Want to watch Lesley Stahl and Elon Musk tool around in a Tesla Roadster? If you missed the duo on 60 Minutes last night, you can still catch it online. The stalwart CBS reporter takes a 12-minute look at "The Race for the Electric Car." The piece starts out by talking the need for new battery technology, but then becomes a sort of personaity profile.

This happens when Stahl chats with Bob Lutz and his role in bringing the Volt to life. While he tells her he doesn't want to repeat his "global warming is a 'total crock of sh*t'" comment on the family news show (maybe all the flak had an effect), he does admit his personal carbon footprint isn't exactly small. With two helicopters and two jets in his family, not to mention all of his cars, Lutz is still a tempting target for mainstream news editors to use as a poster boy for GM's greenwashing. Still, in the rest of the piece we get to see people handbuilding Tesla Roadsters, an Aptera driving down the road and a clip of the Fisker Karma. Oh, and Bob Lutz kind of gloating over what's happenend to Tesla.

Watch the video after the break.

[Source: CBS]

The Tesla Roadster validation prototype No. 11 made a trip up the coast from California to Seattle recently for a bit of publicity before the company opens its Seattle-area store sometime next year. VP 11 has version 1.5 of the powertrain and made a splash in the Pacific Northwest, including on Microsoft's campus.

Zak Edson, Tesla's senior manager of member services, posted yesterday about the "four-day sales and marketing blitz" and said that 80 people - potential customers and media - got to drive the car. Part of Tesla's interest in expanding to Washington state is the tax offer for greener vehicles - including a sales tax exemption for hybrids and alternative fuel vehicles. You'll have to hurry to get a discount on your Model S, though. The tax is set to stop at the end of 2010. There's more, including a list of local news bits about Tesla's NW appearance, over at the Tesla Feel blog.

[Source: Tesla]

The head of Tesla Motors, Elon Musk, was in the house at the Always On Going Green conference giving a talk yesterday and had lots to say about possible upcoming products from his company. First off, in contradiction to what we heard earlier from Tesla marketing guy, Daryl Siry, there may very well be an SUV in the pipeline. Although it might seem antithetical to the green agenda Musk espouses, he believes it would be a strong driver of sales. Of course, his idea of an SUV might be closer in size to a Captiva than a full-blown Tahoe but we guess we'll have to wait for an actual sketch before we make too many assumptions. We suspect he hasn't gotten the memo that the stationwagon is the new SUV though. If an SUV EV does come to fruition it would be built on the Model S platform most likely at it new factory in San Jose.

While talking about making cars less expensive in the future, he let slip that they are "confident in being able to get to a $30,000 car, or perhaps a $20,000 car, in partnership with a major car company," sometime in the future. Whether or not that major car company is Daimler is unknown but in a phone conversation with Earth2Tech, Mr. Musk said that "Tesla's partnership with Daimler won't focus on its Model S".

Speaking of the Model S, Musk said that the as-yet-unseen luxury sedan would feature a swappable battery. Not that they plan on jumping into bed with Better Place but having that function would make the vehicle easier to service. Of course, it also leaves the door open to some future battery-swapping-station scheme. We hope it also has the ability to accept a quick charge.

[Source: Earth2Tech / greentechmedia]

We've known for a while that Tesla Motors is planning on building a manufacturing plant somewhere in California where it can gnaw on the financial carrots held out to it by the Golden State. Now comes word that San Jose has been chosen to be the home of not only a factory, but an entire corporate campus. The 89-acre site will contain their relocated corporate headquarters and R&D lab as well as the facility where the upcoming all-electric luxury Model S will be lovingly assembled. It is expected to achieve gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) though it is unknown what amount of power generation might be integrated into the site. The price tag for the whole shootin' match is upwards of $250 million dollars and once it's up and running it should employ 1,000 workers.

Tesla says the site was chosen, in part, because of the high concentration of highly-skilled engineers and infrastructure in the area. We also suspect that the waiving of rent for the first 10 years of the 40-year lease on the property probably helped a bit too. With $155 million already on hand, Tesla hopes to raise another $100 million for the project. Work on the site should begin sometime next summer. Press release after the break.

[Source: Tesla Motors / New York Times]

Matthias Willenbacher runs this German green energy company called Juwi and like others in his position, had a strong interest in a car that could be powered by renewable energy. He somehow not only got hold of a Tesla Roadster to try out, but also some green sports car consulting expertise in the guise of one Heinz-Harald Frentzen, fellow countryman and former Formula 1 driver. We recently noted Heinz-Harold has his own hybrid racing team which employs the greener version of the Gumpert Apollo.

Apparently the test drive went quite well, if our ability to translate French is accurate. Although the Roadster wasn't likely to impress the racing car driver on the Autobahn with its 125 mph top speed, the quickness with which it arrived there must have. According to Le Blog Auto, Mr. Willenbacher has ordered up 11 of the electric beauties. Why 11? We don't know. If it were us, we'd have definitely gone for an even dozen. When the cars are finished being built they won't all be delivered to the Willenbacher estate but rather to his company headquarters (which, incidentally, produces more energy than it consumes), where they will serve as official company vehicles. We expect Juwi may soon be flooded with applications from eager thrill job seekers.

[Source: Le Blog Auto]

A couple of weeks ago we told you that Tesla was talking to the producers of Top Gear about having Jeremy Clarkson try out the Roadster. At the time Darryl Siry told us nothing had been finalized yet and we don't know if that has changed. What we do know is that the "other British car show," Fifth Gear, has already driven the Roadster. During the Goodwood Festival of Speed last July, Fifth Gear presenter Vicki Butler-Henderson strapped on a Roadster for the big hill climb event. Much like everyone else who has driven the Roadster, she was impressed with the immediate torque and the silent operation. I can't wait to see the Stig take this to the track. Check out the video after the jump. Thanks to Andy for the tip!

[Source: YouTube]

It looks like the wait might soon be over for aspiring Tesla Roadster owners as the company has just announced that it has completed validation of the upgraded drivetrain 1.5. Tesla has so far delivered 27 cars to customers with the interim drivetrain and another 23 cars are in progress. According to Tesla SVP Darryl Siry, 11 more cars will have the interim drivetrains installed for initial delivery. From that point on, within the next 2-3 weeks, the company will start installing the new drivetrains - including the upgraded motor, power electronics and single speed gearbox. For production, veteran transmission manufacturer BorgWarner will build the gearboxes for Tesla. Over the last several months, Tesla has been testing cars with the same transmission design manufactured both by BorgWarner and in-house at Tesla but ultimately chose BorgWarner.

Now that the powertrain is ready, Tesla will ramp production starts from four cars per week to ten per week. By next March, Tesla hopes to be up to 40 cars per week. The upgrades mean the Roadster's motor now goes from 211 to 280 lb-ft of torque, while the range also increases by ten percent to 244 miles. Over the coming months, the 38 cars that are delivered with interim powertrains will also be retrofitted with the new hardware. Sounds like it's time for another Tesla Roadster drive.

[Source: Tesla Motors]

click above for more of Eberhard and his Tesla Roadster

By describing the cost to charge an electric vehicle as "squishy," Martin Eberhard begins a post on his Tesla Founders Blog on the right foot. Seriously. That's because it's a very difficult question to answer and it totally depends on where you live, what company your power is coming from and when you charge it. There are other factors too, such as what, if any, alternative sources you have and how much power you usually use on an average day. To help explain all of these little details, Eberhard has made a spreadsheet based on Northern California's rates from Pacific Gas and Electric.

After doing all the math, Martin figures that it costs him 3.6 cents per mile to run his Roadster. That's more than he initially figured but still just a small fraction of what it would cost to run on gas. For instance, at $4.00 a gallon, a car that gets over 40 miles per gallon would still cost double per mile to operate. Of course, YMMV. To help figure it all out, Martin suggests that you create your own spreadsheet and share it with the rest of the class.


[Source: Tesla Founders Blog]

Click on the Tesla Roadster for a high-res gallery

OK, so if you were wondering what could be gained by schlepping a batch of Tesla Roadsters across the pond, I have your answer: convincing European automotive journalists that EVs are wicked cool.

Take, for example, the feelings of Guido Reinking, the editor of Automobilwoche. Before feeling what it's like to be behind the wheel of a Roadster recently, he thought that EVs offered a pathetic future and that electric-powered vehicles were more suited for public transportation than cars. Of EVs, he said, "Aren't they completely sterile, bereft of any emotion, just another appliance?"

He's changed his tune. According to his piece in Automotive News Europe, Reinking now says that, "Anyone harboring such misconceptions needs to take a test drive in a Tesla Roadster." It's a feeling we know, and know well.

Sure, Reinking noted the Roadster's problems, as we noted last week, but I thought the change of mind that Reinking had should be brought up on its own. After all, everyone is going to have their first experience with EVs in the coming decade (give or take) and the more positive those can be, the better the chances will be for battery-powered vehicles.


[Source: Automotive News Europe]

A few weeks back I did some informed but utterly unconfirmed speculation about the nature of the deal that Tesla Motors had struck with Daimler. Of the two scenarios that I posited, the more likely was that Tesla would be supplying lithium ion battery packs to Daimler for use in the electric version of the Smart ForTwo. The German edition of the Financial Times today has a story on the expansion of Daimler's test fleet of battery powered Smarts from London into Berlin and other cities. In the story, it reveals that Tesla will be supplying batteries for the 150 cars that will be deployed in Berlin. Daimler is also teaming up with utility RWE to install 500 charging stations around the German capital. According to a Google translation of the story, the lithium-ion Smart will have a 90-mile range in urban driving. Daimler will eventually expand the test fleet to 1,000 cars. So far Tesla has not replied to a request for comment, but we'll provide an update as soon as we here something. Thanks to Wilhelm for the tip!

Update: Tesla's Darryl Siry declined to comment on the story at this time.

[Source: Financial Times Germany]

Ever since Tesla Motors started letting outsiders actually drive the Roadster late last year the reviews of the over-the-road experience have been largely favorable. In recent months, Tesla has been taking the Roadster on a European tour trying to drum up sales on the continent. One of the people who drove the Roadster was Guido Reinking, editor of Automobilewoche. Reinking praised the performance saying "the car offered the emotional, heart-pounding ride of a street racer." However, he also highlighted powertrain and battery issues we haven't heard about before, aside from the well-documented transmission issues.

Of the three cars available for the test drive, one apparently didn't run at all, while a second reportedly emitted smoke from the battery compartment. Reinking uses these issues to highlight the problem of battery reliability and why the Roadster might not be ready for mass production. However, we checked with Tesla SVP of marketing Darryl Siry who was also on hand for these 16 days of media and prospective customer drives. According to Darryl, two of the three cars on hand were equipped with the new 1.5 drivetrain while the third had the 1.0 interim drivetrain. Siry tells us that the car that wouldn't go had a faulty parking pawl sensor. The parking pawl is essentially a locking mechanism for the transmission that keeps the car from rolling when the gear lever is in park just as it does on a conventional automatic. The sensor erroneously detected park being engaged and prevented the car from moving. Read on after the jump for more on the "smoky" battery.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Click on the image above to enlarge

What do the Tango, Tesla Roadster and Wrightspeed X1 all have in common? Easy, they are all ridiculously quick and sporty electric cars. And now, they've all gotten together for a quick photoshoot and some lunch. While we'd love to snag a ride in any and all of these awesome electrics, a lucky Tesla Motors Club Forum member who goes by the handle 'TEG' has scored a ride or drive in at least two of them. Yes, we are totally jealous. But, at least TEG was nice enough to share some experiences of both Martin Eberhard's Tesla Roadster and the (now blue) Wrightspeed of Ian Wright. He says, "If the Tesla feels like a trapdoor opened and gravity took over, the X1 feels like you were shot out of a cannon. Also in many sports cars you explore the limits of the suspension, but the X1 seems so connected that you are really just exploring the limits of the tires." Yeah. Did we mention that we are jealous?

[Source: Tesla Motors Club Forum]

The lead mouth-piece at Top Gear, the incomparable Jeremy Clarkson, has a mixed record when it comes to greener vehicles. He did great with a round trip from London to Edinburgh in an diesel Audi A8, averaging over 33 mpg. However, his more recent encounter with the electric G-Wiz ended less favorably. The UK daily The Independent is reporting that on the next series of the best car show ever created, Clarkson will try again with battery power. This time around he will be going a little more upscale as he is to sample the Tesla Roadster. We checked with Tesla's SVP Darryl Siry to find out which version of the Roadster that Top Gear would be driving, drivetain 1.5, 2-speed or interim single speed. Siry was unaware of the British report. He confirmed that Tesla had been in contact with Top Gear producers but nothing has been scheduled or confirmed yet. He did tell ABG that "You can bet it will be with our best foot forward," implying that when the test happens it will be with the upgraded drivetrain 1.5.

Clarkson's a fairly big guy so it will be interesting to see how he fits in the car when the drive does happen. He will no doubt be pleased with the performance of the Roadster, and it will be interesting to see what kind of range the Top Gear crew will be able to muster when the Roadster is driven in their usual manner. It will also be interesting to see what self-improvement recording the Stig listens to as he takes to the track in the Roadster. Thanks to Jamie for the tip!

[Source: The Independent, Tesla Motors]

Tesla's SVP of marketing Darryl Siry has been on another sales tour of Europe filling in the magazines over there on the company's future product plans. For the most part there was nothing new that we haven't already reported on here over the past year. The upcoming Model S (formerly known as WhiteStar) will not be sharing a platform with any existing vehicle. That doesn't mean every single component of the car will be completely bespoke. It wouldn't make financial sense to build every single part just for this one car, so parts like brakes, steering hardware and perhaps even some suspension bits will be borrowed from other cars. According to Siry, the Model S design is about 90 percent done.

For the Model S and future programs, Tesla's engineers have reconfigured the battery pack to make it more practical for different body configurations. The Roadster's pack is upright and sits in the middle of the car behind the passenger compartment. For the new car, a low-slung pack that fits under the floor will be used. When we contacted Siry he declined to comment on whether Tesla would continue to use the laptop type cells for the new pack or switch to one of the new larger format cells being designed for automotive use. The under-floor setup mirrors the configuration being used by many other EV manufacturers. Continue reading after the jump.

[Sources: AutoCar, CAR, Tesla Motors]

It's time to throw some ideas against the wall and see what sticks. Disclaimer: I have no inside knowledge to back up any of what follows. This is all pure speculation based on putting together some puzzle pieces that may or may not actually fit. Let's begin with a few things that we do know:

Daimler and Tesla Motors have some sort of deal, but we have no knowledge about the details. This news came out of an interview that Tesla Chairman Elon Musk did with Fox Business News a couple of months ago. At the time I speculated that this could be either a deal to license some battery management technology to Daimler or for the Germans to supply the Smart engine to Tesla as a range extender for the Model S. We now know that the idea of an ER-EV Model S has been discarded which brings us back to the first idea.

Recently we've heard about a couple of different Daimler projects that involve batteries. One is the ML450 hybrid. Mercedes has a contract with Cobasys to supply nickel metal hydride batteries for the ML450. However, business problems at Cobasys have led Mercedes to file suit against the company. A Mercedes spokesman told ABG that the program is still on track but did not comment on whether a sourcing change would be made. Continue reading this twisted little tale after the jump.