The Tesla Thread

Robbo said:
I like what Tesla are doing but I think once the Germans get things off the ground, they will be able to eclipse them based on the infrastructure they already have in place globally.
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i suspect tesla's plans are likely more on the side of a parts supplier than an actual car company, if they can get sufficient battery production rolling to supply to the worlds major car manufacturers then that'll be much more lucrative than trying to compete with them. there's much more to make a car than just the powerplant and the "old guard" are pretty good at all those other bits needed to make a car (ie everything that isn't the engine)
 
adolf hamster said:
i suspect tesla's plans are likely more on the side of a parts supplier than an actual car company, if they can get sufficient battery production rolling to supply to the worlds major car manufacturers then that'll be much more lucrative than trying to compete with them. there's much more to make a car than just the powerplant and the "old guard" are pretty good at all those other bits needed to make a car (ie everything that isn't the engine)
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I must admit I hadn't thought of the whole battery supply aspect before. That would make a lot of sense considering the investment.
 
Robbo said:
I honestly think until battery technology moves on, electric vehicles are very limited. What if you have one car and need to dash off somewhere in an emergency, yet it's not charged?
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"Very limited", because they might not be totally appropriate in a once-a-year scenario?

Nothing like a massive exaggeration is there?
 
adolf hamster said:
i suspect tesla's plans are likely more on the side of a parts supplier than an actual car company, if they can get sufficient battery production rolling to supply to the worlds major car manufacturers then that'll be much more lucrative than trying to compete with them. there's much more to make a car than just the powerplant and the "old guard" are pretty good at all those other bits needed to make a car (ie everything that isn't the engine)
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Why are they mutually exclusive? They can do both. Car manufacturer division and a parts division.
 
Participant said:
Not sure if I'm being thick here, but why is a weather proof frunk worthy of mention? Wouldn't you sort of expect it to be weather proof?
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I don't know if this is true just guessing, but maybe the Model S has water ingress issues so stating this for the Model 3 shows they have made efforts to fix that?

You make a fair point though, I assume the doors are also weatherproof :P
 
Robbo said:
I like what Tesla are doing but I think once the Germans get things off the ground, they will be able to eclipse them based on the infrastructure they already have in place globally.
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As far as charging goes, which infrastructure do you refer to? Tesla is unique with it's superchargers. The Germans would have to work together to supply enough chargers for their own cars. In the end there's going to have to be some sort of agreement as it's not sustainable to have all different brands using only their own chargers.
 
Cleisthenes said:
As far as charging goes, which infrastructure do you refer to?
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The infrastructure that enables them to build and deliver cars without a lead time measured in years. Tesla are supposedly aiming for best case 80,000 cars by the end of the year.

Comparatively, VW will build some 450,000 Golfs in that time.

When the big German players really get on board, they have the manufacturing infrastructure in place to churn out many many more cars than Tesla are aiming for currently.
 
I was thinking about this dashboard design as I was driving to work this morning. From looking at the pictures, the driver information part is pretty close to the steering wheel. How I sit in my car the distance I have to move my eyes to look at my normal speedo is comparable with how far I need to move them to look at my air-vent (which is roughly where the speedo part of the Tesla's display is). So, I don't see an issue.
 
Kenai said:
The infrastructure that enables them to build and deliver cars without a lead time measured in years. Tesla are supposedly aiming for best case 80,000 cars by the end of the year.

Comparatively, VW will build some 450,000 Golfs in that time.

When the big German players really get on board, they have the manufacturing infrastructure in place to churn out many many more cars than Tesla are aiming for currently.
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Their target is 500,000 for next year once they are up to speed with the Model 3. It's slow at the moment because the S and X are difficult to manufacture.

Although they have the ability to build a lot of cars, they have 0 fast charging stations which is a great USP for Tesla.
 
Kenai said:
The infrastructure that enables them to build and deliver cars without a lead time measured in years. Tesla are supposedly aiming for best case 80,000 cars by the end of the year.

Comparatively, VW will build some 450,000 Golfs in that time.

When the big German players really get on board, they have the manufacturing infrastructure in place to churn out many many more cars than Tesla are aiming for currently.
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Not really, as the Germans don't have the battery supplies meaning they can't just switch over to evs, both Tesla and competition need to build up substantial infastrucure. And so far Tesla is very much leading the pack on the capabilities to produce mass EVs.
However the established companies do have the money to throw at it, but are being slow. Merc have said they will build their own giga factory so they can compete, but not only have they not broken ground, Tesla is expected to announce 3-5 more giga factory locations by the end of the year.
 
Joe T said:
"Very limited", because they might not be totally appropriate in a once-a-year scenario?

Nothing like a massive exaggeration is there?
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It's still a fair point. The charging times are very prohibitive compared to the time it takes to fill a regular car with fuel. It could be an issue. I can think of many occasions where it would have been problematic.

I know a number of Model S owners and they all have multiple vehicles. Hybrid vehicles are another matter, the engine gives you that assurance.

Kenai said:
The infrastructure that enables them to build and deliver cars without a lead time measured in years. Tesla are supposedly aiming for best case 80,000 cars by the end of the year.

Comparatively, VW will build some 450,000 Golfs in that time.

When the big German players really get on board, they have the manufacturing infrastructure in place to churn out many many more cars than Tesla are aiming for currently.
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Exactly, and whatever battery production Tesla have may have to change when battery technology is finally modernised. The Germans may choose to close the gap at that point, whenever it may be. I'd be surprised if they couldn't.

As for superchargers, there's an argument for them being standardised at some point, or car parks will end up getting smaller...
 
For me, having to go out of my way to a filling station is an inconvenience. Yesterday I had to make a specific trip out JUST to buy diesel. People need to remember that there's upsides and downsides - it's just different and will take some adjusting.
 
Robbo said:
It's still a fair point. The charging times are very prohibitive compared to the time it takes to fill a regular car with fuel. It could be an issue. I can think of many occasions where it would have been problematic.
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I can think of many times where I've decided on a weekend to have a trip to the coast only to remember I need to get fuel first. I can also think of many more where I had to go out of my way to fuel up before a trip the following day. Neither would be an issue in an EV so pros and cons. I guess people will just adapt to suit the capabilities of the car so if there is a chance you might need to make an early evening trip you stick your car on charge during the day for a bit of a top up.

When my wife loses her parking space at work in a couple of weeks she literally won't pass a petrol station on her way to the park and ride meaning that every fuel up (admittedly not that often) requires a trip out of her way. Hence why we were tempted by a Zoe with owned battery.
 
Participant said:
Why are they mutually exclusive? They can do both. Car manufacturer division and a parts division.
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they aren't, but tesla's current market is the new adopters, and they could become another brand to the mix, but at the end of the day the real electric cars that we'll be driving will be mainly made by the same people that are making our petrol and diesel cars currently.
 
lordrobs said:
I can think of many times where I've decided on a weekend to have a trip to the coast only to remember I need to get fuel first. I can also think of many more where I had to go out of my way to fuel up before a trip the following day. Neither would be an issue in an EV so pros and cons. I guess people will just adapt to suit the capabilities of the car so if there is a chance you might need to make an early evening trip you stick your car on charge during the day for a bit of a top up.

When my wife loses her parking space at work in a couple of weeks she literally won't pass a petrol station on her way to the park and ride meaning that every fuel up (admittedly not that often) requires a trip out of her way. Hence why we were tempted by a Zoe with owned battery.
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I can't even remember to plug in my tooth brush, phone or razor so I wouldn't stand a chance :D

Also I thought the big tablet was a pre-production job while they test the car. Looking at some youtube videos that is the final design. Slap a big awkward looking screen on and have it do everything. Just looks odd to me.
 
I've forgotten to plug in once or twice. It can be a bit awkward. Less so now that there's a "free" (Polar) rapid charger round the corner from my house.
 
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