Tesla CEO Musk, other Silicon Valley execs, to meet Trump Wednesday

'Revenge of the Electric Car' premiere: Elon Musk arrives in a Tesla RoadsterTesla CEO Elon Musk is among a roster of chief executives from Silicon Valley set to meet with president-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday, according to news reports. Musk has suggested that climate change is among the most urgent challenges facing mankind, one reason his company makes only zero-emission electric cars. The president-elect, on the...

Tesla jobs at Fremont could exceed those in GM-Toyota days with Model 3

Tesla factory, Fremont, CaliforniaTesla CEO Elon Musk has said he wants his company to be building 500,000 electric cars a year by 2018. That's an ambitious goal, but at least one necessary piece of the puzzle is already in place. Tesla's factory in Fremont, California, previously produced that many cars when it was a joint operation of General Motors and Toyota. DON'T MISS...

Why one Finnish city thinks it’s ideal for next Tesla Gigafactory

Rendering of Tesla battery gigafactory outside Reno, Nevada, Sep 2014The Tesla "gigafactory" near Reno, Nevada, is already billed as the largest lithium-ion battery cell plant in the world. But Tesla has discussed plans for at least one additional gigafactory, presumably to meet demand for battery cells related to large-scale electric-car production outside the U.S. One Finnish city is now making an official bid...

Tesla a ‘predator,’ dealer lobby howls; second VA store OKed anyway

Tesla Store opening in Westfield Mall, London, Oct 2013The Virginia department of motor vehicles ruled yesterday that Tesla is eligible to open a second retail store in Virginia, in the state capitol of Richmond. Virginia franchise laws prevent automakers from operating their own dealerships, but the state's Department of Motor Vehicles can grant special dispensation to companies that have no...

Tesla to roll out Autopilot self-driving capabilities ‘very soon’

2016 Tesla Model STesla Motors will soon begin rolling out software to restore lost Autopilot driver-assistance features, its CEO says, as a prelude to what the company claims will be the launch of genuine self-driving capabilities. Last month, Tesla announced that it was equipping new Model S and Model X electric cars with a more elaborate suite of sensors, known...

Tesla to roll out Autopilot self-driving capabilities ‘very soon’

2016 Tesla Model STesla Motors will soon begin rolling out software to restore lost Autopilot driver-assistance features, its CEO says, as a prelude to what the company claims will be the launch of genuine self-driving capabilities. Last month, Tesla announced that it was equipping new Model S and Model X electric cars with a more elaborate suite of sensors, known...

Consumer Reports’ view of Tesla Model X: ‘fast but flawed’

2016 Tesla Model XConsumer Reports has an interesting relationship with Tesla electric cars: it's complicated. The magazine initially praised the Tesla Model S, but pulled its "recommended" rating after reliability issues cropped up. It has also become one of the loudest critics of Tesla's Autopilot system, criticizing the name and its beta status among other...

Why Tesla Model 3 should use standard model-year changes: opinion

Tesla Motors production line for Tesla Model S, Fremont, CaliforniaElectric-car maker Tesla Motors has always followed a different path than the rest of the automobile industry. Among the ways it has violated industry convention is ignoring annual model changes and simply updating its cars whenever changes were ready for production. This has occasionally made for some very frustrated high-end customers already...

Which electric car will history view as most important? Poll results

2012 Tesla Model S SignatureIt wasn't even close. When we asked our Twitter followers which electric car they thought would be judged by history as most important thus far, it was a slam-dunk. Fully four out of five survey participants voted for the same vehicle out of the four choices we offered. DON'T MISS: Tesla Model S: Green Car Reports' 2013 Best Car To Buy That car...

Why did Tesla take capabilities out of latest Model S + Model X?

2016 Tesla Model SAutomakers rarely "de-content" their cars, much less take away some of the very features that provide sizzle and PR value. But Tesla's new and more advanced "Hardware 2" electronic driver-assist features on latest cars appear to be a temporary step backwards. Announced last month, Hardware 2 is a new package of sensors for the Autopilot...

What a prototype self-driving Tesla ‘sees’ on public roads

Tesla self-driving demonstration video screenshotLike a human driver, a self-driving car needs to "see" its environment in order to navigate through it. But instead of eyes, autonomous vehicles use an array of sensors—including cameras and radar—to detect objects and obstacles. So what does a self-driving car's view of the road look like? DON'T MISS: Tesla's own numbers show...

Tesla’s new manufacturing chief has a lot on his plate (Model 3, mostly)

Tesla Model S undergoing assemblyTesla Motors is facing a huge increase its production output in order to meet the ambitious goals set by CEO Elon Musk. He says he expects the company produce 500,000 electric cars per year by 2018. Much of that volume will come from the Model 3, the 215-mile, $35,000 sedan Tesla unveiled earlier this year, and plans to put into production by the...

What will Tesla Motors be in 2025? Poll results

2016 Tesla Model XAh, Tesla Motors, source of hope, dreams, visions, contempt, dismissal, hilarity, frustration, and so much more. The Silicon Valley startup automaker, now in its ninth year of making electric cars, has built close to 150,000 expensive battery-powered luxury vehicles and defied critics numerous times. So what do our readers think the future holds...

Why the Tesla Model S became America’s ‘most-loved vehicle’

Tesla Model S at Supercharger site in Ventura, CA, with just one slot open  [photo: David Noland]It's no secret that many Tesla Model S owners are very enthusiastic about their cars. A chance encounter with one can easily turn into a discussion of the virtues of Tesla's electric sedan—and of electric cars in general. That passion is reflected in a recent survey of owners conducted by market-research firm Strategic Vision. DON'T MISS...

Should Tesla report monthly sales like other carmakers? Poll results

2016 Tesla Model XTo those of us who cover the world of electric cars, Tesla's refusal to release its sales data in the conventional format is a continual irritant. Starting in June 2012, when the company said it didn't plan to release monthly sales because its backers didn't care, Tesla Motors has provided only partial data. While it started releasing quarterly...