version going 200 miles might be accurate...but the question is if that is with the standard battery, or the better battery that will almost double the cost of the car.
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I think it will be the standard battery and i say that because its dependent on the gigafactory concept which is designed to bring battery prices down a min of 30%. the bigger battery is only 7k upgrade the "performance" model is the big price difference. so 7
so based on the quote
By most estimates, the battery for the Model S that I drove should cost between $42,500 and $55,250, or half the cost of the car. But (Tesla Tech Officer) Straubel indicated that it is already much lower. “They’re way less than half, actually,” he says. “Less than a quarter in most cases.”

okay so 21k? still sounds like alot 21kx.3=6300 21k-6300 = 14.7

35-14.7 roughly 20k leftover to build the car. Doesn't seem like alot. Except for one thing. Tesla doesn't have the overhead in lingering retiree benefits to pay
http://www.forbes.com/sites/joannmuller/2013/01/31/fords-leaky-pension-boat/.
 
Ducman69 said:
Or just be like a normal person and get a hybrid. ;)
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Plugin hybrid is pretty much best mix right now, although my truck still has more range on a tank a gas than any hybrid on the market. The newer ones do even better.
 
Romale23 said:
Plugin hybrid is pretty much best mix right now, although my truck still has more range on a tank a gas than any hybrid on the market. The newer ones do even better.
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Yeah, most of the diesels pretty much kick ass. I was looking at the Passat TDI for my sister, 800 mile friggen range!
 
Ultima99 said:
Now with less fireballs and explosions???
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4 or 5 Tesla's have "burst into flames". Why?

2-3 of them were due to shrapnel that flew up in the undercarriage and punctured the battery. One of them was even a trailer ball hitch. Who the hell in their right mind doesn't see that? EVERY SINGLE TIME the car alerted them to a catastrophic problem, the owner pulled over and got out, and walked away with no injuries. I'd hate to see what a metal ball flung at 80mph into a gas tank would have the potential to do.

1 of them was due to a guy hitting a brick wall at 60mph. Once again, he got out no problem and walked away fine without any injuries. Any gas car may have burst into flames immediately and he may have not even survived the initial impact, but due to how Tesla's are built, not one injury.

1 of them was due to someone speeding at 100+mph, jumping the car into the corner of a building which made it split in half.

In all regards, Tesla IMMEDIATELY did remote software updates to make the car ride higher/a little safer AND offered TITANIUM PLATING around the battery (and now comes standard on every Model S) so that the shrapnel issues do not happen.

Now, in the same vein, tens of thousands of gas cars catch on fire every year. You dont see every single one of them publicized. Don't you think that MAYBE, just MAYBE the world's biggest companies (oil) want to smear a product that they see as a SERIOUS threat down the road so that consumers shy away from it? It's the same reason MOST of these "promising" alternative fuels get bought and brushed under the rug - the oil companies are enjoying their profits.
 
TeeJayHoward said:
If you didn't want this functionality, could you refuse the update? Can you turn off this "feature"? Will you be able to do this in the future? Personally, I still like being in control of my car. Anything that reduces that control bugs me.
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No you cannot refuse the update. Yes you can turn off the feature - even customize it to your liking.
 
Romale23 said:
its not like your talking about changing your every month. If you were to take out the motor make it electrical and put a sealed transmission in (which i dont think tesla even uses) there would be no reason for "maintenance" before 100k miles
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Tesla has a recommended annual service/inspection every year:

http://www.teslamotors.com/en_CA/service#/service-plans

The car still has brake and battery coolant fluids that should be replaced every few years.
 
Burticus said:
Want... but live in Texas. No Tesla dealers here, would have to buy from out of state and have it shipped? Then how do I do maintenance.... headache.
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Tesla doesn't have dealers, it's why they are fighting (or were) New Jersey and the other car manufacturers hate them for it. They have service centers and mobile service trucks - they come to you. I have one a block away from my house.
 
SLee said:
Tesla has a recommended annual service/inspection every year:

http://www.teslamotors.com/en_CA/service#/service-plans

The car still has brake and battery coolant fluids that should be replaced every few years.
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http://www.teslamotors.com/service#/tesla-service

"but if your Model S does require in-person attention, you can bring it to a Tesla Service Center, or have your car picked up in exchange for a loaner at no charge with our valet service."

so they pick up your car and give you a loaner *shrug* care not
 
okay i just found another piece of literature that says along the lines of they encourage you to drive it to the nearest service center so i'm going to stfu since i dont know whats right.
 
Romale23 said:
Plugin hybrid is pretty much best mix right now, although my truck still has more range on a tank a gas than any hybrid on the market. The newer ones do even better.
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Plug-in hybrid would be great if there was an automaker out there that would make one with an electric range of longer than about 8 feet.

Also, something that was actually conceived with some thought instead of just having the battery pack slapped into the trunk would be nice.
 
Parja said:
Plug-in hybrid would be great if there was an automaker out there that would make one with an electric range of longer than about 8 feet.

Also, something that was actually conceived with some thought instead of just having the battery pack slapped into the trunk would be nice.
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agreed. to be honest the reason i'm kinda excited about this 35k tesla is that hybrids will have that problem for along time. Its simply a weight thing a motor and transmission add a ton of weight. Yeah you could dump the transmission if you just used the engine as a generator but still super heavy gas is heavy cooling system is heavy etc. etc.

I honest to god WISH hydrogen cars would take off. I know alot of people dont like them and cite everything under the son from rolling bombs to making hydrogen is extremely inefficient. But the point i make is any fuel can make electricity and electricity can make hydrogen. Hell put giant solar power hydrogen factories on oil platforms in the ocean.
 
Wrecked Em said:
Fluids, brakes, shocks, CV joints, motors?

I work next to a Tesla service center. The place seems just as busy as most dealer service bays. The problem is that every car looks exactly the same though, so it's hard to gauge the turnover.

Still, it wouldn't stop me from buying one in a commie state like Texas.
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Fluids? There is no oil, no coolant. Brake fluid is about it and any competent shop can do it. Wiper fluid doesn't count.

Shocks/suspension/CV Joints? Again, any shop is capable of this. These are mostly wear items and unlikely to go out under warranty.
 
Romale23 said:
I honest to god WISH hydrogen cars would take off. I know alot of people dont like them and cite everything under the son from rolling bombs to making hydrogen is extremely inefficient. But the point i make is any fuel can make electricity and electricity can make hydrogen. Hell put giant solar power hydrogen factories on oil platforms in the ocean.
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Mazda's been experimenting with Hydrogen for a hell of a long time. My understanding is that the biggest issue is weight. An empty hydrogen fuel tank weighs something like 500lbs. They had a hydrogen rotary Miata back in the early 90s. It was significantly slower than its petrol counterpart.
 
nealric said:
Fluids? There is no oil, no coolant. Brake fluid is about it and any competent shop can do it. Wiper fluid doesn't count.

Shocks/suspension/CV Joints? Again, any shop is capable of this. These are mostly wear items and unlikely to go out under warranty.
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Not all electric motors are air cooled ;)
 
nealric said:
Fluids? There is no oil, no coolant. Brake fluid is about it and any competent shop can do it. Wiper fluid doesn't count.
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I hear you have to pull the six speed transmission to get to the blinker fluid though.
 
TeeJayHoward said:
Not all electric motors are air cooled ;)
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(Although, to be fair, the Model S has a closed cooling system, similar to the Corsair H100 CPU coolers. Never a need to work on the fluids in it, unlike a traditional ICE vehicle.)
 
TeeJayHoward said:
(Although, to be fair, the Model S has a closed cooling system, similar to the Corsair H100 CPU coolers. Never a need to work on the fluids in it, unlike a traditional ICE vehicle.)
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i just read that all of their systems are closed and the only fluid you are allowed (ie without voiding your warranty) touch is the windshield wiper.
 
Aluisious said:
What maintenance?
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A lot of the same maintenance associated with Gasoline cars. No oil changes and tune ups may be something different, but Tires, Brakes, Shocks, Etc still need to be maintained. I'd guess that brakes will need to be serviced more often since it's estimated that this tesla will weigh some 2500lbs more than a Ford Fusion.

There is also battery replacement cost. According to Tesla Battery packs need to be replaced about every 8 years, at a cost of $10,000 to $12,000. Even if you don't keep the car 8 years, I would expect a massive resale value hit on a car batteries that will need to be replaced in a year or two.

The cost of battery replacement alone is enough to cover maintenance and fuel savings for the life of the vehicle when you start looking at Total Cost of Ownership.

I have no problems with people buying electrics if that's what they want. But, there is no financial benefit to buying one.

I expect that this Tesla will end up being closer to $40K+ though. Still a little pricey for mainstream where the average new car costs $30K. It's heading in the right direction though. And unlike other EV's, this one is supposed to have a decent range. 200+ mile range (real world) and a $30K price point (without subsidies) and it would be downright competitive against gasoline powered cars.
 
beowulf7 said:
That sux that Ford is killing SEX! :mad:
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on the bright side they are bringing a ford focus ST Diesel..... the focus STD

(just for record i drive a ford and am VERY happy with it, never owned a vehicle with no problems before)
 
Romale23 said:
on the bright side they are bringing a ford focus ST Diesel..... the focus STD

(just for record i drive a ford and am VERY happy with it, never owned a vehicle with no problems before)
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Actually, a Ford Focus ST w/ Turbo Diesel would be a huge seller in Europe.
 
Burticus said:
Want... but live in Texas. No Tesla dealers here, would have to buy from out of state and have it shipped? Then how do I do maintenance.... headache.
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What? Tesla's website shows a dealership in Dallas, Austin and Houston.
 
Mmm, more explode-y batteries and catch-y on fire cars. At least you don't have to pay as much money to burn down your house in the middle of the night when it's plugged into the wall charger and because of that, you don't need to worry about what corners they cut on safety features to reduce costs to reach the lower price point since it'll be a smoking pile of plastic and lithium long before it gets into an accident. :)
 
I live I Ontario and the cost of electric power is exploding.
 
jpm100 said:
LOL. no.

They gave away a tiny subset of patents concerning it HV charging plug. Because everyone else went with the standard and he's cya'ing a proprietary move that is contrary to spreading charger availability by being able to share them between all cars.
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Not only that, but using Telsa's patents also comes with the caveat that you cannot sue them for using your patents. Your patents may be much more valuable.
 
griffinhart said:
A lot of the same maintenance associated with Gasoline cars. No oil changes and tune ups may be something different, but Tires, Brakes, Shocks, Etc still need to be maintained. I'd guess that brakes will need to be serviced more often since it's estimated that this tesla will weigh some 2500lbs more than a Ford Fusion.

There is also battery replacement cost. According to Tesla Battery packs need to be replaced about every 8 years, at a cost of $10,000 to $12,000. Even if you don't keep the car 8 years, I would expect a massive resale value hit on a car batteries that will need to be replaced in a year or two.

The cost of battery replacement alone is enough to cover maintenance and fuel savings for the life of the vehicle when you start looking at Total Cost of Ownership.

I have no problems with people buying electrics if that's what they want. But, there is no financial benefit to buying one.

I expect that this Tesla will end up being closer to $40K+ though. Still a little pricey for mainstream where the average new car costs $30K. It's heading in the right direction though. And unlike other EV's, this one is supposed to have a decent range. 200+ mile range (real world) and a $30K price point (without subsidies) and it would be downright competitive against gasoline powered cars.
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The question was how it could be practical to buy a car sold out of state. Tires, brakes, etc are irrelevant. Replacing batteries in 8 years is almost irrelevant, it's a pain in 8 years, and most people buying luxury cars don't own a car for 8 years anyway.
 
Aluisious said:
Replacing batteries in 8 years is almost irrelevant, it's a pain in 8 years, and most people buying luxury cars don't own a car for 8 years anyway.
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However people buying a $35k car are much more likely to have it for 8 years.
 
Too bad for the people that live in they states where Tesla is banned . I guess this model is to compete with the Chinese BYD that had yet to hit stateside
 
I have no idea why, but I just felt like posting this.

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Romale23 said:
ya, i'm a firm believer you shouldn't have an electric car and not have a gas powered one. I think there is to much chance in an emergency of getting caught with your pants down (car not charged). But as a primary means of transportation and dealing with the aftermath of a situation it could be very very useful.
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I agree, for most people, it can't be their only car. However, I'm not sure if an emergency matters. Yes it matters if the only thing that's out is electricity, but if a hurricane blows through, the gas stations are gone too and gas will quickly sell out.

Nevertheless, this is a commuter car. Until there are charging stations everywhere and the range is at least 400 miles, I need another car. That's what makes hybrids better than all electric. Arguably diesel is better if you're on the highway enough.
 
Xrave said:
I'm eagerly awaiting the reviews to see how well the $35k car will perform.

However $35k probably isn't a real expectation.

The Model S is ~$80k, but in order to get the full range you need to drop the extra $25k on the better battery, so now you're at ~$105k. Then add more money for the super charger that can charge it in 45 min.

The comment from Musk about the $35k version going 200 miles might be accurate...but the question is if that is with the standard battery, or the better battery that will almost double the cost of the car.
Click to expand...

I assume that's the regular battery. If not, then it's it's not good enough for some people's commute (unless they all have charging stations at works, and they won't).
 
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