Uh-oh: Wired picks Tesla Roadster for annual Vaporware awards
Well, WIRED used to love the Tesla Roadster. And the magazine will love it once again sometime down the road. But today - exactly because they can't buy a Roadster and drive it down the road now - WIRED is a bit sour. The electric supercar has been named to Wired's annual vaporware list. In the current list, Vaporware 2007: Long Live the King, writer Michael Calore picks on (to me) legitimate targets like the Steorn Orbo and Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy album alongside the Roadster. As Calore writes, "the car has been appearing everywhere -- Popular Science, The New York Times, Wired -- except the blacktop. The Tesla Roadster was promised this October, but now we're looking forward to burning some vapor in 2008." What will 2008 bring? I'm still confident that buyers will get their Roadsters, transmission issues and all. You?Related:
Gallery: Riding in the Tesla Roadster
[Source: WIRED, h/t to kert]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
texmln 6:04PM (1/26/2008)
More of the same... with this car production is always just a few months off and, oh, about that 'interim' transmission - we'll need to replace that when the working model arrives at the end of the year... Please. This car DOESN'T exist until it all works including the transmission. 'Temporary' transmissions don't count.
Only a fool deluded by the 'global warming' scam would plunk down $100k for this paper tiger. Yeah, let's show those Arab terrorists we don't need their oil by paying more than the average person spends on gasoline in their entire lifetime for a car that has room for a whole TWO people and no luggage. So, you'll still need a second car to go pick up your groceries. Unfortunately, your friends in Greenpeace will eventually turn on you when they find out giant dump trucks are still crushing peasants in Chilean strip mines to get enough copper to wind the electric motors.
Call me when the all-electric Chevy Suburban comes out for $50k so I can get my family of six in one vehicle at a competitive price. Oh, and I'm not buying it unless it can tow 7,500 pounds of gas-guzzling boat behind it.
It's always the same with these guys. Build something for the real world.
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Kardax 11:09AM (12/21/2007)
Elon Musk got his a couple weeks ago, but I'm not really sure if he counts. It's possible his was pushed out to avoid the regulatory issues of entering production next year.
The car seems to be mostly ready, with transmission durability the only remaining problem. Tesla has hired two major transmission builders to independently tackle the problem... hopefully one of them gets it. If/when that happens, they'll build them as fast as they can...
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Dave 11:18AM (12/21/2007)
Tesla: A Man and His Dream
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Rick 11:42AM (12/21/2007)
add the Volt to the list too
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Mort 12:02PM (12/21/2007)
Smug bastards.
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Dave 1:48PM (12/21/2007)
Lets just hope they mean it to be a push in the right direction - I don't see Wired as being anti-Tesla. Let's all hope for a long and emotional retraction ASAP.
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BlackbirdHighway 1:45PM (12/21/2007)
GM never promised Volt deliveries in 2007, so they get a pass this time.
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why not the LS2/LS7? 1:52PM (12/21/2007)
Retraction? It is vapor. Why would they retract a true statement?
Here's hoping to see the Tesla hit the roads in the new year.
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Joseph 3:41PM (12/21/2007)
It's stupid to put this car on the list because at least it actually exists.
Right before the Tesla Roadster, they put that free energy machine that didn't work "properly" the day it was exhibited.
Free energy devices (perhaps one of the oldest, biggest vaporware ideas ever) cannot be placed in a list next to a car that exists, is working, dozens of people have tooken a ride in, and is almost ready for production. The people at Wired should know that all projects, especially car projects, end up being about six months late or os.
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Whopper 3:43PM (12/21/2007)
The car should be named "Son-of-Vector" after the Weigert design that existed in prototype stage for 20+ years but never really sold.
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kert 4:08PM (12/21/2007)
Well, the vapor awards are not apparently really given out just on basis of whether the thing exists or not, but it probably has got something to do with the hype surrounding it.
Too much hype for too long, and no real show, and the vapor jokes start appearing.
Altair Nano batteries were reported to run on some vapors already as well, until mr. Berube and his Current Eliminator showed what they are made of.
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Darryl 4:43PM (12/21/2007)
It's funny that we get the vaporware award from wired and also the car of the year award from wired autopia
http://blog.wired.com/cars/2007/12/heres-our-pick.html
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Mike 1:28PM (12/24/2007)
Beginning to wonder the same thing myself. I asked Santa Claus for a new bicycle when I was 10, that never happened either.
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