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Today we introduce a new evolution of the Tesla Motors corporate blog. As you can see, we have now gone from one blog to four “channels.” In addition, we will move away from posting predictably every Wednesday (well, almost) to a more fluid schedule. You might also see some more variation between blogs that are in-depth and others that are “lighter” and more topical.
When I joined Tesla Motors, I recognized that one of the most outstanding aspects of the company’s communications was the corporate blog. I had never seen a corporate blog that was so informative, interesting, transparent, and entertaining. I had also never seen such a high level of engaged readers, evidenced by the numerous insightful comments.
One of the reasons for this is that there are so many exciting things going on at Tesla Motors. We are building a beautiful, high performance electric car with zero emissions. Beyond that, we are building a brand new American car company. The technology challenges are formidable, and the solutions our engineers are developing are laudable. The business challenges are no less formidable, from developing innovative manufacturing approaches to establishing sales and service infrastructure. Whether it is Martin or JB talking about battery technology or power electronics, Mac talking about development of the Tesla Roadster, or Ron talking about preparing for WhiteStar, you can read about the cutting edge right here on our website.
The context of this company is also interesting. If you open the newspapers today you are bound to read about topics that are directly related to what we are doing at Tesla Motors. Global warming is now acknowledged as a problem in the mainstream, and more and more people realize something needs to be done now. The war in Iraq makes us question our dependence on foreign oil and whether there are alternatives for our country. Ford, General Motors and Chrysler are working through the turmoil of structural change in the auto industry, and foreign companies are poised to take the lead in an industry that has always been dominated by America, since the beginning of the last century. As I’ve written here before, we are making history every day, and this blog is chronicling our journey.
But the main reason the corporate blog is so effective is because of you, our readers. The dialogue that exists through this blog, whether you are a fan of the company or a skeptic of EVs, is a case study for how companies can build brand and benefit from a transparent dialogue with the public. Mac’s blog on the Validation Prototype milestone is vastly more effective at communicating the company’s progress than a cautiously worded press release designed to be cut and pasted all over the place. Ron’s piece on site selection for WhiteStar gives you the inside line on our preparations for our next generation car. You can hear directly from Martin to understand what he is thinking as he leads the company through revolutionary times.
The word of mouth and network effects generated by this dialogue and people linking to the blog are very powerful communications and branding tools. The blog is also an effective tool for Tesla Motors to help shape the debate as consumer perspectives on automotive transportation are forming. We believe passionately in what we are doing here, and this blog is a great way to communicate it.
In fact, we have more to say than can be accommodated in the previous format. We want to talk more about a broader set of issues. We want you to hear more of Martin’s perspectives without delaying new information on the cars. We want to go deeper on technology, design, and manufacturing than we have before. We want to start talking more about the evolving industry and marketplace as well as our strategy. Finally, we want to hear from more of our customers and other key influential people on topics related to Tesla Motors.
To make room for these new voices and topics, we expanded the blog into four channels. We labeled the channels with metaphors for the essence of each particular blog. Martin’s blog, labeled “Think,” will enable the reader to get inside the head of the leader of the company as he steers it through these interesting times. The “Touch” blog will deal with the tangible aspects of the company related to the design, engineering, and manufacture of the cars. The “Feel” blog will add a new dimension to the dialogue and will encompass issues of marketing strategy, the Tesla Motors brand, the evolving competitive landscape, and the customer experience. The “Hear” blog will let you hear from a broader range of voices, inside and outside of Tesla Motors, on various related topics.
I’m looking forward to the discussion!
I think the “hear” blog has great potential re. “influential thinkers” part-chance to go “off Tesla topic” and talk about related larger things.
I’d like to hear from Elon Musk on “hear” blog (”other influential thinker” )- what’s he think re. Mars? -and what’s up with Mars having molten core but no magnetic field?-and what’s his timeframe for Mars? -and does Elon have any other plans? Going “off topic” once in a while is all o.k.-Tesla, Mars, whatever -it’s all about the future.
After coming across your website and spending many minutes reading through your information, it has occurred to me with great clarity….The Tesla motors corporation is going to be one of the most incredible success stories of the new millenium!!
I kept finding myself repeating OMG, OMG!! You have a great product! You have the clarity, flexibility and lean-ness to make this happen. I mean REALLY make it happen!!!!!!!
This is happening at the right time in history. The technology is on your side in countless aspects. I see others in the blog have been on the journey for awhile. Count me in. I am in awe…..and VERY grateful.
Can we get one RSS feed that covers all four channels for those of use who want to read it all?
All of us waiting anxiously for Tesla’s development very much want exactly the type of information you are planning to provide in the “four channels.” This is an excellent development that will allow us, your future customers, to stay up to date and in communication with you. Great idea guys and keep the info flowing.
I’m not sure I’m a fan of this new touchy-feely “touch, feel, etc” arrangement. Where’s the “smell” section? :^)
Thanks, Darryl and Tesla Motors, for recognizing that a modern car company needs to abandon the secretive, ‘we have all the answers’ attitudes of the giant corporations of the last century. Have you read Wikinomics by Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams yet?
Darryl,
As a business major and car enthusiast/environmental activist, it’s great to see Tesla break the mold, not only with vehicle design, but also with a corporate culture that promotes active communication with potential customers and the general public. As the company grows, I really hope you all continue to think and act with your current openness.
How is this new blog naming actually better? Now I have to get four RSS feeds, not to mention the fact that the new names are pretty stupid. When is the scratch and sniff blog coming? This blog (blogs) has just got very corporate. Who cares about your marketing? Bring back engineering!
Don.
This company is coming at the right time in history!!!! All of you are true PATRIOTS!!!!!!
Let the revolution begin!!!!!!
A final note on mars (”in honor of Elon Musk”): planet lost magnetosphere 4 billion yrs. ago, until then had higher atmosphereic pressure & liquid water (sez wikipedia). Solar wind blew atmosphere /water away. Venus about size of earth with huge atmosphereic pressure, so guess gravity is only part of atmosphere equation. Interesting that Venus & Mars both have atmosphere mainly of c02. With earth atmosphere, Venus would have above same temperatures as earth (accoding to wikipedia)- lousy co2 causing trouble again!
I continue being blown away by Tesla Motors. The whole car industry is a century behind, still in 20th century. You are defining how a 21st century car company should look like. Looking forward to owning a Tesla one day.
Is it possible to upgrade blog search with comment search? An optional checkbox maybe?
Great new look! Thank you for tidying the sock drawer
It was becoming harder to find particular comments and this new four-way filing system is definitely a step in the right direction. The “Recent Posts” lists now reflect stronger themes. Hopefully the new FAQs will catch most of the weekly Altair/EESTOR questions.
Above all, the tidy-up demonstrates your continuing commitment to being as open and communicative as possible. Much appreciated.
Can I request a blog-entry (see, I’m learning new terminology) from someone at Lotus? How does assembling the Roadster differ from assembling a conventional low-volume sports car? Is the ESS pre-charged to 5% before assembly or after, or does it remain uncharged until the car reaches the States? - OK I’ll come clean - I didn’t get a change to see the Roadster yesterday in Norwich UK and talk to Lotus direct
P.s. Give the Editor a raise
As I first started reading your post and you talked about making the schedule more “fluid”, I was thinking ‘uh oh’, he means fewer blog posts. Then you started talking about how much the engineering and business sides of the company were having to do, and I thought ‘uh oh’, he means everyone is getting too busy to keep posting to the blog. When you talked about opening a newspaper and seeing articles directly related to what Tesla Motors is doing, I thought ‘uh oh’, he’s going to tell us that is where we will be getting our future information from. I was about ready to write to Tesla Motors and tell them they made a mistake hiring their current VP of Marketing. The rest of the article eased my fears… somewhat. Hopefully, having the four channels will mean we get at least four times as many posts and/or at least four times as often. If my initial suspicions were not too far off and some of the past contributors are getting “too busy” to write their own blogs, maybe you could hire a recent journalism graduate who is also an EV enthusiast and have him/her do internal interviews and write the blog entries for them (and have the interviewee proof-read it before publication for accuracy).
I like the new format. Keep the posts coming.
Mr. Siry, Nice setup! I appreciate the effort to get us more information. I would hope that as we get closer to delivery of the first production vehicle we would see posts reveling more details on some of the key concerns I have seen in previous posts such as crash test results, ESS testing and validation, changes between EP, VP and production vehicles, reservation count and updates on the progress of the Whitestar and the plant in New Mexico.
BTW, I think your responses to Mr. Fargo were well handled and thought out.
Just a thought on Trade-Ins. Once Tesla is up and running with dealerships spread across the country and you do start to accept trade-ins, Tesla (or a shop) should convert them all to EV’s before reselling. I know the logistics would be a nightmare and the costs enormous with all the different vehicle types, but it would be one less gas guzzler on the road each time.
[Doug @ Stanford wrote on March 28th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
I’m not sure I’m a fan of this new touchy-feely “touch, feel, etc” arrangement. Where’s the “smell” section? :^)]
LOL! That would be if they were creating a hybrid.
Nice job guys–this gets more interesting all the time!
Daryl -
Moderately disapointed in the new “feel”. I guess it does make it a bit easier for newbies to find the info that they are looking for, but for those of us who keep up-to-date regularly it makes the stream of info a mess. I wonder if you can’t get an “experts” blog which strings everything together…?
Thanks for the immediate feedback. I imagined that there would be various reactions to the new format. let me address some of the comments:
Dale, we definitely want to communicate more and on a broader series of topics - this format actually enables that. the hard part, as you pointed out, is maintaining the quality and frequency of posts when we are all busy building a car company. We’ll do our best. Writing to suggest that Tesla made a mistake in hiring me would be such an interesting example of transparency that it would be blogworthy in and of itself. Think of a world where executives are not beholden to shareholders but rather the blogosphere (hmmm…maybe we are already there and don’t know it)
To Don, who said, “Who cares about your marketing? Bring back engineering!” - the reason I went to four channels is so that I can expand to new topics that might be of interest to others (like how we are going to design the Tesla Customer Centers or how we will compete in the marketplace) while allowing folks like you who are more interested in engineering topics to stay focused on that thread. Now, my marketing oriented posts won’t crowd out the engineering posts. Everybody is happy! The tension between interests in marketing and engineering is nothing new so this allows both to coexist nicely.
As far as a master RSS feed, it’s a good idea and I’ll look into it.
Last - I’d love to hear everyone’s ideas for the future blogs they would like to see on any of the topics. Can’t promise that we’ll follow up on all of them but it can’t hurt to ask.
How about together with “feel”, “touch” and “hear”, add “taste”? Perhaps something coming from a woman’s point of view instead of all of the testosterone that seems to pervade here? Just a thought, that is all.
I like the revised format, and it will give more areas for people new to Tesla to explore.
Daryl - Perfect example right now…
I have a post that’s in refference to batteries, by all reason it should go in your “think” section of the blog, but no one has posted there since mid-February - nobody reads that.
Practical suggestion - I’ve seen this elsewhere - on the “blog overview” page put a “last updated” date so that we know whether there is anything new there, this way people will look at the sections that are not newly posted.
BTW - who is this editor guy anyway? More importantly, if I second that raise suggestion does it make my postings get moderated faster?
—-
Editor’s Answer: There is a clue in an earlier blog. She’s a girl
Blog idea:
I’d like to see one on the Tesla Business model. Martin is always saying that the company is designed to make money, yet, one of the larger stated reasons that big auto does not want to build EVs is fixing ICEs and selling parts. You are (supposedly) bucking planned obsolescence. Will the Service Centers be staffed with retired Maytag repair men? How can you do it?
(Yeah I know, Volume!)
Seriously though, we want to see you make it and it would be comforting to know you’ve got it all figured out.
David wrote:
Practical suggestion - I’ve seen this elsewhere - on the “blog overview” page put a “last updated” date so that we know whether there is anything new there, this way people will look at the sections that are not newly posted.
I second and third this. The Tesla Motors Club (no relation) teslamotorsclub.com/forum/index.php forum has this. Its GREAT!
You could put the “last update” notice on each one of the four catagories.
The new blog categories look useful. I look forward to seeing new content in each of them. I do have practical consideration to bring up, though: in implementing the new format you have made it harder to review the archives and search past entries.
When I found this site a week ago, I was so interested in what Tesla is doing that I went back and read all the past blog entries. This was easy to do because at that time I could browse to all of each months entries from one page. Now each category allows browsing (and searches) only the blog entries in that category. Can you add back a page that will allow browsing and searching all the entries, regardless of category?
Blog formatting idea:
Over in the “Hear” blog the subject line is “The EV Experience.” At first blush that title would seen more like a “Feel” blog caption.
Solution:
On the Blog tab rollover and/ at the top of each channel (category) blog page, put your metaphor definitions for each page. You have defined them once and it will soon be lost. It should be clear all the time:
You might start with your (edited) descriptions below.
“Think” Get inside the head of Martin Eberhard Tesla CEO.
“Touch” Aspects of Design, engineering, and manufacture of Tesla cars.
“Feel” The Tesla Motors brand, marketing strategy, the evolving competitive landscape, and the Tesla customer experience.
“Hear” Voices, inside and outside of Tesla Motors, on various related topics.
Over the last few weeks I’ve been mulling over a suggestion to make to the designers of the Whitestar project. I think it might be a strong marketing development to hold a specific blog on what features customers would like to see in the sedan. After several weeks the blog can be consolidated from the many suggestions in to a survey to determine what the most desired features would be from your pool of potential customers. In this way you’ll be able to involve a larger test group than in a traditional market sample with nominal expense, as well as give us bloggers something else to debate here.
Lisa - how could I forget!
OK - I’m going to be a bit daring and post in the “Think” blog… This will likely be the longest single post in Tesla Blogging history (sorry Lisa). As a matter of fact, I think it is long enough to go under a title of its own. It could be placed under a title like “conjecture” or “wild speculation” or maybe even just “maybe”. Anyway, check it out it’s under “Think” for now.
[craig wrote on March 29th, 2007 at 4:44 pm]
“I think it might be a strong marketing development to hold a specific blog on what features customers would like to see in the sedan.”
Craig, I totally agree. Allowing potential future customers to have some input on WhiteStar features and options would provide Tesla engineers and designers with a different perspective.
Would it also be possible for Tesla to publish the results of a survey done several months ago?
Thought on Venus & Mars (real thing, not the McCartney album): one day a long, long time from now (but one day nonetheless) we will find a way to blow the co2 out of the Venus atmosphere & do the other things it takes-so that both Mars & Venus will be inhabited-we’ll have a three living planet solar system. You’ll look up in the night sky and those reddish & bluish points of light will be new earths: habitats/vacation destinations-thousands of years from now (maybe less for Mars?), but humans have got plenty of time (hopefully) -and more on the way.
I would like to see a post from Elon Musk talking about where he sees himself, and society in say 20-30 years. He is a paradigm shifter (Paypal, Tesla, Space X, Mars Society, Xprize…), and to get inside his head would be an excellent read.
I was hoping the Tesla store would be available with the website upgrade. Any idea when it will be ready?
—-
Editor’s Vague Answer: The store will be here soon.
I love the blog ideas - keep them coming. What about ideas for engineering and technology topics?
Darryl, you asked for ideas on future posts. Here is another. Since the word is out that the OS for the Roadster is Linux based. An article on the computer system and it’s various capabilities and interfaces (internal and external) would be nice. And maybe some screenshots of the VDS displays.
Darryl, Another thought. I believe I read somewhere that the ESS has somewhere on the order of 35 microprocessors to control charge/discharge, monitor charge level and other safety aspects. I understand that the ESS is a big part of what makes the Roadster possible and that many of the technical details of the ESS are still proprietary and probably Patent pending. But it would be nice to get into the heads of the engineers to see what kind of hurdles they had to overcome to put this complex network of processors together and how they planned for future developments in battery technology.
Darryl wrote
# I love the blog ideas - keep them coming. What about ideas for engineering
# and technology topics?
The VDS-entials - key features, degree of user-customisation available, possible integration of Sat Nav / range vs speed display / cruise control settings to show / maximise range.
Making a Difference - The Roadster has a few surprises for Sports car drivers - no clutch, only 2 gears. How about the Sports car manufacturer? How does assembling the Roadster differ from assembling a conventional low-volume sports car?
The Barney Hatt interview.
Ride and Handling - what are the key ingredients / compromises needed?
Attention to Detail - the story of changes to one Roadster component, from design, through EP,VP and production
Squirrel Cage - the development of the AC induction motor.
Control Theory - Why use rotation sensors on the motor when you could be sensorless? And what is Angle of Slip anyway?
Regeneration - charging batteries on the move.
Power to the People - the ins and outs (and limits) of charging at home and away.
Better Batteries - Tesla’s view on developments in the last year
Cell Theory - how do batteries work and how do you get the chemistry right for energy density, power density, calendar life and production volume.
Whitestar Rising - mapping the engineering challenges ahead.
New White Papers - The latest version of Adobe Acrobat 3D accepts 3D CAD models from a number of CAD programs (SolidWorks included) and exports them as part of PDF files. See….
www.adobe.com/products/acrobat3d/pdfs/a3d_brake_disassembly.pdf
…for an example. (You may need to upgrade your Reader). This presents all sorts of possibilities for marketing materials.
Oh and…….FMVSS for Dummies
Blog idea:
The Drivers Experience.
There are many professional drivers putting the Roadster through its paces. On tracks, on torture runs, and across ice. This car is unique and the drive system alone must make for a very different perspective for veterans of the test circuits. Driving a standard Lotus 50,000 miles day and night must be different from the Roadster. If they can’t or don’t want to write then do it interview stye.
Don’t be shy about the sharing bad with the good.
# Darryl wrote on March 30th, 2007 at 9:16 am
## I love the blog ideas - keep them coming. What about ideas for engineering and technology topics?
Much more info on charging strategies. See my post in the Think blog March 29th, 2007 at 11:16 pm
I second Brandon’s Musk (e)motion! I would also like to see a fifth blog: where posters can hammer this country/world on where we’re being stupid halibutheads re. the environment / energy / etc.
This stuff looks great. I am so proud to learn that American ingenuity will be a source for ethical change in the world.
When Tesla cars become affordable for the likes of me, a soon to be college graduate, I hope to purchase one that is around $20,000. I hope I can choose from models with names like ‘Tesla Zip’ and ‘Tesla Spark’ or ‘Tesla Static’ (the static should be some hot little 2 seater model convertible). Just don’t name any models ‘Tesla Volt’…that is going too far.
Keep up the great work and I can’t wait to see some on the road.
Robert Horning wrote
# How about together with “feel”, “touch” and “hear”, add “taste”? Perhaps
# something coming from a woman’s point of view instead of all of the
# testosterone that seems to pervade here?
Good point Robert. But I’d like to see a “Think” entry on this one. I’m sure that there are many more women who read this site than post on it. Are EVs starting to level the demographic across the sexes? How does a company respond to that beyond simplistic styling assumptions? Maybe this should be written by Carolyn Eberhard.
Ooooo, one for “Feel”….
“Building an Online Shop”
Possible topic: details on the amenities in the car. A while back I asked for details about the iPod integration, but haven’t heard anything. I’d rather have a simple audio-in jack than one of the changer intereace gizmos that can only access the first six play lists. Even if something better is planned that can access the entire iPod, it would still be nice to also have a simple audio in that will work with any device that supports a headphone, whether it’s a new iPod with a different interface, or some other MP3 player, or some new gizmo that comes out after the Tesla is built.
You forgot one Jon S.- don’t name it Tesla CLE either-though maybe name a later offroad Tesla that.
“Service with an EV-grin” (life as a Tesla service mechanic and what it takes to become one — “service with a smile” isn’t enough, anymore!)
By the way, dear Editor, we need a “smiley icon” that actually IS an EV-grin … perhaps a contest to design one…?
The inclusion of your online shop will be just awesome. I can’t wait to buy buy buy. Plus it should help all the loyal fans here better put the message out about this great company. Cheers. ; )
Can you believe that GM has given the best name for an EV “Ion” to a saturn ICE car that is not even a hybrid
I certainly hope Tesla is planning on competing in the Automotive X-Prize. auto.xprize.org/xprize/
Just an update on the White Star plant. I drove by the site again this weekend. From what I can tell, the ground has not been broken yet. Perhaps Tesla could give us a specific date for the ground breaking ceremony (I’d love to be there). I know the press release said no later than April. There is another facility just south of the Tempurpedic factory that has taken form. It is a Shamrock Foods distribution center I believe. This leads me to believe the Tesla site will be north of Tempurpedic.
There is a small airport a few miles north of the site. In my perfect (optomistic) future I can see myself commuting to the White Star plant from a small airport near my home in my Tesla inspired Li-Ion powered electric plane, and jumping on my Telsa inspired Li-Ion powered electric motorcycle for the short drive south.
Not listed yet?
www.altcarexpo.com/exhibitors.html
The Automotive xPrize has finally released thier qualifying data. Entrants have ONLY 2 years to produce a prototype capabable of racing. Their marketing plan must include projections for 10,000 vehicles per year. Since it takes a lot of time and effort to produce a running prototype I expect that most entrants will already be in the process of planning and marketing. Is Tesla expecting to be able to produce 10,000 Roadsters per year? Will the market demand be high enough? If so Tesla is in the best position to win the 2 seat class. Tesla should be a shoe-in to win the 4 seat class with the Whitestar.
Looks like the Mainstream Class for the Auto X Prize is nicely in the Whitestar ballpark:-
auto.xprize.org/downloads/AXP_Draft_Competition_Guidelines_20070402.pdf
The Roadster could be entered for the Alternative Class. Hilarious if you won both
#Not listed yet?
#www.altcarexpo.com/exhibitors.html
This show happened last December. Tesla Motors was not there. However, the company appeared at the L.A. Auto show, which was going on around the same time.
On a broader point, I wonder whether Tesla will minimize its future exposure at events like AltCar. One of Darryl Siry’s recent blog entries made the point that the company wants to be compared to manufacturers such as Toyota and Nissan, rather than the manufacturers who typically go to AltCar. In light of this goal, it would make sense for Tesla to focus its energies on “real” auto shows, and leave AltCar to the makers of electric bicycles and personal transporters.
#Tesla should be a shoe-in to win the 4 seat class with the Whitestar.
#Looks like the Mainstream Class for the Auto X Prize is nicely in the Whitestar ballpark:-
Martin Eberhard was involved in the July 2006 brainstorming session (p. 33). One might expect that the final prize requirements reflect some of his concerns and goals…
Elon Musk is a trustee on the X-prize board. Would that be a conflict of interest or just clever advertising when they win?
# JoeG wrote on April 2nd, “Can you believe that GM has given the best
name for an EV “Ion” to a saturn ICE car that is not even a hybrid”
That’s nothing, Back when I was young, GM had the “Buick Electra” that was anything but electric!
Brandon forgot to mention the huge, spectacular grassland mesa right across the road to the east of the Tesla Albuquerque plant site. The state should turn that into parkland-it’s way too nice- like Albuqu. in the ’50’s. The view from a Tesla plant public area to the east could be great-particularly from a split-level up (perhaps). I have been “lobbying” for some kiva-like front area to the plant (now or future)-doesn’t have to be completely literal, could be any level of slick update-or not, or combo. Tesla will probably just build a box to start-but one day “they would be remiss” not to do above-it’s New Mexico-and the harmony with the mesa would be great.O f course if the mesa gets carpeted with industrial bldgs., ce la vie-but I didn’t see any for sale signs to east of road-wonder who owns it all? Nice to have the small airport nearby to plant.
Back to the topic of the blog, for a moment. Haven’t read all the comments, but how many people have noticed that M. E. hasn’t blogged since Januray 28? Not sure it’s really a good idea to give him his own catagory, Think, because that just calls attention to him when he’s not blogging. (Unless it was a Marketing V.P.’s attempt to get M. E. to blog more. Wink, wink). Perhaps it would be a good place for Elon Musk and other corporate visionaries to share thier insights as well.
Nonetheless, I love the transperency of the corporation. Openness is one of the four defining characteristics of the 21st Century corporation, as identified by Don Tapscott in _Wikinomcs_. (Somewhat dry read, but good stuff). Keep up the good work.
# JoeG wrote on April 2nd,
# “Can you believe that GM has given the best name for
# an EV “Ion” to a saturn ICE car that is not even a hybrid”
# That’s nothing, Back when I was young, GM had the
# “Buick Electra” that was anything but electric!
But look into the future. GM is on the ropes. The Volt project isn’t working out as they had hoped and they need “plan B” to get back into the game as a major player in an increasingly green-conscious market. Meanwhile, Tesla has scored with the Roadster and the White Star, and has “gone public” with a splashy IPO. GM simply buys Tesla, and rechristens the White Star as the new Buick Electra. Buick is once again “sexy”; a venerable model name is revived to great excitement and effect; everybody at Tesla gets rich; GM uses its strengths in mass-production, distribution, and service to crank out many more Whitestars than Tesla alone ever could, continually ratcheting the price down to fend off competition, so that EVs become commonplace and a major force in the automotive marketplace; GM survives.
Not exactly the rosiest scenario one could imagine, I’ll agree, but it is something that anyone who has lived in the real world for more than a few decades might reasonably expect.
Hello All, There is an interesting article on Green Cars on Yahoo Autos today (Wednesday). The item of most interest is the Phoenix Motors SUT, Electric Pickup truck that charges its battery in ten minutes.
Jon
I just read this article on Yahoo news today autos.yahoo.com/green_center-article_161/ and it REALLY irritated me. Bascially they re talking about the current state of electric vehicles out there and Tesla is not mentioned once. I don’t understand why… they mention the Volt and Phoneix but no Tesla… it really feels intentional to me, like they just don’t like Tesla Motors or something I can’t see another reason for them to be left out. I mean you can actual get into and ride in a tesla the volt is all on paper. Anyway I sent them some feedback telling them this POV and wanted you guys to read it and see what your thoughts were.
Another week, another post about 10 minute battery recharging……
Fine for small batteries.
Decent range for a car would be…… 100 miles?
At an average speed of 50 mph you need about 20kWh of electrical energy stored in whatever type of storage medium takes your fancy. That’s not important.
Domestic electric supply is fixed at a max of 220 Volts. So if you want to get 20kWh of energy into the car in 10 minutes (0.167 hrs) you need 20000 Wh / (220 V x 0.167 hrs) = 544 Amps.
So the restriction on the rapidity of recharge isn’t the type of battery you choose. It’s the limits on the electrical power you are legally (and safely) allowed to draw from your electricity supplier. In fact, electrical safety is the limiting factor, whether charging at home or away:-
www.parkandpower.co.uk/
autos.yahoo.com/green_center-article_161/
I agree! I am very upset that Tesla was not mentioned at all. For god’s sake, they mentioned the Venturi Fétish and they only make 25 of them. This is nuts!! Darryl, I would be calling up Jon Alain Guzik “The editor” and ask him where his head was when he wrote this article. Let me know if you need help!
I would agree that leaving out Tesla was a conscious decision, maybe mandated by Honda for the ride.
Above in the “yahoo autos search” box on the same page and typed in “ev” and got this:
autos.yahoo.com/green_center-article_150/;_ylt=AhHSJw7yRRXXYHdhDrWLofLMG8gF
an article on the Fetish, Wrightspeed and Tesla.
Not to mention that Yahoo has a Tesla Roadster page:
autos.yahoo.com/tesla_roadster/;_ylt=AmfPKfS3EmVwxZliPJE9iE70QdMF
The non-intuitive names “Think”, “Touch”, Feel” and “Hear” have made the blog less appealing and more difficult to navigate; the rollover captions fail to pave over the problem. Please rename the sections with these more accessible, less polarizing and easy to interpret titles:
Think –> CEO
Touch–> Engineering
Feel –> Marketing
Hear –> Customers
Folks are very familiar with these standard corporate departments and I’m pretty sure that’s how the responsibility is delegated within Tesla Motors. Transparency is good
BTW - categories were the nineties way to find information (Yahoo! is an acronym for Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle - see docs.yahoo.com/info/misc/history.html ); searching replaced categories in the 21st century (Google). Categories are dead, search reigns.
Regarding, autos.yahoo.com/green_center-article_161/
There is a nice little Freudian slip there:
(Page 4)
” The Volt was shown TOO much acclaim at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. “
Why didn’t Yahoo cover Tesla?-maybe because the Google guys are big Tesla funders-” perhaps”?
Speaking of cars with perfect EV names: I was just over at Jay Leno’s Big Dog Garage website, looking for any information about the EV conversion Chrysler Crossfire I heard he had. I didn’t find that, but I did run across his videos and webpage about the 1916 Owen Magnetic, perhaps the first hybrid car. It was an electric with a magnetic clutch, a gasoline-powered generator, and a couple of batteries. It appears to have been created for convenience, power (for the time), and luxury. Like the roadster, it was also expensive for its day ($9000 in 1916). And the Owen Magnetic logo looks like it should say “Tesla Motors” instead.
Take a look at Jay’s video and see for yourself: www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/index.shtml?vidID=59936
If and when GM do anything with the Volt, I hope they introduce a similar blog structure. Instead of Think, Touch, Feel and Hear they could have Suck, Squeeze, Bang and Blow
)
I really like the new blog style. It gives us more information on more topics, and will keep me coming back . I came to this website interested in the technology and creation of the new cars, but I’ve found myself fascinated by the business plan and marketing. Thanks for giving us both (and more) simultaneously.
Keep up the good work. It’s exciting to watch the unfolding of the next big auto company.
Christina
Merritt- Ferdinand Porsche made first hybrid elect. car in 1901-see wikipedia on him.
I found a full electric EV announcement for 2008 with higher range per charge ( 350 miles ), higher top speed ( 155 mph ) and large internal room compared with Tesla roadster. It is announced for 2008 with price at $60000 engineered by Lotus. See reference below.
www.ecogeek.org/content/view/496/
It would be nice if Tesla Motors marketing would comment are they considering this a direct competition to WhiteStar EV announced for 2009 with comparable price ?
If it is not considered a competition it would be nice to see reasons why.
Some extra data about new full EV announced for 2008 market ( ZAP-X, see reference )
www.zapworld.com/ZAPWorld.aspx?id=4560
Thanks Anatoly. Interesting link.
“Engineered by Lotus?” Certainly they’re looking at the feasibility of a new EV and getting input on possible designs and manufacturing technologies:-
www.autoindustry.co.uk/news/17-01-07_17
I’m glad that Lotus is building a reputation for pioneering work on a new generation of EVs. They certainly need the business:-
www.autoindustry.co.uk/news/26-03-07_11
But then these days, who doesn’t
www.autoindustry.co.uk/news/08-12-06_8
The main reason for the Zap-X / Lotus APX design’s big claims are, as with many battery electric vehicle (BEV) claims, a new battery. If AltairNano’s batteries - www.altairnano.com/markets_amps.html - work out, then all BEVs should benefit (see the “Balance” blog entry - www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=24 ). So far, only one battery pack has been manufactured and it was delivered to Phoenix Motorcars - www.phoenixmotorcars.com/ - for their prototype BEV pickup.
If the much larger APX can achieve 80% of the efficiency of the roadster - 170 Wh/mile - then a 350 mile range will require a 60kWh pack. The claimed 10 minute recharge would require a 400kW charger. That would be 10x larger than the one in the Roadster and bigger than anything yet seen in the EV market (including the electric forklift market). The needed 400 volt, 1000 amp electrical service would probably be quite expensive and not available to residential customers.
Oops - math correction: 266 Wh/mi -> 93KWh pack -> 650kW charger!! That’s nearly 20x larger than the Roadster’s 35kW charger and would need something like 400V/1600 amp electrical service.
I know that this blog should not be used to solicit business, but I think this is important to most people who are interested in promoting electric vehicles. First I want to say that I have no connection with Europositron and wish I had money to invest myself. The main point is that I think this company has a very promising battery technology and they need your help. They are selling 1500 shares at about $2000 ea. to raise capital for building prototype batteries. Visit www.europositron.com/ and see what you think. I do not believe it is a scam, maybe someone who lives in Finland reading this can offer some verification about the existance and progress of this company. If these batteries can be brught to market then the main barrier to acceptance and usefulness of electric vehicles will be solved.
# T.J. wrote on April 5th, 2007 at 5:53 pm
# Merritt- Ferdinand Porsche made first hybrid elect. car in 1901-see wikipedia on him.
After my posting above, I did some additional reading on the history of electrics and hybrids and learned that hybrid designs were being considered in the late 1800s. The Owen Magnetic wasn’t close to being the first hybrid, as it turns out, but is certainly one of the most innovative designs, given its magnetic clutch. Strange how old ideas get recycled for future generations, who are told that they are “the latest thing.” Access to history is a good thing.
Lotus built the original AP-X prototype with a conventional engine, then along came electric auto dealer ZAP, who made a proposal for an electric version. Since the ZAP-X prototype hasnt been tested (and might not have been built yet) the price and performance claims are what ZAP hopes to achieve, and may not be realistic. I doubt they will get that range at that price, likely a higher price and/or a reduced range.
The Europositron aluminum battery proposal certainly sounds neat, and if it comes to market could give impressive range and performance to an EV. Their proposed 80 Kwh EV battery pack would give the roadster a 400 mile range! What worries me, though, is that Europositron hasn’t demonstrated any prototypes, not even a small simple “proof of concept” test cell. Their motives in asking for funds to make prototypes are a bit suspect. If you do decide to take the risk and invest, do not use your rent money or retirement funds!
I don’t like the four-part blog because I will need four blog feeds, which I won’t do because it takes up too much space on my page.
I really don’t see any advantage in four blogs. Just post what you’d like when you like on one blog, that’s what other bloggers do.