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Tesla making plans for Gigafactory in at least two states

Ever since February, when Tesla officially announced that it would build a gigafactory to make the incredible number of lithium-ion batteries it expects to need to power its electric vehicles, we thought it would be located in one of four states. Those four states – Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada – have been lobbying the automaker ever since, hoping to hear that the new, $5-billion plant and its 6,500 jobs would set up shop within its borders. Turns out, two of them might get some good news soon. "We want to minimize the risk timing for the gigafactory to get up and running" – Elon Musk CEO Elon Musk said Tesla will announce locations in "at least two" states where it could build the gigafactory, according to Bloomberg. He said, "What we're going to do is move forward with more than one state, at least two, all the way to breaking ground, just in case there's last-minute issues. The number one thing is we want to minimize the risk timing for the gigafactory to get up and running." This isn't to say that Tesla will actually build two gigafactories (at least, not yet, but Musk hinted there may come a day when the automaker will need a second one), just that it is going to make sure there is no hiccup in the supply of lower-cost battery packs for the upcoming lower-cost Tesla EV, sometimes referred to as the Model E. The gigafactory is expected to not only produce more li-ion cells than were made globally in 2013 but also to reduce the cost of the overall pack by 30 percent, setting the stage for the $35,000 Tesla EV (estimated) to appear.

Tesla pulling plug on Toyota RAV4 EV battery deal

The future of the Toyota RAV4 EV appears to be in doubt. Tesla supplies the EVs battery packs, and it says that production ends later this year.
"Toyota is expected to end the current RAV4 EV model this year," Tesla said in its quarterly financial filing obtained by Bloomberg. "Our production activities under this program are expected to end in 2014," the company said.
This timeline fits closely with the original production plans for the RAV4 EV. When the $100-million project was first announced, Tesla said that it expected to supply battery packs for the vehicle from 2012 to 2014. Building components for the Japanese automaker continues to bring in money, though. In the company's Q1 2014 letter to shareholders, it said: "Automotive revenue included $15 million of Toyota powertrain sales." According to Bloomberg, Toyota has sold just 1,594 RAV4 EV models from 2012 through April 2014. Initially, the business had estimated that it would sell 2,600 units of the electrified crossover.

Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla Model X towing drag race, Porsche 918 salvage auction

Watch an Alfa Romeo 4C drag race against a Tesla Model X towing an Alfa Romeo 4C. The ridiculous (or, perhaps more appropriately, ludicrous) race appeared in MotorTrend's Instagram, which was then shared on Facebook by Tesla Motors Autopilot Program Director Sterling Anderson, along with the comment, "Fun fact: many high-performance cars cross the quarter mile line faster when towed by a Model X than they do on their own four wheels." While we can't quite see the actual results of the drag race in the video, it appears to be a close one. Check it out in the video above, and read more from Electrek. A Porsche 918 Spyder has gone up for auction. Unfortunately, it's a salvage auction, and said performance plug-in hybrid is totally mangled. The gut-wrenching photos reveal an even sadder detail, as the car's odometer shows it only logged 92 miles before being involved in what appears to have been a terrible wreck (though the listing describes the miles as "not actual"). The current bid on the Copart auction site is up to $106,000, and the listing shows a $600,000 repair estimate. The very expensive hunk of metal and carbon fiber is located in Long Island. Check out the listing for yourself, or read more at MotorAuthority. GKN Driveline says that German drivers are more interested in plug-in hybrids (especially with all-wheel drive) than conventional hybrid cars. In a poll of more than 1,000 drivers commissioned by GKN, 75 percent preferred PHEVs to standard hybrids, while 61.2 percent said that 50 kilometers (31 miles) of electric range is enough for their daily driving duties. About 81 percent are "wary of hybrids," most believing them to be a poor value. 52 percent said their ideal car would combine a plug and all-wheel drive. "We believe that plug-in hybrids with all-wheel drive make sense," says GKN Automotive President of Engineering Peter Moelgg, "and the public's positive response to vehicle programmes that offer this combination – like the Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine, BMW i8, and Porsche 918 Spyder – can only continue to grow." Read more in the press release below. NEW RESEARCH REVEALS GERMAN DRIVERS PREFER PLUG-IN HYBRIDS Lohmar, Germany, 22 March 2016: Drivers now consider plug-in hybrid vehicles to be more attractive and practical than conventional hybrids, a survey commissioned by GKN Driveline has revealed.