Electric Sports Cars Sell Out in First Run

Electric sports car builder Tesla Motors said it had sold out the proposed inaugural production run of 100 of its two-seat, high-performance roadsters, just three weeks after sales began.

Customers, including actor George Clooney, each paid $100,000 in advance to reserve one of the roadsters, scheduled to be built and delivered next year, Tesla said.

The cars use electric motors powered by rechargeable batteries. They can travel 250 miles on a single charge and accelerate from a stop to 60 mph in about 4 seconds, the company said.

San Carlos, Calif.-based Tesla said it planned to use proceeds from sales of the roadsters to help finance production of more affordable, mainstream electric cars.

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John O’Dell