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Right-hand-drive Tesla Roadster coming next year

 
2 943 views Jul 8, 2009

2008 tesla roadster motorauthority 001

Markets like the UK, Australia, Japan and India are all scheduled to receive the Tesla Roadster

Markets like the UK, Australia, Japan and India are all scheduled to receive the Tesla Roadster

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Just a few weeks ago Tesla got a new lease on life with a $465 million U.S. Department of Energy loan to build the infrastructure it needs for the mass-production of the Model S luxury-electric sedan. Soon after that the company announced plans to grow its brand overseas while also opening its first European flagship store in London.

Next year, the company plans to launch its first right-hand-drive (RHD) models, starting with the UK and then eventually Australia, Japan and India. The information was revealed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who explained that the costs involved in re-engineering the Tesla Roadster for RHD markets were "not prohibitive". Musk also confirmed that the more powerful Tesla Roadster Sport, rated at 248hp (185kW), would join the lineup later this year.

Tesla says it has already taken 1,300 orders across Europe. “Thanks to an abundance of discriminating drivers and progressive public policy, Tesla is already well known in Europe,” Musk boasted. “We expect the London store to dramatically increase our brand identity throughout the continent, and with right hand drive models now due at the beginning of next year, the UK market will provide a solid foundation on which to build this.”
Tesla Roadster
2009 Tesla Roadster Sport

HI-RES GALLERY: 2008 tesla roadster motorauthority 001

HI-RES GALLERY: 2009 tesla roadster sport 008




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Comments (2)

  1. ma_bepsf avatar bepsf Posted: 7/8/2009 9:15am PDT

    More like the costs were negligable since the Lotus Elise upon which this is based is already available in RHD...
     
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  2. By  Wii tennisschlager Posted: 12/29/2009 10:13pm PST

    Tesla S FTW. Nice cars, but we need em cheaper than what they are now. If you could pick one of these up for sub $50k + govt rebates (for elec cars), then they’ll sell like hot cakes
     
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