90-seconds to completely "charge" a Tesla Model-S

[Blastphemy]

If you haven't seen this on the news yet, enjoy the future:

http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/21/autos/tesla-battery-swap/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

http://www.teslamotors.com/batteryswap

 

[FarmerDan]

I want that for my Rav!

 

[miimura]

That would be cool. Drive to Gilroy or Harris Ranch, swap in 85kWh battery and continue on to LA.

Way beyond the realm of possibility, but it's nice to dream. Actually, for the price I paid for the RAV, I'm OK with its limitations. I fully considered a Model S and considered waiting for Tesla Gen-3 and bought the RAV anyway. Gen-3 is obviously still a possibility since we'll be due for another car by then.

 

[cwerdna]

http://green.autoblog.com/2013/06/21/tesla-answers-questions-about-battery-swap/ has some Q&A w/Musk.

 

[snoltor]

Don't know if this was posted / answered elsewhere yet: Since we have the Tesla battery, and it's in a similar location as on the Model S. Any idea if the battery on our Rav4 EVs are swappable?

 

[fooljoe]

Don't know if this was posted / answered elsewhere yet: Since we have the Tesla battery, and it's in a similar location as on the Model S. Any idea if the battery on our Rav4 EVs are swappable?

Mechanically I'm sure it is, but good luck getting Tesla to do it! :lol:

 

[miimura]

Don't know if this was posted / answered elsewhere yet: Since we have the Tesla battery, and it's in a similar location as on the Model S. Any idea if the battery on our Rav4 EVs are swappable?

Mechanically I'm sure it is, but good luck getting Tesla to do it! :lol:

There was a Stanford lecture given by Dave Duff, the Tesla employee that designed the electrical connector between the battery and the Model S, among other things. The YouTube video is embedded in a post here. The battery connector was specifically designed so that when you push the battery pack up into position, it automatically makes contact and no further action is required to maintain the connection. Same is true of the battery pack coolant lines. The lecture was given in December 2012 and he was basically saying that the swap took about 5 minutes for several guys with the proper lift to drop the battery because there are about 30 bolts holding the pack in place. At that time he said that Better Place style swapping was extremely unlikely for Tesla even though the car was technically designed for it. Clearly, Tesla's financial position has changed since that time, which allows Tesla to pursue this kind of capital expenditure, to the benefit of its customers.

So, the bottom line is, how does the RAV4 EV battery pack connect to the car electrically? I think TonyWilliams has seen a pack dropped from a RAV, so I'm sure he knows.