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Tesla plans European expansion with service centers and showrooms
Tesla has a relatively tiny European presence with just a handful of showrooms, service hubs and Superchargers, but it's about to get a much larger foothold -- the EV maker has revealed that it will open more than 30 stores and service centers across Europe. There's no indication of just when and where these locations will open. It won't be hard to find Superchargers in the near future, however. Tesla still expects to place the fast recharging stations across most of Europe before the end of the year, making it practical to drive cross-continent in a Model S without any lengthy stopovers.
Tesla Superchargers now cover drives from coast to coast
Tesla's Superchargers, which can provide up to 170 miles of range with just a 30-minute charge, now cover trips between Los Angeles and New York, Elon Musk tweeted yesterday. The somewhat circuitous route brings drivers through states like New Mexico, South Dakota and Wisconsin during a journey from LA to NY, rather than the more direct I-40, I-70 or I-80 options that run farther south, so expect the cross-country adventure to take a bit longer than usual if you're setting out within the next few months. Tesla will be adding many more Superchargers throughout this year, however, eventually enabling a more direct routing. And, come 2015, the entire country will be covered, making it possible to visit all 50 states and parts of Canada without going out of your way for a charge.
Model S goes on sale in China for $121K, but Tesla says it's leaving money on the table
About a year after announcing plans to open a retail location in China, Tesla is releasing its Model S sedan there. Coming in at 734,000 CNY or about $121,000 US, it carries a premium over the $81,070 US base price (without incentives), but Tesla believes it could've gone higher -- for comparison, the BMW 650 has an $87K MSRP in the US, but costs around $326,000 in China. Claiming competitors ratchet up their price tags to as much as twice the price just to increase profits, Tesla's math starts with the same initial price before adding "unavoidable" shipping & handling, taxes and VAT -- access to the Supercharger network it's building across China comes at no additional cost. Tesla says it's risking the possibility buyers view its price as a signal of lower quality, but it's committed to "doing the right thing." Whatever the reasoning, we're sure Chinese buyers who've laid down up to $40K for a Model S or Model X pre-order appreciate the restraint.
Tesla opens London showroom, outlines broader UK plans
Tesla now has an official retail footprint in the UK. The EV maker has just opened its first British showroom in London's Westfield shopping center, giving locals a chance to buy the Model S (including next year's £55,000 right-hand drive variant) in person. The store is just the beginning of Tesla's inroads into the country, though. As part of an opening gala Q&A, Elon Musk said that his company was already mapping the UK for Supercharger stations. He also expects that the Model X SUV will reach the UK in late 2015 or 2016, and hopes that Tesla's long-planned lower-cost EV will come in roughly three years for about £30,000. That's an ambitious plan when Tesla barely has a presence outside of North America, but Musk has a knack for completing large-scale projects.
Tesla CTO hopes to reduce EV charging times to 10 minutes or less
Charging time is the bane of every EV driver; even the half-hour for a partial fuel-up at a Tesla Supercharger station can feel like an eternity next to the few minutes required for gasoline. Tesla CTO JB Straubel sees this as just a temporary obstacle, however -- he tells MIT Technology Review that his company could shrink recharge times to between "five to 10 minutes." The primary challenge is optimizing the charger's delivery rates to avoid cooking the battery, he says. While this won't happen overnight, Straubel reminds us that today's Superchargers seemed far-fetched a decade ago. We may not need those battery swapping stations for very long.
Tesla details Supercharger expansion, NYC to LA road trips possible by year's end
Tesla's perpetually free Supercharger station has already enabled the driving of about a million miles, totally free, to owners of the Model S sedan. However, availability of that network has been very limited. Unless you live in very specific areas of NY or CA, you've been out of luck. That's beginning to change. Following up on Elon Musk's D11 appearance, Tesla has announced that by the end of next month it will triple the size of the Supercharger network, covering crucial routes like Vancouver to Portland (with Seattle in between) and Dallas to Austin. New connection points will open in Illinois, Colorado, New York and, yes, California. But wait, there's more. Within six months the network will spread further and, before the end of the year, Tesla promises you'll be able to drive from New York to Los Angeles in your Model S -- so long as you don't mind stopping for 20-minute recharges every couple-hundred miles. Finally, by mid-2014, Tesla promises its network will "stretch across the continent" and cover "almost the entire population of US and Canada." (Sorry, Hawaii.) PR and video featuring more details after the break.
Elon Musk reveals Tesla's Supercharger network will triple its coverage area this month
Elon Musk is being interviewed tonight at the D11 conference, and gave an early preview of news coming tomorrow: his company's Supercharger EV stations will be available in more areas soon. The network will triple its coverage area this month, and he predicts Tesla owners will be able to drive from LA to NY using only Superchargers by the end of 2013. As he mentions, the company is adding more density to "well-traveled routes", as well as increasing overall coverage, but we'll have to wait until tomorrow to get a map. That's all consistent with promises made at the network's launch, when he said it will allow the Model S to drive across the country for free. Another thing making that easier is an incoming software patch for the cars that will let drivers route directly to the nearest Supercharger -- perhaps Tesla can get John Broder to give it a shot first. There's going to be a dramatic acceleration of the supercharging network. By the end of next month, we'll triple the supercharger coverage area. There's a map that'll go live tomorrow, obviously. By the end of this year -- you'll be able to drive from LA to NY just using the supercharger network. We're improving the density of superchargers in well-traveled routes, as well as the overall coverage area. Follow along with our liveblog right here. Update: The full video of Musk's interview at D11 is now available after the break. Enjoy!
The Engadget Interview: Tesla's Elon Musk promises more Superchargers, better service, cheaper EVs that don't suck
"It doesn't help to have a car that's cheap, but that sucks." This isn't the sort of direct language that you typically hear from a CEO these days, but this is exactly the kind of material you can expect from Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk. Over the course of our conversation, Musk (who earlier co-founded PayPal and who also heads up SpaceX) went on the record calling journalists who didn't understand the benefits of leases "dumbasses" and pledged that use of the company's Supercharger stations will always, forever and ever, be free. Candid responses such as these are not new for Mr. Musk, having certainly caused some turmoil in the past, and they do make for quite an interesting interview. Join us as we explore why the cheapest Model S was scrapped and we ask just when we can expect the fabled, and truly affordable, third-generation Tesla.
Fleet of Tesla Model S owners set out to refute NYT report, coin slang for human error
Between data logs, rebuttals and general drama, it's easy to get confused: can a Tesla Model S make the trek from Washington DC to Connecticut? A small group of Tesla fans decided to see for themselves. Meeting in DC over the weekend, seven drivers from the Tesla Motors Club forums banded together to recreate the reporter's infamous trip to Tesla's Milford Connecticut Supercharger, minus the Manhattan detour. The long and short? The team made the trip successfully, albeit with some minor hiccups. Most of the drivers had no trouble topping off their Tesla's at max range, ensuring they had enough charge to complete each leg of the trip -- but one car stubbornly refused to top off at a Delaware Supercharger. After about an hour of troubleshooting, Tesla pushed a firmware update to the vehicle, found and diagnosed another bug and got the car back on the road. The lesson? A carefully planned electric road trip can lead to success, but technical errors do happen. Even so, the team had no qualms teasing the NYT reporter for his troubles, referring to "Brodering" as the act of running out of power due to human error. All in all, it seems good times were had -- what else could you ask of a weekend excursion? Check out the team's Twitter feed at the adjacent source link for additional driver updates, or check out straßenversion for a passenger account of the trip's first leg. [Thanks, Aravind]
Tesla to open 25 new stores in 2013, first Chinese location this spring
Getting yourself into a new Tesla is going to get a little easier in 2013. The company opened 13 stores in 2012, but this year has designs to double that. On the show floor of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, George Blankenship, VP of sales, confirmed a plan that will see 25 new retail locations opening throughout 2013, with half of those in the US and the other half abroad. This includes the company's first location in China, which is due to open its doors in the spring. The company also re-committed to covering the US with Supercharger charging stations. Only eight are operational now, most on the west coast, but the company plans to cover both coasts in the coming years and then, eventually, connect the two so that you can drive from Boston to LA without burning a drop of fuel -- and without spending a dime, since use of the chargers will be free for Tesla owners. No firm details on when the company's $30k entry-level machine will be launching, but we were at least told it's still at least a few years out
Tesla's Supercharger network goes live in six California towns, encourages EV road trips
Time to go on that great California road trip, Tesla owners; the EV maker has just launched new Superchargers in six Golden State locations: Folsom Premium Outlets, Harris Ranch in Coalinga, Gilroy Premium Outlets, Barstow, Tejon Ranch in Lebec and Hawthorne. They appear to be strategically placed to ease journeys between San Francisco, Los Angeles, Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas, NV. The solar powered stations from SolarCity are designed just for Tesla vehicles, with Model S sedans being able to charge for free. According to Tesla, a Model S can be charged in about 30 minutes if you want to get around three hours of 60mph driving out of it, so you'll have plenty of time to grab an In-N-Out Double Double on your way to Sin City.
Tesla's Supercharger not compatible with competitor's EVs, keeps electricity within the family
Planning on juicing up your Chevy Volt, Mitsubishi i-MiEV or Nissan Leaf with Tesla's Supercharger? Hold your horses, vaquero. The nighttime unveiling stressed that the quick-charge solution was Model S-friendly, but we should also note that it's only compatible with the firm's automobile. Vehicles from other automakers won't be able to jack into the station thanks to a 20-kilowatt hour converter, which would zap other batteries with too much electricity, and a proprietary plug. Unless something changes, those planning cross-country trips using EVs from other manufacturers will just have to find an alternative to Musk and Co.'s white obelisk.
Tesla's 'Supercharger Network' of electric vehicle power stations will be revealed September 24th
For Tesla owners looking at taking their electric vehicles out for some long haul driving, a plan to line the highways and/or byways with fast chargers should be welcome news. After mentioning the Supercharger Network as early as January, company founder Elon Musk tweeted tonight that it would officially be unveiled September 24th. So, what will it actually look like? Musk claims it will "feel like alien spaceships landed at highway rest stops," where owners may be able to enjoy amenities like charging that takes their batteries from ten to 90 percent in just 45 minutes or fast battery swaps. We've marked our calendars, check out AutoblogGreen for more speculation on just what Supercharging may entail, including the potential that the stations themselves will be solar powered.
Supercharger solar panel promises to give Freeloader a boost
Solar Technology's Freeloader solar charger was already a pretty attractive option as it was, but the company's now looking to give the portable charger a bit of a boost, with its new Supercharger panel promising to cut the charging time in half. As you can see above, that's possible in part thanks to its larger size, but it's apparently also aided by some more powerful than usual photovoltaic cells (rated at 1.5 watts). All that should translate to a four hour charging time for the Freeloader, which can be done in any weather conditions thanks to the panel's weather-proofing (although some weather conditions will obviously be more effective than others). If that sounds like what you've been looking for, you can grab the Supercharger now for £20 (about $40), or grab it as part of a new Globe Trotter bundle (including a Freeloader, a Supercharger, and a carrying case) for £50, or just under $100.[Via SmartPlanet]
