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Tesla Unveils $35,000 Model 3 Electric Car, Shipping Late 2017
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sporty... i can see myself driving this with sunnies on and not a care in the world.. But i can't afford it ... Bet criminals would love this car...... police won't stand a chance.
Maybe it looks better in person, but the photos look horrid..
I don't disagree with that view either. I doubt there is any real added savings on an internal combustion engine with body design. The engine in and of itself is wasteful. I believe I remember hearing only 1% of the fuel in the tank is used to propel the passengers. The rest for everything else. If body design was the magical fix for economy issues, we would have seen severe design changes like this by now. Just my $.02.
Can you substantiate that? The prototypes of the Model X had a very different nose than the final models too. I bet the interior is also a place holder. Perhaps they have some fancy feature that they don't want to disclose yet (such as a HUD).
Firstly my friend while you are correct in as much that in order to be charged with electricity, BEVs such as Teslas use electricity that is generated from coal and other dirty sources. However they can be charged with renewable sources such as solar and wind. You say that we have no cracked the problem..yes we have actually. Solar and wind power amongst other sources can be stored using battery technology such as Tesla's Powerwall. In the case of solar farms they can generate power during the day and store it at night using molten salt etc. Even if a BEV uses dirty power such as coal to charge it still is better for the environment than ICE cars as there are fewer points to pollute from.
A ICE car has several points to pollute from taking the oil from the ground to burning the petrol/diesel in your car.
BEVs have only one point, the power station itself.
Secondly as to the question of the batteries despite what you may read from certain websites...the batteries can be recycled. Look at the robot that Apple built called Liam, he can take apart an iPhone and recycle just about all of it's parts including the battery.
Maybe one day Tesla will recycle the batteries in their cars but at present it is probably easier and cheaper to produce new ones.
Lastly do not forget that it has only been since the Model s came on to the scene that other car manufacturers have started getting serious about BEVs so we need time for the industry to change wholesale the way it does business. The petrol car business needed many decades to get where it is today.
let us give tesla and others a chance and some time
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I agree with you but have to say that I think that because it is so regular looking that it might give tuning outfits such as AMG for Mercedes a chance to really go to town on the model 3 in a way they could not with the model x for instance as it's looks are so unique and different.
imagine the faster version f the model 3 with ludicrous mode and a really cool sporty body and interior by some outfit like AMG or whoever. I look forward to seeing what can be done with the model 3 in this way!
That was my first thought as well. I know that electric cars don't technically need one, but they look funny without it. Sort of like how vinyl siding doesn't need to look like clapboards, but it's molded that way because it looks more "traditional".
Yes it did. The engine was in the back, so that's where the grill was.
But the Beetle had additional styling up front to make it more "interesting". This design just looks odd, because it's so featureless.
Of course you know that in then more recent Mini's, Mini added a speedometer in front of you just as most cars have. In our recent Mini we NEVER look at the center speedometer.
As far as the rest of the touch screen display it is too close. On my BMW Z4 the Navigation pops up much farther out in front of you, so your eyes don't travel that far off the road. My wife has a Jeep Renegade, and the navigation is about where this Tesla touch screen would be, and it's a real distraction looking down to it. Very poor design.
you are several years late. battery tech has since advanced. also tesla has a 8 year warranty on their battery.
That's my fear, that I'll have to shell out thousands of dollars to replace the batteries in the future. With a gas powered car properly maintained you can easily get to 200k+ which might encompass 10-15 years of driving. Of course we don't know what battery technology will look like in 10-15 years so it might just be a leap of faith.
Disclaimer: I'm a HUGE Tesla fan and would certainly love to get one. The reason I haven't is because I've found my 80k buys me MUCH more car when I get a gas one versus the Tesla S, plus it's got great mileage and is very cheap to run even though it's got a big engine.
Yeah, the front end is weak and the mid/rear look like a bubble. I wouldn't say horrid though, it's attractive but in that Camry sort of way. It is without a doubt the best looking EV in that price range and hopefully will spur the industry to make something more attractive than something like the Prius, which is the car that truly deserves the label "horrid".
The matte black one looks kind of nice though, I'll have to wait to see it in person. But I think they will be too small for me as I like to stretch out in my car.
While I agree and understand what you said, I actually was referring to tactile feedback in the sense that I know where the knob is but when I reach for it I feel a round knob and know it is a radio knob and not the temperature adjustment right below it which is also round but larger.
Aircraft use a similar approach; for example I can reach for carb heat and feel its shape which is different from the throttle next to it and not have to look at the knobs to make adjusting it.
I have no doubt touch screens will get there but they aren't there yet.
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For me it's not a matter of adding a fake grill but restyling the front so it doesn't look like someone forgot to attach the grill.
I love that we can now make a (viable) total electric driven vehicle...my issue with the Tesla (and a lot of other EV's) is that they are not able make a cross country run, without a long wait to 'refuel'...the 'fuel' being electricity.
If they can...
- Create a power source that can be 'refueled' in no more than 10-15 minutes (like a gasoline/IC vehicle)
- And this was available at EVERY service station (like gasoline and diesel)
- Cost of vehicles is the same (or very close to; few hundred dollars at most) the cost of the equivalent gasoline/diesel vehicle (I.E.: Ford Escape gasoline vs Ford Escape EV)
it would be a no brainer to make the final conversation to all electric vehicles.
From what I've seen, Hydrogen may be the way to go (Toyota has bought in big with this), to power EV's. It seems that the distribution and delivery is very similar to gasoline/diesel, which means it will be easier and cheaper to transition to it and Hydrogen is the MOST abundant element in the Universe (and on Earth, for that matter).
Also, it's much cheaper to 'refine' Hydrogen than gasoline/diesel...no drilling for it and production can be created through Osmosis, using solar energy (cheap, after the initial equipment investment) as the catalyst.
If they can...
- Create a power source that can be 'refueled' in no more than 10-15 minutes (like a gasoline/IC vehicle)
- And this was available at EVERY service station (like gasoline and diesel)
- Cost of vehicles is the same (or very close to; few hundred dollars at most) the cost of the equivalent gasoline/diesel vehicle (I.E.: Ford Escape gasoline vs Ford Escape EV)
it would be a no brainer to make the final conversation to all electric vehicles.
From what I've seen, Hydrogen may be the way to go (Toyota has bought in big with this), to power EV's. It seems that the distribution and delivery is very similar to gasoline/diesel, which means it will be easier and cheaper to transition to it and Hydrogen is the MOST abundant element in the Universe (and on Earth, for that matter).
Also, it's much cheaper to 'refine' Hydrogen than gasoline/diesel...no drilling for it and production can be created through Osmosis, using solar energy (cheap, after the initial equipment investment) as the catalyst.
My experience as an engineer in the field was when a designer said "almost impossible" they really meant "there are probably a lot of times it will fail but I have not identified them so for the small subset of real life conditions I have considered I think the design is satisfactory."
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OK, i misunderstood what you meant by look to side; however, the slight shift to take a fender's front point which is ahead of you in your field of vision and switching your field of vision from the outside to the inside of the vehicle is way different. In addition, your peripheral vision is already sending signals to the brain where the fender is, along with other external visual clues, and allowing you to stay in lane without actively thinking about it.
I wonder if this exact design came from say, Toyota or GM, would people still be drooling all over it or is it just because it's Tesla? To me it looks like a Mazda minus the front grille.
I wonder if this exact design came from say, Toyota or GM, would people still be drooling all over it or is it just because it's Tesla? To me it looks like a Mazda minus the front grille.
Completely agree, but at the same time it's the best design so far of an EV. The rest of available or announced EV's look horrible in comparison. It's kind of sad that a Mazda economy like design is the best looking EV out there.
The matte black one doesn't look too bad in action: http://www.theverge.com/2016/4/1/11343720/tesla-model-3-first-video-drive-electric-car
I still think the front end looks way too weak and wimpy, but Tesla needed to push the firewall forward to give it more cabin space. Really how long will front ends even last without the need to hold an engine? I suppose crash protection and storage will always be needed. One day we may not have front ends at all though and nostalgia will be based around cars with front ends.
I still think the front end looks way too weak and wimpy, but Tesla needed to push the firewall forward to give it more cabin space. Really how long will front ends even last without the need to hold an engine? I suppose crash protection and storage will always be needed. One day we may not have front ends at all though and nostalgia will be based around cars with front ends.
I wonder if this exact design came from say, Toyota or GM, would people still be drooling all over it or is it just because it's Tesla? To me it looks like a Mazda minus the front grille.
I agree, people are drooling over this car because it says Tesla. Had this vehicle
said Ford, GM or Toyota it would be ugly crap.
Very few people make cross country runs. But it is possible with the Tesla (my friend in Atlanta has done so.) The supercharger stations are already set across the country with a 75 minute full charge time (20 min to 50%) besides all the other regular places you can charge. The car literally tells you where/when to charge. You're not going to be able to drive from say Miami to Chicago in a straight shot just stopping for gas but then if you do that regularly this isn't your car, you're probably driving a semi, and if not you do realize a cheap flight and rental car are way cheaper and quicker...
Nah, I don't believe that for a second. Look at just how horrid current EV designs are. I'm NOT saying the Tesla 3 is anything special, it's not and it's very grandmotherly, but it's still miles ahead in design than what's out there.
