G. David Felt

G. David Felt Alternative Fuels & Propulsion writer www.CheersandGears.com Tesla Roadster 3.0 and 400 mile range reality? Tesla gave a late Xmas present to electric advocates on December 26th 2014. Roadster 3.0 was posted covering the following top 3 topics: 1. Batteries, 2. Aerodynamics and 3. Rolling Resistance. Tesla talks about the how their battery from 2008 was revolutionary in the auto industry and while it was good then and up till now for their current S sedan, lithium ion battery advances have pushed them to get 31% more energy from the same size battery pack. This new cell now gives approximately 70k Wh in the original battery package. Tesla then moves on to talk about their drag coefficient of .36 on current Roadster and how with a new Retrofit aero kit they can drop it to .31 a 15% improvement. The final bit of technology info is how Tesla talks about rolling resistance on the current Roadster which has a 11.0 kg/ton. An upgrade will give a 20% improvement by allowing the Roadster 3.0 to have a Crr of approximately 8.9 kg/ton. With this improvement come additional improvements for residual brake drag and wheel bearing to reduce drag. This last part is particularly noticeable as anyone who has driven a Chevy Suburban and then gotten into a Cadillac Escalade ESV will notice how much better the Cadillac glides showing that the quality of Bearings, brakes, seals, etc. all can help to reduce drag. Tesla's summary of these improvements is that Roadster 3.0 can achieve an estimates 40-50% improvement on Range over the original Roadster. Tesla goes on to say that they expect to prove this in the early weeks of 2015 with a drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles that is to be non-stop. Tesla finishes up by stating that they will open up for appointments to be made starting Spring of 2015 for existing Roadsters to be upgraded with these 3 major focus points once the battery pack finishes safety validation. They go on to say this will not be the last of the upgrades for existing and new Roadster owners. As of this writing there were 45 comments posted. As expected they are all positive, and yet many also are giving suggestions for powertrain upgrades for performance rather than battery life, reduced weight for better handling or a combination of them. Seems many want their cake and eat it too. This brings up an interesting question, if Tesla is getting ready to release a battery pack that can go 400 miles on a charge, what will Volt 2.0 be for GM or Toyota have for the Prius family of autos? Could we see a change over from gas to electric faster than people have expected?

We'll I have to disagree as I get no WOW factor out of Tesla, impressive for the technology but as a car, you sit on the floor, ease of getting in and out is not there and not impressed with driving dynamics. Cadillac might have some baggage but then so does the over priced cost of repair and low dependable MB and BMW auto's. Only badge snobs buy them and yes if you want to throw money away on $1500 tuneups and wait weeks if not months for replacement parts to come, fine but I think Cadillac beats them both in many ways while still having plenty of options to expand to in the future.

It would be cool to know if the 6 cylinder got all the same advances as the Turbo 4's where it would sit in the HP/Torque.

The clover leaf on and off ramps here if built in the 70's. 80's or 90's are really banked but in the last 10 years they have gotten flat and do require the legal speed unless you do have a performance auto. I enjoy driving the old ramps because it does feel like a race course as you buzz around the banked ramp. It would have been fun to have our interstate highway system built more like the autobahn in Germany. I think we need to expect more out of people driving not less. I am all for having a higher cost to get a license and if you do not really care to drive then take mass transit, taxi's or buy one of the new self driving auto's.

Talked with my friend who runs Performance AutoBody here. They just finished getting one of their guys certified on Aluminum repairs for the Ford trucks. He told me he now feels it was a waste of time as the insurance companies are telling him they are focused on the replace the modular parts rather than repair items. At least he is ford certified for the new trucks, but wonders just how much body work will really be done with a list of prices and parts for replacing the bed, fender, door etc.

I have to disagree with Balthy a bit on this, yes if we really spent a ton of time we could build a complete solution cheaper, but to have an Engine, Trans, wireing harness, electronic control modules, etc so that you can take a 90's or older auto and update it to run with little pain these are great solutions. Sadly Washington and Oregon Copied California laws about emissions and changing out powertrains so for older auto's if your wanting a more reliable modern powertrain to drive you would need an Emissions certified system from the OEM. This gives you that option legally to still pass inspection. The E-ROD package is a great way to go. Especially for wanting a fuel injection system that can go bi-fuel so it can also do CNG. Looking around I found a few more sites that clearly seem to be into selling these packages cheaper and cheaper so it will just be time before more places sell them at a lower price. Amazing but I found these listings and the prices do vary by up to a couple thousand dollars. http://www.gmperformancemotor.com/category/CC.html http://www.summitracing.com/search/part-type/engine-and-transmission-combos http://paceperformance.com/c-158613-performance-engine-drivetrain-crate-engine.html http://www.karlperformanceparts.com/c/Connect-Cruise/17 I like Karl Performance as they list the MSRP price and how much off they are selling them for. Not bad having $2000 off the LS7 kit.

Thanks for the Clarity Drew. Exciting to see and read about when they do show it. Happy Holidays to you and everyone else here.

Did you say the same thing for the 850i? Because it was precisely 26hp more while being slower to 60 by 1.1 sec, yet costing a little more. It was out-handled and out-stopped by the wealthy man's Accord coupe. For its time when it was introduced, the NSX was a precision knife. The problem was that Acura let it rot while others zoomed past it. 15 years is a long time for a car without major updates.

Happy GMC B-Day!

BMW has their moment, but heck, my Trailblazer SS can take a 45mph curve doing 100mph and is rock solid. So 70 is meh to me. Course if you get a car for free even the 330i, why not have fun. Glad you could get one and play with it.

Overrated Tesla, you can only go cross country on select roads unless you want to waste hours charging at 110. This car can be driven anywhere just about. Take this any day over Tesla.

Welcome, watch out for those western drivers who do not understand or know that driving on the left side is normal. Some day they will get with it.

I have read in other places that the CT6 will have nothing from the Elmiraj show car. Excited to hear about the aluminum body and lite weight. Be interesting to see if on this go around if a 4/6/8 engine can work for GM where the version from the 80's was a DOA.

G. David Felt Alternative Fuels & Propulsion writer www.CheersandGears.com Connect & Cruise CRATE POWERTRAIN SYSTEMS GM has launched their complete solution packages for older auto's. Including both RWD and 4WD solutions, GM wanted to get these launched with a mail-in rebate for an end of the year present to all motor-heads. GM is offering 12 different combinations including emissions certified E-ROD packages. These packages include a factory tuned engine and transmission with all the electronic control modules, wiring harness and other key components so you can truly strip out the old powertrain and go modern. Engine choices come as follows: LC9 (5.3L) - 315HP available in 2WD, 4WD, and E-ROD LS3 (6.2L) - 430HP available in 2WD and E-ROD LS376 / 480 available in 2WD and 4WD LS376 / 525 available in 2WD LSA (6.2L) - 556HP available 2WD and E-ROD LS7 (7.0L) - 505HP available 2WD Rebates are $500 or $750 depending on package. Connect & Cruise Crate Powertrain Systems Crate Engine Depot pricing Some of the best I have seen around. Make your old dream car, truck or SUV come to life. 1970 Chevelle with a Connect and Cruise package.

Awesome auto, be interesting to hear how SMK picks it apart. Overall I think Cadillac outdid themselves on this auto. Be interesting to see what the German loving magazines have to say.

Sweet, very nice work done on the parts. Thanks for keeping us updated and posting the pictures. This truck is going to rock.

Hey Maxx, Tell us a little about yourself, what kind of auto's interest you, etc. Thanks,

According to Motor sports talk a person walked into a dealership, plunks down and sign's for a new Lime Green Hellcat and an hr later, his dream car is gone. http://motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com/2014/12/21/highway-to-hellcat-owner-wrecks-707-hp-dodge-challenger-one-hour-after-buying-it/?ocid=Yahoo&partner=ya5nbcs So ya think insurance will cover it?

Is it me or is VW using the same styling cues as the Chevy Corvette?

Welcome Max, Glad to have you join Cheers and Gears. Look forward to your input and discussions. Have fun and check us out on Facebook and Twitter.

Believe it when you see it. Right now Fiat and Alfa both have terrible reputations for delivering product and with quality. If not when it gets here, expect it to loose nuts and bolts being driven off the lot.

Thanks Drew, that is great to see, was not aware of the battery issue with the hybrid. That is a big loss of space.

Cadillac can still do this even with the collapse of Russia and it's supporting countries. MB and BMW need to worry due to the self destructing Socialist of Europe and how many countries there are ready to go bankrupt.

Why is the Sonata Hybrid trunk smaller than the standard Sonata? It is not like a CNG car with they tend to put the tank there. So what is so different between the two?

Very Cool