LA Auto Show: 5 minutes with Tesla engineer JB Straubel
The chief technical officer at Tesla Motors tells AutoblogGreen that 10 to 15 more test prototypes will be built next month as the company prepares to start manufacturing the much talked-about electric roadster in mid-2007. "We'll be finalizing the last changes we want to make from the first batch to the second," says JB Straubel, who was promoting the Tesla Roadster at the LA Auto Show. The first 10 prototypes are currently undergoing a variety of durability and validation tests around the world. "We're almost at the 50-yard line in our crash testing," adds Straubel, noting that the engineering team continues to make minor improvements as results are evaluated. "We've finalized all the major engineering decisions. From 10 feet you wouldn't recognize any changes that will be in the final production version."
Straubel, an electronics wizard who rebuilt a salvaged golf cart before he had his first car, says he doesn't see a major leap in battery technology in the near future and is skeptical of such claims circulating the industry. "People love to latch on to this great next idea but historically that's not how it happens. The reliable, tested technology gets better one step at a time." Straubel says low-cost performance batteries are holding back the development of retro electric conversions on existing vehicles. "There are hundreds, maybe thousands, who are very interested and will continue to convert all sorts of cars. The challenge is, where do you find a good drive system? Where do you get a high-performance battery? I think people will continue to convert to electric vehicles but they'll be shorter range and lower performance."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Henry 1:58PM (12/02/2006)
The guy talks like IBM when Microsoft came to fruition.
When you have a product that the public wants and companies know it will save them lots of money -you will have a lot of money, innovation, startups, competition and maybe too many applicants in the field.
To say that batteries are not going to make a huge leap in a very short period of time is crazy.
Even the military wants electric but they sure don't want fuelcells. Where are they going to get free natural gas?
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Mike Z. 7:22PM (12/02/2006)
Yes, but even Microsoft has to play by Moore's law. There will be break-thoughts, but they might not be that big in terms on a year-to-year jump but just a way to continute the current rate of growth. For example, I don't remember where but someone for Tesla says that they expect Li-ion to follow the established trend of improving 8% per year.
That of course if nothing to sneeze at, 8% per year means the performance doubles every ten.
If the rate of advancement goes to 10% per year, we will see a 4-fold increase in 16 years---Not to shabby.
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Don M 7:19PM (12/03/2006)
Buying their car is like buying a gas car with 6000 seperate .01 liter gas tanks for a total of 60 liters.
Its crazy. There is so much better out their next year making their product seem like a huge waste of money. I doubt it once the other companies get a drop of as much publicity that they are getting there company will still be alive.
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James Anderson Merritt 9:49PM (12/06/2006)
Don M: Well, suppose that the car with the 6000 tiny gas tanks was guaranteed never to catch fire or explode? You (or maybe not you, but Volvo) could market THAT as an important safety feature!
As far as whether or not Tesla will use better batteries when they become available, they've already said that they are tracking advances in the industry -- and they are in a better position than most to know which battery advances are REAL and which can be adapted to production vehicles in the near term. If a breakthrough battery technology becomes practical, how long do you think it will take for them to have a prototype of a Roadster or follow-on car running with the new power storage?
On the other hand, it is clear that many people want their EV NOW, and are willing to pay the premium to get what pushes the state of the art NOW. That is what Tesla is delivering, not the least reason for which is to finance quick action when technological advances happen over the next several years. At that time, other companies will have to scramble for venture capital. By starting now, Tesla will be able to bankroll its own evolution. Smart move, if you ask me.
Frankly, the only advances I would like to see in battery technology are in the areas of capacity, lifetime, and cost. A range greater than 250 miles on a charge would be nice. Being able to use the battery for ten years or more, or a lower replacement cost for the battery, would help people justify the long term investment in a more expensive automobile. Discharge/recharge rates will be irrelevant for quite a while: The existing battery already discharges quickly enough to get you to over 100mph in seconds, and to sustain that speed for a couple of hours. What more do you want? The recharge speed will be limited by the maximum voltage and amperage available to the Tesla owner. Right now, and for many years to come, I believe, routinely recharging any faster than 3 extra miles of range for every minute spent charging is just unrealistic. It's not just how fast the battery can recharge; it's also how much juice the charger can deliver from the power lines. Batteries available now can recharge as quickly as home wiring and all but serious electrical substation wiring can deliver. You can't get around the laws of physics.
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