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not doubting what you write, but why will the 4680 cells product better range? I thought they're just bigger cells. Or is it some kind of different chemistry?
'Fastest' should be qualified. Fastest accelerating maybe, but a bugatti chiron for example is way faster in top speed. https://www.bugatti.com/chiron/
Not knocking the plaid though, it's a remarkable achievement and i enjoyed elon musk's very quirky presentation.
The 4680 has better density in the form of the structural battery pack as well as better chemistry. I was hoping for a 2 speed tranny to improve the range up top but i guess we will have to wait for the roadster which has a much higher top speed (~250mph). That Yoke steering wheel is dumb. watching people use that thing isn't great...
not doubting what you write, but why will the 4680 cells product better range? I thought they're just bigger cells. Or is it some kind of different chemistry?
Probably will not see them for another year even though Tesla says Model 3 and Y out of Berlin will start using them late this year.
'Fastest' should be qualified. Fastest accelerating maybe, but a bugatti chiron for example is way faster in top speed. https://www.bugatti.com/chiron/
Not knocking the plaid though, it's a remarkable achievement and i enjoyed elon musk's very quirky presentation.
You can buy at least 25 Model S Plaid's for the price of one Bugatti. I get your point though.
Radically different battery cell
Probably will not see them for another year even though Tesla says Model 3 and Y out of Berlin will start using them late this year.
Looking forward to seeing tesla get these out... seems like it will be a huge step forward.
You can buy at least 25 Model S Plaid's for the price of one Bugatti. I get your point though.
Yeah, there's always going to be crazy fast exotic vehicles. The $2M rimac will crush the plaid when it comes out.
what tesla has done is put insanely fast vehicles in the hands of more of the 'masses'... obviously pros and cons on that. fortunately i've not witnessed people driving teslas insanely fast.
Randy Pobst is saying that the Plaid model doesn't lose power even during track sessions. Not surprising as the prototypes last year were doing Nurbergring laps even with the older packs. It will be interesting to see what they can do with the newer battery tech (not 4680 though).
Randy Pobst To Pilot Insane Tesla Model S Plaid At Pikes Peak
It's Pikes Peak season, and oh boy, it is set to be an epic installation of the iconic hill climb. Bentley is aiming to send its record-breaking Continental GT3 back up the mountain for another taste of victory, and other entries from Acura and Porsche look just as menacing.
If you follow the time attack style of racing, you probably know about an exciting electric project that has been in the works for some time now. Although it's not the only Tesla involved in this sort of challenge, this one is built by Unplugged Performance, and just like with last year's impressive showing, Hall of Famer Randy Pobst will be behind the wheel.
It's difficult to tell with all the decals, but it's a Tesla Model S Plaid that serves as the base of this attack car. It was first unveiled two days after deliveries of the Model S Plaid began, highlighting the company's close connection with Tesla. It now features a stripped-out interior with the airbags, center console, and door panels all removed. In their place are a roll cage and a racing seat with six-point harnesses. The large front splitter and massive adjustable rear wing are both made from carbon, which is as far as the body modifications go. But there are plenty of changes under the skin.
The factory air springs are retained but custom Unplugged Performance/Bilstein dampers and a three-way adjustable rear anti-roll bar have been fitted for better rigidity and handling. Custom forged aluminum wheels keep the unsprung weight down and are wrapped in Yokohama Advan slicks. The stock brake calipers are retained too but with Unplugged Performance/PFC discs. Finally, air jacks are fitted to make tire and suspension changes a breeze.
Before Pobst gets to take it up the mountain, adjustable upper control arms, adjustable rear camber arms, and upgraded brake pads will be fitted. That said, things already look very good, with Pobst returning from a testing session at Laguna Seca with 34% charge remaining and no loss of power compared to when full. In last year's Model 3 race car, "the power would go down in ratio to some degree". So it seems that Tesla's cooling systems and battery pack technology are both improving. Let's just hope the Model S Plaid is as impressive in the real world.
Video of yoke steering wheel in use. Looks awkward at best what's Elon thinking? Someone will crash their car during parking maneuver this is pretty dumb the more I watched this video. On the plus note interior looks way more futuristic though.
SpaceX rocket goes 25,0000 miles per hour, might as well compare a car to that. $2 million+ supercar should destroy the Plaid don't you think?
Closest competitor to the Plaid is probably the Taycan.
Just a matter of time when the Roadster comes out. Tesla is estimating that it could go as fast as 0-60 in 1.1 seconds with the SpaceX package. Whats faster than Plaid in Spaceballs
Musk claims new Tesla Roadster will do 0-60 mph in 1.1s with SpaceX rocket option
When asked via Twitter last week whether it's true the new Roadster will be able to hit 60 mph from rest in just 1.1 seconds, the Tesla CEO answered “yes,” adding that the car will require a “SpaceX rocket thruster option package” to do so.
At the new Roadster's reveal in 2017, Tesla said the car will be able to hit 60 mph in 1.9 seconds. However, shortly after the reveal Musk took to Twitter to up the hype by claiming there would be a performance upgrade—a performance upgrade possibly involving rockets.
Based on Musk's latest tweet, it appears the rocket upgrade has been confirmed. Whether it actually makes production remains to be seen, however.
But how might it work? Musk has provided clues in various tweets made in the four years since the new Roadster's reveal. Rather than use chemical rockets like those developed by Musk's SpaceX venture, Musk has hinted that the Roadster's rocket would rely on compressed air generated by an onboard pump and stored in tanks replacing the rear seats. The thruster would point out from the rear of the vehicle, possibly behind a flip-down license plate.
We'd have to imagine that such a system might be dangerous for anyone walking past the thruster, making it questionable that it would even be allowed on a street-legal vehicle. It's likely any rocket upgrade will be limited to track use only.
Anyone still waiting for the new Roadster should be prepared to wait much longer. The car was originally promised for 2020, and when that year rolled around Musk said Tesla is focused on more pressing issues, like getting its German plant up and running and the Cybertruck pickup truck in production at a new plant in Texas. There's also the Semi transport truck tucked away somewhere in Tesla's plans.
Video of yoke steering wheel in use. Looks awkward at best what's Elon thinking? Someone will crash their car during parking maneuver this is pretty dumb the more I watched this video. On the plus note interior looks way more futuristic though.
Video of yoke steering wheel in use. Looks awkward at best what's Elon thinking? Someone will crash their car during parking maneuver this is pretty dumb the more I watched this video. On the plus note interior looks way more futuristic though.
haha, thanks for sharing. holding the 'nubs' at the 'top' of the yoke seems not great. that ol' 10 and 2 thing is out the window.
I predict they will have a round option in 6 months due to demand. I don't mind the capacitive buttons for the gear selector but the Yoke seems like its just impractical. I could understand this in something exotic like the Roadster but the Plaid S is a 4 door family car.
I predict they will have a round option in 6 months due to demand. I don't mind the capacitive buttons for the gear selector but the Yoke seems like its just impractical. I could understand this in something exotic like the Roadster but the Plaid S is a 4 door family car.
and i guess wiper touch area is on the yoke and he hit it while steering.
I predict they will have a round option in 6 months due to demand. I don't mind the capacitive buttons for the gear selector but the Yoke seems like its just impractical. I could understand this in something exotic like the Roadster but the Plaid S is a 4 door family car.
Pics of the Plaid Model S and opinion of an owner.
Some pics of the 2021 Tesla Model S Plaid - courtesy of the owner of this car (the dark gray car) - OmarSultan for all the pics - he's a member of the Tesla forum -https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/forums/model-s.73/
Omar was one of the 25 lucky owners that took delivery of their Plaid cars at the Tesla Plaid event last week on June 10. Needless to say I have Plaid envy - lots of it lol
Omar has been kind enough to answer countless questions and take lots of pics by request from the folks on the Tesla forum. Needless to say - for anything new like this plus the fact that it is not yet widely available, there were tons of questions/requests.
I will highlight some of the feedback from Omar about this car:
The car feels much more "premium" than his previous Model S - both in terms of the quality of fit and finish as well as materials - see a bunch of interior shots as well as exterior paint shots - no misaligned panels and the paint seems perfect. Not sure if the cars at the delivery event were specially "prepped" for this because of the expected level of attention at the event or if this is as sign of things to come from Tesla (thank you competition - Porsche, MB, Audi etc). It does not have any fancy massaging or infinite levels of ambient lighting (for some that is part and parcel of "premium and luxury"). It now has ventilated seats (cooling and heating). It also has "active" headlights. The rear taillights did not get an update and a lot of folks are very upset about this. I suspect there will be refresh to these eventually.
The car is a lot more quiet now - acoustic glass and much less road noise overall (some chassis insulation etc) no doubt has made a huge difference. It appears that the new active noise cancellation feature is not yet "working" as the toggle to activate it is grayed out. No doubt an update to the software will enable this soon. If the car is already very quiet with the improvement in chassis insulation and acoustic windows, I can only imagine how much more quiet it will be once the ANC is enabled.
The yoke seems to be a work in progress - to put that mildly. I'm keeping an open mind that Tesla will make it feel less awkward with a future software update. I don't hate it, and at the same time would love to try it out first before passing judgement.
The performance of course is on another level. No need to say any more.
The UI software is brand new and is unique to the S/X as there are now 3 screens vs single in 3/Y. Omar mentioned that it feels a bit unfinished (the ANC for example), however since it's software - it will no doubt get updated soon.
I really like the new 21 inch "Arachnid "wheels and they are finally not some skinny anemic wheel/tire combo like on previous gens. They are 265 in the front and 295 in the rear.
The flat power curve (as opposed to falling off power) all the way to 150 mph with a single speed dual motors on the rear is mind blowing to say the least. Tesla had to design a special machine (as none existed prior) to make the high tech carbon sleeve for the rear motors that help with this power delivery.
Elon made a point of mentioning that the Plaid has the lowest coefficient of drag of any car in production today as the value is 0.208 which includes the wheels while the car is in motion. The EQS has a cd of 0.2, but I don't know if that is while the car is in motion and also includes the wheels.
Some die-hard current Tesla Model S owners feel "betrayed" that Tesla deliberately didn't do an extensive exterior refresh and I get that, however I think the tweaks made to the original design to (wider track, lower overall height and more aerodynamic) are tasteful and are a direct consequence of determining that other priorities (two new factories coming online, new battery development/ramp up - the 4680 pack, etc) on Tesla's roadmap precluded the time/$ required for a full exterior redesign. Virtually everything (or most) under the skin is new/refreshed. This refresh was needed and I'm sure the legacy ICE manufacturers competition (Taycan, EQS, Etron GT) also played a fairly significant role.
I still am very much in love with my current 2016 S, however when the time comes to replace it, the Plaid or LR versions would definitely be top contenders as my next car (used, low mileage and under 3 years old). It's far from perfect, however it's very good in a lot of areas that I feel are important as far as I'm concerned. That's all that really matters to anyone considering any car really.
06-14-21, 08:55 PM
2020 Tesla Roadster
