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How Tesla Achieves 'Ludicrous Speed'

Tesla's upgrade from Insane Mode to Ludicrous Speed is now available on the Tesla Model S, allowing the pure-electric sedan to make the sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.8 seconds. That's down from a relaxed, gentle 3.2-second launch time.

Author: repokar
Date: Sep 22, 2015 - 3:25:18 AM

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2.8-SECOND 0-60 SPRINT TIME IS NOW A $10,000 UPGRADE AWAY Tesla's upgrade from Insane Mode to Ludicrous Speed is now available on the Tesla Model S, allowing the pure-electric sedan to make the sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.8 seconds. That's down from a relaxed, gentle 3.2-second launch time. This ... ridiculous upgrade, which has cut the sprint time by 10 percent, resulted from Tesla developing what it calls a "smart fuse" for the battery in the Model S. The company created a fuse for the main battery with its own lithium-ion battery and electronics that constantly monitor the electric current at the millisecond level, allowing it to cut the power with much greater precision than a standard fuse (which melts past a certain amperage). The practical result is that the car's drivetrain can safely increase the maximum amperage from 1,300 to 1,500 amps, giving the sedan a 10 percent improvement in the amount of amps that it can channel to the motor.

The quarter-mile time with Ludicrous Speed is now a breezy 10.9 seconds, with the sedan also improving its time to 155 mph by an impressive 20 percent (where permitted). "Nobody was asking for Ludicrous Mode because it was too ludicrous," Tesla CEO Elon Musk told reporters on a conference call last week. "Insane Mode has been incredibly well received. We figured out from an engineering standpoint how to go beyond Insane, so we figured we should release that." There is a price to pay for Ludicrous Speed, but it doesn't include being pancaked against the wall like in a Mel Brooks film. For an extra $10,000, Tesla will install the necessary hardware, while P85D model owners will be offered the same pack at a 50 percent discount plus the labor costs.

- See more at: http://repokar.com/blog-details/97/How-Tesla-Achieves-'Ludicrous-Speed'#sthash.4aeXGe2V.dpuf

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