Tesla Motors unveiled its much-anticipated Tesla Model S sedan today at the SpaceX rocket plant in Los Angeles. Elon Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, said the first cars would be delivered to customers in late 2011.Three different performance packages will be available. A 160-mile, a 230-mile and a 300-mile battery pack will be the options. The 160-mile pack is the standard configuration on the base model which has a price of $57,400 (which can be cut by $7,500 with a federal tax credit). The Battery packs have an expected life of 7 to 10 years and can be easily replaced in less than 10 minutes.
In its most powerful configuration, with the 300 mile battery pack, the Model S will weigh around 4,000 pounds and have a top speed of more than 130 miles an hour. It will also seat up to 7 people, 5 adults and 2 children, with side facing seats in the back which will fold away for increased cargo storage. The dashboard has a 17-inch main display that is fully 3G and Internet ready.
Tesla is planning to make up to 20,000 Model S sedans yearly, once manufacturing ramps up to full speed in mid-2012. The company is counting on the approval of a $350 million loan from the Department of Energy to begin production.
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