Tesla Roadster Data Logging Format Reverse Engineered

s1axter writes with word that "the data log format for the Tesla Roadster has been reverse engineered and documented, now available in Python. (Python script linked in the post.)" From the linked blog entry: "Not only was I given a $110k car unrestricted I was requested to see what ECU information is available, collect and parse the data from it. Tesla Motors periodically collects information from their vehicles presumably to see what real-world driving the cars see. On original Roadster models there is no method to collect this information remotely thus someone must go out to the vehicle and collect it. The owner of the vehicle saw this and wanted to know what information was collected on these service calls ... Because I am a big fan of freedom to modify a program to fit ones needs, I have uploaded the ... python script to parse Tesla logs."

Re:queue the lawsuit

[Anonymous Coward]

You can hit fuel cutoff rev limit all day long, all year long and your warranty is not voided. The engine has been designed to operate up to that speed by the manufacturer, that's why the rev limiter is in place. Over revving is what voids the warranty, and on any modern car there is only one way of over revving, called "mechanical overreving" or "money shift" -- imagine an engine with a 8000rpm redline, shifting from 4th to 5th at said 8000rpm, and by accident actually downshifting into 3rd. This results in the engine spinning at 9500 or 10000 rpms for a second or two, possibly damaging the rod bearings, the crank, the valvetrain or the pistons, if there is contact between the crown and a valve that didn't close fast enough.

Re:queue the lawsuit

[dakameleon]

You mean the Synchromesh? [wikipedia.org]

Re:woohooo

[Teancum]

The Roadster has a governor? I've never heard of such a thing. The main deal is that the RPMs in the engine start getting to insane levels turning the engine + drive train into a huge flywheel which takes increasingly larger amounts of energy (it increases geometrically, not linearly) to spin even faster. If that is a governor, then so be it, but removing THAT governor is simply removing the engine altogether.

The limiting factor is the current draw from the battery pack. Expand the battery pack, and you might go faster, but at the expense of killing your acceleration time due to additional weight.

I suppose you could hook up a Mr. Fusion or some other massive energy source that could kick the car into overdrive, but once you get past 88 mph you would be looking at temporal displacement when that happens too.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:queue the lawsuit

[plover]

Now days with tight clearances, improved metallurgy, oils, and computer controlled injection; running high RPMs will not have that much of an effect on its life.

These days they're using the tight tolerances to build torque via intentionally higher RPMs instead of bigger pistons or increasing compression. It saves on fuel and engine size. But the higher RPMs create higher forces on the moving parts, "taking up" the slack the tighter tolerances and better materials gave them. Revving the engine over the manufacturer's published spec still risks damaging it.

Re:queue the lawsuit

[Gordonjcp]

Any/all rev limiters I have ever worked with have all been on the spark side of the power triangle ( compression / spark / fuel )

Every car with a rev limiter in then engine ECU accomplishes it by cutting the fuel off. If you turn off the ignition, you continue to blow unburnt petrol vapour down the exhaust, where it will ignite in a spectacular killswitch backfire as soon as the ignition kicks back in. It will also destroy the catalytic converter.

Re:queue the lawsuit

[RMH101]

Hang on, I think there's some confusion here. First off, hitting the rev limiter does not damage your car. If revving at that level was going to cause damage, the rev limiter would be set lower. BMW's older M3 with clutchless manual SMG had a hidden feature where you could enable launch control by a combination of button presses, which would allow you to from rest floor the accelerator and on click into first gear it would launch at max attack. They enabled a feature where after 5 such actions they would void your transmission warranty.
Is this what you're thinking of?

Re:queue the lawsuit

[s122604]

Even tamer V6es like the ones going in the Chevy Malibu are in the 250HP range.

Buick's putting one in the lacrosse that goes around 380 or so..

There is no snobbery like euro auto snobbery, I think some of them actually believe that their low end VW, or opel or whatever would actually out-corner a Z06....

Re:ECU?

[Thelasko]

An engine is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion.

An engine is a machine designed to convert heat into useful mechanical motion.

Fixed it for ya!