2020 Tesla Model S on 2040-cars

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Battery price skeptic says Tesla's $35,000 EV won't happen [UPDATE]

UPDATE: The story's been updated to include a response from Tesla. It's a good thing Dr. Menahem Anderman doesn't run the Nevada state government. The longtime battery-technology researcher, who heads the Advanced Automotive Batteries conference, isn't buying Tesla Motors' claim that it'll get lithium-ion battery costs down to less than $100 per kilowatt hour within the next 10 years. That would be bad news, since that price will be key to the automaker's ability to make a $35,000 electric vehicle. The good doctor is instead pegging battery costs at about $167/kWh in 2025, and says they will "unlikely" drop below $200/kWh before the end of the decade. He makes a rather detailed case in his report, which can be found here (PDF). We all know how confident CEO Elon Musk has been on his company's price predictions to drop the price of a pack by "more than 30 percent." As for Anderman's estimates, Tesla is taking the high road, as company spokeswoman Alexis Georgeson, in an e-mail to AutoblogGreen, declined to comment directly on the report, choosing instead to defer to Musk's previous comments. Tesla has said its planned Gigafactory will provide the scale needed to bring battery costs down enough to make the $35,000 EV. By Anderman's estimates, the battery costs will be more commensurate to a $50,000 EV, which isn't horrible, but it's not the type of mass-market price that the industry (and Tesla stockholders, for that matter) are expecting. Earlier this month, Nevada offered an incentive package worth about $1.3 billion to Tesla, which is planning its plant near Reno. Battery-maker Panasonic is an investor in the factory as well.

There's a lot of odd, unauthorized Elon Musk gear out there

A strong personality like Elon Musk's, especially one that also happens to head some very successful companies, brings with it all kinds of perks and penalties and, well, some odd "benefits." What you're looking at above is a 12-gallon fish tank clock - called an "aqua clock" - that houses a picture of Musk, and you can get it on Zazzle for the eminently fair price of 48 British pounds ($77 US). A single Internet search turns up scads of results of Musk-associated merchandise, one of the most popular being Tesla's own apparel shop; in 2013 it was reported that the company pulls in millions just on jackets, shirts, and water bottles, and the SpaceX shop adds its own icing. A revenue stream like that is going to get some more personal company, which is why Zazzle also offers more than 100 different kinds of Musk-themed merchandise beyond that aqua clock, RedBubble has a couple of dozen offerings, Threadsquad throws in the singular "Elon Musk is my homeboy" tee and even Amazon rocks a poster page for the EV rock star. The man is also used to sell unrelated products. CosmeSys hair transplants, for example. All this for a man who needs no promotion assistance. If the Model 3 does what's promised, we're guessing it will lead to one piece of merch that is so far missing from the pile: the Mighty Musk action figure. News Source: Zazzle, RedBubble, Threadsquad, Tesla Motors Club Auto News Design/Style Green Marketing/Advertising Tesla merchandise t-shirt

Autoblog Minute: Ludacris talks Acura, Tesla, autonomous cars, and more

GRAMMY award winning artist and actor Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges sits down with Autoblog to talk about flying cars, Tesla and his 1993 Acura Legend. Autoblog's Eddie Sabatini reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute featuring an original interview with Ludacris. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] GRAMMY award winning artist and actor Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges sits down with Autoblog to talk about flying cars, Tesla, and his 1993 Acura Legend. I'm Eddie Sabatini and this is your Autoblog Minute. As Acura prepared for the 2015 SEMA show, the trade show for automotive aftermarket professionals and enthusiasts, they had a chance to take on a unique project: Restoring a damaged 1993 Acura Legend [00:00:30] owned by Ludacris. Autoblog Minute had a chance to sit down with the man himself and discuss why he's held onto this car for so long: [00:01:00] [Ludacris Interview] While we were with him we couldn't resist the chance to ask Ludacris some other questions, like: What does he think of Tesla's Ludicrous mode? [00:01:30] [Ludacris Interview] What does he think of autonomous vehicles? [Ludacris Interview] Does he have a favorite memory from when he first bought his Acura Legend? [00:02:00] [Ludacris Interview] And, if he could have any car today what would it be? [Ludacris Interview] It's always a pleasure to be able to interview a celebrity especially one that's a fellow enthusiast. [00:02:30] For Autoblog, I'm Eddie Sabatini. Autoblog Minute is a short-form video news series reporting on all things automotive. Each segment offers a quick and clear picture of what's happening in the automotive industry from the perspective of Autoblog's expert editorial staff, auto executives, and industry professionals.