I want to introduce myself. "New to me" 2011 2.5 Roadster...

Welcome and congrats!

That cable can be changed out pretty easily to anything you want so shouldn't be an issue.

Welcome & congrats on your new Roadster. I have a 2011 Roadster Sport. The plug you're referring to is actually connected to a USB connection, so it can be swapped out. I just left mine as a USB, so I can connect whatever.

But, the amperage isn't enough to power my iPad and you may have problems with your Android. Anything requiring more juice, I just power off the DC plug underneath the dash, with a USB adapter plug.

This is probably the place to find a used hard top, but I personally haven't seen any around for awhile. I have one in my garage that I hardly ever use, but don't want to let go of it. I think most Roadster owners feel the same.

--- Question for you: Are you charging at home off the UMC, a Clipper Creek HPC, or will you just put in a J1772 and use an adapter?

Welcome!

Here's a link to change the cable or just leave the USB port open - [HOWTO] Converting your iPhone dock into an USB port

The classifieds section on this board has some hard tops available - there's also a group buy for a transparent hard top which you can find in this forum.

And if you don't have a J1772 adapter, don't buy Tesla's. I had one and sold it. Way too bulky. Get hcsharp's product, The Can. Beautiful design, lockable to the car, and no cables taking up space.

I'm pretty sure (someone please correct me if not) the hard top is one of the few things that is 100% Lotus Elise compatible, so it should be simple to find one for cheaps.

Personally, I put a 70A J1772 charger in my house to keep both myself (with The Can adapter) and other electric car friends happy. Later I also added a NEMA14-50 secondary plug to my charger so that I could just pop it off the wall and charge at RV sites truly far out of normal electric car owners' ranges.

The Lotus hard top fits, I believe, but it isn't the same. It stops short of the roll bar, rather than covering it like the Tesla version does.

In addition to the can, if you're going to be near any Tesla Store, or other when travelling and you want to charge...

Get on the list for the Model S to Roadster adapter from hcsharp as well.

Make sure that you've had the >70A charging bug fixed first though.

Congratulations!

I have a question for everyone too:

Soft tops: How much to replace one? How likely to need to? I can buy one for $500, wanna see if I should just to keep as a spare.

AEdennis said:

Make sure that you've had the >70A charging bug fixed first though.

Click to expand...

That's just a software upgrade at your local service center, btw.

ElectricLove said:

Congratulations!

I have a question for everyone too:

Soft tops: How much to replace one? How likely to need to? I can buy one for $500, wanna see if I should just to keep as a spare.

Click to expand...

I'll bet the answer to this is 100% dependant on if your roadster sits pampered in a garage or if it sits outside all day getting a nice UV, rain, and bird poop bath to deteriorate the top with.

For the 3rd party top referred to above, look for the thread(s) about the "glass top". We call it a glass top because it's like driving under a sheet of glass, though the top is actually made out of polycarbonate. In the winter, with the rain falling (almost) on your head, and then sheeting back off the roof as you're driving along .... magic.

No doubt, the hard top is nice until you get a glass top from Mr Fiat and the guys in Italy. I would look up past threads and research the glass top idea instead of the Tesla hard top...... It is really the top the roadster was made for..... Or vica versa!

Welcome to the Roadster world..... You will love it!!!

TOBASH said:

Are the charging "S-Roadster Cans" still available? I want one! Also I will of course bring car to local dealer for 70 amp upgrade as suggested by Bonnie (Thanks Bonnie, and beautiful picture of you on your profile page.) Once I have one, what do I need to do to get a free charge at a Supercharger?

Click to expand...

- It's more of a not-quite-available-yet instead of "still available"

- It's possible you already have the latest firmware installed (which all it does is let your car successfully charge at the maximum it can already do of 70A while not freaking out at chargers with the maximum 80A clock signal). You can check it on your car display, though I forget which arcane menu inputs get you to the screen that lets you check.

- The S-to-Roadster adapter is not for DC supercharging, just for charging at the same 240VAC/70A (or less) that you normally could, but from the slightly different and more popular model s connector. A lot of upscale places in my area (country clubs, golf courses, hotels, wineries, etc) have these available for charging instead of J1772 or Roadster connectors. It might be worth it for you to get one, it might not; probably depends on the availability of conveniently available high-amperage model-s chargers in your area (you can check plugshare or similar with a filter on that plug type), or more specifically halfway between your area and other places you might want to go that are out of your range, where you would appreciate high-amperage charging so you only have to stop for an hour or three instead of stopping an entire night at a slow J1772 30A charger.

You just need the lightning cable that came with your iphone, that will work fine. Audio/charging, etc. is supported by the Alpine unit.

TOBASH said:

Definitely want the glass top. Who where what do I need to contact???

I found iPhone female adapter with USB and audio wire. Before I dig onto the car's wires I think I will see if this thing works:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/iPad-iPhone...ader_Chargers_Sync_Cables&hash=item1c441cbb4d

Are the charging "S-Roadster Cans" still available? I want one! Also I will of course bring car to local dealer for 70 amp upgrade as suggested by Bonnie (Thanks Bonnie, and beautiful picture of you on your profile page.) Once I have one, what do I need to do to get a free charge at a Supercharger?

Click to expand...

augkuo said:

Welcome!

Here's a link to change the cable or just leave the USB port open - [HOWTO] Converting your iPhone dock into an USB port

The classifieds section on this board has some hard tops available - there's also a group buy for a transparent hard top which you can find in this forum.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that link!

I'm actually going to do that this weekend. I had no idea it was that easy. I thought I'd have to pull out the head unit to put in a lighting cable.

Chris Lockfort said:

-
- It's possible you already have the latest firmware installed (which all it does is let your car successfully charge at the maximum it can already do of 70A while not freaking out at chargers with the maximum 80A clock signal). You can check it on your car display, though I forget which arcane menu inputs get you to the screen that lets you check..

Click to expand...

Your firmware version appears briefly in small numbers on the upper right corner of the VDS when you first turn the Roadster on.

Welcome to the group. When you get a few charges under your belt make sure you add your data to the Tesla Owners Battery Study Plug In America
if you have or don't have solar add your vote to the driving on Sunshine poll. Driving on Sunshine

For you non-iphone connection I purchased an inexpensive adapter so I did not have to tear into the center consol. http://www.amazon.com/Iphone-Female-Docking-Connection-Output/dp/B00L4XC7C6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1407465868&sr=8-2&keywords=iphone+to+1%2F8+grom