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Tesla Semi

tesla.com

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Re: Tesla Semi

#501

Post by greglindahl »

pdeuchler wrote: post #489
tbabb wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Well, it's a fraction of the cost to operate, but if a tire blows, the mechanic will have to detach a piece of plastic. So I think we'll pass."

This dismissive attitude of a domain expert's opinion while taking Musk's/Tesla's word on revolutionary claims that they don't even have a working prototype of yet is a perfect example of why the court of public opinion is slowly starting to turn on Silicon Valley

The "domain expert" is doubting that Tesla consulted with any domain experts, after Tesla showed domain experts and waved at a bunch of launch customers sitting in the audience at the event. No one's looking insightful at the moment.

Re: Tesla Semi

#502

Post by SigmundA »

Fjolsvith wrote: post #439
SigmundA wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At 7 lbs a gallon for diesel most semis can carry 200 gallons so add an extra 1000lbs if you like, the Tesla still has to make up 5000 lbs while having 1/3rd the range. Timing stops for megachargers will be a whole lot more difficult than truck stops until they are as ubiquitous. If you have to use a plain old supercharger your talking 8-10 hours for a charge, don't even bother with a normal plug of any kind.

Elon says that the truck will be charged by the end of the 30 minute DOT required break (14:06 into the livestream: https://livestream.tesla.com/ ).

That's with a megacharger not a supercharger, there are no megachargers deployed anywhere yet. Megachargers are 1600 kilowatts vs 120 kilwoatts for a supercharger.

A charging station with 10 megachargers going at the same time will draw as much power as a small city of say 10,000 homes.

Re: Tesla Semi

#503

Post by tbabb »

pdeuchler wrote: post #489
tbabb wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Well, it's a fraction of the cost to operate, but if a tire blows, the mechanic will have to detach a piece of plastic. So I think we'll pass."

This dismissive attitude of a domain expert's opinion while taking Musk's/Tesla's word on revolutionary claims that they don't even have a working prototype of yet is a perfect example of why the court of public opinion is slowly starting to turn on Silicon Valley

They do have a working prototype; it's in the video.

Also, your comment is ironically pretty dismissive.

As an expert, do you think that the sporadic time/money cost of changing a tire could offset a significant reduction in fuel cost or trip time? How expensive would a tire change have to be to outweigh, say, a (conservative) 30% reduction in fuel cost?

Re: Tesla Semi

#504

Post by eric_the_read »

bduerst wrote: post #483
owlmirror wrote: post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The entire reusability thing was not really a thing before spacex

Wasn't the space shuttle and it's SRBs reusable?

In the sense that both were effectively rebuilt from almost-but-not-quite-scratch for each launch, yes.

Re: Tesla Semi

#505

Post by 0xfeba »

JshWright wrote: post #379
einrealist wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder about accidents. Will the driver be trapped, because the glass cannot be broken?

Firefighter here. I wouldn't be especially worried about the glass. Hitting it with a hammer isn't all that impressive (take a hammer to your driver's side window... I bet you'll be surprised how ineffective it is).

But flick a broken spark plug ceramic piece at it, and it falls apart.

Re: Tesla Semi

#506

Post by EADGBE »

mncolinlee wrote: post #406

It's bizarre that the Semi has way less attention than the Roadster on HN. The Roadster is a $250k car for people with money to burn. It doesn't seem to drastically change the equation from a Rimac Concept One with six-year newer battery and motor tech and savings from volume and automation. The Roadster is the shiny thing that sells less sexy vehicles. The Semi has the potential to change an entire industry if execu…

Sex(y) sells.

Re: Tesla Semi

#507

Post by 0xfeba »

njarboe wrote: post #202
PhasmaFelis wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Security screws on purchasable goods really need to be banned for anything that doesn't pose an immediate and extreme health and safety hazard.

And I don't think anything sold in the US today, not to the Department of Defense, has anything that poses "an immediate and extreme health and safety hazard".

Airbag assemblies/controllers tend to have these.

Re: Tesla Semi

#508

Post by SigmundA »

nkoren wrote: post #466
SigmundA wrote: post #400

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am trying to figure out how they get 2 year payback. "On a 100-mile route, the Tesla Semi will average $1.26 per mile when operating costs are factored in to $1.51 for diesel trucks." That 25 cents a mile savings, average trucker does 45,000 miles a year, 100,000 on the top end for long haul. Even at 100k a year that's an 8 year payback right?

No, the "payback period" isn't the time to pay off the total cost of the vehicle. It's the time to pay off the difference between the Tesla and the competition. Here's how you do the calculation: - Diesel semi: $125k - Tesla semi: $200k ($75k more expensive) - Miles driven per year: 150,000 (~8 hours per day at 50mph. Rotating shifts mean these trucks don't take weekends.) - Net savings per mile: $0.25 - Savings per…

The 500 mile version is 250k which is what I was looking at for long haul.

So if your doing short haul with the 300 mile range version and rotating shifts you can get 2 year payback, ok.

Re: Tesla Semi

#509

Post by dschep »

emptyfile wrote: post #456
ajmurmann wrote: post #402

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe the main reason for why European trucks look soi different is regulations. European trucks have a length limit that covers the tractor as well as the trailer. Because you want to maximize the cargo space, the tractor is made as short as possible and gets this very un-aerodynamic shape. The truck in essence gets the shape that best fills in all permitted space. In addition they don't have plows or similar th…

Huh, how do American trucks look?

They tend to look like this: https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=mack%20truck

Re: Tesla Semi

#510

Post by 0xfeba »

bonestamp2 wrote: post #494

I hope Tesla builds the next gen USPS delivery trucks to replace all of those loud little trucks that sound like a space shuttle launch between each mailbox.

Aw, you don't like the LLV[1]?

1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_LLV

A hybrid would well-suit the replacement of these. Something like the Chevy Volt that relies more on electricity for heavy stop/start type driving. It would also address your concerns. The engine could just run when needed to charge, and not be a constant oscillation through the RPM range through the neighborhood.

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