Tesla S-70, page #34

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Even hardcore Tesla fans can get stranded sometimes

Driving a few laps around the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in a Tesla Model S can be quite a treat. Driving between Los Angeles and Las Vegas? Sometimes, not so much. The fine folks at Teslarati had the good fortune of taking the all-electric luxury sedan for a few spins around the racetrack near Sin City, and found that the Tesla handled "quite well" and was able to reach a top speed of 110 miles per hour on one of the straightaways. And the car turned in a best time of two minutes and 17 seconds around the 2.4-mile circuit. Still, the car started limiting its own power as early as its second lap, and by the seventh lap or so, the car brought down its power capacity to about 25 percent in order to conserve juice. The drivers were able to make do because a Tesla Supercharger fast-charging station was 11 miles away and they could get a good charge in about an hour. Less of a treat was the car's performance between Vegas and Southern California. Despite being big Tesla fans (the driver writes for Teslarati, after all), the unexpected appearance of 35-mile-per-hour headwinds and the totally expected elevation changes between Las Vegas and Barstow, CA proved particularly problematic. The driver slowed down to 40 mph and dropped the Model S' power consumption to something in the 400-500 wh/m range, but still, our intrepid explorers ran out of juice and were stranded beside the road until Tesla kindly arranged for a tow. D'oh!

Chinese Tesla Model S buyers to get free license plate... a $15k value

Tesla buyers in in Shanghai, China, are getting even more of an incentive to choose its electric sedans. Each purchase of a Model S in the city will come with a free license plate.
That might not sound very important, but Shanghai operates under a government-organized auction system to distribute plates. Last year, they were selling for as much as $15,000, according to Car News China. The measure is a way to control the number of cars on the road, which contribute to the city's bad traffic and poor air quality.
Electric cars are exempt from the auctions and get a free license plate. However, that rule only covers Chinese-made electric cars. Obviously, Tesla doesn't build cars there (at least for now). But the Shanghai government will exempt 3,000 foreign electric cars per automaker to receive free plates, according to CNC. After they are gone, the company would have to go back and ask for more.

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.

Only Four Tesla Model S Cars Ever Stolen

Tesla owners are some of the most satisfied car owners in America, and now they have one more reason to love their Model S: They basically never get stolen. In the last three years just four of the luxury electric cars have been stolen, MarketWatch reported. Three were reported stolen last year, none in 2012 and only one was stolen in 2011. It's not like they are too rare for thieves to get their hands on. At least 20,000 were sold last year alone. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says cars are stolen at an average rate of about 3.56 thefts per 1,000 vehicles produced. The Model S, however, squeaks by with a 0.15 per 1,000 theft rate, making it the least-stolen vehicle in America. The second-lowest theft rate is that of the Hyundai Tucson, with 0.40 thefts per 1,000 vehicles, according to the Highway Data Loss Institute. All that technology makes the Tesla tempting, but ultimately too difficult to steal. The Model S doesn't have any locks to pick, since the car opens and starts only when its corresponding key fob is near. Sure a thief could go to the trouble of hacking the car, but once they had it there isn't much they could do with it. Most cars are stolen and parted out in chop shops, and there simply isn't a market for additional Tesla parts. Related Gallery Tesla Model S Wins Coveted 'Car Of The Year' Awards Green Weird Car News Tesla Safety Electric stolen car

Missouri next state to attempt Tesla direct-sales ban

When Tesla Motors feels like its under attack, it is not afraid to speak out. After state lawmakers in New Jersey voted to close the electric vehicle company's stores there, the company said it was an "affront to the very concept of a free market" and CEO Elon Musk compared the situation to mafia tactics. In Ohio, when the company learned about a fast-moving challenge, it quickly asked its fans and owners for help. That same move is now taking place in Missouri, where Tesla said a "sneak attack" is happening that will "thwart due process and hurt consumer freedom in Missouri." Tesla currently has one store in Missouri, in St. Louis (and wants to open another), but new language inserted into a bill that had previously been focused on off-road vehicles "would bar Tesla from selling its vehicles direct to consumers in the state," the automaker says. That doesn't seem like an exaggeration, since the bill explicitly states: In enacting subsection 3 of this section, it is the express intent of the legislature to prevent any manufacturer of new motor vehicles from circumventing the public policy as stated in section 407.811, by engaging in methods of retailing new motor vehicles which are designed to avoid the provisions of sections 407.810 to 407.835. Tesla says the bill's new language passed the Senate last night, "after zero public consultation and could soon move to the House floor for a final vote, essentially without debate." Tesla wants to get a debate started, so it makes its point in bold terms. "To be clear: this is worse than a mere case of dealers trying to protect an existing monopoly – this is a case of dealers trying to create a monopoly," the company said. Recently, some officials at the FTC said they thought anti-direct sales rules were "protectionist," which at least hints that a possible change is coming. You can read Tesla's call to action for Missouri below. We have just become aware of a last-minute attempt by the auto dealers lobby, via pressure on legislators, to use a procedure that would bar Tesla from selling its vehicles direct to consumers in the state. This extraordinary maneuver amounts to a sneak attack to thwart due process and hurt consumer freedom in Missouri. In the last week before Missouri's legislature ends its current session, dealers proposed new language in an existing bill that would force Missouri consumers to purchase new vehicles only through middleman franchised dealers.

Bond manager has odd advice for Tesla: stop making cars

Tesla Motors said in the release of its first-quarter earnings Wednesday that it will boost its quarterly production on its Model S luxury sedan to as many as 9,000 from the approximately 7,500 it made during the first three months of the year. Bond manager Jeffrey Gundlach doesn't believe that's a good thing. Gundlach, founder of DoubleLine Capital LP, told Bloomberg News that, while Tesla is a better investment than fast-growth companies like Twitter, the automaker would improve its financial results by halting production of its vehicles and dedicating itself to making battery packs for other automakers. A spokesman for Tesla, whose shares are up almost 40 percent this year, declined to comment to Bloomberg. We'll just sit here and imagine Tesla-powered Nissan Leafs and Chevy Volts. Back in the real world, aside from its own vehicles, Tesla makes battery packs for the Toyota RAV4 EV and for some versions of the Smart Fortwo ED and the B-Class EV. Tesla and Toyota first announced their collaborative effort in 2010, which included Toyota's equity investment in Tesla as Tesla prepared to take over the old NUMMI plant in the San Francisco Bay Area. Tesla said Wednesday that it took a $49.8-million first-quarter loss. Compare that to a year-earlier net income of $11.2 million. That's despite boosting revenue 10 percent from a year earlier to $620.5 million. That's largely because Tesla's selling, general and administrative costs more than doubled from a year earlier to $117.6 million.

Tesla loses $50 million in Q1, Model X could be delayed until 2015

Maybe it's just because of our interest in the green automotive sector, but to us, Tesla Motors has got to be the most interesting and exciting company in the US to watch. We get giddy, for instance, over the release of stuff like shareholder letters and financial results, whereas when other companies announce these things, we yawn. Our feelings about today's publication of the California automaker's 2014 first quarter financial results, with accompanying letter and call with financial analysts, is no different. They contained, after all, tons of small news nuggets that help us put together a better picture of how it will move towards its overarching goal of changing the gasoline-powered paradigm. The important numbers released today are $50 million and 7,535. The first is how much the company lost (on a GAAP basis) – using the non-GAAP method that Tesla prefers, it actually saw $17 million in net income – while the second is the number of cars it produced in the first three months of this fiscal year. Though the reported earnings per share of $0.12 exceeded the expectations of many analysts, it was less than some of the more rosier forecasts, and so the stock (TSLA) is taking a beating in the after hours market and has tumbled down 14.5 percent to $186.85 as of this writing. Musk gave instructions to the China team that they "spend money as fast as they can without wasting it." Stock price aside, there is a lot to be happy about. Contrary to some recent reports, Tesla is continuing to see a rise in domestic demand – up 10 percent in the quarter – along with "significant sequential increase in worldwide net orders for Model S." China, the market that could easily become the company's biggest, is also the source of glad tidings with CEO Elon Musk saying he is "blown away" by the level of enthusiasm there. Since getting government approvals, the necessary building out of the Supercharger and Service Center infrastructure needed to support owners is going full speed ahead and Musk gave instructions to the China team that they "spend money as fast as they can without wasting it." Already there is a four-to-five month wait for cars in the country's mid-sized cities, where the work needs to happen, and that has led to some customer frustration.

Tesla abandons 'Model E' trademark

Tesla Motors has famously said it will produce and sell a more affordable all-electric car to help further its goal of changing the gasoline-powered paradigm. While there are certain things we know about that vehicle already – it will come standard with a battery capable of a 200-mile range, cost about $35,000 and be around 20 percent smaller than the Model S – there are some things we don't know. For instance, what it will be called. The automaker seemed to be leaning towards "Model E" and had trademarked that name. CEO Elon Musk even referred to the future vehicle by that appellation during a relatively recent public appearance in Europe. If you had been looking forward to the prospect of driving something called a Tesla Model E, however, you may need to adjust your expectations. During a perusal of the California company's various trademarks, we noticed that this particular one has been abandoned. While this rather sadly destroys the possibility of someone ever stocking their garage with Tesla Models S, E, and X, we welcome the decision. Although it might seem a logical choice, as the word electric begins with "E", the letter just doesn't resonate particularly well. The move also raises the possibility of a different type of nomenclature altogether. For its part, Tesla has confirmed with us that it is "no longer pursuing the Model E trademark." Name-wise, we suspect there is a good chance one has already been decided on and that it will be revealed sometime before the cloth is pulled from the first prototype early next year. Still,if you think you have a good suggestion for them, please let us know in Comments.

Even Tesla job fair gets too much attention, causes traffic jam

We know that when it comes to Tesla, every little thing has the potential to explode into the popular consciousness. Whether it's the rare fire or a good conspiracy theory, any news is good news. But we thought that this was just true on the Internet. Turns out, even the company's neighbors can't seem to get enough. Case in point: a planned day-long company job fair that had to be cancelled after just two hours. Lines were already long when the fair opened up at 8 am yesterday, according to local media. Then, things got so crazy that the Fremont Police Department had to send out two Tweets, asking people to avoid the area around Tesla's Fremont facility "due to heavy vehicle traffic." Tesla offered its own Tweeted suggestion, saying that the, "job fair is closed for today" and "We urge those who we were unable to interview to go to http://www.teslamotors.com/careers and apply online." That may be cold comfort the the people in line who didn't get a chance to apply for a new job at the electric automaker, but it does give the web one more thing to talk about when it comes to Tesla.

Amusing Tesla fan-made commercial gives Nozzie the EV blues

One thing you can say about Tesla Motors enthusiasts, they certainly seem a creative bunch of brand boosters. Since the California automaker started selling its electric vehicles, fan-made commercials have been plugging an advertising void – the company famously has yet to make a spot of its own for broadcast. Now, there's a new one. It seems that, in a world where liquid fuel is no longer as necessary as it once was, one particular gas pump nozzle has developed a bad case of the sads. In this epic production that clocks in at less than a minute-and-a-half, we ride an emotional roller coaster from lost relevance to possible redemption as "Nozzie" tries to find his/her way in this new, confusing landscape. Directed by Greg Bradley under the auspices of Ajar Pictures, the amusing ad is apparently a spec commercial, meaning that it was produced in hopes of helping those involved land a paid gig. It might work. The piece has caught Tesla's Twitter attention and we think you'll probably enjoy it also. We certainly laughed and cried, and it was better than Cats. Scroll down to see what we mean. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.