Congratulations are due to Californian upstart electric car company Tesla Motors, which delivered its 700th vehicle at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week and unveiled the production version of its eagerly anticipated Roadster Sport.
According to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the company has raised $82.5million in private equity from numerous backers including Fjord Capital Partners of London, Daimler, Aabar Investments and others.
The production versions of the second generation Roadster and high performance Roadster Sport supercar were certainly eye catching at the show.
The Roadster 2, which Tesla is already shipping to customers, includes an array of enhancements over the first generation including a more powerful heating and air conditioning system, more comfortable seats, a quieter interior and a smoother ride.
Meanwhile, the Roadster Sport is an even higher performance car than can race from 0-100km/h in 3.7 seconds, compared to the standard Roadster’s 3.9 seconds. It has a more powerful motor as well as a custom-tuned adjustable suspension and forged wheels.
Tesla expects to split sales of the vehicles between North America and Europe and also showcased its Model S vehicle at the event, a seven passenger saloon car that it plans to begin producing in late 2011.
