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How does Tesla Model S P85D acceleration compare in Sport vs. Insane mode?

Drag Times has gone and measured the Tesla Model S P85D against... itself. The electric, all-wheel-drive sedan has two modes, Sport and Insane, so Drag Times found a lonely stretch of road, lashed up a Vbox and compared the acceleration in each mode. The results were everything we've been promised: 3.17 seconds from 0 to 60 miles per hour in Insane mode, 4.04 seconds in Sport. That compares to 5.2 seconds for the non-Performance version of the dual-motor Model S, the 85D, but it's not like it's really fair: the P85D has 691 horsepower and 864 pound-feet of torque. That's the insane part. We're looking forward to January 18th, when they're going to drag-race 12 Model S' against each other and various exotics at Palm Beach International Raceway. Meanwhile, you can check out the Drag Times acceleration runs in the video above. News Source: Drag Times Green Tesla Electric Videos Sedan acceleration

Recharge Wrap-up: Japan supports hydrogen, Fools against fuel cells, BlueIndy controversy

Japan hopes to expand the use of hydrogen energy by subsidizing fuel cell vehicles, according to The Japan News. The trade ministry plans to include the subsidies in its 2015 budget to coincide with the expected launch of Toyota's Fuel Cell Vehicle and the Honda FCEV hydrogen car. By jump-starting purchases of hydrogen cars, Japan hopes that innovation and mass-production will get a boost and the cost of fuel cell vehicles will be competitive with gasoline-powered models by the year 2025. Japan plans to have 100 hydrogen fueling locations operating by March 2016, and wants to halve the cost of building those stations by 2020. The amount of the subsidies has not yet been set. Investing website The Motley Fool isn't quite as optimistic as Japan about hydrogen cars, and is instead bullish about Tesla Motors. The Fool points to Tesla's strong stock performance, and predicts future growth will come from more car models in the future - starting with the Model X - as well as the company's proposed Gigafactory for manufacturing batteries. If Tesla's charging technology continues to catch on, that only improves its financial prospects. The article has some harsh words, however, for hydrogen: "Fuel cells are an inferior automotive technology and for fundamental efficiency, cost, and infrastructure reasons always will be mere compliance gimmicks." Yeesh. As part of a program to build charging stations for the Indianapolis EV carsharing service BlueIndy, utility company Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL) wants to raise its electricity rates an average of 44 cents a month per residential customer to help pay for its share of the project. State consumer advocacy agency Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor and consumer watchdog group Citizens Action Coalition oppose the plan, according to Greenfield, Indiana's Daily Reporter. The BlueIndy program, which is a partnership between the city of Indianapolis and battery manufacturer Bollore Group, will provide up to 500 cars for rent at 25 charging sites around the city. Those who oppose the rate hike call IPL a monopoly and say the amount of the increase is not allowed under state law and that the program wouldn't benefit working class and low-income citizens. A hearing regarding IPL's proposal is scheduled for July 23. A Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV will run the 2014 Asia Cross Country Rally, Hybrid Cars reports. The rally covers 1,367 miles of woods, swamps and mountains from Thailand to Cambodia.

Will the Tesla Gigafactory be too big?

With pro football season about to begin, we thought it appropriate to use a gridiron metaphor: one research firm is estimating that Tesla Motors will outkick its coverage when it comes to the Gigafactory it's planning for the western US, likely Reno, NV. The electric-vehicle maker has said needs the giant battery plant because its annual sales will reach a half-million by the end of the decade. Lux Research is saying the company's EV sales will be closer to about half that. In fact, Lux says, Tesla will have to sell much of its battery-pack production to either other automakers or to entities such as solar-panel makers for their stationary-battery needs because of overcapacity. And with Panasonic footing the bill for a good chunk of the estimated $4-5 billion pricetag for the plant, the battery maker will also be taking a bit of a bath, at least for the first few years. Tesla has said its Gigafactory will help it cut battery costs by about 30 percent by 2020, and could have it up and running as soon as 2017. Tesla spokeswoman Alexis Georgeson said in an e-mail to AutoblogGreen that the company wouldn't comment on the Lux Research report (they're probably busy preparing for this afternoon's Nevada announcement) but you can still take a look at Lux Research's short summary of the report called The Tesla-Panasonic Battery Gigafactory: Analysis of Li-ion Cost Trends, EV Price Reduction, and Capacity Utilization below. The Tesla-Panasonic Battery Gigafactory: Analysis of Li-ion Cost Trends, EV Price Reduction, and Capacity Utilization August 13, 2014 | State of the Market Report Tesla Motors has found initial success in the luxury electric vehicle market, and will look to capitalize on that momentum through aggressive expansion, planning a new 35 GWh lithium-ion (Li-ion) cell production facility. Dubbed the "Gigafactory," it poses a tremendous risk for Tesla and its partner Panasonic, and herein we analyze whether the $5 billion investment is justified by electric vehicle (EV) sales volumes and the interrelated question of breaking through the price floor for Li-ion batteries. We find the Gigafactory will only reduce the Tesla Model 3's cost by $2,800, not enough to truly influence whether this lower-cost EV will be a success or not.