Monday 29 October 2012

Tesla Model S UK review

Quentin Wilson reports on the Tesla Model S: there’s now an electric car that’s as fast as a BMW M5. The slinky new 416bhp Tesla Model S can hum to 60 in an ­astonishing 4.4 seconds.
Brainchild of PayPal creator Elon Musk (he bet his billions on this car), it’s one of the most usable and exciting electric vehicles in the world.
Made from lightweight ­aluminium with ­batteries developed by electronics giant Pioneer, top models can do 300 miles on one charge and seat seven.
And unlike other EVs, it looks deliciously horny.


There’s air suspension, eight air bags, a 17-inch touchscreen (the biggest in any production car) that dominates the cabin, air-con and sat-nav powered by Google Earth.
Testers have ­described the ­acceleration as “immensely quick”, and at the limited top speed of 130mph all you hear is tyre and wind noise.
The centrally located batteries, front double-wishbone and multi-link rear suspension give crisp, fast handling, and you can even change the steering setting between ­Comfort, Normal and Sport at the touch of a button.


And with the longest range of any electric car on the market, the Model S could even woo Jaguar XF, Merc E-Class and BMW 5-Series buyers, given that its kick-off price is a relatively reasonable £50k. And that’s why the Californian firm has already taken 13,000 orders and is ready to churn out 20,000 cars every year when the S goes into full production in 2013.
With zero road tax, a potential of over 200mpg and generous ­company car tax incentives, this is one ­luxury barge that defies convention, costing literally pennies to run.
Those 300 miles will set you back a piffling £2 in electricity.
We get it next autumn.