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AAA says Tesla Model S is the best green car available

AAA has released its 2014 Green Car Guide (PDF), a 140-page document that discusses what it means to be green, how to be a greener driver, how to shop for green cars, what choices are available and what green cars are on the horizon. Most importantly, the guide evaluates and ranks 83 different green vehicles, from high-mileage gasoline vehicles to battery electric cars, and everything in between. This year's king of green vehicles, according to AAA, is the Tesla Model S. Despite some interpreting this to mean that AAA is calling the Tesla Model S (with 85-kWh battery) the greenest car, the scoring system only includes two "green" categories out of the 13 evaluated: emissions and fuel economy; the Tesla earns 10 out of 10 in both, but so do every other EV on the list. The other categories include braking, crashworthiness, visibility, slalom handling, ride quality, interior noise, acceleration, ease of entry and exit, interior size, turning circle and luggage capacity. The Model S scored very well (more than 7 out of 10 points) in every category except the last four mentioned. So, this isn't about whether the Tesla is the greenest of the lot. Instead, it's about the AAA deeming it the best all-around car of the green bunch. The best green car value is the gasoline-powered Chevrolet Spark 1LT at $229 per point. AAA also calculates the cost per point for the 83 cars tested. The best green car value, according to this evaluation, is the gasoline-powered Chevrolet Spark 1LT at $229 per point. The Tesla Model S is in the bottom five, at $953 per point. So while the Tesla might be AAA's best green car, those points don't come cheap. In terms of the greenest car available, there are other evaluations out there. For instance, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released its own list earlier this year, using broader methods for evaluating what makes a car green, including emissions, fuel economy, curb weight and battery weight (the latter two are used to inform environmental impact of production and disposal). Their top three green cars are the Smart Fortwo Electric Drive, Toyota Prius C and Nissan Leaf. The Tesla Model S isn't even in the top 10. Oh, and let's not forget Green Car Journal's Green Car Of The Year, the Honda Accord. Still, which car would you rather drive every day?

Analyst predicts GM will buy Tesla in 2014

There's little question that Tesla has come at the automotive industry as an outsider. But will it last as an outsider for much longer? Not if you ask Yra Harris of Praxis Trading. According to USA Today, the veteran financial analyst recently predicted on CNBC that General Motors will try to buy Tesla in 2014.
It certainly wouldn't be the first time that GM acquired another automaker. It did just that when it purchased the rights to the Hummer brand from AM General in 1999 and completed its takeover of Saab the year after. But, of course, The General has since divested from both, shutting down its Pontiac and Saturn brands in the process. Daewoo and Oldsmobile are gone too, as is Geo. Chevrolet is to be withdrawn from Europe, and over the past few years, GM has sold its minority stake in Isuzu, Subaru, Suzuki and PSA Peugeot-Citroën as well.
Of course, none of these are dedicated electric carmakers like Tesla is, and the Volt may not be doing as well as Detroit had initially hoped. But does that mean it's ready to start expanding its brand portfolio again? With all due respect to Mr. Harris, somehow we doubt it - especially with Tesla currently enjoying sky-high market valuation. The company's market capitalization stands at over $18 billion - more than 100-plus times its earnings. That would make mounting a Tesla takeover a hugely risky and costly endeavor unless Wall Street tempers its stock value greatly.

Tesla talking about first European factory, but it won't happen soon

Tesla Motors is, as always, thinking big. The company already has a factory in California with a lot of empty space. But with Model S deliveries happening in Europe and a right-hand drive version just launched in the UK, CEO Elon Musk is already talking about building EVs in Europe. We did some math and let's just say we think any such facility is likely a long way off. The California-based company plans on eventually building a factory in Europe, Automotive News Europe says, citing an interview with Musk. But Musk says Tesla would have to sell 160,000 vehicles a year in Europe to justify such a factory. Musk sees that many sales as a given, eventually, and is planning on building an R&D center in the UK within the next two years while expanding its assembly factory in the Netherlands. "It will take Tesla a bit longer to ramp up in Western Europe than in the US" – Ed Kim But just how long might it take to get to that 160,000 figure across the Pond? Well, through the first four months of the year, Tesla sold 3,467 units of its Model S electric sedans in Europe, Automotive News says, citing research firm JATO Dynamics. Extrapolating from Tesla's first-quarter 2014 delivery numbers (the company doesn't publish monthly sales totals), Tesla sold about 8,600 Model S sedans worldwide through April. Even if Tesla speeds things up in Europe this year and approaches, say, 15,000 units, that's still less than 10 percent of Musk's goal. Even with new models, 15,000 is a long way from 160,000, and it appears that Tesla will grow slower in Europe than it has in the US. "It will take Tesla a bit longer to ramp up in Western Europe than in the US," Ed Kim, vice president of industry analysis at AutoPacific, told AutoblogGreen. "This is partially due to infrastructure issues. In the US, most potential Tesla customers live in detached single family homes, making installation of a personal charging infrastructure at home a snap. In Western Europe, many potential customers – even affluent ones – live in communal living situations like condos and apartments. And even having assigned parking does not guarantee that they would be able to install chargers there." Earlier this year, Tesla dropped the prices of its Model S in Europe because of the strengthening of the Euro. The company initially priced the Model S in the UK at almost $20,000 above the US base price.