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Tesla Roadster wows campus crowd

July 20, 2009

KALAMAZOO--A crowd of the electric car devotees, supporters of sustainable energy and folks who were just curious got to see one of the first Tesla Roadsters--a high-performance, all-electric sports car--up close and in person today on the campus of Western Michigan University.

The sports car is the centerpiece of the Renew America Roadtrip, a coast-to-coast fundraiser for green charities and promotion for alternative transportation. The trip from New York to San Francisco included Michigan stops in Detroit, Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. It was on display at the Campus Flagpoles next to the Lee Honors College, where it recharged for about three hours before moving on to Chicago.

One of the purposes of the cross-country trip is to debunk some of the myths about electric cars. The Tesla Roadster is an unmodified, production sports car capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. It is powered by a bank of lithium-ion batteries and has a nominal range of 244 miles on a single charge.

The price for the Roadster is $101,500. California-based Tesla Motors expects to introduce a sedan in 2011, which will sell for about $50,000, and have a nominal range of 300 miles.

For information about the Renew America Roadtrip stop at WMU, contact Dr. Paul Pancella at paul.pancella@wmich.edu or (269) 387-4936.

Media contact: Thom Myers, (269) 387-8400, thom.myers@wmich.edu

WMU News
Office of University Relations
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5433 USA
(269) 387-8400
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