Tesla Model Sets Distance Record of More Than 1000 Kilometers on Single Charge

The future of electric cars looks even brighter in light of a new distance record that has been set by a Tesla Model S.  Five members of the Italian Tesla owners club say they have set a new distance record, by traveling for 670 miles or the equivalent of 1, 078 kilometers on a single charge in a Tesla Model S. This beats the previous record that was set in June in Belgium by 110 miles. After the June record, Elon Musk, tesla’s CEO said that provided the right tyres are used, it might even be possible to drive for 100o plus miles on a single charge. The team of five Italian Tesla lovers took this on as a challenge and using hypermiling techniques, they broke the June record. The charging port was sealed by a lawyer before they embarked on their journey.

They used a longest-range Tesla Model S 100D and consumed as little energy as possible by using autopilot to maintain a constant speed, fitting low rolling-resistance tyres, turning off the airconditioning  and trying not to use the brakes. They drove at an average speed of just 25mph (40kmph), and completed 670 miles before the meter read 0 per cent charge.

Commenting on the achievement, Luca Del Bo, president of the Italian club, said that during their journey, the team used 98.4 kWh of electricity, which is equivalent to eight liters of petrol and praised the very high output of the electric engine that converts 95 per cent of the energy supplied into motion. Even the most efficient internal combustion engines achieve a maximum of 30 per cent efficiency.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk congratulated the club on their achievement.

Rosario Pingaro, one of the drivers, said: “The driving was made simply by the semi-autonomous driving system, which helped us to keep a constant speed in the middle of the lane.”

Tesla’s newest model, the USD 35,000 Model 3 meant for the mass market is rated as being able to travel 215 miles per charge as standard or up to 310 miles with an optional extended range battery option. In comparison, petrol and diesel cars can generally exceed 500 miles per tank of fuel and can be refueled in just a few minutes. Currently, range anxiety and the long time for refueling are the main barriers to mass adoption of electric cars with even the fastest electric chargers taking over an hour to fully charge the large batteries.