Elon Musk has handed over the first five right-hand drive Model S hatchbacks to customers in London. Tesla Motors’ CEO has also opened the firm’s first UK Supercharger station.
Tesla says it plans to greatly expand its initial sales presence over the coming two years. To start with, there is just the one retail outlet in the Westfield White City shopping centre as well as a service centre, also in west London. By the end of 2014, however, customers will be able to visit stores and service centres across the UK, it is claimed.
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As expected, RHD cars have had their wipers switched, and the Model S’ software has also been modified. There is also an iPhone app, available in the UK iTunes store. This puts Model S owners in direct communication with their cars and may be used to check on charging progress, start or stop charging, and to heat or cool a car.
Pricing starts at GBP 50,280 on the road, including a GBP 5,000 government plug-in grant. Other benefits include zero road tax, and exemption from London’s weekday ‘congestion’ toll. The car is also eligible for the 100 percent First Year Allowance for company purchase and zero percent Benefit in Kind, both of which last until April 2015.
Tesla also activated the UK’s first fast-charge ‘Supercharger’ at the delivery event. The company says it is adding these at a rate of close to one per weekday. There are now said to be 116 locations worldwide including 19 in Europe. These stations can provide up to 120 kilowatts of direct current to the Model S battery.
“Superchargers enable long distance travel but also, in a city where off street parking is rare and expensive, Model S customers will be able to access a network of Superchargers across London to charge, quickly and for free, at their convenience,” said Elon Musk. “We are looking at locations across the capital to place our first set of inner city Superchargers. Our plan for routes to other cities in the UK is still on target for the end of the year, but we are also announcing this new initiative in order to best serve our London-based customers. We expect customers to be able to travel the length of the UK and Ireland for free using our Superchargers within the next 18 months”.
