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City of LA's electric vehicle fleet adds Tesla Model S, BMW i3

For anyone who thought that Los Angeles' efforts to turn its traffic problems green would end after a partnership with Waze, think again. The City of Angels has committed to leasing 160 battery-powered electric vehicles and 128 plug-in hybrids for its municipal fleet. A post on the LAPD blog says that the police, fire, general services, water and power departments will split the former, while the general services will also take all of the latter. Mayor Eric Garcetti says that this move puts LA closer to its goal of becoming the "most sustainable city in America." For now it has to settle for having the largest city-owned fleet of battery-powered rides. The blog post goes on to say that as part of this Sustainable City pLAn (not a typo), it also has a shiny new Tesla Model S P85D and BMW i3 for "testing and research." Hopefully that includes seeing how effective Ludicrous Mode is against fleeing perps. #LAPD: @LAPDChiefBeck speaking at the news conference on Historic Transition to Green Energy Vehicles. pic.twitter.com/n1KdFOrX8F — LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) September 11, 2015 This article by Timothy J. Seppala originally ran on Engadget, the definitive guide to this connected life. News Source: LAPDImage Credit: LAPD on Twitter Government/Legal Green Bentley Tesla Electric lapd

Tesla pushes hard against Michigan's anti-direct vehicle sales bills

While Tesla has been fighting against direct-vehicle sales bans in a number of states, the California electric vehicle company doesn't ask for help every time it finds itself in a skirmish. Last year, it did send out some ravens calling for assistance in Ohio. It has done so again to deal with a fast-moving situation in Michigan. A new bill, House Bill 5606, would not allow a vehicle manufacturer to "directly or indirectly own, operate, or control a new motor vehicle dealer." It would also prevent Tesla from opening one of its we're-not-selling-cars-here 'galleries' in the Mitten State. Local news station WSJM talked to State Representative Aric Nesbitt (who introduced the bill) and he maintains that the bill is not "anti-Tesla at all." It just clarifies other laws, he said, adding that "if Tesla wants to have a real debate on current structure and state statute, I look forward to sitting down and meet[ing] with them, but them spreading lies about my bill, that's not a constructive use of their time." Lies, eh? Tesla did call the legislation "harmful to consumers" and described the way it says the bill came about in somewhat conspiratorial terms: On the last day of the legislative session, the dealers managed to make a last-minute change to the bill in an attempt to cement their broader retail monopoly. Using a procedure that prevented legislators and the public at large from knowing what was happening or allowing debate, Senator Joe Hune added new language in an attempt to lock Tesla out of the State. Unsurprisingly, Senator Hune counts the Michigan Automobile Dealers Association as one of his top financial contributors, and his wife's firm lobbies for the dealers. A number of Michigan auto dealers are big contributors to Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, who has yet to announce if he will sign the bill. He has until Tuesday to decide. You can read the full text of Tesla's call for help below. A Raw Deal in Michigan By The Tesla Motors Team October 16, 2014 On October 1, the Michigan Automobile Dealers Association succeeded in passing a bill that is harmful to consumers. The bill, HB5606, was originally a single amendment to existing law designed to ensure that the car dealers can tack additional fees on to the purchase price for all vehicles (from any manufacturer) sold in Michigan. Such fees have a controversial history, are generally regarded with skepticism and have been the subject of consumer concern in other states.

Tesla sending free replacement wall charger adapters after garage fire [UPDATE]

Tesla Motors is about to mail off a lot of packages. The California-based electric vehicle manufacturer is going to send out replacement, upgraded wall charger adapters to customers with official Tesla charging units. The reason is a recent garage fire that involved a Tesla Model S and a company wall charger, even though fire investigators said that the car was not responsible and Tesla said the wall unit did not play a role in the blaze. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in an interview with Bloomberg today that replacement adapters will be mailed out in the next two weeks. Musk said fires and overheating adapters are "very rare events, but occasionally the wiring isn't done right. We want people to have absolute comfort, so we're going to be providing them with an upgraded adapter." The new adapter has a thermal fuse that will shut off if it gets too hot. Musk did not say why the original wall charger adapter apparently did not have a thermal fuse in the design. AutoblogGreen has asked Tesla how many adapters will be sent out and if this is a global or US-only replacement program, but as of press time, we have not received a response. We're also not sure if this will trigger a recall - the adapter is not, technically, part of the car - and hope Tesla can clarify this point soon. Tesla's first reaction to that garage fire in November was to update its charger software to automatically reduce the charge current under certain circumstances. To date, that incident in Irvine, CA is the only garage fire involving a Tesla wall charger that has been made public, but there are multiple reports of Tesla wall chargers heating up and melting, (see here, here or here), so it appears Tesla is trying to be safe rather than sorry. UPDATE: Tesla has issued a press release on this program, which is now available below. TESLA PROVIDES CUSTOMERS WITH UPGRADED CHARGING SOFTWARE AND ADAPTER FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 PALO ALTO, Calif. – A variety of factors such as corrosion, physical damage to receptacles, or inappropriate wiring or installation of electrical outlets can cause higher than normal electrical resistance when using the Universal Mobile Connector ("UMC") NEMA 14-50 adapters to charge Tesla Model S vehicles. When charging, higher than normal electrical resistance connections to external energy sources may cause excessive heating of the adapter.