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Recharge Wrap-up: Elon Musk in Reddit AMA; Honda releases annual environmental report

Elon Musk will answer questions in a Reddit AMA tonight. The "Ask Me Anything" event will begin at 9:00 pm EST, and will last one hour. Musk will answer as many reader questions as he can in the allotted amount of time. Reddit's /r/TeslaMotors board is selecting official questions from users to pose to Musk as well. If you have any aching inquiries for the CEO of Tesla and Spacex, you probably don't want to miss this. Read more at Clean Technica, or at Reddit. Powertree Services plans to build solar-powered EV charging at San Francisco apartment buildings. The group will rent parking spaces at apartment buildings and put solar panels on the roof. Tenants with EVs can pay a monthly fee to charge their cars at their own apartments and Powertree Services parking spots around town. It takes the responsibility of building and maintaining the chargers off the building owners, but provides them with some revenue from renting the space to Powertree. Read more at Treehugger. The market for environmentally friendly cars will remain strong despite cheap oil prices, according to IHS Automotive Advisory Services. James Chao, director of the company's Asia-Pacific region, says his clients are still very focused on fuel economy. IHS has predicted green car production to triple by 2020 from 2014 figures. Hyundai and Kia, who are clients of Chao, have new EVs, hybrids, plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles on the way - a seemingly "unfocused" plan that Chao defends. "Especially at times when uncertainty is dominant, it could well be referred to as being prudent," he says. Read more at The Korea Herald. Honda has released its annual North American Environmental Report. In the report, Honda notes environmental progress it has made over the last year in a number of areas. It points out the introduction of the 2014 Accord Hybrid and the FCV Concept. It enumerates reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in transportation, use of its products and even from Honda's suppliers (however, there was a 0.7 percent rise in CO2 emissions during manufacturing due to, or rather "despite a significant increase in production"). Honda is using less water, and producing less waste - only 0.8 kilograms are sent to the landfill per car manufactured. Honda also worked with SolarCity to get solar panels on 1,650 rooftops in the US. Read more on Honda's website. Marco Andretti will race in the Formula E Buenos Aires ePrix.

Governor Rick Perry backs bid for Tesla Stores in Texas

It's funny how the prospect of a $5-billion investment in a state has the ability to focus minds. Take Texas, for example. The Lone Star State has long had laws prohibiting automakers from selling directly to consumers, even if the manufacturer didn't already sell through franchise dealerships. Last year, a bill went to the legislature that would have allowed Tesla Motors to sell directly to its customers, but despite entreaties and a visit from CEO Elon Musk, lawmakers didn't pass it. Sure, Texans can still buy the a Model S, but the process is a bit cumbersome. With the prospect of an expensive battery gigafactory and the jobs it would bring, however, Texas Governor Rick Perry taken to the airwaves cable news outlet Fox Business to make his supportive position known. To be fair, the one-time Republican Presidential hopeful has been in favor of Tesla's sales model for some time. The difference now is he is being proactively vocal about it. Appearing on Opening Bell with Maria Bartiromo, Perry spent close to eight minutes pitching a new approach to dealership laws in his state, at one point referring to the traditional dealer model as "antiquated" and encouraging legislators to have an "open and thoughtful" conversation and decide whether or not they want to lead the country when it comes to manufacturing. If you think that he has become warm and fuzzy about environmental issues, Perry reminds us after a brief discussion on 2014 and 2016 elections – yes, he may run again – that he has no qualms about continuing to rely on fossil fuels, stating that he thinks the most important thing the federal government can do to impact the economy right now is to "say yes" to the Keystone XL pipeline. You can view the segment in its entirety be simply scrolling below.

Tesla adds free titanium underbody shields to Model S to prevent fires

Following a garage fire incident with a Model S EV last year, Tesla Motors quickly sent out an over-the-air software update to adjust how the car charges. Following two on-road fires caused by road debris that struck the underside of different Model S EVs (one in Washington State and the other in Tennessee), Tesla basically said, that it was a random thing, and the car is perfectly safe. The company later sent out a software update to have the car ride a bit higher at highway speeds. Today, Tesla is offering a more substantial solution. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that all Model S EVs built since March 6 have a stronger triple underbody shield that should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero." The company conducted 152 tests using, "every worst case debris impact we can think of, including hardened steel structures set in the ideal position for a piking event, essentially equivalent to driving a car at highway speed into a steel spear braced on the tarmac" and is now confident that there's basically nothing that can break through the new barriers. As you can see here, the shields prevent a concrete block, a three ball tow hitch and a steel alternator from puncturing the car's underside. The new shields should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero." Any Model S owner who wants the new triple shield can ask for it, and even if they don't ask, the structure will be installed whenever the car is next in for service. The three layers of the shield include a rounded, hollow aluminum bar, a titanium plate and "a shallow angle, solid aluminum extrusion." The new shields, "only have a 0.1 percent impact on range and don't affect ride or handling," Musk writes, which means there's no reason for Model S owners not to get the upgrade. You can read all of Musk's explanation below. Tesla Adds Titanium Underbody Shield and Aluminum Deflector Plates to Model S By Elon Musk, Chairman, Product Architect & CEO In 2013, two extremely unusual Model S collisions resulted in underbody damage that led to car fires. These incidents, unfortunately, received more national headlines than the other 200,000 gasoline car fires that happened last year in North America alone. In both cases, the occupants walked away unharmed, thanks to the car's safety features. The onboard computer warned the occupants to exit the vehicles, which they did well before any fire was noticeable.