Model S
Proposal to ban Tesla's direct sales model gets tabled
A state Senate committee on Thursday effectively tabled a controversial proposal to prevent Tesla Motors Inc. from selling cars in Indiana under its current business model. Sen. Jim Buck, R-Kokomo, the committee chairman, had supported a version of the bill that would have banned manufacturers from selling directly to consumers. That version of the legislation would have caused Tesla's dealer license to expire in 2018 and forced the Palo Alto, Calif.-based company to either adopt a franchise dealer model or stop selling cars in Indiana.
Tesla suing over Utah sales, says new bill has unfair limits
Tesla Motors said Monday that a new proposal to let the company sell its electric cars at a sleek Salt Lake City showroom puts unfair limits on their business and they're taking the fight to court. The bill would let people come to the $3 million showroom and buy cars, but it would force Tesla to ship each order to Utah rather than keeping an in-state car inventory, said Jim Chen, the company's vice president for regulatory affairs.
Audi tops U.S. Consumer Reports vehicle ratings as Tesla falls
Tesla's Model S electric car was named Consumer Report's best overall car in 2014 and 2015, but this year the magazine opted not to name any best overall vehicle. Jake Fisher, director of auto testing, said because of faltering reliability scores, the Model S is no longer the top ultraluxury car and ranks behind the BMW 750i xDrive, Lexus LS 460L and Audi A8 L. He said Tesla's quality problems including issues with hatches, door handles, electric motors and batteries have increased as the automaker has ramped up production.
Model X
Tesla Model X owners already claiming world records for fastest 1/8 and 1/4 mile of any SUV
Drag racing a SUV seems like an absurd idea at first, but a Model X P90D with the “Ludicrous Speed Upgrade” can accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.2 seconds, making it very competitive with a wide range of sport cars. Some owners are already claiming world records for fastest 1/8 (7.38 seconds) and 1/4 (11.61 seconds) mile of any SUV. For comparison, one of the fastest production SUV ever built, the BMW X5 M, can race 1/8 mile in about 7.9 seconds and the 1/4 mile in about 12.3 seconds.
Model 3
Tesla focusing on cutting price of cars, executive says in Houston
Tesla is sharpening its focus on lowering component costs and boosting volume, company co-founder and chief technology officer JB Straubel said during a Thursday night talk at IHS Energy CERAWeek in Houston. “We don’t really need more performance, we don’t really need much more range, we need to focus on cost,” Straubel said. Straubel didn’t give many details about the vehicle ahead of the unveiling but said it is comparable in size to an Audi A4. “I think it will surprise people with the level of features it includes,” he said.
Gigafactory
Amazing new aerial pictures of the Tesla Gigafactory suggest lots of activity at the plant
Pilot Joshua Mcdonald from Nevada Tailwheel sent us some amazing aerial shots of the Tahoe-Reno industrial center where the Tesla Gigafactory 1 is located. The pictures show a full parking lot at the plant suggesting a lot of activity inside, whether it is for construction or for the production of Tesla Energy products, which have recently started shipping out.
TSLA
Elon Musk hires Apple’s alloy expert to lead materials engineering at both Tesla and SpaceX
Musk will not be the only executive dividing his time between Tesla and SpaceX since the CEO hired Apple’s alloy expert Charles Kuehmann to lead materials engineering at both companies. Kuehmann is now Vice-President of Materials Engineering at Tesla and SpaceX, where he is responsible for delivering materials innovations, something he is very familiar with after over two decades spent in materials science.
Other News
Tesla Motors Acquires Tesla.com: We Speak With the Seller
It was recently confirmed that the domain name Tesla.com has been sold to Tesla Motors, after being owned by a Mr. Stuart Grossman of California for a very long period of time. In the past, Mr. Grossman has defended the name in a UDRP against Tesla Industries, but as of today, the domain name redirects to Tesla Motors' official website.
Promotion
Ride the Lightning: Tesla Motors Unofficial Podcast
If you listen to podcasts on your commute or run, check out Ryan McCaffrey's unofficial Tesla Motors podcast. He publishes the podcast every week and he does a great job.