Tesla Next gen- Roadster 0 to 60mph 1.9 sec. 620 mile range
 

Holy moly

A 250 mph electric car with 620 per charge range (maybe not at 250 ) and a semi tractor with a 500 mile range
Looks like electric tech has come of age, now if only the prices can start going the opposite direction perhaps the future will be a bit brighter .

https://www.yahoo.com/news/tesla-unv...061118773.html

The given specifications are extremely impressive, but they are very short on technological details. I'm very curious to learn the specifics.

I agree that the prices are still too high for most folks. Having said that, the prices of other super-cars with similar specs are higher.

Anyone got a spare $250k they want to give me? :D

So far only concept models have been produced and yes specifics are sketchy

It'll be interesting to see how electric vehicles develop. To me, they don't seem to be ready for prime-time, and some huge changes in "how the world works" would need to happen before the advantages proposed by electrics could be realized:

When traveling long distance, most people don't want to repeatedly stop for the amount of time it takes to charge batteries. (To say nothing of the non-existent infrastructure required to charge electric cars). Maybe they can get to the point where batteries can be quickly swapped for fresh ones? Kinda like how BBQ grill propane tanks are handled now?

Also, considering the energy demand of cars and trucks - and reconciling that with how we generate our electricity, it seems electric vehicles basically exchange burning gasoline/diesel fuel for burning coal or performing nuclear fission, both of which have significant drawbacks themselves.

If only we could come up with super solar panels the size of a car hood/roof that could generate enough juice to propel a car down the highway at 75mph!

Keep in mind, this won't be an over-night switch over. Just like going from horse-drawn carriages to cars didn't happen all at once. There were no gas stations when the first cars came out.

I'm not so sure about this one. For instance, if I can get an electric car that can travel 200 on a 1/2 hour charge, that would be plenty good enough. If I'm in the car for four or more hours, I could use a break. Plus, I think Tesla's can do that now.

In the short term, if you absolutely must drive hundreds of miles straight and can only stop for 15 minutes of fill-up and potty break, you could simply rent a regular, gas powered car. I'll bet they'll still be available for decades. Otherwise, there will likely be plenty of time at either end of your trip to recharge.

But either way, infrastructure will have to continue to be built but I'm seeing electric charging stations all over the place.

Even swapping ICE engines for electricity generated from coal, the net efficiency and pollution gain is positive. Sure, its not pollution free or perfectly efficient but it is a step in the right direction.

Plus, as you point out, an electric car becomes power generation agnostic. It will run on coal, nuclear, solar, wind, hydro, ethanol, whatever can generate electricity. So as power options change, the cars don't have to. Even in my area in Ohio, the last ten years has brought a significant drop in the percent of electricity generated with coal. (I think coal is down from 70% to just under 50% of the generating capacity.) The new generation is from solar, wind, and natural gas.

Interesting times for sure and I would love to buy an electric car but they are still out of my price range. Maybe my next car will be an electric, we'll see...

"Not ready for prime time" (whatever that means ) is arguably 2010 -ish thinking. Particularly if you are talking about commuting. It does however depend on where you live.
Electric cars sales and use is arguably making it's way into significant if not prime time, in some countries /regions. Canada, Japan, China and parts of Europe for example have fairly significant increases usage, but I don't think it is because those countries are more technically advanced, perhaps it is something in the water ? :eek:

https://i.imgur.com/qwCZyGq.png

https://i.imgur.com/HMzKHAH.png

With those kinds of numbers, such a roadster better be autopilot or people are going to die.

People die all day every day and in much less fun circumstances that 0 to 60 in 1.9 :D The real point is the quantum leap in tech, a range of 620 miles is a monumental increase then from even just 5 years ago .

Great comments, all!

What I mean by "prime time", is the vehicle is so practical, affordable and desirable that Joe the Plumber would seriously consider buying one because it fits his needs, wants and budget.

I'm not sure that I'm Joe the Plumber, but I feel that my vehicular needs are probably pretty close to most other Americans that don't live in the big city. I can't afford multiple cars, so I need one vehicle that can serve basically all my needs. I could easily make good use of an electric for my daily commute and buzzing around town - but as my ONLY car? It comes up short on account of range and utility. EDIT: I'm super curious under what conditions the new Tesla is able to achieve 620 mile range. That seems pretty huge!

From the graph in the post above, it appears there were ~175k electrics sold in the USA in 2016. Considering there were ~17.5 million new cars sold in the USA in 2016, electrics represent ~1%.

So between some combination of lack of technology, infrastructure, product availability and interest, I still say electrics aren't ready for prime time.

However, they are certainly getting closer each year. Exciting and interesting to watch!

I guess sooner or later it will happen, then all the world's problems will be solved.

don't they need to finish the model(s) they are working on and bring to production? i've read that a lot of people have put $ down on the model 3.

walmart wants to test the truck.

play music!

They're not ubiquitous yet, but there are quite a few charging Tesla stations already all over the country:

https://images.hgmsites.net/med/tesl...00550462_m.jpg

Already up and running in Japan. Battery pack swap in less than two minutes!

https://youtu.be/qd0WPw3p2MQ

I was recently in West Yellowstone (a very small town), and I was surprised to see a Tesla charging station there. I guess it was for the summer traffic going into the park.