Tesla motors, manufacturers of the world's first electric supercar, have opened their first dealership in the city of Los Angeles, near the University of California.
The Tesla roadster is an all-electric car; it uses batteries to drive an electric motor that powers the rear wheels. It is capable of 0-100kph in under 4 seconds, and a top speed of 200kph. What will concern owners more, of course, is the range of the battery pack – it lasts a decent 350km on a full charge, which takes about 3.5 hours. The pack will have to be replaced after 160,000km on the odo.
After several years of development and a few delays, the Tesla roadster will retail for USD 109,000, but a fully-loaded model will probably cost USD 124,000. Arnold Schwarzenegger and George Clooney have ordered their roadsters already, even though they'll receive delivery in fifteen months' time.
Tesla began taking orders for the roadster for the 600 examples scheduled for production this year, and the first ones rolled off the production line six weeks ago. Orders are now being taken for the 2009 model, and plans are to produce about 1500 cars. We wonder if we'll ever see one of these in our country – we can't wait for someone to ask "Average kitna deta hai?"
