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Tesla Adds An All-Glass Roof Option For Its Model S (fortune.com) 76

Posted by BeauHD from the electric-vehicles dept.
Elon Musk has had roofs on his mind lately. Last week, Musk unveiled the residential "solar roof," consisting of glass roof tiles with integrated solar panels. Today, he announced that customers will be able to add a glass roof to the Model S sedan for an extra $1,500. Tesla said that the glass roof can give passengers the feeling of "an open expansive cabin" that makes the Model S interior "feel amazing." Fortune reports: The move is another example of how Tesla continues to add new features and technology to its four-year-old vehicle, the second to debut in its growing lineup. In particular, Tesla has routinely updated the Model S with technology that has also been available in more recent car models. For example, the company's upcoming fourth car, the Model 3, will come with a glass roof. The new glass roof option also shows off Tesl'a new investment in automotive glass technology. Earlier this week Musk revealed that the company had created an automotive glass division. In the tweet on Friday, Musk said that the Model S glass roof was "very hard to develop."
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Tesla Adds An All-Glass Roof Option For Its Model S More

Tesla Adds An All-Glass Roof Option For Its Model S

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  • "all the better to see you my dear"
  • I swear either Stephen Baxter modelled the character Reid Malenfant from Manifold: Time [wikipedia.org] on Elon Musk, or Elon Musk is modelling himself on the fictional character and head of Bootstrap from Manifold: Time. Given Time was published in 1999... it must be the later. Because it looks like Tesla/SpaceX is just Bootstrap in real life, developing new technologies to bootstrap mankind off this pale blue dot and into space.

  • It may be new for Tesla, but a glass roof is an option for every other car model, at least here in Europe. TFS says nothing about any new technologies compared to those, e.g., to save weight. Their solution for sun shielding would also be interesting as insufficient shielding often dampens the fun.

    • Especially in the Australian market!!! Cannot imagine how hot it works get when it's 45 degrees C in summer and the car is parked in the sun...

  • I live in the Texas. This thing sounds like a solar oven to me. No, thanks.

    • Re: Sounds great for Northern California (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward

      I live in the Canadian Prairies.

      We get temps from -45ÂC (-49ÂF) in the winter to +45ÂC (+113ÂF) in the summer. I have a glass roof and it's fine in both situations.

      But of course, I'm not a little bitch like you.

    • Their original panoramic sunroof had 2 parts: one over the front seats that could open, and one over the rear seats that was fixed, and there was a separation between the two with an interior piece that went across. They still offer this option, and what is new is that there is an option for a single glass roof that covers both the front and rear seats. It does not open, and it looks like it gives you a more open feeling. And as a Tesla Model S owner in Texas with the original panoramic sunroof, it is not

    • I live in Houston. My car has a sunroof, and I almost never open it for this very reason. Even while driving, with the air conditioner on, it's really uncomfortable to have that sun beating down on your head.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Greyfox ( 87712 )
      I live in Colorado and that thing would be broken before you drove it off the lot. You can't go 10,000 miles in this state without having your windshield shattered. It's in the constitution!

    • It wouldn't work in Northern California, either. Most of the year it is cloudless and it is not uncommon to have the temperature go into the low 100s.

                  Brett

  • ...makes car with sunroof. How is that news?

  • good luck... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by God of Lemmings ( 455435 ) on Friday November 04, 2016 @09:58PM (#53216981)
    just wait until the storm that drops hailstones.

    • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

      by SeaFox ( 739806 )

      With my experiences with hail, the metal portions of the car get dinged up, usually permanently, while the glass portions are fine.
      And if the glass does get damaged? You insurance will get it replaced.
      Dinged metal? Well, they will cut you a check for lost value on your car (or not, if there's a lein on it still). But short of replacing the entire body of the car it's not getting fixed.

      • I live in western Nebraska. We get hailstorms a few times a year. While I have been lucky and not had a window break, a five minute drive around town will reveal plenty of broken windows. It's only a matter of time before my car is sitting in the right place to get a broken window.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by SeaFox ( 739806 )

          I live in western Nebraska. We get hailstorms a few times a year. While I have been lucky and not had a window break, a five minute drive around town will reveal plenty of broken windows. It's only a matter of time before my car is sitting in the right place to get a broken window.

          I'm in NE Kansas. My car got hit with a minor hail storm when I didn't put it in the underground portion of my employer's parking garage. Lots of small dents. Many faded to almost imperceptible levels, some did not, even after years of heat and cold seasonal cycles. No damage at all to any windows. Then a couple years later my stereo was stolen -- passenger window smashed out. That was replaced within a week and no visible remnants.

          I'd like it if I could get a car with more body panels made of glass, but th

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        The car is perfectly functional with dents. Not so much with shattered glass.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by SeaFox ( 739806 )

          The car is perfectly functional with dents. Not so much with shattered glass.

          Really? My car still ran and drove fine with a missing window immediately after someone stole my stereo. You must have an interesting electrical system setup.

    • Indeed because that has been such a disaster with sunroofs or those Citroen's with glass roofs... Why is it that people dismiss everything out of hand when the technology or the features have existed for decades?

    • just wait until the storm that drops hailstones.

      Can't have sex in the car without being spied upon. And don't forget your laptop or cellphone on the back seat.

    • Most people that own Teslas live in California where it doesn't hail. They don't live in the flyover states.

  • While it is impressive, it's not necessarily newsworthy. Based on the Musk quote about "an open expansive cabin", I was thinking closer to The Jetsons bubble car. Instead, it's just a bigger sunroof.

    • Re:I envisioned something else (Score:4, Interesting)

      by swb ( 14022 ) on Saturday November 05, 2016 @06:00AM (#53217979)

      I think the Model S is really cramped in the interior. I'm 6'1 and have to scrunch down to sit in the back seat and even the front seat feels cramped, although my head doesn't touch the ceiling in the passenger seat.

      The seats are also some of the worst car seats I've sat in -- way too hard.

    • So... we've all forgotten the '70's Pacer? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMC_Pacer [wikipedia.org]

      The roof was metal but there was a bleeping amount of glass everywhere else. Turned out it was very hot even in Northern climes if you didn't buy the A/C option.

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • This is about building on to the previous model of vehicle instead of throwing away the whole car for ''next years model'. This is the way vehicles SHOULD be made.

      No shit. That is the way vehicles ARE made! The only thing different about Tesla versus every other car manufacturer is the hype and marketing.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Knuckles ( 8964 )

      Every successful model in Europe goes through typically two larger updates in its life span. Tesla makes updates available in smaller pieces and gets some hype out of it, but that's not revolutionary.

      • Is anyone else shipping a car or SUV that resembles a Tesla in specifications? (Even in small production numbers?) I'm not aware of any.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by Knuckles ( 8964 )

          Fully electric? No, and they deserve all the hype they get for this. I'm just talking about the updates. Often it seems that much of the hype comes from nerds developing an interest in cars for the first time and believing that anything they encounter in Teslas must be a novelty. Lke the guy I replied to apparently thought when seeing an older Tesla model being updated. When actually much of it has been done and is well known in the automotive industry and at far larger numbers.

  • For those who commute or drive long distances, rock chips are always a threat. It's just a matter of time before you have to replace your windshield. For a windshield, you can shop around and find reasonable deals on replacements. Those fancy roofs are going to cost a LOT more to replace. But I suppose if you're buying a Tesla, money is probably not your most important concern when it comes to car buying.

  • Slashdot would be posting stories about some automaker putting a glass roof in their car I would've called them crazy...

  • "Tesla said that the glass roof can give passengers the feeling of "an open expansive cabin" that makes the Model S interior "feel amazing."

    Wow, my Smart Car has one without any additional cost.

    Worked great during the last hailstorm too.

    • I have nothing against Smart cars but I've never heard anyone argue that they are 'open and expansive' before. Again, I might even own a smart car someday, but they ain't the most 'expansive' experience.

  • I'm not a fan. Been in the Model X a number of times. The glass roof looks wonderful from the inside.

    But when it's really sunny out you're constantly moving your visor around to block the sunlight.

    Guess this is for those that like convertibles. Luckily a classic hardtop is still an option.

  • In his twitter comments he suggests they will be able to use their new solar glass tech - https://twitter.com/elonmusk/s... [twitter.com]

  • And yet crickets on / (Score:4, Interesting)

    by stabiesoft ( 733417 ) on Saturday November 05, 2016 @10:09AM (#53218645) Homepage
    So Tesla adds a roof and /. runs a story. Meanwhile GM starts an assembly line up to make a semi-affordable all electric and crickets on /. http://abcnews.go.com/Business... [go.com]

    • Why would people get excited about GM? The last time GM tried selling an electric car (EV1), people loved it. But they only leased the car, and when the leases were up GM took them back and crushed them, didn't give people an option to buy. So I think people will believe what GM is saying when they see it, not before.

    • One difference is that GM intends to sell EVs into the California market in order to apply their own carbon credits towards the gas guzzlers they sell everywhere else. That's somewhat disingenuous if you ask me. Sure they may sell some elsewhere, but it's all about California for them.

      Meanwhile Tesla is selling cars where ever they can and has no internal use for their carbon credits. So Tesla sells the credits for pennies on the dollar.

      GM can use their own credits for the full dollar for dollar. This highl

      • Of course they will use the credits, who wouldn't. They might even get in the biz of selling excess credits themselves if the have enough demand for Bolts. The value of the credit is whatever someone is willing to pay for them. They have no intrinsic value so I have no idea what you mean by pennies on the dollar.

        But I can tell you did not read the linked article. GM plans on selling the cars in california & oregon THIS year, and selling them nationwide next year. Are you saying if someone in North Dakot

        • GM can sell the carbon credit they get for the Bolt back to themselves dollar for dollar effectively subsidizing ICE car production. They will never (in the near future) need to sell them in the open market at a loss because their ICE production is in the millions of cars.

          Meanwhile, Tesla cannot apply carbon credits to their own product line because they don't manufacture ICE cars. So this means they sell/unload them to ICE manufactures at a steep discount.

          The point is that the carbon credit system favors

          • No GM is going to focus on making an all electric car that makes money, including R&D costs. So its ok to sell them in places that do not offer carbon credits. GM will get a benefit in the CAFE calculation no matter where the car is sold in the US. So I don't expect GM cares if the Bolt is only barely profitable. I still wonder how viable electrics are. A corolla gets 40 Hwy, has a 13 gal tank (call it 500 mile range) for less than 20K. Gonna be hard to beat.

            • Funny, I question how viable ICE cars are. They only get 40mpg and the embodied energy to make that gallon is likely pretty inefficient and subsidized.

              Meanwhile, EVs get 100mpge no problem. Safer, more spacious, 7x more reliable, soon cheaper, and soon with more range than an ICE car.

              Makes you wonder how the ICE will survive... Especially when the closure of gas stations will dramatically limit their range.

              • Time will tell. If they get batteries to do 500+ miles on a run then you'll be correct. Although Toyota is betting on hydrogen. I think way too soon to predict a winner. Audi is doing experiments with making gas. If you can get water+carbon+energy=gas to work well enough, ICE's are carbon neutral. For now, I am sticking with ICE as it is the most economical option.

                • EVs will have 500 mile range in about 6 years, perhaps a bit sooner. That is calculated at the average annual improvement of lithium batteries, not accounting for any dramatic breakthroughs. With the introduction of silicon into the electrodes (which is already happening at Tesla) we could see the 500 mile range more rapidly. Keep in mind that 500 miles is the approximate range that consumers think that they need but actually will almost never need.

                  Hydrogen is dead on arrival. You can't make hydrogen witho

              • Re: (Score:2)

                by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

                Funny, I question how viable ICE cars are. They only get 40mpg and the embodied energy to make that gallon is likely pretty inefficient and subsidized.

                Meanwhile, EVs get 100mpge no problem. Safer, more spacious, 7x more reliable, soon cheaper, and soon with more range than an ICE car.

                Makes you wonder how the ICE will survive... Especially when the closure of gas stations will dramatically limit their range.

                Easy, energy density. The fuel itself had a super high energy density compared to stored electrical en

                • I agree that gas is hugely energy dense, but only 18% of that energy goes into moving the car. The rest is waste heat. So gasoline would have to actually get more energy dense to compete with EVs. ICE car efficiency is at a practical optimization limit (hence the move to hybrid). There may be good engineering and safety reasons not to improve the energy density of gasoline. Total speculation, but in my mind, a more energy dense gasoline could actually break or wear out existing IC engines.

                  One big difference

                  • BTW this video illustrates my last point. The all wheel drive Tesla can deliver energy to the motors in millisecond pulses enabling it to maintain traction in the rain in a way no other car can.

                    http://youtu.be/iyXSJAICaBc [youtu.be]

                    In the comments, @Somnium Sky sums it up:

                    "Being able to dynamically shift power from the front to the rear at the millisecond level allows it to adjust torque extremely quickly for the AWD system more than is possible with a mechanically linked system."

  • People who drive glass Teslas shouldn't stow thrones.

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