Automotive

Tesla Roadster owner clocks-up 100,000 km

Tesla Roadster owner clocks-up 100,000 km
Hansjörg von Gemmingen has just clocked past 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) to become the most traveled Tesla Roadster owner to date
Hansjörg von Gemmingen has just clocked past 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) to become the most traveled Tesla Roadster owner to date
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Hansjörg von Gemmingen has just clocked past 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) to become the most traveled Tesla Roadster owner to date
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Hansjörg von Gemmingen has just clocked past 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) to become the most traveled Tesla Roadster owner to date

While we had all of last century to work out the niggles of internal combustion engine powered automobiles, there's still a question or two hanging over electric vehicles - such as how long will they last? Tesla Motors is the early mover in the EV arena having commenced production of its Roadster model in early 2008 and with 1,600-odd of the all-electric sportscars now in the wild, the company has a growing pool of real-world research to draw on in that will help it answer this question and improve the long-term durability of its future models. At the head of the pack is European customer number 83, Hansjörg von Gemmingen, who has just clocked past 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) to become the most traveled Tesla Roadster owner to date.

von Gemmingen, who lives in southwest Germany, has driven the Roadster consistently - including during winter - and uses a standard household outlet for nightly charging.

On and long-trips, which included an 800-kilometer (500 mile) drive to Berlin for the Tesla owners event last year, von Gemmingen says he was easily able to manage the challenge of recharging.

"As long as you have somewhere to plug in for a bit along the way, it's simple to drive the car no matter where you're headed," he said.

EVs are low maintenance by nature with no oil changes or new spark plugs required and we're not sure what work needed to be done during the car's first 100,000 kms, but it's still going ... and it's a genuine milestone for the fledgling auto-maker.

By the way, Tesla recommends a standard service and diagnostic inspection once a year or every 19,000 km (12,000 miles). Because it runs its own service centers, the company's model also lend itself to gaining valuable feedback on the overall performance of the fleet. According to Tesla the collective odometer for its Roadster customers is showing more than 11 million miles ... which would put the average distance traveled at around the 7,000 mile mark. Looks like Hansjörg is thrashing the competition.

Tesla says it will use the feedback to improve the upcoming Model S sedan due for release in mid-2012.

7 comments
7 comments
stevewwiggins
Question is not having to change spark plugs, but what has been the expense of maintenance so far, especially concerning the battery pack. Like to hear more about 160000 km.
PeetEngineer
How many re-charges? At typical range of between 244 rated miles per charge, or 55 miles of spirited motoring (as was found on top gear), with 8 hours per re-charge, this equates to somewhere between 84 to 381.81 days of non-stop charging, or between 252 to 1143 nights of charging, that\'s 3.1 years, which seems to fit with the timeframe of a 2008 dlivery. I want to see his power bill.
VoiceofReason
Agree with Steve. Great that it went 160,000 Km. But since the battery pack is supposed to be a third of the cost of the $120K car, I think the expense of parts and maintenance is more telling.
Stuart Saunders
What happens if the car gets flooded? Fresh water? Salt water? Any risk of electrocution?
Jeremy Nasmith
Interesting question Stuart (He asked \'Is there any risk of electrocution should the car get flooded\') I\'m sure that there is at least some risk factor. But don\'t forget that there is risk associated with many aspects of driving: I think the risk of crashing your car (electric or not) far outweighs the slim chance of electrocuting yourself!
Just sayin\' ;)
proportion
I\'ve heard about Top Gear\'s 55 mile per charge, and Tesla\'s lawsuit, but I haven\'t heard anything about what kind of fuel consumption other vehicles have when they are being driven by Top Gear in the same manner as the Tesla. If gasoline has 17 times the energy as a typical battery, then these other vehicles should be getting around 935 miles per refueling in typical Top Gear driving.

Interesting to see if Top Gear would publicize per refueling numbers for the other cars they drive, in addition to the EPA mileage numbers.
Ruby Tuesday
15 tonees of Carbon dioxide mitigation !!!!!!!
This is a great contribution to atmospheric Carbon dioxide reduction. It means 15 tonnes of carbon dioxide have not been released into the atmosphere via combustion of fossil fuels !!!
For this vehicle usage, assuming the electricity source is 100% green and a equivalent 2008 conventional vehicle produces 150 g/km of carbon dioxide, 15 tonnes of carbon dioxide have not been produced from fossil fuel and released into the atmosphere.
I look forward to reading about the evolution of this vehicle / company and eagerly await the milestone of 1000 drivers clocking up this milestone; = 15000 tonnes of carbon dioxide mitigation.