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Transportation

Tesla Model S Can Hit (At Least) 132 MPH On the Autobahn 410

Posted by timothy from the now-in-a-complete-vacuum dept.
cartechboy writes "There are few places in the world outside of a race track that you can safely--and legally-- go faster than 130 mph, but the Autobahn in Germany is one of them. After Tesla announced it'll offer a future special 'autobahn' tuning package to improve the Model S's high-speed driving characteristics, one owner took his car for a high-speed run on the infamous Germany highway. He hit a maximum speed of 212 km/h, or 132 mph. With 416 horsepower on tap and full torque available from a standstill thanks to the electric motor, the Model S went from 60 mph to 100 mph in less than five seconds. (Given the included video is mostly focused on the speedometer, lets hope the driver at least glanced at the road.) Only once the car passed 100 mph did its acceleration begin to slow."
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Tesla Model S Can Hit (At Least) 132 MPH On the Autobahn More

Tesla Model S Can Hit (At Least) 132 MPH On the Autobahn

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  • Impressive. (Score:3)

    by jcochran ( 309950 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @02:03PM (#45337429)

    Impressive. But stupid. Yes, the autobahn has unlimited speed, but they also require that the vehicle be in serviceable condition. Given the warning indicator for the tire pressure system, I kinda wonder if the tires were properly inflated and in good condition. But at least the test wasn't for long.

    • I kinda wonder if the tires were properly inflated and in good condition

      Probably, they were.

      When Top Gear took a Bugatti Veyron [topgear.com] up to top speed, they said the tires would only last a few minutes, but the fuel would give out slightly before then.

      My guess is driving that fast puts a lot of strain on the tires, and even if you started off with no warning lights, you'd end up with a couple.

      • Top speed on the Veyron was about 70mph faster then the Tesla. That's an entirely different league.

        • Yes and no. I'm betting this was about the top of the engineered range for the Tesla and its tires -- which likely means they didn't really do a lot of engineering and testing around these speeds.

          Going as fast as your tires are rated for has about the same net effect I should think -- they get very hot, start to wear out, and likely don't have the expected pressure any more.

          • 150mph tires are relatively common. They just cost more then regular tires. You'll use up a set on a track day, but not in one run.

            I don't even want to think about what a 200mph+ DOT tire costs.

            • I don't even want to think about what a 200mph+ DOT tire costs.

              I figure if you can afford the 200+ mph car, you don't give a shit about the cost of tires.

              That, or you've spent so much on the car you can't afford to operate it -- which makes you a complete moron. (Not 'you' in the specific, of course, the hypothetical supercar owner who can't afford tires)

            • Re: (Score:3)

              by Above ( 100351 )

              Tire Rack to the Rescue: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=35

              "V" speed rated tires, rated to 149 MPH, are common on just about any "performance" car, like say a Mustang.

              "W" (168 MPH) and "Y" (186 MPH) are in fact relatively common, and stocked in most performance sizes at your local warehouse.

              The "Z" rating simply means "somewhere above that", and "go read the manual".

              For instance the stock tires on a Z06 Corvette are: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Goodyear&ti

      • Tires have a speed rating. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=35/ [tirerack.com]

      • Re:Impressive. (Score:5, Interesting)

        by BitZtream ( 692029 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @02:50PM (#45338001)

        132 MPH isn't THAT ridiculously fast, but it is certainly fast enough that you shouldn't be doing it on standard production tires, even the ones rated for high speed, because they aren't rated for that high speed for any length of time ... or even ... say hitting a reflector on the road.

        However, if you're tire pressure warning lights are coming on at those speeds you should immediately remove your foot from the accelerator, put both hands securely on the wheel and COAST down to a slow speed before applying ANY brakes and stopping.

        Pressure monitors activing at high speed either means the monitors are mounted incorrectly and centripetal force activated them (likely) or your tires are coming apart and your death is rapidly approaching as a tire disintegrating in a Tesla S at 130 MPH is likely going to require a good bit of driver skill if its a front in order to stay off the guardrail. Hell, at that speed a rear is going to be a bad day too.

        They shouldn't lose pressure at all. Its a sign the tires are ballooning, and thats VERY VERY BAD.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by hodet ( 620484 )

      I was thinking more along the lines of stupid because you can see him holding his smartphone with one hand in the reflection. At least he was on the Autobahn.

    • Re:Impressive. (Score:5, Informative)

      by jedidiah ( 1196 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @02:58PM (#45338105) Homepage

      > the autobahn has unlimited speed,

      The autobahn has unlimited speed in areas that are marked as such. However, much of it is marked at speeds similar to or slower than what you would expect on American highways.

      Plus a lot of those "unlimited" zones don't stretch on for very long.

      Speed limits change on the autobahn with an annoying frequency.

    • Impressive. But stupid. Yes, the autobahn has unlimited speed, but they also require that the vehicle be in serviceable condition. Given the warning indicator for the tire pressure system, I kinda wonder if the tires were properly inflated and in good condition. But at least the test wasn't for long.

      I own a Model S. There's some type of issue they've been having the cause the computer to lose the wireless signal from the pressure sensor under certain conditions, at which point that error will pop up. When I called Tesla service after it first showed up, they told me that they had some issues with the roadsters regarding electromagnetic noise from the motors interfering with the wireless from the pressure sensor, and that they thought they had the problem solved for the Model S, but that reports like

  • Infamous? (Score:3)

    by drachenfyre ( 550754 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @02:11PM (#45337531) Homepage

    Infamous autobahn? I don't think that word means what you think it means.

  • I may be able to afford one.
  • "Here in the U.S., Tesla Model S owners are likely to rarely reach the carâ(TM)s 130 mph top speed..." Does Montana still have no speed limit during the day?

    • ...
      Does Montana still have no speed limit during the day?

      Sadly, no. Just dug up the detail for part of a reply to the /. article about the guy who drove across the U.S. in record time but very illegally. After the 55 mph national speed limit was abolished, Montana reverted to their pre-1973 limit of "reasonable and proper''. This left it to the police to decide what was ''reasonable and proper'' which someone decided was now too vague so they went with the standard 75 mph on interstates and a slightly above standard 70 mph on state roads.

      Cheers,
      Dave

  • Comment removed (Score:3)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @02:45PM (#45337933)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • 0-60 != 60-100 (Score:4, Interesting)

    by CanHasDIY ( 1672858 ) on Tuesday November 05, 2013 @03:53PM (#45338671) Homepage Journal

    With 416 horsepower on tap and full torque available from a standstill thanks to the electric motor, the Model S went from 60 mph to 100 mph in less than five seconds.

    Ok... what does the whole "100% torque from standstill" thing have to do with 60-100 time?

    You do realize that 60 MPH is not a standstill, don't you, cartechboy? Lord I hope so...

    P.S. I found a nice chart of the 60-100 times of a host of automobiles here [torquestats.com] for those that are interested in how the Tesla S stacks up.

    • With 416 horsepower on tap and full torque available from a standstill thanks to the electric motor, the Model S went from 60 mph to 100 mph in less than five seconds.

      ...

      P.S. I found a nice chart of the 60-100 times of a host of automobiles here [torquestats.com] for those that are interested in how the Tesla S stacks up.

      What I learned there is that the Tesla has better highway acceleration than a large number of sports cars, but won't be setting any records. So not at all bad for an electric production model.

    • With 416 horsepower on tap and full torque available from a standstill thanks to the electric motor, the Model S went from 60 mph to 100 mph in less than five seconds.

      Ok... what does the whole "100% torque from standstill" thing have to do with 60-100 time?

      Right. He should have said "full torque available at any speed".

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