When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Just test drove Tesla Roadster Sport 2.5, makes me appreciate the SC430 even more....
So we all know how smooth the drivetrain is in our SC430, and we all know how strong and satisfying the low end torque feels in our SC430 in 1st and 2nd gear.
Some people say Lexus are so smooth, it almost feels electric....... well it is.
After driving the Tesla Roadster Sport 2.5, I got into my SC430 for a back to back comparison, the SC430 feels shockingly similar in smoothness in the power delivery, the difference is so small, I can't really say if the all electric Tesla is any smoother. THAT is shocking
The low end torque of the SC430 feels almost as strong too, the Tesla makes 295 lb-ft @ zero rpm, the SC430 is 320 lb-ft @ 3400 rpm, the Tesla does have a 1000 lbs lighter curb weight though. So the Tesla does feels stronger in the initial second or 2, but once the rpm gets up in the SC430, the SC don't feel a whole lot weaker.
I am so proud of the SC430, a car that came out in 2002, feels so similar to a state of the art 2011 $150k exotic electric car.
Now before anyone call me out on hard #, saying on paper how much quicker the Tesla is:
0-60 mph
Tesla: 3.7
SC430: 5.8
That is a huge difference, but I was only talking about how it feels, not actual hard #.
To me, how it feels is the only thing that matters. Hard # don't mean much unless you are racing someone side by side. And I rarely ever race anyone when I am driving my SC430.
Interesting post -- how about some more details. How were you lucky enough to get to drive a Tesla? I thought that those were already back ordered for the next couple of years by Hollywood types and pretty hard to come by.
Also, what was the all electric feel like? Is it completely silent with just tire noise? Was that freaky or just like a golf cart with a better top end?
I thought that those were already back ordered for the next couple of years by Hollywood types and pretty hard to come by.
That might be true initially, but the Roadster have been out for almost 3 years now, anyone who want one already have one. Supply is now higher then demand. They have unsold cars in inventory.
Originally Posted by JohnnyCake
Also, what was the all electric feel like? Is it completely silent with just tire noise? Was that freaky or just like a golf cart with a better top end?
I was very curious about highend all electric car myself, I thought the acceleration would be crazy being max torque at zero rpm and all. After the test drive, it feels less impressive then I imagine, it wasn't disappointing, but it is not out of this world amazing either. Maybe I had a very high expectation. But now that I thought about it, it all make sense. Don't think I am putting down the car, I am just telling like it is. It is a very nice car after all, but yes, it really just pretty much feels like a very high power golf cart. I mean electric power is electric power, you can't really make it feel different, just stronger. So the biggest selling point is the max power at zero rpm, true, that is VERY cool. It put a huge smile on my face the 1st time I floored it from standing still, the initial acceleration is VERY strong from 0-50 or so......but that strong feelings quickly fade away, since after the car is moving, horsepower takes over and the Tesla only have 288 hp, what makes it worse is the lack of gears, this thing have no gears, it is single speed, so it got no gears to help. After 60 mph or so, the car don't feel any quicker then all the 300 hp gas power cars on the road, in fact it might even start to feel slower due to the lack of gearing. And 300 hp gas car is very common now a days, a Camry V6 have 270 hp now a days! It is not completely silent, the electric motor makes a little whining noise. And the top was off, so all I hear is wind noise. It wasn't freaky since all you hear is wind noise in any convertible anyway.
Originally Posted by JohnnyCake
Do you think the Tesla is worth the cash?
Well this is one of those it is worth it if you are into it kind of thing, if you are into an electric power sports car, this is your only choice, it is very cool and definitely very different. But if you consider what it offer as an automobile, comparing to all available gas power car in the same price point, it is definitely not worth it at all.
Tesla took the European car's a la carte approach to pricing and the pricing on their options are Porsche like. So the realistic price on a Sport 2.5 is roughly $150k~$160k.
For $160k, let's just talk about MSRP on other 2011 cars:
911 Turbo S ($162k), it would smoke the Sport 2.5 by like a city block, 0-60 in 2.7 as tested by C&D.
Aston Martin V12 Vantage ($185k), Audi R8 5.2 FSI ($171k), MB SLS AMG ($185k).....etc to name a few. These cars all looks WAYYYY more exotic, have way more image and status and all are way quicker or just as quick as the Tesla. After all, the Tesla is only an electric power Lotus Elise, and for anyone who don't know what a Tesla is, it only looks like a $50k Lotus to them. Call me shallow, but one huge reason people that spend a lot of money on cars, especially cars that cost more then $150k, is for looks and image. Performance wise, all sports car that cost more then $150k have the same or higher performance then the Tesla.
Don't forget that even though it's an electric car and has no tailpipe emissions, it's still causing emissions somewhere to generate the electricity, unless you've got solar panels on your roof or your utility has a wind farm.
Don't forget that even though it's an electric car and has no tailpipe emissions, it's still causing emissions somewhere to generate the electricity, unless you've got solar panels on your roof or your utility has a wind farm.
Definitely!! All those green tree huggers are such oxymorons, they think they are saving the earth, give me a break, especially guys that drive around in Prius at full throttle everywhere
Don't get me wrong, I don't care about saving gas at all, my preference is gas guzzling cars, the more gas it burns, the better it feels!!
BNR34 SHAME, SHAME, SHAME SHAME, SHAME!!! (THANKS YOU GOMER) You can thunk it, but you shouldn't say. lol! Now floor it, and get the hell out of town. BTW Del Mar is a nice place, we go there a lot when we visit our son.
BNR34 SHAME, SHAME, SHAME SHAME, SHAME!!! (THANKS YOU GOMER) You can thunk it, but you shouldn't say. lol! Now floor it, and get the hell out of town. BTW Del Mar is a nice place, we go there a lot when we visit our son.
In my area, there are as many Teslas as Prius. Things are a dime a dozen.
Friend drove a friend's and told me he didn't particularly like it as the
throttle was touchy and near impossible to modulate. Wonder if that's
a common experience. Not a problem with the Prius, which also has
295/torque at 0 rpm.
Tesla is a coal-burning car, like in the old days; it's good to remind Tesla
drivers of this fact.
I pass them constantly on the highway. As I do, I think, "sure you have
speed, but my Magnaflowed 2.5" dual-exhaust SC has sound."
I rarely see them driving fast, guess they're conserving energy. But
I did see one pull into traffic once and step on it. Never seen a car
go so fast - it was preternaturally fast, like a UFO.
I've owned 5 SC430s and 2 Lexus LS600s, and I now drive a 2022 Tesla Model S Long Range. I absolutely love the build quality, fit and finish, paint quality, etc. of the Lexus cars, but the sheer power of the Tesla's is pretty hard to overcome by any ICE car. My car is the "slow" version, not the Plaid, and I can do 0-60 in 3.3 seconds all day, with no engine noise, no squealing tires, no drama whatsoever. Just an insane "Whoosh" of power whenever I need it, at any speed.
The SC430 has one of the smoothest, most refined drivetrains ever produced, but it really doesn't measure up to the Tesla in that regard.
I honestly love both car companies, for different reasons, and I don't think you have to be in one "camp" or the other. They both are amazing machines!
I'm on the hunt for a clean SC430 to be my winter Florida fun car (I live in Nebraska during the summer months), but I'll stick with Tesla's for my daily driver in Nebraska.
Yes, although some Tesla owners are having second thoughts due to a lack of charging infrastructure, parts availability,
and long waits for repair time, others love their Teslas for the green statement (see:http://www.petitionproject.org),
cognitive dissonance, and (absolutely) speed. I imagine that owning a Tesla in Nebraska makes one feel good as there's
only one Tesla per 43 square miles. Of course, we all feel the same way driving our SC. Nebraska, not being a
deregulated energy state, must have high electric costs which will increase in the future as more companies and
people move to electric cars and cloud-based data lakes. Regardless, I'd buy a Tesla if I could afford it just for the
speed. I also like the way they look inside and out. Those two reasons alone far outweigh any negatives, including
the lack of V8 sound. The best color for a Tesla or an SC in my opinion is obsidian black.
10-19-10, 05:42 PM
Just test drove Tesla Roadster Sport 2.5, makes me appreciate the SC430 even more....
