Category: Tesla

Tesla Motors is aiming to sell around 10,000 cars a year in Germany by 2015 as it builds out its networks of charging stations, its chief executive told a German paper.

"I have confidence in the German consumer," Tesla Chief executive Elon Musk was quoted as saying in an interview with Welt am Sonntag.

"Our fast charging stations should cover around half of Germany by the end of March 2014 and the entire country by the end of 2014," he said, adding he expected there to be 25 Tesla dealerships in Germany by the end of next year.

Tesla's high performance, all-electric Model S went on sale in Europe in August, and even overtook Volkswagen's Golf as the bestselling car in Norway in September.

Even vehicle sales of 10,000 would be only a small fraction of the German car market. Main industry association VDA expects sales to reach between 2.9-3.0 million cars this year from 3.08 million in 2012, and keep hovering at around 3 million vehicles in coming years.

Germany was the biggest market outside the U.S. for Tesla Roadster sales. The Model S costs from 71,400 euros ($98,500) in Germany, according to the group's website.

Tesla Motors hired a former Apple executive to lead development of the electric carmaker's new vehicles.

At Apple, Doug Field oversaw the development of products including the latest MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and iMac, Tesla said in a press release announcing the hiring on Thursday.

Field, who began his career as a Ford Motor Co (F.N) engineer, was previously chief technology officer at Segway, the maker of the self-balancing, battery-operated Segway scooter. His title at Tesla will be vice president of vehicle programs.

The Model S, Tesla's first attempt to reach a mainstream audience for electric cars, has enjoyed stronger than expected sales, helping Tesla shares more than quintuple this year.

But for Tesla to reach an even broader market and silence electric car naysayers, Chief Executive Elon Musk must successfully develop a third-generation electric car by 2017 that will cost between $30,000 and $35,000.

"Tesla's future depends on engineers who can create the most innovative, technologically advanced vehicles in the world," Musk said in a statement. "Doug's experience in both consumer electronics and traditional automotive makes him an important addition to our leadership team."

Tesla Forum member 'jdovi' from Long Island, New York recently posted photos of an accident he was involved in while driving a Tesla Model S.

The Model S was hit side on at an intersection by a driver who was talking on her cell phone and ran a red light. While the other driver left the scene of the accident in an ambulance, the Tesla Model S owner not only walked away without a scratch, the car which was extensively damaged on the drivers side front wheel by the impact, didn't so much as smoke or release any fluids onto the roadway.

This 'real world' evidence only backs up the NHTSA Five Start crash test results for Frontal, Side and Side Pole impacts awarded to the Model S in August.

'jdovi' feelings about the Tesla Model S:

This is the safest car on the road hands down, and for me, I can honestly say it saved my life. Thank you Elon.

Source: Tesla Forum

An electric car model has topped the list of new car registrations in Norway for the first time, a car industry group said Thursday.

In the month of September there were 616 registrations of the Tesla Model S, accounting for 5.1 percent of the total, according to Opplysningsraadet for Veitrafikken(OFV) which compiles data on Norwegian car sales.

Overall, electric cars took 8.6 percent of the market in September, compared to 5.2 percent a year ago. The figures illustrate strong interest in electric cars in a country ranked among the world's top ten petrol exporters.

Norway has encouraged electric car sales with tax incentives, congestion charge exemptions, access to public transport lanes and free parking.

"I have no doubt that electric cars will increase their share of the market again in the coming months, and particularly next year with the arrival of several new models,"said Oeyvind Solberg Thorsen at OFV.

In September hybrid cars, which do not enjoy the same incentives as electric vehicles, took 7.3 percent of the market.

A handful of Tesla Motors Inc. electric cars are now available for rental at two California airports by Hertz Global Holdings Inc., which is adding more upscale autos to its fleet.

Hertz said it is introducing Tesla Model S and Roadster rechargeable cars at Los Angeles and San Francisco airports. Hertz has five Teslas combined at the two airports, with rental prices starting at about $500 a day, Paula Rivera, a Hertz spokeswoman, said in an e-mail.

The Tesla models expand on a lineup of higher-priced vehicles that Hertz has added to its fleet under its Dream Cars program, which includes Ferrari and Lamborghini models.

In July, Hertz won final regulatory approval for its $2.3 billion acquisition of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. The merged companies compete with closely held Enterprise Holdings Inc. and Avis Budget Group Inc.

Enterprise has carried three Tesla Model S cars in its Exotic Car Collection fleet since June and plans to add two more by the end of the year, spokesman Greg Phillips said in an e-mail. The cars rent for about $300 to $500 per day, he said.

Hertz separately reduced its full-year forecast for full-year revenue and profit, citing weaker than anticipated car rentals at U.S. airports.

The newly landed Tesla Model S, after a market presence of less than two months, has already topped Norway’s best-sellers' list during the opening two week’s of this month, comfortably outselling all other cars, regardless of fuel type, accounting for 6.2 per cent of all the new cars sold in Norway.

Hot on the heels of recording 184 registrations in its debut month in Norway, registrations of the Model S in Norway hit a chart-topping 322 units to bulldoze Volkswagen’s conventionally powered Golf (256 units) out of first place by a substantial sales margin, according to AID compiled data.

The number eight slot went to Nissan’s LEAF, Norway’s most popular electric car so far this year. Both fully-fledged electric cars have captured a combined market share of 9.1 per cent.

1) Tesla Model S – 322
2) Volkswagen Golf – 256
3) Toyota Auris
4) Mazda CX-5
5) Volvo V40
6) Skoda Octavia
7) Toyota RAV4
8) Nissan LEAF