Tesla to start production in Hawthorne, CA

dd74 · 03-27-2009, 12:51 AM

Okay, so they already laid off 25 percent of their workforce. They still plan to build 20,000 cars a year. We shall see...

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/03/26/tesla.new.sedan/index.html

berettafan · 03-27-2009, 04:22 AM

20,000 per year huh? sales pitch to Congress looking for their tech to be chosen as 'the answer'. if they do end up building that many it will be thanks to our tax dollars subsidizing them in some form. not cool because this is sooooo not the answer.

people in the hydrogen fuel industries need to get the ball rolling so we don't get stuck with this nonsense.

everywhere we turn we are being asked to CONSERVE ELECTRICITY. this 'solution' to gas engines makes absolutely no sense at all. THE AVAILABILITY OF ELECTRICITY IS NOT A GIMMEE.

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

We'll see how they feel first time one gets wrecked and spills toxic battery chemicals all over their precious roads.

lendaddy · 03-27-2009, 08:10 AM

This is so silly. The owners will soak up the investment and grant money then leave a shell.

kaisen · 03-27-2009, 08:13 AM

I don't think they plan to make 20K units/yr right out of the gates. Still, building a new facility capable of that volume (55 each day)? Dumb idea, especially in California.

Here's a stupid statement from the article:

"The company faces many challenges, the foremost of which is convincing consumers to pay almost $50,000 for an all-electric sedan when they could pay thousands less for another brand of upmarket sedan or a gas-electric hybrid."

That's like saying, "BMW will have trouble selling 3 series for $35K when a similarly sized Hyundai Sonata is thousands less." Apples and oranges, to say the least.

I'm impressed with the Tesla S, even moreso at their projected price. However, I would take any bet that it won't all go as planned.

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

I should buy a black one just to see whether I'm embraced or villified by Kalifornia lawmakers.

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

I should buy a black one just to see whether I'm embraced or villified by Kalifornia lawmakers.

Only if they make a wagon

dd74 · 03-27-2009, 08:51 AM

Local news has profiled the Tesla-Elise lookalike a few times, and have essentially said it is the "green" Ferrari of our day (or Lotus Elise of our day - your pick).

I've seen similar Tesla-Elise types on Coldwater Canyon, through the sweepers on Sepulveda and on Mulholland, and yep, the car is very fast and handles very well - at least on those streets.

Would I still rather own a true Elise? At mid-$20K on the used market, without question I would. Besides which, the little Toyota four-cylinder engine in the Elise can't be that environmentally/economically unfriendly.

berettafan · 03-27-2009, 10:29 AM

Top Gear ran that car recently. Did NOT look like fun. You could see the weight transfer in the corners and it was not pretty at all. Nothing smooth about it.

TGTIW · 03-27-2009, 10:54 AM

So we trade "big oil" for the electric company.

Brilliant.

gostraight · gostraight's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by dd74

Local news has profiled the Tesla-Elise lookalike a few times, and have essentially said it is the "green" Ferrari of our day (or Lotus Elise of our day - your pick).

I've seen similar Tesla-Elise types on Coldwater Canyon, through the sweepers on Sepulveda and on Mulholland, and yep, the car is very fast and handles very well - at least on those streets.

Would I still rather own a true Elise? At mid-$20K on the used market, without question I would. Besides which, the little Toyota four-cylinder engine in the Elise can't be that environmentally/economically unfriendly.

if the car you saw was silver or red there's a good chance that was me. The car is wicked fast and for it's weight handles exceptionally well

gostraight · gostraight's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by berettafan

Top Gear ran that car recently. Did NOT look like fun. You could see the weight transfer in the corners and it was not pretty at all. Nothing smooth about it.

I drove the car for several hundred miles and I think the exact opposite! Lfot another pelicanite has a little experience with it too and will agree with me. I'm a big petrol head and was very skeptical when I first read about it. The first 20 minutes with the roadster on Mulholland turned me into a believer...just sain

The Top Gear episode is one of the most controversial one. They implied that the car run out of gas when in fact it didn't. Later, they claimed that they only wanted to show what would happen in case they run out of juice....anyway, It's beyond obvious to anybody in the field that Top Gear DOES have an agenda, and according to their spokesperson their opinions should not be taken as professional opinions but rather be looked at as an entertainment.

dd74 · 03-28-2009, 12:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gostraight

if the car you saw was silver or red there's a good chance that was me. The car is wicked fast and for it's weight handles exceptionally well

It was silver. Is it yours? How long does the charge last?

gostraight · gostraight's Garage

yeah...that was me. That particular car is an early prototype with an early battery and the carge is only about 150 miles, the Red car that is been flying around Mulholland is the 1.5 one (current model) and gives you an honest 240 miles.

Noah930 · Noah930's Garage

Any midnight test drives planned, Radu? Strictly for R&D purposes, of course.

gostraight · gostraight's Garage

been there, done that, doing it again...

grudk · 03-28-2009, 06:30 AM

Jay Leno does a nice little review of the roadster on his website

http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/

It's easy to dismiss these cars, but you have to start somewhere guys. And this is pretty impressive for a 'first go' at an eco sportscar. Didn't see 'Top Gear' (I think they are juvenile wankers, quite frankly), but UK's 'CAR' magazine gave the roadster a BIG thumbs up. And they are normally very critical of anything American.

50K is still pricey for the sedan in terms of mass popularity, but I think they'll sell quite well if they deliver most of what they promise. I will certainly consider one, although probably not a 'first generation' model.

berettafan · 03-28-2009, 07:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grudk

It's easy to dismiss these cars, but you have to start somewhere guys.

The danger as i see it is that a lesser technology (which i believe electric cars are) will get too much of the finite amount of $$ available for development and infrastructure and a better technology (which i strongly suspect Hydrogen cars are) will flounder and be at best delayed and at worst die prematurely.

It doesn't get talked about much but the truth is we do NOT have access to unlimited electricity and state and local gov'ts are doing all they can to REDUCE consumption.

grudk · 03-28-2009, 07:07 AM

Hydrogen may prove better but practical use still seems a way off. Electric is here now, and may prove useful when (not if) oil prices go back up.

'The enemy of good is better'

How long do you want to wait?

berettafan · 03-28-2009, 07:45 AM

Well i'm not sure electric IS here now. I doubt we have the capacity to charge a large number of 'plug in' cars.

By way of example if a number of residents in my town started running such technology it would impact EVERYONE's utility bills. We just negotiated a power agreement and one of the major parts of the contract was a max. power available and punitive pricing above such. Electricity isn't something that gets cheaper as you use more. In fact it gets more expensive.