Tesla's temporary gallery opening this Friday in Colorado
Tesla Motors Roadster – Click above for high-res image gallery
It's been little more than a month since Tesla Motors opened its store in München and now comes word that its next location will be swinging open its doors for a "cocktail reception" on Friday. It seems, however, that this outpost in Boulder, Colorado will be somewhat different from its regular retail operations. According to their building permit it will be an "electric automotive demonstration gallery" for technology that includes batteries and chargers. It will also be temporary. The land at 915 Pearl St. was purchased by developers last year and should eventually be occupied by a fancy Italian restaurant with luxury condos on top, but that plan is currently "behind schedule" so, for a while at least, it will be Tesla's Centennial State squat.
The big question is, of course, whether there are more permanent plans for the automaker in the city. Colorado has, until the end of 2009 at least, a very generous tax rebate for electric cars and the city of Boulder boasts the country's first "Smart Grid". Tesla Motors also has family ties in the area. Kimbal Musk, board member and brother of CEO Elon, has a restaurant (that supposedly serves a mean lamburger) just a few blocks away. Considering they reportedly spent almost $148,000 on the renovations, this gallery should be open for a while.
For those of you curious about what kind of scene to expect at the opening party, Tesla now has a post on their company blog about the recent München affair. Apparently it was attended by nearly 400 people who mingled and admired a small bevy of battery-powered Roadsters. Of course, in Colorado there won't be many people saying "ja, es ist schnell" and Kimbal's yellow Founder's Series number five will likely be parked out front. To get a taste for yourselves, hit the jump for a bit of video.
Gallery: 2009 Tesla Roadster v1.5
[Source: Daily Camera / Huffington Post]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Laurens 9:30AM (10/20/2009)
Just about any car will overtake this, on the unrestricted autobahn. Go for Europa, if you have to have this model.
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skierpage 4:08PM (10/20/2009)
"Just about any car will overtake this, on the unrestricted autobahn"
Googling "average speed autobahn" comes up with "According to a 1995 study, the average speed traveled on German autobahns was 134 km/h." (84 mph) and car enthusiasts claiming to normally drive at 100-120 mph. The success or failure of Tesla in Germany will suggest the size of the market of rich German sports car fans willing to live with a mere 125 mph (201 kph) top speed.
Meanwhile, in the rest of the world the latest dead tree Automobile magazine has a very favorable six-page review of a week with a Tesla Roadster from Jason Cammisa "who has gasoline running through his veins". I can't (yet) find it online, but the writer loved the car and mostly the experience. "It's faster, quieter, and more luxurious [than an Elise for less money]... The Tesla fits the way—and the speeds at which—we actually drive."
Mark Kiernan 9:51AM (10/20/2009)
Laurens why do you hate EVs so much? Were you hit by one as a child or something?
The Tesla is a fantastic car. It has great range, it is fast, quick and beautiful and doesn't emit pollution.
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Spiffster 12:05PM (10/20/2009)
Im thinking about putting in the 5k deposit on one of the model s. I may change my mind if they decide to put the Tesla store up in Boulder. I realize this is not a permanent location but Denver would be a MUCH better location when they do decide to build one here in Colorado. Besides, hippies cant afford EVs.
Jeremy 12:04PM (10/20/2009)
CO tax credit is over $42,000!!! Oklahoma gives you 50% of the purchase price as a state income tax credit!
Hopefully we'll see more of this stuff into the future :-)
Laurens -- you're right. The Roadster tops out at 125 mph. That's not a problem for most people. If your only purchase consideration is top speed, then get another car. In most places in the world 125 is fast enough to get arrested, which is more than fast enough for me!
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Boyprodigy1 12:46PM (10/20/2009)
Lets not mention what a person with some electrical knowhow could do to one of these things. Ever overclocked an electric motor?
Jeremy 1:00PM (10/20/2009)
Considering the amount of software limiting the motor to around 14,000 rpm, it would be MUCH easier to just swap the gearing to raise the top speed. You'd do it at the cost of low speed acceleration (0-60 time would suffer), but a gear in the gearbox or the pinion gear in the rear diff could be swapped to make for a longer ratio. Of course, I have no idea if this would trigger the car to think that something was wrong. Actually, I'd bet that it would. I'm sure the software expects a certain vehicle speed to correspond exactly to a certain motor RPM.
At any rate, you'd need to be capable of hacking the software whether you want to allow the motor to spin higher than the Tesla-chosen 14,000 rpm 'redline' or, most likely, even if you just swapped for a longer gear ratio (which would be safer).
Boyprodigy1 6:48PM (10/20/2009)
True, but who is talking about safe? After all we are talking about ways to go faster than 125mph...
Jeremy 7:49PM (10/20/2009)
I didn't mean safe for driving purposes, I meant safe for the motor. I'm sure there's a reason the 'redline' is at 14,000 rpm. Too much over that and it's probably dangerous for the motor mechanically, just like revving a gas engine beyond its redline. There's definitely more headroom for over-revving an electric motor vs. a gas engine but at some point it will cause damage, too.
Boyprodigy1 1:55PM (10/22/2009)
Yeah i know what you are saying. Its actually more likely dangerous for the battery pack though. Electric motors can burn out but they are usually a lot tougher than they are rated for. I imagine its so that they last a lot longer in consumer products.
osman 10:54PM (10/22/2009)
Updated photos are here:
http://www.gearthoughts.com/2009/10/tesla-dealership-in-boulder.html
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