CAR FIND

Tesla S

The Tesla Model S

Tesla is all the talk in American electric vehicles, with their ground breaking Tesla Roadster, which is based on a stretched Lotus Elise platform. The car company has announced a new model, this one a four-door sedan of all-original design, to be ready for pre-order in 2009 and available in late 2010.

The new model will be built in Tesla’s new $240 million manufacturing plant, which will begin construction next summer in San Jose, California. The company’s current facility in San Carlos will be retained as a secondary facility, a company spokesperson says, but most operations will move to the new facility when it opens. A new (second) sales floor in West Los Angeles is also in the works. The current is in Menlo Park, California.

Right now, Tesla’s manufacturing is done by Lotus in Hethel, Britain, where parts are shipped from various parts of the UK, Taiwan, and the U.S. and assembled before the cars are finally shipped to the states. Darryl Siry, Tesla’s VP of Sales, Marketing and Service, says that the company is also planning to set up a national network of service centers, likely through a deal with current luxury automobile repair shops. Rumors say the deal could be done through Lotus’ current network here in North America.

Tesla S

The Model S will be based on the design information and engineering learned from the Roadster, but will be a very different car because of the requirements of a four-door sedan. For one, the new car will have a price tag around $60,000, just over half the price of the Roadster. It will have a slightly longer range (240 miles) per charge due to its projected lower pick-up, doing 0-60 in around 6 seconds—compared to the Roadsters 3.9.

It will use the same lithium-ion battery pack the Roadster uses, though changes in technology between now and production could change that. The general components of the car will be roughly the same, though the motor will have a lower horsepower rating and higher torque values (to handle the extra weight inherent in a larger car).

The new Model S was designed entirely in-house by Tesla Motors and will be a completely original luxury sedan. It’s got great looks and styling, as the photos will show you, and will have all the amenities people expect from a luxury car of this price range.

Tesla Roadster

The Tesla Roadster

Tesla recently acquired Franz von Holzhausen to finish off the design of this new model. Holzhausen was formerly the Director of Design for Mazda North America.

Watch for this new model to make some waves in the near future in both the press and the Internet community. It’s a big step for both Tesla and the American electric car market as a whole. Also watch for Tesla’s new race car to hit the circuit too.

It’s likely that pre-sales of the Model S will cap out the 2010 production abilities of the new facility, given the more affordable nature of this model and it’s actual usefulness as a family car.