Tesla News
#91
BMW plans no cooperation with Tesla
"The BMW Group has no interest in acquiring shares of Tesla," the company said at the request of Business Week. BMW does not want to participate in the Californian car manufacturer. Musk had said in an interview that Tesla talking to BMW "whether we can work together in battery technology and charging stations". In addition, BMW has "a relatively inexpensive carbon fiber production", which could be interesting for Tesla. Well-informed BMW sources say in the auto industry speak practically everyone with everyone, so had "informal discussions" with Tesla to mean little. BMW pleased by buyers of carbon fiber, but this applies "for Tesla as for any other automaker." After the departure of Daimler and Toyota Tesla in October, Musk would appear to decorate with the name BMW, Munich suspect, "Musk using us for PR purposes." BMW did not see at present how the company could benefit from Tesla, because the young electric car manufacturers have in any area a technological advantage. Also of Musks assessment that factories would be required for battery cells in Germany, BMW does not think much. Musk had announced plans to build a battery factory in Germany itself. On BMW as a partner he can not count: "We do not own factory for battery cells," says Munich. Battery cells are not a unique feature and might as other car parts are purchased from suppliers. "The joining of the cells to a battery and the control of the battery" would, however, provided by BMW, for "it was the actual innovative performance."
#93
Model S P85D, the fastest four-door production car ever made, was in Montreal, Canada for the opening of our largest Tesla sales, service and delivery center in North America.
#94
Tesla China president steps down after fewer than 9 months on the job
In July, 2013, before Tesla had delivered its first car to China, CEO Elon Musk called the country a "wild card." A year on, that continues to be the case, with media reports all over the spectrum concerning how Tesla is doing in China. The immediate future won't be any calmer with news that Tesla China president Veronica Wu has resigned from the company, having just taken the job in April. Hers follows the sudden departure of Kingston Chang, the man she replaced; he was hired away from Bentley China in March, 2013 and left in March of this year citing personal reasons.
Observers have put the latest departure down to the difficulties of Tesla's expansion efforts. In spite of widely acknowledged pent-up demand and the Model S being priced below expectations in China, the company has stumbled a few times navigating issues such as customs paperwork, on-time customer deliveries, navigation systems with local mapping and the installation of charging equipment for customers in rural areas. Speculative articles questioning the company's actual sales numbers in China inflate the narrative of a "speed bump" in the way of Tesla's ambitions.
Tesla China's head of charger network development, Tom Zhu, will run the company in the interim.
Observers have put the latest departure down to the difficulties of Tesla's expansion efforts. In spite of widely acknowledged pent-up demand and the Model S being priced below expectations in China, the company has stumbled a few times navigating issues such as customs paperwork, on-time customer deliveries, navigation systems with local mapping and the installation of charging equipment for customers in rural areas. Speculative articles questioning the company's actual sales numbers in China inflate the narrative of a "speed bump" in the way of Tesla's ambitions.
Tesla China's head of charger network development, Tom Zhu, will run the company in the interim.
#96
Morgan Stanley Cuts Tesla 2020 Sales Forecast by 40 Percent
A note published on Wednesday, December 17, by Morgan Stanley auto analyst Adam Jones, forecasts that the EV manufacturer Tesla will miss its 2020 goal by a very large margin.
Owner Elon Musk has set a target of 500,000 units; however, Jonas says that this is very optimistic and the real number will be closer to 300,000 vehicles, a considerable 40 percent less.
According to CNN, Jonas believes that the main reason is that the Model III premium saloon, which will be Tesla’s contender in the BMW 3-Series segment, is predicted to bear a price tag close to US$60,000, nearly double the US$35,000 originally expected.
“While nobody buying a Model S today (for nearly US$105,000) is doing so to save on their monthly expenses, the longer-term story is far more dependent on the volume success of the Model III”, he wrote, noting that falling oil prices might also play a significant tole in the mid-size EV's success.
On the other hand, Jonas continues to recommend Tesla shares. In spite of lowering his original estimate of US$320 per share to US$290, he says investors’ gain will be more than 50 percent.
Owner Elon Musk has set a target of 500,000 units; however, Jonas says that this is very optimistic and the real number will be closer to 300,000 vehicles, a considerable 40 percent less.
According to CNN, Jonas believes that the main reason is that the Model III premium saloon, which will be Tesla’s contender in the BMW 3-Series segment, is predicted to bear a price tag close to US$60,000, nearly double the US$35,000 originally expected.
“While nobody buying a Model S today (for nearly US$105,000) is doing so to save on their monthly expenses, the longer-term story is far more dependent on the volume success of the Model III”, he wrote, noting that falling oil prices might also play a significant tole in the mid-size EV's success.
On the other hand, Jonas continues to recommend Tesla shares. In spite of lowering his original estimate of US$320 per share to US$290, he says investors’ gain will be more than 50 percent.
#99
Tesla Model S P85D Shows Its True Torque On The Dyno
The Tesla Model S P85D has already promised monster horsepower figures, but a new dyno test shows it has truly epic torque figures to match.
The folks at Drag Times put a new P85D on their dyno to see just how much torque the electric sedan put out. Tesla has already announced this all-wheel drive car would produce 691 horsepower and a 0-60 time of 3.2 seconds, but didn't indicate torque numbers.
It took a few tries, but the P85D managed to pull 864 ft.-lbs. of torque in this test, which is a pretty shocking figure.
The car may not have been able to hold the figure for very long, according to Drag Times, but it does show the immense pulling power this Model S has and why it will prove to be quite a ride.
The folks at Drag Times put a new P85D on their dyno to see just how much torque the electric sedan put out. Tesla has already announced this all-wheel drive car would produce 691 horsepower and a 0-60 time of 3.2 seconds, but didn't indicate torque numbers.
It took a few tries, but the P85D managed to pull 864 ft.-lbs. of torque in this test, which is a pretty shocking figure.
The car may not have been able to hold the figure for very long, according to Drag Times, but it does show the immense pulling power this Model S has and why it will prove to be quite a ride.
#102
I would think that once the improved battery pack is ready they will sub the smaller motor in front with a second >400 hp motor like they use in the rear.
Then we will see like 840 hp and over 1000 lb ft of torque, yum yum yum
Then we will see like 840 hp and over 1000 lb ft of torque, yum yum yum
#104
Lexus Fanatic
I believe the efficiency of an electric drivetrain is fairly consistent no matter how large or small the motors are within reason. Really the only downside to an electric car currently is the weight/size of the batteries. The rest is well sorted.
#105
Elon Musk Says Established Manufacturers Should Speed Up Efforts on EVs
Tesla CEO and co-founder Elon Musk believes that established car makers should move faster when it comes to the development of electric vehicles and not rely on the drop of oil prices.
Speaking at the Automotive News World Congress, Musk commented that the rest of the industry should get on its feet and take EVs seriously in order to counter the climate change.
“We can’t rely on scarcity to drive the price of oil and gas and rely on that to be an adequate forcing function to speed adoption of EVs, so we have to figure out how to do it without high oil and gas prices”, he noted.
Musk praised GM and Nissan for their Chevrolet Volt and Leaf respectively, for the commitment they had shown in hybrid and all-electric vehicles. Recently, he decided to open up Tesla’s patents free of charge and let other electric vehicles use the company’s own Superchargers.
Due to the heavy investments made for the development and production of its Model S, Tesla is in the red and Musk doesn’t expect a profit until 2020, when the mid-size Model 3, which is currently in the early development stage, will be into full production.
“The biggest thing that I’m struggling with is: I really want the Model 3 to be something different, not just a smaller Model S”, he conceded. “So how do we make a car that’s really way different than any other car on the road in a way that’s really useful and just doesn’t feel like a weird-mobile?”
Nevertheless, making the Model 3 hit its US$35,000 intended price before taxes may mean that some of the tech of the Model S may have to be transferred, possibly as an option.
Last, but certainly not least, Musk announced that deliveries of the Model X crossover will commence this summer. He added that this year’s production has been already sold out so anyone who orders one now won’t get it until 2016.
Speaking at the Automotive News World Congress, Musk commented that the rest of the industry should get on its feet and take EVs seriously in order to counter the climate change.
“We can’t rely on scarcity to drive the price of oil and gas and rely on that to be an adequate forcing function to speed adoption of EVs, so we have to figure out how to do it without high oil and gas prices”, he noted.
Musk praised GM and Nissan for their Chevrolet Volt and Leaf respectively, for the commitment they had shown in hybrid and all-electric vehicles. Recently, he decided to open up Tesla’s patents free of charge and let other electric vehicles use the company’s own Superchargers.
Due to the heavy investments made for the development and production of its Model S, Tesla is in the red and Musk doesn’t expect a profit until 2020, when the mid-size Model 3, which is currently in the early development stage, will be into full production.
“The biggest thing that I’m struggling with is: I really want the Model 3 to be something different, not just a smaller Model S”, he conceded. “So how do we make a car that’s really way different than any other car on the road in a way that’s really useful and just doesn’t feel like a weird-mobile?”
Nevertheless, making the Model 3 hit its US$35,000 intended price before taxes may mean that some of the tech of the Model S may have to be transferred, possibly as an option.
Last, but certainly not least, Musk announced that deliveries of the Model X crossover will commence this summer. He added that this year’s production has been already sold out so anyone who orders one now won’t get it until 2016.