Tesla Model S News
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Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk confirmed that a press event to be held this Thursday evening will demonstrate battery-swapping for the Tesla Model S. The mode of communication was his favorite medium: a tweet. "Seeing is believing," wrote Musk, saying that the company will do a live demonstration of pack-swapping at its design studio in Hawthorne, California. UPDATE: At 3:30 am Pacific time on Thursday, 17 hours before the event was to kick off, Musk tweeted a photo (above) of what he said was the "fastest gas pump in LA" competing with "Tesla battery pack swap." The photo appears to be from a...
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Tesla Model S Recall Announced For Rear-Seat Latch Bracket
Tesla Motors announced this morning that it will conduct a partial recall of Model S electric sedans manufactured between May 10 and June 8 of this year to fix a potentially weakened left-rear seat attachment striker bracket. According to a post on the company's website and signed by CEO Elon Musk...
John Voelcker -
Life With Tesla Model S: Trying Out The Service Program
Tesla's announcement last month of its new service program sounded almost too good to be true. If anything went wrong with my 2013 Tesla Model S, promised CEO Elon Musk, instead of schlepping to the nearest service center, I would simply await the arrival in my driveway of the Tesla service tech...
David Noland -
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Will Drive Electric Model S From LA To NY
The problem with battery electric cars is that you can't take them on long trips, because they take so long to recharge. Or so goes the common wisdom, anyhow. Would a trip from Los Angeles to New York City in an electric car perhaps refute that statement? That's the idea discussed by CEO Elon Musk...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Loses Legal Battles To Texas, North Carolina Dealers
Win some, lose some. Tesla's had a very good year thus far, but it was recently dealt legislative defeats in two states where it had hoped to sell its electric cars. In Texas, the state legislature declined to make an exception to existing rules that make it illegal for automakers to sell cars to...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Model S Top Speed: More Than 130 MPH, Emission-Free
Top speeds are more relevant than many people think. That even applies to cars like the Tesla Model S, though perhaps more for bragging rights than any practical purpose. And as bragging rights go, 133 mph isn't too bad for an electric car. While there aren't many places you can legally explore a...
Antony Ingram -
Does the supposedly clean, green Tesla Model S really pollute more than a gas-guzzling Jeep Grand Cherokee sport-utility vehicle? That's what one analyst has claimed. In an exhaustive 6,500-word article on the financial website Seeking Alpha, analyst Nathan Weiss lays out a case that the Model S actually has higher effective emissions than most large SUVs of both the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and smog-producing pollutants like sulfur dioxide. As a 2013 Tesla Model S owner, I was shocked and concerned by his claims. Although carbon emissions were not a big factor in my decision to buy a...
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Tesla Didn't Make A Profit On Its Cars In Q1: Let's Be Clear
Tesla Motors has accomplished many remarkable things in its short life as a startup maker of electric cars. But, to clear up a common misperception, its supporters should understand that it has not--yet--made a profit in its core business: designing, building, and selling the Model S all-electric...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Model S Vs Chevy Volt: Owner Compares Electric Cars
I've been leasing a 2011 Chevrolet Volt for almost two years now. And about three months ago, I took delivery of a 2013 Tesla Model S, the 60-kWh version. So I've gotten an extended first-hand look at arguably the two most technically advanced production cars in the U.S.--and the two best-selling...
David Noland -
Tesla To Issue More Stock, Pay Off Energy Dept With Proceeds
Since Tesla issued its first-quarter financials last week, its stock has been on a tear. Not only did the company have its first profitable quarter ever, but the many investors who had shorted the stock of Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] are now faced with the threat of expensive margin calls. So Tesla is...
John Voelcker -
New Tesla Testing Technique From Staid Consumer Reports: Drifting!
We'd not normally advise getting information directly from Wikipedia, but its opening line on the sport of drifting is as good as any other definition you'll find: "Drifting is a driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers, causing loss of traction in the rear wheels, while...
Antony Ingram -
Consumer Reports On Tesla Model S: Best Test Car Since 2007
Wow. Chalk up another huge accolade for the Tesla Model S electric car: Consumer Reports has awarded it 99 out of 100 points, and said it's the best car the magazine has tested since 2007. In fact, the magazine's descriptions of the luxury sport sedan brim with adjectives. The Tesla Model S "is...
John Voelcker -
Drivers of the Tesla Model S are generally pretty happy with their cars, but as with any new product there are always a few ways it could be improved. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] is one of few companies that can execute those improvements without you having to lift a finger, as software updates can be achieved via the internet. Whether lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control and blind spot detection will be software updates is a different matter, but all have been discovered deep within the car's menus by an enterprising owner (via Autoblog). None are currently available on the Model S...
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Tesla Makes Money On Model S: $35K Per Car Selling ZEV Credits?
Tomorrow at 5 pm Eastern, Tesla will hold what may be its most eagerly awaited conference call to date. The Silicon Valley startup automaker will discuss its first-quarter financial results--which will give the first clue to its financial viability as an operating automaker. But Tesla Motors...
John Voelcker -
2013 Tesla Model S 'Performance Plus' Package, Other Options, Added
The 2013 Tesla Model S electric car wouldn't be defined as a supercar--which is, more or less by custom, a two-seat sports car, not a large sedan. But to take the luxury plug-in sedan "into supercar handling territory," Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has announced a new "Performance Plus" suspension and...
John Voelcker -
How You Can Buy a 2013 Tesla Model S Now, With No Waiting
Good news for rich, impatient, picky Tesla Model S electric-car wannabes! If you're looking to buy right now--but can't abide a car sullied by a few thousand miles of loaner-car duty under the recently announced buy-it-now program--Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] now offers a new but little-known option...
David Noland -
Teslive Event In July To Bring 300 Tesla Owners Together In San Francisco Bay Area
Few automakers have built a buzz around their products like Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA]. Like many other electric cars, Roadster and Model S owners and fans are a tight-knit community too, and a two-day users conference in July will bring even more owners together. Called Teslive, Silicon Beat...
Antony Ingram -
Tesla Tunes Up Model S Warranty, Loaner Cars, Service Plan
On Friday, Tesla held a media call to reveal another in the series of announcements touted in tweets by CEO Elon Musk. This time, the news covered enhancements to the warranty and service experience on its Tesla Model S electric luxury sport sedan. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] is now delivering several...
John Voelcker -
With the delay of its Model X crossover until "late in 2014," it may look as if Tesla's product pipeline is running dry. But we suspect the Silicon Valley startup electric-car company will offer a few new variants on its sole product, the Model S luxury sport sedan. And an obvious next step for Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] would be to add the option of all-wheel drive to the Model S. The company has already revealed that the Model X crossover--built on the same underpinnings as today's Model S sedan--will have the option of all-wheel drive. Tesla has engineered the car's floorpan and suspension...
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Will Tesla Try For Federal Rule Permitting Non-Dealer Stores?
Several thousand Tesla owners have now purchased their cars by ordering and paying for them online after visiting a Tesla Store showroom. No franchised dealers are involved. That's a model that Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] feels is crucial to getting its electric cars into the mainstream. State and...
John Voelcker -
Does Tesla Already Outsell Audi, BMW, Lexus & Mercedes-Benz?
The established German luxury brands--Mercedes-Benz and BMW--have sold cars in the U.S. for decades. So how could Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] possibly be beating them at their own game? The answer lies in how you define sales: It appears that the Tesla Model S electric sport sedan is outselling both...
John Voelcker -
Got A Tesla Roadster And Want A Model S? Tesla Will Buy It Back
Pretend for a moment that you're one of the fortunate folks who purchased a new Tesla Roadster while it was still in production. You're satisfied with the car, but now all anyone wants to talk about is the swanky new Tesla Model S. What's an early adopter to do? You could, or course, trade in that...
Richard Read -
Worst Thing About The Tesla Model S? Driving Anything Else Afterwards
If early ownership experiences are to believed, there's not a lot wrong with driving a Tesla Model S. The performance is great, it's luxurious, quiet, has a great electric range... but there's still one thing that bugs owners. One thing they wish wasn't part of the Model S ownership experience...
Antony Ingram -
2013 Tesla Model S: Now Available In Red, At Last
If you want a red Tesla Model S and didn't get in there with the Signature models, you're in luck. The photo above was revealed in a Tweet by Elon Musk on Tuesday, showing new red Model S cars heading down the line, prior to completion. "New Tesla red going down assembly line for the first time. We...
Antony Ingram