Had a nice chat with TESLA today at SEMA and they seem to be really passionate about their brand, as in everyone I've dealt with and talked too.

The China thing is nuts!!!

 

another one bites the dust, hey hey...





A fire in a Tesla Model S in Tennessee this week was caused by the car running over a metal object.

The metal object was a tow hitch, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
"The tow hitch hit the under carriage of the vehicle causing an electrical fire," the Highway Patrol said in a statement. "The driver was able to pull the vehicle over onto the left side emergency lane and come to final rest."
It was the third fire in a Tesla Model S in 5 weeks. No occupants were hurt in any of the incidents.
The first was in Washington state in early October and was also caused by the car driving over a metal object.
The Model S battery pack is contained within the floor of the vehicle.
In the first incident, the fire did not enter the passenger compartment because it was protected by internal firewalls, according to Tesla.
In the Tennessee fire, damage also seemed confined to the front of the vehicle, based on photos supplied by the Highway Patrol.



http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/08/auto...-fire-details/

 

I was surprised to see how exposed the tesla battery was to the elements...they should at least add a plastic cover, although it would prohibit the battery swap they have planned.

 

wow it really is expo oversight when developing perhaps but that is IMO a serious omission with lack of even as you say a plastic protective cover. I mean come on it needs somethingl. That an expensive and essential component..

 

on a brighter note, a friend just got one.

 

car looks awesome

 

Didn't another one of your friends just get a C7? Baller crowd you run with Paul

 

Nice color. I haven't seen that color on the road yet. I mostly see white ones.

 

It is a very interesting battle that is developing between Tesla, BMW and (Tesla's partner) Mercedes. BMW is coming out next year with a BMW 3 Electric with a 2.5 gallon extended range engine (for charging only) to meet the California 2014 electric car laws. Mercedes (who owns a little bit over 4% of tesla stock) is working with Tesla on the Mercedes 2 Series Electric. Tesla is supplying the motors and battery packs. It is schedule for mid-2014. Both will be around 40K or some from the European trades. Tesla has hit the upper BMW'/s upper end hard in the Seattle and California markets. It is interesting that Mercedes CFO indicated they wanted a closer working relationship with Tesla beyond the current 2014 work. So it looks like two camps are forming....

To Pandoras promise CNN broadcast. It is clear that CO's 2 has to be reduced and there will be a push in 2016 for other options than just Solar and Wind. Iphones, Plasma TVs etc use of electricity has increased more than the savings from improved uses. Gone are the days or just more home insulation as that train left 20 years ago. Each major wind farm winds up having a gas fired generator next to it due to the fact that wind can just stop blowing a CO market will eventually come. This is important for the Electric Car has it will replace a CO gas burner. So who sells the CO2 credit from the replace vehicle to the market and what is that credit worth.

This issue of CO and credits or taxes will impact the cost of Electric Vehicles. It looks like BMW and Mercedes are covering all bets. Toyota has announces some concept electric cars but not much else as they appear to need to recover the cost for the Hybrid development costs.
Not sure from the reading where Lexus and Toyota is heading…

 

That's gotta be a typo lol

 

Tesla owner tells tale of Tennessee CarBQ incident

Sometimes cars go up in flames. It happens surprisingly often and for many different reasons. In 2011 alone, there were 187,500 vehicle fires reported in the US. It's not usually a big deal.

However, when it happens to a car from a new manufacturer, in a car that uses different technology than what we're accustomed to – especially one linked to sensational exploding cell phone and laptop stories – it gets a lot of attention. Exhibit A: the Tesla Model S that turned into a Tennessee CarBQ a couple days ago after running over "road debris" lying on the highway.

Reaction has ranged from alarm to defensiveness. Tesla stock (TSLA) continued to slide slightly downward on Friday and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is reportedly going to look into the situation, though a formal inquiry hasn't been announced. Supporters have taken to the internet to defend the safety record of electric vehicles and there is now even a "Not a Tesla" Facebook page collecting pictures of assorted vehicles in various stages of immolation.

Perhaps the most interesting and informative reaction, however, is that of the owner of the vehicle in question. Juris Shibayama was driving his Model S at 70 miles per hour when he says he came upon a three-pronged trailer hitch lying in the middle of his lane. With no time to swerve, Shibayama drove over the metal object, which harshly impacted with the bottom of his car.

In a blog entry on Tesla's website, he tells how the vehicle sensed a problem and warned that there was an issue. Shortly thereafter it advised him to safely pull over, as it was going to shut down. He was able to stop and get out of the car before smoke began to appear, but within minutes, flames had begun consuming the front end.

Interestingly, despite the fire, the door handles still responded to the key fob and extended themselves when approached, saving the firemen the trouble of prying the doors open. Shibayama notes that the damage was limited to the front of the vehicle, leaving the passenger compartment untouched.

All in all, he seems impressed with how the Model S behaved throughout the incident and we think its safe to say he's looking forward to getting a replacement. The question is, of course, would you be? Let us know in Comments.

http://green.autoblog.com/2013/11/11...-model-s-fire/

 

Elon Musk named 'Most Influential Man' of 2013

For decades, cologne makers have marketed their wares by using the term "musk" to indicate manliness, so it's only fitting that the man who topped Askmen.com's annual Most Influential Man list has that very name. Indeed, Tesla Motors chief Elon Musk has managed to snare that title, beating the 48 other worthy, though less appropriately named, contestants.

Askmen uses the opportunity of its list publication to wax poetic about Musk's foresight in developing the all-electric Tesla Roadster, followed up by the Model S sedan (Franz von Holzhausen and the other Tesla co-founders played a role in all of this, too, but that's another story). The all-electric sedan is often praised for its styling, long single-charge range and performance and has made enough of an impact for the publication to call the EV "an automotive genus unto itself," adding that "there is no person more critical to its rise than Elon Musk." Of the man himself, Askmen says, "he might actually be a superhero."

Car-b-ques aside, Musk has been receiving accolades all year. This past spring, Time magazine put Musk on its list of the world's 100 most influential people, complete with a glowing write-up from Virgin Group chief Richard Branson. Branson not only espoused Musk's work with Tesla but also with his space-exploration firm SpaceX, which competes with Branson's Virgin Galactic. Earlier this month, Tesla said it sold more than 5,500 Tesla Model S vehicles during the third quarter, up from 5,150 during the second quarter.

http://green.autoblog.com/2013/11/12...man-by-askmen/

 

LOL - let's just say i have a wide variety of friends.

 

Is Tesla's next project an F-150 competitor?

What's the future look like for Tesla after it launches the Model X CUV and possibly a smaller, sub-Model S sedan? Would you believe a pickup truck? Yes, Tesla could be looking to use its EV know-how to take the fight to Ford and the F-150, based on comments made by company founder Elon Musk.

"If you're trying to replace the most gasoline miles driven, you have to look at what people are buying," Musk said during an impromptu Q&A session following a speech at Business Insider's Ignition conference. "[The F-150 is] the best selling car in America. If people are voting that's their car, then that's the car we have to deliver."

And while the idea of electric pickup may sound kind of absurd to some, Musk makes a very valid point - if Tesla's goal is to replace gas miles with electrical miles, it simply can't afford to ignore pickups.

Still, according to CNN Money, a Tesla-badged truck is still around five years away, and even then, it will take no short amount of time for Tesla to produce even a fraction of the number of F-150s produced by Ford. More than just the production issues, though, is the finicky nature of pickup truck owners. With trucks, bigger is better, and the idea of replacing a big V8 with a battery pack and electric motor, no matter how good it actually is, may hold a limited amount of appeal.

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/11/13/t...-pickup-truck/

 

Musk says Tesla 'definitely' won't recall Model S

Since early October, three Tesla Model S sedans have caught on fire, gained viral media coverage and received intense scrutiny, but Tesla's CEO and largest shareholder, Elon Musk, says "there's definitely not going to be a recall" of the Model S, Bloomberg reports. As of late October, the National Highway Traffic Safety administration (NHTSA) says it will not be launching a formal investigation into the Model S fire in Seattle, because there's no evidence to suggest that the fire was caused by a manufacturer defect and no government-mandated safety regulations were violated.

Though the fires are alarming, one must realize that hundreds of thousands of vehicle fires occur in the US every year. Electric Teslas, like any vehicle (including those with an internal combustion engine), are not immune to catching fire in certain situations. Here's Musk's take on the issue: "[The Model S] is about five times less likely to have a fire than an average gasoline car," he reportedly said Tuesday at the New York Times' DealBook conference in New York.

The first of the aforementioned fires occurred in Seattle and started in the battery pack after the Tesla hit a piece of road debris. The second fire occurred in Merida, Mexico, after the driver, who was speeding in his Model S, reportedly struck a raised pedestrian crossing, launched into the air and then crashed into a wall and tree. The third Model S ignition occurred after the driver ran over a tow hitch in Smyrna, Tenn., and - similar to the Seattle fire - damaged the undercarriage of the car where the battery is located.

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/11/13/t...all-elon-musk/