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They forgot to put external mirrors on that car.

Article fails in the second paragraph. The Roadster is NOT based on a Lotus platform. Anyone who thinks so is not qualified to comment.

By the way, the "X" is no more bloated and uglier than any other cross-over (AKA station wagon lite).

I dunno... Looks pretty sharp to me.

Hey the Delorean and the Tesla X both have gull wing doors! They look exactly the same! By this logic, a Jeep Liberty looks just like a Mazda Miata.

natazha: Article fails in the second paragraph. The Roadster is NOT based on a Lotus platform. Anyone who thinks so is not qualified to comment.

Yep, it was a chassis built by Lotus. Completely different. It is strange, though, how now that Lotus has stopped building Elises, Tesla can't get any more of those chassis. Almost as if they were very similar...

Here's what Tesla says about how *not based on a Lotus platform* the Roadster is:

"Some have suggested that the Tesla Roadster is built on a Lotus chassis. This is not true. Tesla licensed the Elise chassis technology, but Tesla's UK-based chassis engineering team designed the Roadster's chassis using that technology. The suspension and occupant protection systems are very similar. But here are a few key differences: (new window)

Tesla re-engineered the main chassis rail extrusions, making them stronger and thereby allowing us to lower the doorsill height by 2 inches, drastically improving ingress/egress. (Elon and I are both more than 6' tall, so improving ingress was a requirement!)
At the same time we changed the way the chassis rails bend just behind the seats. Lotus simply bends the rails. Tesla instead miter-cuts the rail, then bonds them together at the exact correct angle with a custom bracket. This solution works with the new extrusions to lower the sills, and reduces manufacturing complexity.
We eliminated the box section that surrounds the gas tank on the Elise. The Tesla Roadster achieves equivalent (actually slightly higher) stiffness with the structural box that encloses the battery pack
We designed a unique rear sub-frame, to accommodate a battery pack and electric drivetrain rather than a gas tank, engine, and exhaust system
We lengthened the Tesla Roadster's wheelbase by 2 inches - rearward of the seats, giving us a tad more room for the battery pack, shifting the weight forward to keep the distribution reasonable, reducing ride choppiness, and giving the car a little more sophisticated look
We beefed up the composite crash structure at the front (one of Lotus's clever innovations) to accommodate the higher weight of the Tesla Roadster
The suspension geometry is identical to that of the Lotus, though we strengthened many components, again to accommodate the increased weight
We use larger brakes - both front and rear"



/Kind of like how Camaros are different from Firebirds, or Cadillacs are different from Buicks.

Fat?

I suppose the Impreza WRX is just big boned, then?

Kraftwerk Orange: natazha: Article fails in the second paragraph. The Roadster is NOT based on a Lotus platform. Anyone who thinks so is not qualified to comment.

Yep, it was a chassis built by Lotus. Completely different. It is strange, though, how now that Lotus has stopped building Elises, Tesla can't get any more of those chassis. Almost as if they were very similar...

Here's what Tesla says about how *not based on a Lotus platform* the Roadster is:

"Some have suggested that the Tesla Roadster is built on a Lotus chassis. This is not true. Tesla licensed the Elise chassis technology, but Tesla's UK-based chassis engineering team designed the Roadster's chassis using that technology. The suspension and occupant protection systems are very similar. But here are a few key differences: (new window)

Tesla re-engineered the main chassis rail extrusions, making them stronger and thereby allowing us to lower the doorsill height by 2 inches, drastically improving ingress/egress. (Elon and I are both more than 6' tall, so improving ingress was a requirement!)
At the same time we changed the way the chassis rails bend just behind the seats. Lotus simply bends the rails. Tesla instead miter-cuts the rail, then bonds them together at the exact correct angle with a custom bracket. This solution works with the new extrusions to lower the sills, and reduces manufacturing complexity.
We eliminated the box section that surrounds the gas tank on the Elise. The Tesla Roadster achieves equivalent (actually slightly higher) stiffness with the structural box that encloses the battery pack
We designed a unique rear sub-frame, to accommodate a battery pack and electric drivetrain rather than a gas tank, engine, and exhaust system
We lengthened the Tesla Roadster's wheelbase by 2 inches - rearward of the seats, giving us a tad more room for the battery pack, shifting the weight forward to keep the distribution reasonable, reducing ride choppiness, and giving the car a little more ...

oooooo....burn.