The Tesla Motors mass market car....???

[markwj]

Are the cars Manual or Automatic? Or do you have a choice?

Tesla cars are automatic, and now have just 1 continuous gear in the transmission. Makes for very smooth acceleration and deceleration, with no jumping through gears.

 

[Lokolo]

Tesla cars are automatic, and now have just 1 continuous gear in the transmission. Makes for very smooth acceleration and deceleration, with no jumping through gears.

Thanks for that. Good to know.

 

[jerry33]

Are the cars Manual or Automatic? Or do you have a choice?

There is no shifting other than between D, N, and R in a Tesla. The electric motor has one gear and one gear only. There is no clutch pedal.

 

[Lokolo]

There is no shifting other than between D, N, and R in a Tesla. The electric motor has one gear and one gear only. There is no clutch pedal.

So when you put your foot down.... you go faster, and faster, and faster....?

 

[Bearman]

So when you put your foot down.... you go faster, and faster, and faster....?

yes thats right.

 

[Lloyd]

This isn't really a specific mass market car question but it's the first car I will buy from Tesla. And this may be a stupid question... but...

Are the cars Manual or Automatic? Or do you have a choice?

As designed so far these cars do not have a transmision. I've always been told that there is no such thing as a stupid question!

 

[david_42]

It will be interesting to see if the $30K car is a hybrid or if battery prices will have dropped enough to make an all-electric sub-compact at that price possible. Much as I love the Model S, it is really too big. It's a foot wider and two feet longer than my wife's current car and she loves the maneuverability.

 

[shark2k]

It will be interesting to see if the $30K car is a hybrid or if battery prices will have dropped enough to make an all-electric sub-compact at that price possible. Much as I love the Model S, it is really too big. It's a foot wider and two feet longer than my wife's current car and she loves the maneuverability.

Tesla isn't going to make hybrids, so it will be all electric.

-Shark2k

 

[david_42]

I only ask because the original concept for mass-production was a hybrid.

 

[shark2k]

I only ask because the original concept for mass-production was a hybrid.

I believe at some point Musk said they will not do hybrids. I'm sure TEG or somebody else will be able to confirm (or prove wrong or correct) that.

-Shark2k

 

[stopcrazypp]

I only ask because the original concept for mass-production was a hybrid.

You are probably referring to this, from late 2007 (then the Model S was in very early planning stages):

As was alluded to in the customer town hall meeting last week, Tesla will likely provide both pure electric and range extended electric drive options in the future. We refer to the latter as a REEV (Range Extended Electric Vehicle) to distinguish it from "hybrids," which are really just gasoline engine cars with a small electric motor and tiny battery. The REEV battery in our scenario would fully cover the range needs for reasonable daily usage, but there would be an onboard generator for the occasional long trip.

http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/song-remains-same

There was also talk about an REEV version of the Model S:
http://green.autoblog.com/2008/02/0...-make-a-gas-electric-hybrid-version-of-the-w/

However, they have obviously ditched that idea. I don't have the link to the article, but I remember reading that Tesla now has no plans to ever release a hybrid car. It is going to be BEV all the way.

 

[Norbert]

However, they have obviously ditched that idea. I don't have the link to the article, but I remember reading that Tesla now has no plans to ever release a hybrid car. It is going to be BEV all the way.

Maybe those plans became "Fisker"?

In any case, Elon has now repeatedly said that they will stay pure EV, saying something like "it is difficult to do two things well, the electric part and the ICE part, at least we would not know how to make a good [PHEV]". Which he started saying long before the Karma (or even, I think, the Volt) came close to delivery. Maybe TEG knows when that decision was made.

 

[vfx]

Yeah, I think they were sweating at that time. The Volt was announced and it seemed the way it was all going. They have found a way and it's all electric.

(do i hear angels singing?)

 

[TEG]

Maybe TEG knows when that decision was made.

I am in a hotel for a bit, just using iPhone so I can't do elaborate searches ATM...
As I recall, it was Martin who said they were considering a range extender, then soon after he was gone some comments were made like "PHEVs are neither 'fish nor foul' and aren't great at either function so Tesla would stick to battery power only. You know I like that decision...

 

[TEG]

Well, remembering "fish nor foul" was enough to get me there:

Tesla's Elon Musk Continues War Of Aggression Against Volt, REVs
(Pure EV dogma, eh?)

 

[dsm363]

I believe at some point Musk said they will not do hybrids. I'm sure TEG or somebody else will be able to confirm (or prove wrong or correct) that.

-Shark2k

I remember that as well. Don't think Tesla will ever do a hybrid.

 

[clmason]

As an obsessed Tesla fan and investor, I would love to see the mass market car expedited beyond the current forecast. I know Elon and crew are doing their best to "collapse" the timeline but i am nervous about the competitors getting a foothold and I'm impatient to wait another 3 years! Ive been patient since the Roadster and through Model S dev and soon to be launch.

I would support another round of funding to get more cash and more heads working on it. I don't think this would hurt the share price either, it would show progress. Might even increase the share price, TSLA as a stock seems to break all the rules.

My question is, how much of their timeline is a function of the reduction battery costs... that even if they had the resources they would delay in order to see batteries come down in price and /or increase in efficiency to hit 30-40k price target?

 

[Norbert]

My question is, how much of their timeline is a function of the reduction battery costs... that even if they had the resources they would delay in order to see batteries come down in price and /or increase in efficiency to hit 30-40k price target?

I think it was last quarterly report where Elon said they'll build the 3rd gen car before the new Roadster, as he has gained confidence that the battery tech will be ready by then. Before, the plan had been to build the new Roadster first. I guess they could start building it before battery prices come down, but sell it at a higher price point, however then the production costs might be too high, if they build an expensive line for higher volumes.

 

[vfx]

I think it was last quarterly report where Elon said they'll build the 3rd gen car before the new Roadster, as he has gained confidence that the battery tech will be ready by then. ...

Which surprises me. I would think that building one more car on the S platform makes more fiscal sense. Either the Van or a convertible.

Not that I'm complaining. I more than happy to see the genIII Tesla.

 

[Yggdrasill]

I don't believe they've said that the next car is the 3rd gen platform. We will probably see a van and cabriolet before we see the 3rd gen. With a new model each year, that means the mass market car will be unveiled in 2015 and reach the first customers in 2016. (Maybe.)