Bad news from Tesla customers
Tesla Motors’ electric Roadster won’t meet its vaunted range target of 250 miles. The company sent a letter to nearly 400 of its first batch of customers admitting that after testing on an EPA-compliant dyno, that it has had to revise its mileage estimates downward for its Lotus Elise-based sports car, though they still expect over 200 miles to a charge.
The culprit, as ever, is weight. Several hundred pounds worth of extra ballast (mostly in batteries) has taken its toll on the Roadster’s range. Tesla Motors has fitted lower-capacity lithium ion cells than was previously planned, a move that the company says it has taken because they offer “better long-term durability and higher tolerance for abuse”.
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