The Car Exam Examines Electric Cars, Part 1: The Tesla Roadster

Follow The Car Exam on Facebook "Car Exam" and Twitter!

The Tesla Roadster is an electric sports car Tesla hopes will bring electric cars into mainstream America. It is an attractively-styled two-seater powered by a 375 volt AC induction air-cooled electric motor with variable frequency drive. These are the performance numbers for the base model: 288 horsepower (215 kW) at 5,000-6,000 rpm, 273 lb-ft of torque at 0-5,400 rpm, and 0-60 miles-per-hour comes in at 3.9 seconds (the sport model adds 22 more lb-ft of torque at 0-5,100 rpm).

The Tesla Roadster’s battery is a lithium-ion battery with a whopping 6,831 individual cells. It has a range on a full charge of 245 miles, which should just be fine for around-town driving or a quick getaway to suburbs or destinations a bit further away. Charge time is 3.5 hours (an empty to fully-charged battery using the Tesla Home Connector--240 Volts and 70 Amps). Tesla states the battery should last for seven-years or 100,000 miles.

The price of admission to own Tesla Roadster is steep, however: the base model is $109,000 before the federal $7,500 tax credit; $101,000 after that. The Sport model bursts the piggy bank at $128,500 ($121,000 after the same tax credit).

The Tesla Roadster clearly isn’t meant to be an affordable sports car for Americans with moderate incomes. Tesla has a long road to climb. It will be building cars in the old NUMMI facility formerly jointly-owned by GM and Toyota. If Tesla can build and successfully sell enough cars (it also has a Sedan—the Model S—due to go on sale in 2012) and improve its battery technology, then it may find enough affluent buyers to make it a viable player in the U.S. auto market. Challenges remain, however and time will tell.

P. Scott

...

The Car Exam Quick Quiz #20: The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro V6

Follow The Car Exam on Facebook "Car Exam" and Twitter!

Good Grades: The 304 hp, 3.6 liter V6 has a strong feel, the Synergy Green exterior paint job looks great, and just like the Camaro SS I tested earlier this year: solid chassis, terrific retro exterior styling, comfortable front seats, generally good interior materials.

Bad Grades: The same flaws as the Camaro SS--This car is extremely claustrophobic--the windows all around are extremely small (and the black interior doesn't help), limited outward visibility, huge blind spot when changing lanes, retro instrument gauges aren't a good thing (Instrument gauges down by the gear shifter on the console? This is absolutely ridiculous--put them near the speedometer where it makes common sense), small back seats and trunk, and the car is too heavy—it needs to be lighter—and it puts undue stress on the V6. This car would be even quicker if it were 300-400 pounds lighter.

Final Grade: The V6 Camaro is a good choice for customers wanting decent horsepower and looks with out the price and fuel economy penalties of the Camaro SS. However, the more I drive the Camaro with its smallish windows, the less fond of the car I become. I hope Chevrolet would correct that design flaw soon, but it won’t—and probably won’t until the car is due for a serious redesign. My suggestion: get a Camaro with the power sunroof option--it just may improve things a bit (you can't get a sunroof on the base LS model unfortunately. You'll have to move up to at least the LT trim package to get one).

The Car Exam Grade: B/B-
Base MSRP: $23,530 (including Destination Freight Charges)

The Car Exam Quick Quiz #18: The 2010 Chevrolet Traverse LS FWD

Follow The Car Exam on Facebook "Car Exam" and Twitter!


Good Grades: Nice Exterior Styling, comfortable front seats, decent front and rear visibility, good instrumentation on the dash, lots of cargo room, sliding second row seats, fuel economy okay for a large, heavy crossover (17 mpg city, 24 mpg highway), the steering feel is a bit over-boosted but acceptable.


Bad grades: The six-speed automatic transmission seems to hunt at times, body roll, this is a very heavy crossover—its base curb weight is 5066 pounds—Yikes!—and the brakes work hard to stop it. The 281 horsepower, 3.6 liter V6 pulls adequately, but feels taxed pulling 2 ½ tons-plus around. Interior plastics on the dash are satisfactory, but could be better on the doors. I didn’t like the cloth materials on the seat—a bit on the rough side. While the second row seats do slide forward, access to the third-row rear seats still feels awkward. Also, the third-row rear seats are too tight and uncomfortable for adults.


Final Grade: This crossover has its shortcomings, but it still comes off as a likable vehicle. Put it on a diet, give it some more horsepower, get rid of the hapless third-row seats, and give it some better interior materials (the seats, especially), and it will be much improved.

The Car Exam Grade: B/B-


Base MSRP: $29,999 (with $775 Destination Charges included)

The Car Exam Quick Quiz # 17: The 2010 Chevrolet Equinox (1LT)

Follow The Car Exam on Facebook "Car Exam" and Twitter!


Good Grades: Attractive styling, good low end acceleration from the 2.4 liter, 182 hp four-cylinder engine, good braking, solid ergonomics, comfortable seats (and roomy rear seats), reasonable cargo space, and good fuel economy for a small CUV (22 mpg city, 32 mpg highway).

Bad Grades: Strange seat materials, numb steering feel, odd dash textures.

Final Grade: The Equinox is one of the better looking small CUV’s on the market today.
Plus, you can buy it in four-cylinder or six-cylinder form. GM has produced a worthy vehicle that should be competitive in its market segment—if its reliability is solid.

The Car Exam Grade: B+

Base MSRP: $23,360 (including destination charge)