INGENIEUR
Tesla supercharger charging stations
Tesla’s mass production of batteries and
cost effective technology have contributed to
reducing the cost of battery packs for Electric
Vehicles (EVs). When the first mass-market EVs
were introduced in 2010, battery packs cost an
estimated US$1,000 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Industry observers estimate that Tesla produces
battery packs at about US$150 per kWh as of late
2017. The company is said to be aiming to reduce
this further to less than US$100 per kilowatt-hour
by 2020.
Tesla leads all automakers when it comes
to their electric cars’ operating range. Its
flagship Model S sedan in its top P100D version
is considered the world’s fastest acceleration car,
from 0-60 miles per hour (0-96 km) in just 2.5
seconds. This car can run as far as 539 km on a
single charge. Elon Musk said that this meant a
driver could now travel from San Francisco to Los
Angeles in temperate weather without recharging.
Supercharging Stations
Catering to its EV customers, Tesla has built a
network of 480-volt fast-charging Supercharger
stations. As of May 2018, 1,229 Supercharger
stations operated globally with 9,623
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superchargers. The Supercharger is a proprietary
direct current (DC) technology that provides up to
120 kW of power, enabling a full charge in around
75 minutes. Tesla cars can recommend the
fastest route for long-distance travel, incorporating
possible charging delays. Tesla has also launched
the “Destination Charging Location” Network by
providing chargers to hotels, restaurants, shopping
centres, resorts and other full service stations to
provide on-site vehicle charging at twice the power
of a typical charging location.
Autopilot
Moving ahead of many automakers, Tesla
has revolutionised cars by incorporating more
software and AI into cars making them “computers
on wheels” and driving almost autonomous.
According to Elon Musk, hardware already exists
to create full autonomy and the path ahead is to
develop relevant software. “We really designed the
Model S to be a very sophisticated computer on
wheels…….. We view this as the same as updating
your phone or your laptop,” he noted.
Tesla’s self-driving features packaged under
Autopilot using hardware called HW1 made
its debut in 2014. The second version HW2