I got 16mpg on the way there with it completely empty...just me.

OH HELL YEAH! I really want one bad!

The current 35 KwH battery would be about 1100 pounds. That is good for a 125-150 mile range. The next generation batteries that the Lightning is getting are supposed to have higher energy density comparable to the Tesla. They also have an 85% charge retention at 20,000 cycles (read: 5 million miles under optimum conditions). For comparison, the 53 KwH battery pack in the tesla is about 1000 pounds with an estimated life of 100,000 miles. I believe the quote from altair was at a an absolute minimum with the least care taken with recharges ect, we should expect 8 times the life of a normal lithium ion pack.

Why do we need a new fuel source when there is more than enough oil in this planet to last us over 500 years. The only problem with oil is the price. If America would just start pumping our own oil and making our own processing plants the price would come down dramatically. In country's that pump the oil the price is below 1.00 a gallon.

On a side note. Jay Leno has one of these and has a video about it here. Jay Leno's Garage

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I do 99 spec tail light conversions.

93 FD LS1 -------For sale!!! Buy me.
95 FD LS build in progress
06 STI family car
08 Ducati 1098

There is an awful lot of debate about what you said. Here is one of MANY articles. Peak oil projections from Chevron's CTO | Tech news blog - CNET News.com

Now I'm all for the Tesla - finally a "prius" that looks good. Yeah, the initial buy-in is really only for the well-off in California - right now that is.

But then again, we're on a forum where we put V8's into cars, right?

Interesting other point - it was mentioned that a prius would be the way to go. Well, keep your RX-7, buy yourself a Geo Metro to save gas (and save the world).

Don't Buy That New Prius! Test-Drive a Used Car Instead

» Geo Metro — the new Prius?

Question Of The Day: Are Hybrids Bunk?

High Mileage: High Gas Prices Transform Geo Metros From Weak To Chic


EDIT: Oh yeah, I would never buy a Geo. I'll keep my 7, and get a 500-600cc motorcycle.

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1993 RX7 Touring LS1

Good luck finding a Metro though. Everyone is buying them up. Looks like they're selling for $4000 on average for a 15 year old model! Matter of fact, there's one on ebay that sold for $7300!

Considering invoice for one was $7893 when new, it looks like the Geo Metro has finally beaten the Honda Civic for holding it's value.... LOL

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I'm surprised there's not a buzz over the HF model crx. I've got a 1990 that's in need of an oil change (which in the past has usually netted me about 3 mpg) and also needs the vacuum lines replaced. It's got 144,000 miles and is hard to start, probably due to the vacuum lines, or maybe the IAC. I drive about equal parts highway and city 9 miles to work. Consequently, it's not even warmed up for about 1/3 of it's total time running. I'm getting between 45 and 50 mpg. No weight loss, except I took out the passenger seat because I like it better that way. No special driving techniques.
All I've done to it recently was to change the plugs and wires, the front tires,and get it aligned.
Since I drive a about half of the time in the city, maybe I'll go the weight reduction route someday and see how much difference it makes. I should also probably replace the missing front bumper and spoiler for the aerodynamics. That's gotta be costing me a little bit. Maybe it will stop being so embarrassing, too.
And to think, I came within about an hour of selling it.

Actually, there is now.... weird....

Down On The Street: 1986 Honda CRX HF

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1993 RX7 Touring LS1

Just an update with a tidbit of information I read regarding charging the Tesla...

The numbers didn't add up to how it could charge in 3.5 hours. The 3.5 hour charge is when it is hooked to the charging station on a 220V 70A circuit.

With the umbilical - which can plug into any electrical outlet from 110V wall socket to an oven or dryer socket - the charge time is approximately 30 hours. I'm guessing these numbers are using a 220V 50A range receptacle. If those are 110V numbers, then that's not bad!

I'm guessing the charging station has a battery pack in it or a bank of capacitors that's able to dump power to the car faster than the household power can supply it - which is why the battery capacity and our estimated charging rate weren't adding up.

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