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TESLA STOCK SURGING TO NEW HIGHS, NOW WORTH MORE THAN GM, ENTERS BUBBLE STAGE, BUT THIS IS A LONGTERM INVESTMENT

Tesla's stock has been on a tear.

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On Monday the carmaker's market cap exceeded that of General Motors: $51 billion. This is about $15 billion more than where Tesla was valued for much of 2016. And it's about $7 billion more than Ford.

None of this makes any sense. Tesla's business fundamentals haven't changed substantially since late last year, and its first-quarter deliveries — 25,000 vehicles — set a sales pace for 2017 that will see Tesla produce about only 100,000 cars in 2017, an improvement of 20,000 over 2016.

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One explanation for Tesla's most recent surge could be that short sellers (traders who had bet against Tesla) are finally throwing in the towel and covering their positions. That, by definition, would have them buying the shares.

This does make sense, as Tesla is one of the most heavily shorted stocks on Wall Street, and those short sellers have been suffering lately. The financial-analytics firm S3 Partners estimates that the shorts have lost $3.2 billion this year.

But given that Tesla was already heavily overvalued based on its core business — building and selling luxury electric cars — and that it has only a few billion dollars of assets to claim, it would be logical for investors to start discounting the value of Tesla's future.

Now that it's on a massive upward trajectory, its first-quarter 2017 earnings loom as an opportunity for a more rational outlook on the company's valuation to take hold and could put new investors at real risk of being flushed out.

An alarming increase

But the manner in which Tesla spikes in the absence of real news and in defiance of the numerous challenges it faces over the next year becomes more alarming as the company's paper value climbs ever higher. Tesla bulls argue that Elon Musk's enterprise will be legitimately bigger than GM's and Ford's in the future because electric transportation will displace gas-powered mobility over the next few decades and Tesla has the best brand and largest head start.

Bears insist that Tesla is a sucker's game and a capital-obliteration scheme. They point to the company's inability to make money a decade into its existence, and to Musk's steady refusal to consolidate the business, preferring to push forward and, for example, launch a mass-market electric car (the Model 3) later this year. Or create an energy-storage business. Or buy the struggling, debt-laden SolarCity for over $2 billion. If the stock indeed represents a claim on future cash flows, they point out that those future cash flows could be zero.

Both angles overlook the company's most glaring problem, which is that Tesla is a carmaker that still isn't very good at making cars. The cars that it does make are impressive (at Business Insider, we've test-driven them all). But Musk expects to be delivering 500,000 vehicles by 2018 and 1 million by 2020 — the former represents a fivefold increase over projected 2017 production, and the latter would require Tesla to either double the capacity of its Fremont factory or build a new plant.

Nonsensical valuation

Viewed in this context, Tesla trading at $311 is flatly insane. Even if it were to sell 1 million vehicles by 2020, most of them would be lower-margin small cars. The most profitable market segments — big SUVs and large pickup trucks — would still be owned by the three Detroit automakers (GM, Ford, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) that the markets have decided are worth less in the future than Musk's operation.

The situation with Tesla's valuation will probably get worse before it gets rational.

The rally that began early this year occurred after another money-losing fourth quarter. Anyone who is a hardcore Tesla short simply needs to take solace in that Tesla's stock chart has always looked like a roller coaster; shares always go down, typically taking billions in market cap with them. (GM, Ford, and FCA charts, by contrast, look boring.)

A larger question is why Tesla has in the past three months so wildly outperformed even growth-driven stock indexes, such as the Nasdaq. Yes, the markets overall have enjoyed a rally since President Donald Trump won the election. But Tesla has enjoyed a mega-rally — one that's actually out of character with what shares generally do at the beginning of a year, as investors recalibrate their expectations and, if they've owned Tesla for a while, grab some profits.

Beyond trader dynamics — longs versus shorts — Tesla's surge isn't driven by the company's actual performance, and that's exactly what anyone calling a speculative Tesla bubble would latch on to. But that's also old news because Tesla's fundamentals have been analyzed to death, with the obvious conclusion that a $300-plus stock price demands a level of execution that the company hasn't yet reached.

At this point, a Tesla bubble looks obvious, and it looks as obvious as it has since early this year. The difference now is that it's grown so large that it's become terrifying.

COMMENTARY:    According to its announcement of January 3, 2017, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) produced 24,882 vehicles in Q4, resulting in total 2016 production of 83,922 vehicles. This was an increase of 64% from 2015.

Tesla delivered approximately 22,200 vehicles in Q4, of which 12,700 were Model S and 9,500 were Model X. When added to the rest of the year, total 2016 deliveries were approximately 76,230.  Our Q4 delivery count should be viewed as slightly conservative, as we only count a car as delivered if it is transferred to the customer and all paperwork is correct.

Tesla said the transition to new Autopilot hardware resulted in the company’s vehicle production being “weighted more heavily towards the end of the quarter than we had originally planned.” In total, about 2,750 Tesla vehicles missed being counted as deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2016, which the company ascribes to “last-minute delays in transport or because the customer was unable to physically take delivery.”

Tesla said that even though those sales were counted toward 2016, the deliveries were not because the customers did not physically take possession of their cars. Tesla says about 6,450 vehicles are still in transit, and that their deliveries will be counted toward the first quarter of 2017.

The company said.

“We were ultimately able to recover and hit our production goal, but the delay in production resulted in challenges that impacted quarterly deliveries, including, among other things, cars missing shipping cutoffs for Europe and Asia. Although we tried to recover these deliveries and expedite others by the end of the quarter, time ran out before we could deliver all customer cars.”

While it fell short on delivery, Tesla was able to beat its production rate for 2015. Tesla said it produced 24,882 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2016, resulting in a total of 83,922 vehicles produced in 2016. This was an increase of 64 percent from 2015.

Vehicle demand in Q4 was particularly strong, Tesla says. Net orders for Model S and X, which were an all-time record, were 52 percent higher than Q4 2015 and 24 percent higher than the company’s previous record quarter in Q3 2016.

Early last month, Tesla announced that it will begin charging owners who leave their cars at Supercharger stations after they have completed charging. The new fee is an attempt to increase turnover at the charging stations, which have become increasingly congested as more Teslas are sold.

Tesla Lithium-ion Battery Gigafactory 

Deep in the Nevada hinterlands, under the scorching desert sun,  Elon Musk is quietly building a       $5 billion, 5.8 million square-foot battery plant that will forever change the auto industry.

Now, most of the attention Tesla receives has to do with its cars. And perhaps justifiably so.  Just last week, Motor Trend announced that Tesla's Model S P100D can go from 0-60 MPH in a record-breaking 2.2755 seconds. (That level of torque puts Tesla on par with Ferrari, by the way.)

But the major focus should not be the actual vehicles Tesla is producing.  Rather, it's about something much bigger, and, in my view, infinitely more important for Tesla's long-term success: The Gigafactory.

In partnership with Panasonic, Tesla's Gigafactory is building lithium-ion batteries - the same type of battery that's been popular for use with personal electronics but deemed too expensive for electric cars. The Gigafactory is changing that.

As of January 2017, Tesla has begun mass production of the cells, and by 2018, the Gigafactory will "reach full capacity and produce more lithium ion batteries annually than were produced worldwide in 2013," the company says. The facility will be staffed by 6,500 full-time Reno-based employees and "single-handedly double the world's production capacity for lithium-ion batteries," according to Bloomberg.

The company also plans to be producing one million electric cars by the end of the decade.

Now, let's take a step back. Why is the Gigafactory such a big deal, you ask?

Well, two main reasons: Cost and storage.

Batteries for electric vehicles are historically not very cheap, nor do they hold a very good charge.  But Musk wants to change that. Specifically, he wants to drive down the per kilowatt hour (kWh) price of the battery pack by more than 30 percent to make it suitable for electric cars, while increasing the amount of energy storage in the battery pack. Must sai at a January 2017 event.

"It really comes from the first principles of physics and economics. That's the way we try to analyze everything."

As stated in a January 2017 investor presentation, Musk announced that the drivetrain for Tesla's much-anticipated $35,000 Model 3 will be built at the Gigafactory 1 in order to vertically integrate the battery production with car production. In a subsequent Q&A session, Musk "compared the concept of the Gigafactory's vertical integration to Ford's effort 100 years ago at River Rouge Complex, the largest integrated factory in the world at the time," Electrek noted.

The big question for investors, however, is whether or not the Gigafactory will pay off in the long-term.

My belief is that yes, it will.

Let me explain.

The Gigafactory Will Push Tesla's Cars Costs Down And Increase Demand For EVs

There's a whole host of reasons why electric cars are the future (fewer greenhouse gases, unstable oil price, a smaller amount of serviceable components, etc.) but the purpose of this article isn't to prove why electric cars are the future. That's just the reality.

By 2040, about 23 years from now, analysts at Bloomberg predict that electric cars will account for 35 percent of all new vehicle sales. Some have even rosier predictions for the EV market: The Argonne National Laboratory predicts that electric cars will make up 58% of the light vehicle market by 2030.

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Right now, what's holding back the sale of EV cars is battery cost and quality.

By owning the production of low-cost batteries with the Gigafactory, the thinking goes, Tesla will establish itself as the king electric vehicle automaker in the long run.

It should be noted, too, that Tesla already has an enormous position on the incumbents in the market, meaning that when the factory is fully up-and-running, they will be best-positioned to target consumers interested in electric vehicles.

Best-selling all-electric cars in 2016

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Tesla is forgoing short-term profits to invest $5 billion into a battery factory (a decision some in the market have criticized) the long-term rewards are well-worth it.

David Keith, an MIT professor studying automotive technologies, told Quartz recently.

"The cost of batteries is so critical in all this that it justifies (Tesla) having this control.  No one else is going to push as hard as they want to bring down the cost of batteries, and to push the market as fast as they need it to go."

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The Gigafactory is Opening To Europe - Taking Tesla With It

In November 2016, Tesla announced that they'll be building Gigafactory 2 in Europe.

Since then, plenty of country officials have thrown their hat in the ring, practically begging Musk to choose them. The Dutch Minister of Finance, for instance, officially expressed his country's interest, while Cyprus began a social media campaign to attract Musk. Portugal, however, is perhaps the most gung-ho about the Gigafactory. As DW reported:

"Euphoria has nevertheless gripped many Portuguese over a possible Tesla investment. There's even a Facebook group called 'Bring Tesla Gigafactory to Portugal.' It has only been online since mid-November, but just one month later, it already has nearly 70,000 members. Whether that will help sway Elon Musk as he considers his options for siting Europe's first Gigafactory remains to be seen. It's expected that he will make the siting decision sometime in 2017."

Tesla Stock Bubble

I haven't tracked Tesla shares since late last year, so was very surprised to discover that the shares had increased +104.99 or +53.43% since mid-October 2016.  However, the bad news is that Tesla's share price has risen because short sellers have had to buy shares t o minimize their losses.  This is a type of "forced demand" that has, for lack of a better word, "artificially drivenup" the price of Tesla Shares, and the increase has been so significant, that retail buyers and speculators have come in and drivenup the price even more. The result is a price per share that is not inline with its financial performance. Tesla's CAP is now higher than General Motors, which is ridiculous since they are both in the same market category.  If you are going to invest in Tesla, you must realize that Elon Musk is a high risk taker, who gambles big.  Tesla is bigger than fancy electric cars with the latest technology, but about a far bigger mission -- insuring the health of our planet and reducing greenhouse gases.  It is a race against time, and this requires rolling the dice.  Musk has done this with Space-X, Solar City and Tesla.  Forget shortterm profits and look at the bigger picture  If investors believe in the bigger picture and true mission for Tesla, then maybe, just maybe, the current valuation is justified on the basis of future potential and not current unit sales of electric cars.  If they can grasp the true vision that Elon Musk has for Tesla, then things will sort themselves out.  Sure, there may be stock price adjustments, every public company has them, but I truly believe in Tesla's future potential. 

Courtesy of an article dated April 10, 2017 appearing in Business Insider and an article appearing in EVVolumes.com and an article appearing in InsideEVS.com and an article dated February 17, 2017 appearing in Seeking Alpha 

 

 

FORD REPEATS 1966 VICTORY AT LE MANS WITH HISTORIC VICTORY AT LE MANS 2016 WITH ITS NEW GT '66 HERITAGE EDITION

The new model comes in both gloss and matte finishes (Click Image To Enlarge)

Just over a week after its LM GTE Pro category win at Le Mans 2016, Ford is taking a trip back in time to an even bigger win. The all-new 2017 Ford GT '66 Heritage Edition pays homage to Ford's historic 1966 Le Mans victory. This special edition Ford GT brings a race-inspired look to the streets.

 

Ford made its historic come-back to the most mythical endurance race in the world, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. After more than 50 years, and its last victory in 1966 with the Ford GT40, they came back, and snatched 1st place, 3rd & 4th. That's a pretty awesome come-back.

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Inspired by the GT40 Mark II driven to victory by Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon in 1966, the 'No. 2' 2017 Ford GT wears "shadow black" paint (in a choice of gloss or matte finish) with silver stripes, "frozen white" #2 graphics on the hood and sides, and an exposed carbon fiber package. The car rides on 20-in one-piece forged aluminum wheels in a gold satin clear coat.

  

The Heritage interior has ebony leather around its carbon fiber seats, instrument panel, pillars and headliner; debossed Ford GT logos on the headrests and leather-wrapped steering wheel; exposed matte carbon fiber on the center console, door sills and air register pods; gold appliqués; and blue-webbed seat belts. The "2" appears inside the door, as well as outside, and an identification plate lends authenticity to the unique limited edition.

Garen Nicoghosian, the exterior design manager says.  

"While the looks are distinctly based on the GT40 Mark II race car, we've accentuated new styling cues to provide a modern interpretation." 

Ford will offer a limited number of Heritage packages exclusively for the GT's 2017 model year.

COMMENTARY:  On the outside, the Ford GT has been painted to resemble the No. 2 GT40 MkII race car that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966. If you’re not a big fan of vintage racing, the car driven by Bruce McLaren and Chris Among was painted black with a pair of silver stripes running from the nose toward the deck lid. Ford used the same livery for the modern GT, but offers its familiar Shadow Black in either gloss or matte, so customers can choose between something similar to the original car or a more modern matte finish that goes well with the exposed carbon-fiber package that comes with this limited-edition model. The black paint is complemented by silver stripes and Frozen White No. 2 graphics on the hood and the doors. Rounding off the exterior is a set of 20-inch, one-piece forged aluminum wheel in gold satin clearcoat and with black lug nuts. Although the twin-five-spoke design has nothing in common with the racing rims of the original GT40, the gold color is true to the car that won the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

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The interior of the ’66 Heritage Edition also received special features, starting with the carbon-fiber seats wrapped in Ebony leather and equipped with pillowed inserts and plow-through stitching. It would have been nice for Ford to replicate the GT40’s famous brass eyelets into the upholstery – as it did with the previous GT – but the pillowed inserts are enough to give the interior a vintage-style appearance. The instrument panel, pillars, and headliner also features an Ebony-leather wrap, while the trim on the instrument panel, the seat’s X-brace and shift paddles are finished in gold. The seats’ head and restraints and steering wheel are debossed with the "GT" logo. Like the 1966 race car, the steering wheel and the seat belts have a unique blue webbing. Rounding off the cockpit is a serialized identification plate, "#2" door panel graphics, and exposed matte carbon fiber door sills and center console.

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Not surprisingly, the ’66 Heritage Edition is a standard GT under the hood, meaning it uses Ford’s race-derived 3.5-liter EcoBoost (twin turbo) V-6, which generates in excess of 600 horsepower. All that power travels to the rear wheels through a seven-speed, dual-clutch transaxle, making it the first GT ever to not use a manual gearbox.

No word on pricing yet, but with the standard GT said to fetch around $400,000 before options, the ’66 Heritage Edition could cost in excess of $450,000. Ford said it will be built in "limited quantities," but gave no actual figures. I expect a production run of 66 unit in order to match the company’s most important year in motorsport.

Nine years after it discontinued the first-gen GT, the spiritual successor of the iconic GT40 race car, Ford introduced the second-generation GT at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show. Initially just a non-running prototype, the GT began hitting public roads months later, as Ford began testing the production car. Although the first GTs won’t reach their customers until late 2016, the supercar has already spawned a full-fledged race car that has been battling for glory in GT classes in North America in Europe. Its most important achievement as of 2016 is a class win at the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans, where just like in 1966, it crossed the finished line ahead of arch-rival Ferrari.

NOTE:  The entire production of 250 vehicles have been sold and Ford Motor Company is no longer taking orders

Courtesy of an article dated June 28, 2016 appearing in Gizmag and an article dated June 25, 2016 appearing in TopSpeed and Ford Motor Company official press release dated June 27, 2016

47 SOLAR-POWERED CAR TEAMS GEAR UP FOR THE GRUELING 1,864 MILE WORLD SOLAR CHALLENGE IN AUSTRALIA

The University of Michigan's Aurum solar car features an asymmetrical catamaran body (Click Image To Enlarge)

If you're looking to bring together the world's brightest budding engineers to push solar technology to its very limits, then there may be no better backdrop than the dusty, sun-drenched expanses of central Australia. The biennial World Solar Challenge will kick off this Sunday, with competitors set to cover a monster 3,000 km (1,864 mi) journey from Darwin, Northern Territory to Adelaide, South Australia in cars powered purely by the sun. As hopefuls from all over the globe ready their rides for the ultimate in solar-powered endurance racing, here's a quick look at some of the interesting vehicle designs, who's new to the party and a few that have been around the block before.

This year's event marks the 13th World Solar Challenge and features 47 teams from 25 different countries, which is more than ever before. The vehicles taking part have traditionally resembled spaceships more than cars you might see on the street, but at the last World Solar Challenge in 2013 organizers introduced the Cruiser Challenge, a second class catering to solar cars that can carry passengers and are designed more with practicality in mind.

The Challenger Class is the mainstay of the competition and sees a fleet of sleek, aerodynamic cars covered in solar panels battle it out to be the first across the finish line. This year's event features 29 teams who have had to tailor their designs to result in vehicles no longer than 4.5 m (14.7 ft) and no wider than 1.8 m (5.9 ft), which is a downsizing from the previous event. The field includes a number of teams who have been regular place-getters, if not winners, of the World Solar Challenge, along with a few making their debut appearances.

Nuon Solar Team: Nuna

The Nuon Solar Team is the reigning champ and has been one of the first three across the finish line in every World Solar Challenge since 2001, claiming the first prize a total of five times. Hailing from Holland, this year the team rides in the Nuna8, the eighth rendition of its Nuna solar car and, perhaps in a warning to its competitors, claims to have learnt some design lessons from its successful run in 2013.

The Nuon Solar Team is the reigning champ and has been one of the first three across the finish line in every World Solar Challenge since 2001 (Click Image To Enlarge)

Tokai University: Tokai Challenger

Japan's Tokai University has taken the fight right up to the Nuon Solar Team in recent years, winning both the 2009 and 2011 events, then coming in second place in 2013. It says the new and improved Tokai Challenger is lighter, features improved power generation and also better aerodynamics.

Tokai University is back and looking for another title at the World Solar Challenge with its Tokai Challenger solar car (Click Image To Enlarge)

University of Michigan: Aurum

The University of Michigan has been in the game since 1990, when it placed third in the second ever World Solar Challenge, and it takes solar car design seriously. Consecutive third place finishes in 2009 and 2011 were followed by a crash in 2013, which crippled the team's chances of success despite the team's best efforts to repair the vehicle. Aurum is its 2015 ride, featuring an asymmetrical catamaran body that is said to be more aerodynamic that any vehicle the team has ever produced.

The University of Michigan team says its focus in building Aurum was speed, reliability, and safety (Click Image To Enlarge)

Stanford University: Arctan

A product of Stanford University's Solar Car Project program, Arctan is claimed to feature some of the most advanced photovoltaic and encapsulation technologies. Will it be enough to yield Stanford's first ever triumph at the World Solar Challenge?

Stanford University's Arctan solar car during a test run (Click Image To Enlarge)

Eindhoven University of Technology: Stella Lux

The (comparatively) spacious Stella Lux is a second take on solar car design from the team at Eindhoven University of Technology. Running in the Cruiser Challenge, the vehicle seats up to four people, features a range of more than 1,100 km (684 mi) and has a top speed of 125 km/h (78 mph). It has a tunnel running through its center to maximize aerodynamics.

Stella Lux will take part in the Cruiser Class of the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (Click Image To Enlarge)

New entries

Three new teams are looking to make their mark on the World Solar Challenge this year. Thailand's Siam Technology College claims it has designed its STC-1 solar vehicle to the same standards as a typical racing car, while the GAMF Hungary team says its goal with its Megalux car was to build a vehicle where all the components are in harmony with one another. Meanwhile, South Africa's University of KwaZulu-Natal will debut a solar car called Hulamin, which features an asymmetrical design with a small frontal area to reduce drag

Thailand's Siam Technology College is entering the World Solar Challenge for the first time with its STC-1 solar car (Click Image To Enlarge)

While these vehicles are the result of years of research, refinement and careful consideration, there's no way to completely prepare for the harsh Australian outback where daytime temperatures are expected to reach 100° F (37.8° Celsius) in the coming days. There's certain to be a few twists and turns down the road, so stay tuned to Gizmag to see which team comes out on top. The awards ceremony is due to start in Adelaide on Wednesday as the teams start rolling in, but in the meantime you can click through to our gallery to see these vehicles from all angles.

The GAMF Hungary team says its goal with its Megalux car was to build a vehicle where all the components are in harmony with one another (Click Image To Enlarge)

COMMENTARY:   I've been covering green technology and solar energy for quite some time now.  I especially enjoy these long distance, solar-powered car races.  The World Solar Challenge is without any doubt the most grueling, covering a distance of 1,864 across Australia north-to-south.  

The Nuon Solar Team from the Netherlands cross the finish line in southern Australia to win the 2013 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge, in which vehicles use only solar power. The car race from Darwin to Adelaide is 1,877 miles long and attracts teams from around the world. Nuon finished in a time of 33.05 hours and jumped into inflatable paddling pools to celebrate their win.

 

Courtesy of an article dated October 15, 2015 appearing in Gizmag

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TESLA UNVEILS ITS MODEL X ELECTRIC SUV, IT'S AWESOME, FUTURISTIC, HAS FALCON WING DOORS AND BIOWEAPON DEFENSE MODE

THE WORLD’S FIRST luxury electric SUV is gorgeous. It’s futuristic. And once again, Tesla Motors is redefining the electric vehicle.

The Silicon Valley automaker has teased us for years with the Model X, and tonight it finally gave the world its first look at the production model, then handed six customers the keys.

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Those people now own a $130,000 electric vehicle that will go 250 miles on a charge, carry seven people and haul more stuff than anyone but a hoarder might want with him. And although the X shares much of its DNA with the impressive Model S P90D sedan, in many ways it eclipses that phenomenal car. It’s not just the design, which is futuristic without being weird. It’s not just the performance, which isholy shit fast. And it’s not even the dramatic “falcon” doors that lift like the wings of a bird.

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It’s how all of those features come together in a vehicle that somehow makes an SUV not just cool, but desirable.

But then, that’s what Tesla does.

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CEO Elon Musk said at the car’s reveal, held at the company’s factory in Fremont, California. 

“The mission of Tesla is to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport.  It’s important to know that any kind of car can go electric.”

Watch this on The Scene.

 

Complications

Reaching this point has been a longer journey than Elon Musk hoped. This is the car that’s supposed to prove his company is more than a one hit wonder, and an interlude before the long-awaited Model III brings a $35,000 EV to the masses in 2017.

 

Musk unveiled a prototype X in 2012, saying production would begin the following year. He later pushed that to 2014, which came and went with a promise that we’d see the X this year. But then that’s Musk—he often makes big promises with short timelines, which might explain why he told us tonight that if he had it to do over again, he’d have made the X less complicated and therefore easier to engineer and build.

Finally the car is here, and first impressions suggest it was worth the wait. If you order one today, though, you’ll have to wait a while longer: Tesla estimates it’ll take 8 to 12 months to deliver cars ordered now.

Complexities

The X is, in a word, stunning. Its most amazing features are its mind-bending acceleration, gorgeous design, and amazing rear passenger doors. Tesla calls them “falcon” doors, because they lift like the wings of a bird. And because it sounds cool.

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The big drawback of doors that open like wings—the Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS has them, as did the DeLorean—is they require a lot of room to open, so you’re always worried about hitting something. Tesla got around this by double-hinging the doors, and fitting each with an ultrasonic sensor and putting a third on the roof. They scan the area around the vehicle to determine how much space there is, then adjust the “span” and open accordingly.

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It sounds complicated as hell, and it is, but it works beautifully. Tesla engineers say the doors can open with as little as 12 inches on each side of the vehicle—then proved it by having us park between two cars. The mirrors on the X were mere inches from those of the car on either side, yet the doors opened flawlessly. Capacitive sensors in the edges of each door sense obstacles within 2 to 4 inches, so you don’t have to worry about a descending door whacking your head or crushing your fingers.

All of this may sound like a frivolous extravagance, and in some ways it is—and you know part of the reason Musk wanted these doors was to prove he could make them—but it’s remarkably clever, even practical.

Yes, practical. The doors make it easy to get in and out of the vehicle. No gymnastic contortions to get into the (standard) third row seating. No more cantilevering yourself to get your kids into their child seats. No more playing Tetris trying to get your stuff in. Just throw open those doors—actually, push a button and let the doors lift automatically, in 6 to 7 seconds—throw in your groceries and bags and whatnot, and climb in after it.

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Speaking of stuff, the X is cavernous. No one could tell us the internal volume—you’d think someone at Tesla would have had that figure—but one engineer said you could carry a sheet of plywood. Another said the X would easily swallow a surfboard. And yet another said you could carry a load of two-by-fours. Suffice it to say, this thing will swallow as much cargo as any normal person would carry. Tesla offers an accessory hitch that holds four bikes or six pairs of skis, and can be attached to the back of the car in just a few seconds.

Should you somehow manage to run out of room, the Model X has Class 3 towing capacity, which in lay terms means it’ll haul 5,000 pounds.

In other words, unless you regularly haul enough cattle to supply all the leather in this thing, space is not a problem.

Cavernous

Another clever trick is the “monopost” design of the second-row seats, which is fancy way of saying that each seat (two if you get the six-passenger model, three if you get the seven), sits on its own chrome-plated post. That makes each seat almost infinitely adjustable fore and aft and provides ample room for everyone’s feet. The designers drew inspiration from high-end office chairs and admit they were, like the doors, a bitch to engineer.

Along with the doors and the seats, Musk is especially proud of the “panoramic” windshield, which extends back over the front seat seats to provide an exceptional view. Tesla claims it is the largest windshield ever installed in a production vehicle—yet, oddly, no one had actually measured the damn thing and so couldn’t say exactly how big it is.

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Whatever the number, we can tell you that if you look at the X head-on, it appears to have a glass roof, and riding up front almost like being in a convertible.

Equally impressive is the sound system which is, in a word, glorious. But then, with 560 watts and 17 speakers, how could it not be? Tesla designed the system in-house specifically for the X because it wanted to ensure the system delivered the best sound with the smallest power requirements—essential in an electric vehicle. (General Motors took a similar tack with the Chevrolet Volt, tapping Bose to design a system specifically for the car.) The sound is crisp, clear, and loud—even when standing 15 feet away from the car.

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The styling is perhaps best described as a Model S on steroids. It’s a taller, obviously, and, at 5,441 pounds, about 740 pounds heavier than the S. That said, it also looks more than a little like the BMW X6 from the rear three-quarter view—but when it glides by you silently on the freeway, you’ll know it’s a Tesla.

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Inside, the X is futuristic without being funky, with acres of white leather, plenty of cubbies and cupholders, and that enormous 17-inch touchscreen in the middle of the dash.

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Competition

Although the X is the first electric luxury SUV, it won’t be alone for long. Bentley promises a plug-in hybrid version of its new, ultra-luxe Bentayga SUV in about a year. Rolls-Royce and Lamborghini have hinted at similar plans. Last month, Audi showed off an all-electric crossover concept that’s probably a preview of the 2019 Q6. Aston Martin wants to have one ready in two years.

No one at Tesla would say just what performance, handling, and comfort benchmarks they aimed at with the X, but they’re well aware of everyone’s plans and not terribly worried. And the fact they had a Porsche Cayenne and a BMW X5 in the parking lot for comparison suggests they’re quite confident of the Model X’s sporting capabilities.

They have every reason to be.

Let’s start with the acceleration. It’s crazy. Every Model X comes with a 90 kilowatt-hour battery and dual motors, a model known as 90D. Drop another 10 grand and you get the P90D, which is the performance model with its “ludicrous mode.” Yes, Tesla actually calls it that, and it’s fitting. If you decide to stomp on the accelerator, make damn sure you’ve got plenty of open road ahead of you, because things happenvery quickly. Sixty mph comes in 3.2 seconds, which is on par with the some of the best sports cars from anyone in Italy, Germany, or Britain. We tried it. That number’s legit.

We didn’t have the room to do a quarter-mile run, but Tesla says the Model X P90D will do it in 11.7 seconds. That put its alongside cars like the BMW M5, Corvette Z06, and Porsche Panamera Turbo. Top speed is limited to 155 mph.

If you find ludicrous mode just a bit too, well, ludicrous, or you don’t want to spend that extra dough, the base model adds about half a second to the acceleration and quarter-mile times. Which is to say, it’s still bloody fast. The Model X 90D starts for $132,000 and goes 257 miles on a charge, the more acceleration-friendly P90D will cost you $142,000 and cover 250 miles.

Under the skin, the Model X is identical to the Model S. Same 90 kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery. Same drive motors (259 horsepower at the front, 503 at the rear). Same software controlling it all. And the vehicles share the same (semi) autonomous capabilities.

The two vehicles both “quick charge” at one of Tesla’s stations in 30 minutes. They are designed to be updated in tandem, so any software updates or performance upgrades will apply to both the S and the X. And they will roll down the same assembly line at Tesla’s sprawling factory in Fremont. The company plans to ramp up production, immediately, but wouldn’t say how many might be built by the end of the year.

Of all the things that, at first glance, make the X so remarkable, the most impressive thing about it is the overall impression it imparts. It’s a practical car—Musk has five young children, and clearly considers the demands of hauling them all when designing vehicles—but it’s not a minivan or station wagon that embarrasses parents and kids alike.

Tesla has made the family car cool.

COMMENTARY:  

Technical Specifications

If you go to the Model X page on the Tesla website, you will find detailed technical specifications for the car.  Apparently a lot of the technology writers missed this, but I didn't.  Here are the technical specifications.

Click Image To Enlarge

Two Different Models

The Model X comes in two different models the faster, sportier all-wheel drive P90D which can burn rubber at 3.8 seconds in 0-60 and comes equipped with a 259 hp front motor and a 503 hp rear motor.   The 90D can do 4.8 seconds in 0-60 and comes equipped with a 259 hp front motor and a 259 hp real motor.  

Price

The Model X has a price tag as shocking (to your wallet) as those doors: The Signature Model X (probably the P90D model) that Elon Musk introduced, is loaded with extra features, required a $40,000 deposit and comes with a $132,000 price tag, plus delivery and other fees.  It is assumed that the 90D model will be priced slightly less.  Tesla has yet to announce what financing options will come along with its new ride.

That’s a lot of money—nearly twice the cost of the base Model S sedan—and considerably more expensive than the comparable-in-size Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid, which costs $77,200.

According to the Tesla website, you can reserve your own Model X for a $5,000 deposit.   

Courtesy of an article dated September 29, 2015 appearing in Wired 

 

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UBER'S PLUSH NEW SAN FRANCISCO HQ, PROJECTED REVENUES FOR 2015 AND WHAT THEIR DRIVERS MAKE

It's a rite of passage for so many tech companies: building their first wildly ambitious, kind of ridiculous, and generally stunning headquarters to accommodate a ballooning headcount as growth explodes. Uber is the latest to start working on a new HQ, and design mockups for the building were released this week.

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The ride-hailing company, which launched in 2009 and now operates in more than 200 cities across 55 countries, revealed plans for the plush new office space this week. The two-building complex, which’ll be linked by three glass walkways, should be open for business by early 2018.

Uber is planning a towering, two-building campus in San Francisco's Mission Bay neighborhood with 423,000 square feet of office space — enough to fit over 3,000 people,reports SFGate. From the outside, the buildings look like glass warehouses: they're almost entirely transparent aside from a series of steel beams outlining their edges. The two buildings, one rising up 11 stories and the other six stories, are connected by three slanted bridges, also almost entirely covered in glass.

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Though it's transparent from the outside, Uber plans to have a bit more going on inside. Rather than having an open office, it's decided to set up a series of small groups of workstations and shared spaces, according to Dezeen. The architects also plan to integrate shops in the ground level of both buildings, which is important for keeping the area vibrant.

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Uber hopes to open the offices in late 2017 or early 2018, according to SFGate. Construction reportedly begins this fall.  

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All images credit Shop Architects.

COMMENTARY:    For those of you not familiar with Uber, here are a few facts.  

Revenues

In November 2014, unnamed sources told Business Insider's Henry Bodget that mobile ride hailing startup Uber is expected to hit an annual revenue run rate of $10 billion by the end of 2015.

Uber keeps 20% of every transaction, which means Uber will be netting about $2 billion on $10 billion gross revenue.

What's more, most of Uber's revenue comes from 10 of its earliest cities, including San Francisco and New York. When its other 140+ cities mature, you can imagine that $10 billion revenue figure multiplying quickly. San Francisco alone generates hundreds of millions of dollars for Uber. Uber is operating in more than 45 countries without having made a single acquisition.

That's not to say the company is profitable. It spends tons of money on marketing tactics to recruit new users and drivers. Still, those figures for a five-year-old startup are staggering.

To put that in perspective, Facebook is expected to generate $10 billion for the first time this year, after 10 years of operation. Granted, Uber and Facebook are entirely different businesses (advertising versus transactional) but yah, $10 billion is a lot.

Blodget also learned that Uber's revenue will grow about 300% this year and it's expected to grow another 300% next year. A snapshot of Uber's financials obtained by Valleywag in late 2013 showed Uber generating about $20 million per week.

Further, Blodget's sources believe Uber will go public in a few years at a $50-100 billion valuation. Uber's last valuation exceeded $18 billion.

In conclusion, Uber management obviously believes that it has a very viable business model that is disrupting the taxi industry, creating jobs for thousands, and prospects for growth are very rosey. Hence, the need for a new corpoate headquarters.  However, there is considerable controversey on whether Uber drivers are really earning a good living, or are they merely pawns for Uber to make money off their efforts.

What Uber Drives Earn

Ridesharing companies promise easy money, but how often do you have to drive to pay for car ownership costs, such as insurance? For the more ambitious, how can you make $50,000, $75,000 or even $100,000?

To find out, NerdWallet crunched the numbers to see how many rides drivers for Uber, Lyft and Sidecar would have to provide to pay for their car ownership costs such as insurance, gas and repairs. We also calculated how many rides are required for drivers to make $50,000, $75,000 and $100,000 in gross income. Using data from SherpaShare, a service that helps drivers track ridesharing income and expenses, NerdWallet analyzed 14 of the country’s largest markets for Uber, Lyft and Sidecar.

Key findings

• On average, drivers make more per trip driving for Uber than they do with Lyft or Sidecar. The average fare for Uber is $15.97; average fares for Lyft and Sidecar are $11.48 and $13.35, respectively.
• To make an annual income of $50,000, the average Uber driver needs to provide 60.21 rides each week, while those working for Lyft need to give 83.76 rides a week and Sidecar drivers would have to provide 72.03 rides in a week.
• Lyft drivers in Dallas make the least, $9.73, per trip. Based on the city’s average annual insurance premium of $1,042.30, a driver would have to provide 97.65 rides before paying for a car insurance premium.

How much will you make?

Based on the data, Uber drivers make more with each fare than with Lyft or Sidecar. Uber drivers earned eight of the 10 highest average trip fares in the markets we surveyed.

On average, Lyft drivers make less than Uber drivers, $11.48 compared with $15.97; and average trip lengths are relatively similar, 10.2 minutes per trip for Uber compared with 13.6 minutes for a Lyft trip.

But Sidecar seems to cater to a different market. The average Sidecar ride is 22.9 minutes, which is more than twice as long as the average Uber ride. According to SherpaShare, the longer fares can be attributed to Sidecar’s marketplace feature that lets drivers set their own prices. When drivers do their own commutes, they often lower the fare below market rates to pick up passengers going their way.

How can you make $50,000?

In short, it depends on where and when you drive. For example, “driver utilization” for New York City’s yellow cabs is about 50%, which means that for each hour drivers work, they are ferrying passengers 50% of the time. SherpaShare’s per trip fare data for Uber shows that the average driver would have to drive 20.47 hours each week to make $50,000 a year. However, from anecdotal evidence and investigative reports, it is likely that the average driver utilization for ridesharing is much less than 50%.

Number of trips needed to make $50,000, $75,000 or $100,000

Market	Average annual insurance premium	Annual car ownership costs for a 2014 Toyota Camry	Ridesharing platform	Average trip fare	Number of trips needed each week to pay for car insurance	Number of trips needed each week to pay for car ownership costs	Number of trips needed each week to make $50,000	Number of trips needed each week to make $75,000	Number of trips needed each week to make $100,000
Boston	$1,174.50	$11,421.48	Uber	$16.07	1.41	5.93	59.83	89.75	119.67
			Lyft	$11.22	2.01	8.49	85.70	128.55	171.40
			Sidecar	$12.39	1.82	7.69	77.61	116.41	155.21
Charlotte	$815.00	$11,166.87	Uber	$11.85	1.32	7.59	81.14	121.71	162.28
			Lyft	$11.49	1.36	7.83	83.68	125.53	167.37
			Sidecar	$19.66	0.80	4.57	48.91	73.36	97.82
Chicago	$1,243.52	$11,981.90	Uber	$12.73	1.88	8.23	75.53	113.30	151.07
			Lyft	$10.50	2.28	9.97	91.58	137.36	183.15
			Sidecar	$15.36	1.56	6.82	62.60	93.90	125.20
Dallas	$1,157.10	$11,653.66	Uber	$12.66	1.76	7.99	75.95	113.93	151.90
			Lyft	$9.73	2.29	10.40	98.82	148.23	197.64
Denver	$1,042.30	$11,545.78	Uber	$12.94	1.55	7.41	74.31	111.46	148.61
			Lyft	$10.36	1.93	9.25	92.81	139.22	185.63
Detroit	$4,924.99	$15,608.04	Uber	$16.13	5.87	10.64	59.61	89.42	119.22
			Lyft	$13.03	7.27	13.17	73.79	110.69	147.59
Los Angeles	$1,175.61	$11,890.59	Uber	$14.25	1.59	7.40	67.48	101.21	134.95
			Lyft	$11.59	1.95	9.09	82.96	124.44	165.93
			Sidecar	$14.14	1.60	7.45	68.00	102.00	136.00
Orange County	$988.94	$12,092.12	Uber	$16.07	1.18	6.86	59.83	89.75	119.67
			Lyft	$12.03	1.58	9.16	79.93	119.89	159.86
			Sidecar	$15.60	1.22	7.06	61.64	92.46	123.27
Phoenix	$1,029.49	$11,854.45	Uber	$16.31	1.21	6.24	58.95	88.43	117.91
			Lyft	$12.33	1.61	8.25	77.98	116.98	155.97
Salt Lake City	$772.23	$11,372.23	Uber	$15.07	0.99	5.96	63.80	95.71	127.61
			Lyft	$9.92	1.50	9.05	96.93	145.39	193.86
San Diego	$818.08	$11,696.58	Uber	$15.51	1.01	6.48	61.99	92.99	123.99
			Lyft	$11.40	1.38	8.82	84.35	126.52	168.69
			Sidecar	$15.58	1.01	6.45	61.72	92.57	123.43
San Francisco	$1,013.90	$11,838.03	Uber	$19.84	0.98	5.16	48.46	72.70	96.93
			Lyft	$11.92	1.64	8.58	80.67	121.00	161.33
			Sidecar	$12.63	1.54	8.10	76.13	114.20	152.26
Seattle	$1,016.86	$11,822.71	Uber	$16.59	1.18	6.15	57.96	86.94	115.92
			Lyft	$10.64	1.84	9.58	90.37	135.56	180.74
			Sidecar	$14.91	1.31	6.84	64.49	96.73	128.98
Washington, D.C.	$1,390.88	$11,490.15	Uber	$14.23	1.88	6.72	67.57	101.36	135.14
			Lyft	$12.31	2.17	7.77	78.11	117.17	156.22
			Sidecar	$12.69	2.11	7.54	75.77	113.66	151.54
National average	$1,099.71	$11,772.68	Uber	$15.97	1.32	6.11	60.21	90.31	120.42
			Lyft	$11.48	1.84	8.51	83.76	125.64	167.52
			Sidecar	$13.35	1.58	7.31	72.03	108.04	144.05

 

 

Courtesy of an article dated May 29, 2015 appearing in The Verge, an article dated November 15, 2014 appearing in Business Insider, and an article dated December 11, 2014 appearing in NerdWallet

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THE STATE OF SUPERCARS: BUGATTI VEYRON ERA ENDS, FASTER IS BACK, ELECTRIFIED SUPERCARS, AND SUPER SUV'S EMERGE

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Supercar, hypercar, megacar ... whatever you want to call today's fastest, most powerful, most technologically advanced cars, they're in the midst of a very exciting evolution. New technologies and performance benchmarks are making these super-toys of the few and wealthy techier, faster and more fun to drive. Join us as we delve into the state of the modern supercar.

End of an Era

A supercar like no other, the Bugatti Veyron absolutely defined the supercar market for the past decade, serving as the measuring stick for the entire segment. And that's exactly what it was designed to do. Volkswagen obtained the rights to the dormant French marque in 1998, and it immediately set out to design a supercar like the world had never seen before.

The various models of the Bugatti Veyron over the years (Click Image To Enlarge)

Volkswagen experimented with several different Bugatti-badged concept cars, including coupe and sedan models, before settling in on the Veyron design and launching it in 2005.  The Veyron 16.4's 987-hp 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16 engine was rather insane compared to other supercars of the era, but it actually represented a cylinder downsizing from the W18 engines on the concept cars, extending back to the 555-hp Italdesign Giugiaro-penned 1998 EB 118.

The Veyron was the world's unofficial and official fastest production car for much of its time in production, trading places with a few other elite supercars, like the SSC Ultimate Aero TT. It also held accolades like the world's quickest-accelerating production car and world's fastest production convertible. Its world-record top speed needled in at 267.8 mph (431 km/h) in 2010 (in 1,183-hp Super Sport trim), and its 0-62 mph (100 km/h) accelaration time has long penned in at a blistering 2.5 seconds.

 

In 2010, professional racecar driver James May drove the Bugatti Veyron and set a record of 406.2 kph (252.4 mph) at the Volkswagen test track in Germany.  In 2011, set a new record of 417.6 kph (259 mph) at the Volkswagen test track (see above video).  However, on the BBC program Top Gear, James told host Jeremy Clarkson that right after he set his new record, the Volkswagen test driver broke his record by driving the Bugatti Veyron at an average speed of 431 kph (267 mph).  Now that is outrageously fast for a production sports car.   

Bugatti released the very last Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse "La Finale" earlier this year Click Image To Enlarge)

Bugatti released the very last Bugatti Veyron earlier this year, a special-edition Grand Sport Vitesse "La Finale" (see above image) designed to commemorate the retirement of perhaps the greatest supercar of all time. Bugatti has not yet revealed the Veyron's successor, but it's expected to do so next year.

Rumor has long suggested the new Bugatti model will be called the Chiron, and the latest reports show that it could be a hybrid with close to 1,500 hp on tap. It looks like it will keep an 8.0-liter W16 configuration and may feature electric turbochargers and an electric motor. The world should find out for sure when the highly anticipated car debuts sometime in 2016, likely at a major European auto show like Geneva or Paris.

The Need for Speed Continues

Like the Veyron before it, the Bugatti Chiron is expected to hit the market with potential to blow the world speed record away. Its spec sheet may very well include a 288 mph (463.5 km/h) top speed, along with a 0-62 mph time in the low 2s. That's pushing 20 mph (32 km/h) over the current unofficial world speed record, which Hennessey notched at 270.49 mph (435.31 km/h) in February 2014, after an ultimately unsuccessful attempt at beating Bugatti by sneaking through the back door.

The Chiron should be an immediate contender for negating any Hennessey claim on the record and taking the official record over from the Veyron Super Sport, especially since Volkswagen has the Ehra-Lessien track real estate to set the scene. It's not the only upcoming supercar with an estimated top speed above 270 mph (435 km/h), though. Last August, Hennessey preempted any potential world's fastest claims by the Veyron successor when it previewed the successor to the Venom GT, the 1,400-hp Venom F5.

Hennessy thinks the Venom F5 has a shot at 290 mph (Click Image To Enlarge)

The new super-suped little Lotus from Texas isn't only more powerful than its predecessor; it's also more aerodynamic, with drag coefficient dropping from 0.44 to below 0.40. And while it's gained a bit of weight over the GT, it pulls away with a ever-so-slightly higher power-weight ratio. The "290 mph is within reach" scrawled atop Hennessey's Venom F5 press release sets up a rather nice potential head-to-head with the 288-mph Chiron. The Venom F5 is supposed to make its official debut this year.

For now, the world record race appears to be between Bugatti and Hennessey, but there are a couple of dark horses with the pedigree and paper estimates to make a run. The Agera R and One:1 have the power and predicted speed (273 mph/439 km/h) to bring the world record back to Koenigsegg, but Koenigsegg hasn't really made a move and has expressed issues with finding an appropriate piece of straight, empty road (Volkswagen doesn't let the competition use Ehra-Lessein). For now, Koenigsegg seems pretty content setting acceleration/deceleration records and releasing awesome new models, special editions and concept cars at the annual Geneva Motor Show.

The Tuatara looked raring to go when it was revealed in 2011, but four years later, its status is questionable (Click Image To Enlarge)

Back in 2011, American supercar outfit SSC introduced the Tuatara, an otherworldly 1,350-bhp successor to the Ultimate Aero TT, the 1,183-hp SSC car that held a 256-mph speed record before Bugatti took it away in 2010. The Tuatara appeared to be moving along for a while, and was even engine-tested to 1,700 bhp in 2013. Then things went dark, and the car disappeared from the public eye as quickly as a child star going through an awkward, pimply puberty. It seems the "production" part of the production car speed record is proving more a problem than the "speed" part, as the car never showed up in 2013 or 2014, as originally scheduled.

SSC's website and social media have been silent since 2013, save for a few fairly urgent Facebook/Twitter job postings last November. The company did not respond to our email requesting up-to-date information about the status of its Tuatara plans. It's looking like we may never get to see if the Tuatara is up to the task of world-record speed, and if we do, it may just prove too little, too late.

Supercars Electrified

Hybrid Bugatti or not, the age of the hybrid supercar is well underway. The partial and full electrification of supercars is no longer a bleeding edge phenomenon and traces back more than half a decade to the rapid surge of concept cars like the Audi e-tron, the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics, the Porsche 918 Spyder, the Jaguar C-X75 and the Mercedes SLS AMG E-Cell. And while it was the European luxury brands that started an all-out hybrid/electric supercar arms race, it was American start-up Tesla that first demonstrated just how fun and sporty an all-electric car could be way back in 2006.

All of those concept cars, save for the C-X75, ended up in at least limited production, with the Audi R8 e-tron being the latest to hit the scene. Not every one had the power or performance to be ranked a supercar, but each one helped to prove the performance potential of electric power. In turn, they paved the way for an extreme breed of electrified supercar.

The Hybrids

Looking back, 2013 was a HUGE year for the hyper hybrid. Both the LaFerrari and McLaren P1 debuted at the Geneva Motor Show that year, and the production Porsche 918 Spyder debuted at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. Each of those hybrid exotics features a unique gas-electric layout, but they all utilize electric power toward delivering some of the world's most powerful, quick performance on straightaways and curves.

At 887-hp, the Porsche 918 Spyder is the least powerful of the Big 3, but so far, it's been the most impressive on the asphalt. At the same time it was making its world debut in 2013, the young 918 joined the very elite sub-7-minute club when it lapped the Nürburgring in 6:57. Depending upon how your definition of "street-legal production car" applies to the open-top Radical SR8LM (a radical car, no matter how you classify it), the 918 can lay claim to being the fastest road car around the track. Either way, it's definitely the Nürburgring sub-7 that we'd most like to cruise the coast with.

At 887-hp, the Porsche 918 Spyder is the least powerful of the Big 3, but so far, it's been the most impressive on the asphalt (Click Image To Enlarge)

Car & Driver added a big bullet point to the 918's resume last year, declaring the 2015 model the quickest road car in the world after accelerating it to 60 mph in a mere 2.2 seconds. Coupled with the car's Nürburgring prowess, that makes a very impressive combination of acceleration and on-track agility and speed. Sadly for 918 fans and potential buyers, Porsche recently completed production of the nine hundred and eighteen 918 models.

The 903-hp P1 and 949-hp LaFerrari haven't been lagging far behind. The P1 achieved a 2.6-second 0-60 mph time in testing, and the LaFerrari sits right between the 918 and P1 with a verified 2.4.

All three modern hyper hybrids enjoy seats up at the tippity top of world's quickest production cars, and two of them do it while improving the abysmal, world-worst fuel economy ratings that hypercars are notorious for. The Porsche 918 leads the way handily in that regard with a 67 mpg-e estimate from the US EPA. The McLaren P1's 18 mpg-e EPA estimate isn't nearly as impressive, but compare it to old school big-engined supercars like the Veyron (10 mpg) or Aston Martin DB9 (15 mpg), and it looks a bit more respectable. With no full, in-town all-electric drive mode, the LaFerrari stumbles in at 14 mpg.

Together, the 918, LaFerrari and P1 have served as the elite ruling class of ultra-premium hyper hybrids, but their kingdom is about to come under attack from a very powerful force. When Koenigsegg detailed its Regera hybrid at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year, we called it the most insane piece of supercar engineering we'd ever covered. Four months later, we're happy to report that we weren't jet-lagged or enamored with Christian von Koenigsegg's Swedish accent (though it is pretty smooth). We reiterate: the Regera is the most insane piece of supercar engineering we've seen on the pages of Gizmag. Whether or not its driving characteristics prove acceptable to those willing to spend seven figures on a hypercar, the Regera's innovation and technology are quite exceptional.

The 1,500-hp Regera powertrain includes a V8 engine and three electric motors (Click Image To Enlarge)

Not only does the Regera pack an insane-by-any-standard 1,500 hp and 1,475 lb-ft of torque, but it manages to distribute it all to the rear wheels without a transmission, the first car we know of without any type of gearbox operating between ICE and wheels. Instead, it relies on the instant torque of the two axle-mounted electric motors to get acceleration started and a third motor working as a starter to get the 5.0-liter twin-turbo V8 up to speed. A hydraulic coupling slowly locks as the engine works its way into action, and a surge of 1,100-hp V8 power helps the already quick, virile electric drive in propelling the car forward.

With an estimated top speed just under 255 mph (410 km/h), the Regera won't be the car to bring a world speed record back to Sweden, but it could very well snag some acceleration records, assuming its gas-driven brother the One:1, which already earned itself 0-300-0 km/h bragging rights, doesn't beat it to the punch. Koenigsegg estimates a 0-186 mph (0-300 km/h) time of 12.3 seconds, very close to the 11.9 seconds the One:1 ran in the aforementioned 0-300-0. The 0-249 mph (0-400 km/h) lists at under 20 seconds, a touch quicker than the solid 20-second estimate for the One:1. The Regera's 0-62 mph time lists in at 2.8 seconds.

World records are impressive on paper, but we'd settle for just getting behind the wheel and experiencing what Christian von Koenigsegg describes as the feel of a massive 20-liter engine with the instant torque response of an ultra-powerful electric drive. We can't wait to see how the Regera shakes up the supercar world when Koenigsegg finishes development.

The Electrics

Hyper hybrids have risen to the highest echelon of supercar engineering, but the status of all-electric supercars is a bit murkier. There haven't been that many of them, and no matter how powerful, electric sports cars tend to have electronically limited top speeds that land right around 155 mph (250 km/h), leading to questions right out of the gate about their true status as "supercars," a group that usually exceeds 200 mph (322 km/h).

The 740-bhp Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Electric Drive was the first car to bring supercar power and performance to the electric vehicle segment, rolling to 62 mph in 3.9 seconds and setting a Nurburgring record for electrics. Since SLS AMG E-Drive production came to an end, there's been a real void in the electric hypercar market. Packing it's new "Ludicrous Mode" update, the Tesla Model S P85D and its 2.8-second 0-60 mph time makes an argument, but a 155-mph sedan just doesn't feel like the all-out electric supercar equivalent of a LaFerrari or McLaren P1.

One electric car that could socialize in elite circles with the McLarens and Koenigseggs of the world is the Rimac Concept One. Revealed by Croatian whiz kid Mate Rimac at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, the Concept One is the world's fastest, most powerful electric sports car. With 1,088 hp on tap and claims of a 190-mph (306 km/h) top speed, 2.8-second 0-62 mph time and 370-mile (600-km) range, it was the pure, unfettered electric hypercar the world was waiting for. And the following year, when reservations opened, it seemed like it would actually become more than just a cool, vapory concept car.

The Rimac Concept One is powered by a 1,088-hp, four-motor system with a 92-kWh battery (Click Image To Enlarge)

Unfortunately, the Concept One never really materialized in a substantial way. The car kept a high profile throughout 2012 and 2013, making appearances in videos and at shows like Top Marques Monaco, but then it went virtually MIA. Rimac reportedly had some trouble putting financing together, and production got kicked back.

The latest word from the company is that it will build only eight Concept One models, a rather drastic slash from the original 88-model plan. Last October, it announced that it would deliver the second production Concept One sometime in the first half of this year. No word since, and no hands-on third-party testing of the car, no awesome head-to-head videos against cars like the P1 or 918, and no electric world speed records to add to the ones that Rimac earned with its electrified BMW prototype. There has been a stray headline here and there, but it's mostly just regurgitated numbers and information, not much else.

Lately, Rimac has seemed much more focused on racing and supplying electric technologies to third parties. It's been involved with the electrical underpinnings of supercars like the Volar-e and Koenigsegg Regera. On the racing side, the Concept One was used by the race director during the debut season of the FIA Formula E Championship series, which wrapped up last month.

The Tajima Rimac E-Runner Concept One at Pikes Peak (Click Image To Enlarge)

Rimac also recently reworked the Concept One into the 1.1 MW (1,475-hp) Tajima Rimac E-Runner Concept One that racing legend Nobuhiro “Monster” Tajima raced up the 2015 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in 9:32.4. He came in second behind the all-electric eO PP03 piloted by Rhys Millen, but that time was second overall, not just in the electric division. It was a solid finish, especially considering Tajima pulled it out in spite of a brake failure. The eO PP03 was the first all-electric Pikes winner in history, and the E-Runner Concept One hung in there to make it an all-electric 1-2 punch.

Perhaps a little competition will prompt Rimac into refocusing attention on production. At the 2015 Top Marques Monaco show in April, previously unknown Finnish outfit Toroidion revealed the 1MW Concept, a fully electric hypercar even more powerful than the Concept One.

With a full megawatt (1,341 hp) of power on tap, the 1MW Concept has the potential to keep up with the quickest, most powerful cars in the world. But will it? We've seen the story of the ultra-powerful, world-beating electric concept car time and time again, and save for the Rimac (kind of) and Mercedes, they usually end up little more than historical footnotes or perpetual development projects. Remember the Lightning GT or SSC Ultimate Aero EV?

Bottom line, it may be the heyday of hyper hybrids, but electric supercars, promising as they may be, have a ways to go to earn that same kind of pedigree.

The Dawn of the Super SUV Age

The supercar is about to get much larger and more practical. Saying it a different way, the crossover is about to get much more super. After watching Porsche and other premium brands ride best-selling SUV models to the bank year after year, a number of prestigious sports nameplates are prepared to get in on the action.

Lamborghini became the latest member of the super-crossover game in May, confirming that it will indeed launch an SUV model. Lamborghini isn't exactly new to the sports utility vehicle market, having built the quite memorable LM002 back in the 80s. The new Lamborghini SUV will look nothing like that military-style off-road 4x4 and will instead follow the current market trend of smoother, car-like crossovers, its blood carrying no shortage of Raging Bull sports car DNA.

In May, Lamborghini announced its intention to produce an SUV/crossover model (Click Image To Enlarge)

It's not yet clear exactly how "super" Lamborghini's production SUV will be, but the 2012 Urus concept was powered by a 600-hp V10, so the production version should definitely be a couple steps up the ladder from the average Macan or X5. Lamborghini plans to get it to market by 2018 and is already planning on it being a bestseller.

Lamborghini is not the only maker of pretty, fast coupes currently working to expand its design language into AWD hatchback form. Maserati has been busy preparing the Levante crossover, and Aston Martin quickly confirmed production plans for its DBX luxury GT crossover after a surprise preview at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show.

Based on the 2011 Kubang concept and recently published patent drawings, the Levante looks like it will be the typical five-door hatchback, but there's an opportunity for Aston Martin to do something entirely different. The DBX concept it showed in Geneva cracked the ruggedized hatchback mold, wearing a two-door 2+2 body with enough beef and lift to let you know it was designed for more than just road and track. It came across more like a pretty, smoothed over Local Motors Rally Fighter than a gussied up CR-V or Escape.

Aston Martin makes a surprise DBX debut (Click Image To Enlarge)

Hopefully, Aston will heed all the interest it says the DBX show car generated and design a true-to-concept production car, save for the electric powertrain, which seems impractical and unnecessary for this car. If small-volume exotic car makers must get into the crossover game, it'd be nice to see them do something like the DBX.

Onwards and Upwards

It's September, so we're approaching the home stretch of 2015, but that doesn't mean we can't expect at least a few more amazing production and concept supercar debuts. With earlier debuts like the Regera, DBX, 1MW Concept and Ford GT, 2015 has the potential to rival 2013 in terms of high-tech, cutting-edge exotic cars.

While you wait for upcoming events like the Frankfurt Motor Show, take some time to ogle all the genre-defining supercars of modern day in our photo gallery.

COMMENTARY:  I really hate to see the Bugatti Veyron era finally come to an end.  The Veyron has always been one of my favorite supercars because from a technological perspective it is way ahead of anything out there.  Its 16-cylinder engine is an engineering marvel.  It is as stable and rock solid at 100 miles per hour as it is at 267 mph.  Such speeds for a handcrafed production car is unheard of, but this is what the world's elite, rich and powerful demand. These elitist just don't want a supercar that is beautiful to look at from the outside, but if you need to go real, real fast, it's always good to know that you can.  Only 450 Bugatti Veyrons have been produced since the first one was produced in 2009, but there is no shortage of customers even at the premium price of $3.19 million.    

If the rumored Bugatti Chiron, the replacement for the Veyron is a hybrid, it will be quite interesting to see how Bugatti will be able to fit that massive 987-hp 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16 engine, an electric motor and battery to power it in that frame.  Trunk space of the Veyron is stingy, but that's the only place I can see Bugatti designes placing the electric motor and batteries to power such a heavy supercar.  In closing, I can hardly wait for the rumored Chiron to be unveiled (maybe September!!?)

Courtesy of an article dated September 1, 2015 appearing in Gizmag 

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HOW GERMAN DESIGNER DFKI ROBOTICS' EO2 SMART CONNECTING CAR WILL TACKLE URBAN TRAFFIC IN THE 21ST CENTURY

As cities continue to grow at a dizzying rate, commuters are constantly battling ever-increasing congestion on the roads and a lack of parking, just to get to work.

But now a team of German engineers have come up with an ingenious solution — a “flexible” electric vehicle capable of shrinking, driving sideways (think like a crab) and turning on a dime.

The EO Smart Connecting Car 2 is an innovative design from DFKI Robotics Innovation Center, based in Bremen, Germany, where a team of software developers and designers, as well as electronics and construction engineers, have been refining the smart micro car project for the last three years.

 

First announced in 2012, the team have moved onto their second iteration of the vehicle. It drives like a traditional car but because each wheel is powered by its own motor, it also has the capability of driving sideways, allowing it to slide into tight spaces in urban areas where parking is limited, explains Timo Birnschein, project manager for the vehicle.

He adds:

“The whole process — the transition between normal driving and driving sideways — takes about four seconds.”

Shrink and drive

The prototype has a top speed of 65 km/h (or 40mph) and can travel 50 to 70 kilometers (30 to 44 miles) on a single four-hour full charge of the battery. But it’s the two-seater’s ability to shrink to around 1.5 meters in length that has the team excited about its uses in future cities, says Birnschien.

He says.

“It is able to reduce it’s own size by about 80cm, which makes it almost as small as a bike in length. And with this kind of feature you can go into very tiny parking spaces.  You are still able to turn on the spot, you are still able to drive sideways and you are still able to connect to charging stations, for example.”

Click Image To Enlarge

EO2 smart car

Looking like part “Transformer” and part DeLorean out of “Back to the Future,” the car reduces its size by partly folding itself. It shifts the rear axle to the front and slides on a set of rails which raises the interior upwards, while still remaining comfortable for the passenger.

Touted as a “micro car for a megacity,” the team are working hard to make their vehicle roadworthy and envision it as a communal public resource, similar to existing urban car-sharing schemes. The idea is that when you need a car, you could head to your nearest docking station and select the vehicle that’s charged enough to drive the distance you need. It would then detach itself and you would be on your way.

Birnschein says. 

“[It] is very comparable feature-wise to the first prototype.  The second version is much more reliable and almost road-legal. It’s not really, but it’s almost there and we are trying to bring this car to the road — but it’s a big hassle to be honest because we have so many new technologies in the car that the technical advisory guys are skeptical.”

Click Image To Enlarge

The team have invited several manufacturers to test drive the vehicle, with positive response, but the enthusiasm ends there.   He said:

“The problem is for most car manufacturers, they are not really interested if they didn’t invent it themselves. They may buy from Bosch or Siemens or whatever, technology parts like ESP and other things, but not complete systems.”

But his team remain undeterred as they continue working on autonomous features like auto pilot and self parking. Meanwhile Birnschein likens the situation to the rise in smartphones over the last decade — from non-existence to oversaturation.

He says.  

“It will be the same with computer power and autonomy.  In the next 10 years we will most likely see autonomous cars from big car manufacturers — Mercedes S class will have autonomous functions within three or four years. Some of other manufacturers like GM announced they will have semi-autonomous cars by 2020. And many other car manufacturers are already working on this type of technology."

And he adds.

“They are driving all the time on the autobahn with autonomous vehicles. I believe it will be coming — it will be there within the next decade.”

COMMENTARY:  

Electric Mobility with Brains – Smart E-Car Adjusts Shape to Match Traffic

The EO2 car that is extremely flexible, can change shapes, and adjusts to the current traffic conditions – that is the EO2 smart connecting car, developed by engineers of the Robotics Innovation Center at DFKI Bremen.  It is the car that in the not too distant future will drive itself. This prototype is part of the “New Mobility in Rural Areas” project which is investigating the innovative technologies of electromobility.

Flexible chassis enables connection to “road trains”

A changing morphology is quite unique: The driver's compartment of the EO smart connecting car is raised when the chassis is telescoped. This is also possible while driving. In the process, the car “grows” from approx. 1.6 to 2.1 meters in height and “shrinks” about half a meter to a length of less than two meters. The space savings is designed to facilitate a mechanical connection to other e-cars in a kind of chain, a so called “road train.” The contracted form makes the road trains shorter and easier to maneuver. This means greater economy of scale when transporting objects over the same route. Data and energy are transmitted to the other vehicles and the “train” is uniformly controlled, which saves fuel and improves the range. Optional components such as loading ramps and luggage racks can be attached without any problems.

The EO smart connecting car is an intelligent e-auto that can change its form to adjust to individual mobility requirements (Click Image To Enlarge)

Wheels that turn 90 degrees Spatially distributed drives let the EO smart connecting car flexibly navigate narrow spaces such as those encountered in the inner cities or parking garages. Specially designed axles allow each of the four wheels to turn 90 degrees – great for sideways parking into a tight spot. Obstacles are easy to negotiate with this lightweight (700 kg) vehicle, which can turn on a dime, move diagonally, or raise each wheel separately. The top speed is currently about 55 km/h.

Autonomous parking, docking, and charging

The development aim is to achieve a car that drives autonomously.  This includes, for example, automatic parking and docking to the charging stations. Sensors in and on the car can receive traffic information and communicate with other users on the road. The development philosophy is similar to that used for robots: The e-car is equipped with the appropriate sensors and computing capacity needed to gather precise information about its surroundings and to enable it to navigate successfully.  In consideration of the current traffic situation, the remaining battery capacity, and an optimized energy consumption, routes are calculated – and traffic jams are avoided.

DFKI (RIC) Research Team

EO2 Smart Connecting Car DFKI Robotics Innovations Center Research Team (Click Image To Enlarge)

Courtesy of an article dated May 13, 2015 appearing in The Guardian and an article appearing in the DFKI Robotic Innovations Center 

THE "ELIO," A THREE-WHEELED CAR FOR THE MASSES THAT COSTS JUST $6,800, GETS 84 MPG AND GOES 672 MILES ON A TANK OF GAS

The Elio is technically a motorcycle, but is a whole lot easier and safer to drive.

Most Americans--about 93%--drive to work alone. So why use a car that’s big enough for four? A new vehicle that’s half-motorcycle and half-car is designed to replace sedans and SUVs on morning commutes and help save money and emissions in the process: The Elio costs $6,800 and gets 84 miles to the gallon. It’s possible to drive 672 miles on a single tank of gas. That's the distance from New York City to Detroit.

Paul Elio, the founder and CEO of Elio Motors and inventor of the Elio three-wheeled car. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Paul Elio, founder of Elio Motors says.

“The premise behind the concept is that most households have at least one vehicle that’s single occupant.  Even if you have kids, you probably have an SUV or minivan, and then a small sedan with dust on the backseat. We can be that car.”

The Elio actually has two seats, set front to back for ideal aerodynamics, in case the driver needs to give someone a ride. Inside, it looks and acts pretty much like a car; it’s fully enclosed and has car seats and seatbelts, air bags, and options for manual or automatic transmission. It's more like a car than this somewhat similar vehicle from Lit Motors. But because it has three wheels, it’s classified under law as a motorcycle.

 

The motorcycle classification leads to some strange consequences--in a few states, under current law, you’d have to wear a helmet even though the vehicle is enclosed. But it also has benefits. Elio says. 

“As a motorcycle, you can go in the HOV lane by yourself.”

It also meant the vehicle can come to market more quickly, since there’s less red tape involved in manufacturing a motorcycle.

The Elio three-wheeled car (rear view) (Click Image To Enlarge)

Even though regulations don’t require it, the company plans to comply with all standards for cars that apply. Elio says.

“We’re engineering to achieve a 5-star crash rating in all directions.  We’re going way beyond the minimum.”

Still, there are a few idiosyncrasies--the headlights, for example, can’t comply with car standards because motorcycle lights are required to be brighter by law.

 

Because the vehicle is so lightweight--about half the weight of a typical small car--the company can save on materials costs. Elio has also tried to optimize other steps in manufacturing to keep costs down.  He says.  

“We get all 34 of our suppliers together once every four to six weeks and we work on the vehicle as a group. That’s never been done before. All of these things add up to a lower price.”

There are no guarantees of success. Aptera Motors developed a three-wheeled electric vehicle with much fanfare, but the company shut down in 2011.

When the vehicle comes to market next year, the Elio plans to have innovative financing to make the vehicle even easier to buy.   Elio says.  

“It’s actually cheaper to drive a brand new Elio than a clunker.”

The company will offer the option to buy the car with nothing but a special credit card for gas; every time someone buys gas, they’ll pay extra to make a car payment.

Elio explains.

“If you buy $10 of gas, it will show up as a $30 charge on your statement--that $20 extra is your vehicle payment.  As long as you drove into the dealership with something that gets 27 miles per gallon or less--and we know there are 100 million of those cars out there--you’ll be paying less, and you’ll have a brand new vehicle under warranty.”

You'll also be helping reduce pollution.  Elio says.  

"If you drive it 20,000 miles per year, an Elio produces less emissions than one cow’s flatulence during the same time.  We’re cleaner than a cow. After 10 years of sales, we expect to save 8 billion gallons of gas."

COMMENTARY:    Because it has three wheels — two in front and one in the rear — the Elio is actually classified as a motorcycle by the U.S. government. But Elio Motors founder Paul Elio says the vehicle has all the safety features of a car, like anti-lock brakes, front and side air bags and a steel cage that surrounds the occupants.  According to Paul Elio, the company hopes to ultimately achieve a five-star safety rating.  Drivers won’t be required to wear helmets or have motorcycle licenses.

 

The Elio’s two seats sit front and back instead of side by side, so the driver is positioned in the center with the passenger directly behind. That arrangement, plus the low seating position — the Elio is just 54 inches tall — and the lack of power steering take a little getting used to.

But after a couple of spins around the block in this Detroit suburb, it felt like any other small car. That’s partly because its two front wheels stick out by a foot on both sides, aiding balance and preventing the vehicle from tipping. The Elio has a three-cylinder, 0.9-liter engine and a top speed of more than 100 miles per hour. It gets an estimated 84 mpg on the highway and 49 mpg in city driving.

Keeping Costs Low

Elio keeps the costs down in several ways. The car only has one door, on the left side, which shaves a few hundred dollars off the manufacturing costs. Having three wheels also makes it cheaper. It will be offered in just two configurations — with a manual or automatic transmission — and it has standard air conditioning, power windows and door locks and an AM/FM radio. More features, such as navigation or blind-spot detection, can be ordered through Elio’s long list of suppliers.

Germany’s Daimler also promised to revolutionize American commutes with the Smart car, but that hasn’t panned out, says Karl Brauer, a senior analyst with Kelley Blue Book. Smart sold just 9,264 cars in the U.S. last year.

The Smart has a starting price of $13,270 for a gas-powered car and gets 38 mpg on the highway — not enough savings or fuel economy to justify sacrificing comfort in the tiny car. But, Brauer said, the equation might work in the Elio.

He said.  

“If it really gets 84 mpg and doesn’t drive terribly, it would justify the compromises you’re making in size and comfort.”

Elio will also save money by selling the cars directly through its own stores and not through franchised dealers, similar to electric car maker Tesla Motors. Elio plans stores in 60 major metropolitan areas. They’ll be serviced by car repair chain Pep Boys.

The Entrepreneur Behind The Elio

Paul Elio, a one-time stockbroker and New York City cab driver, dreamed as a kid that he would one day own a car company called Elio Motors.

Elio told The Associated Press. 

“As I matured I decided that was as likely as playing in the NFL.”

But he did earn an engineering degree at General Motors Institute — now Kettering University — and started his own company engineering products like children’s car seats.

In 2008, tired of high gas prices and the country’s dependence on foreign oil, he started working on a fuel-efficient car. Equally important to him was creating U.S. manufacturing jobs and making the car inexpensive enough to appeal to buyers who might otherwise be stuck in old, unreliable clunkers.

He said.  

“Whatever matters to you, this can move the needle on it.”

The recession killed his engineering company, but it also provided the opportunity to buy the Shreveport plant when GM filed for bankruptcy protection. Elio Motors plans to employ 1,500 people at the plant.

The company has also applied for a $185 million advanced vehicle development loan from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Paul Elio said so far, reservation holders are older, more affluent buyers who will use the Elio as a second or third car for commuting.

He said.

“It’s an ‘and’ purchase for a lot of folks.  So keep your SUV or your minivan or your large sedan, and when you’re driving back and forth to work all by yourself, take the Elio. At this price point and this mileage, that works financially for folks.”

Eventually, though, he believes the car will appeal to high school and college students as well as used-car drivers who want something newer and more reliable. He also hopes to eventually export it to other countries.

Elio Motors Makes Progress in Helmet Exemption Legislation

Louisiana is the most recent state to declare helmet exemption exemption for the Elio, which is federally classified as an enclosed motorcycle. House Bill 218 was unanimously approved in Louisiana, where the Elio will be manufactured, in late June. New York also has an exemption on the books, allowing the Elio to be driven around the progressive state without a helmet.

Another legislative success is quickly emerging. Michigan Senate Bill 390 was recently passed, and is expected to pass through the House unanimously, following Louisiana’s lead. This is good news for the company, which will base their corporate headquarters out of the state. Louisiana, New York, and Michigan join 42 other states which allow the Elio to be driven sans helmet.

There are only 4 or 5 states left that technically require a helmet with this vehicle, since its licensed as a motorcycle. They've managed to get exemptions in numerous states already. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Among the 5 states that technically require helmets to be worn while driving the Elio, are Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Nebraska.

Elio Motors’ Vice President of Government Affairs, Joel Sheltrown says,

“We are actively working with the five helmet states’ legislators to work through any issues they may have. Given our success in the other 45 states, we are optimistic about solving any issues we may face.”

Sheltrown adds that Missouri, a helmet-state, has already identified bill sponsors and drafted legislation to exempt the Elio from their helmet laws.

Big Plans To Expand

Phoenix-based Elio plans to start making the cars next fall at a former General Motors plant in Shreveport, Louisiana. Already, more than 27,000 people have reserved one. Elio hopes to make 250,000 cars a year by 2016. That’s close to the number Mazda sells in the U.S.

Elio Motors executives placed a temporary sign outside the former General Motors plant in Shreveport, La. (Click Image To Enlarge)

The Caddo Parrish's Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response (RACER) Trust is responsible for selling and cleaning up former General Motors properties and has agreed to sell the shuttered General Motors plant near Shreveport, La., to Elio Motors.  The start-up carmaker plans to hire 1,500 new workers.

Elio Motors will rent approximately 1.5 million square feet of the 4.1 million square foot building from Industrial Realty Group, who leases the GM plant.

The deal was heralded by Louisiana politicians as an economic victory for a community devastated by GM's contraction. The state was expected to provide incentives for the project, but details were not immediately available.

Closing Statements

I remain skeptical that Elio Motors can raise sufficient startup capital to modernize and equip their plant in Shreveport, Lousiana in time to begin production of the Elio car by fall 2015.   According to Paul Elio, Elio Motors CEO, the company is trying to raise $165 million.   

By comparison, Tesla Motors had to raise over $500 million, which included a $465 million direct loan from the Department of Energy, just to have sufficient capital to hire plant workers, modernize and equip their plant in Fremont, California in order to build the Roadster, their first all-electric car. 

Tesla Motors required much more startup capital because the Roadster, a four-wheeled and all-electric sports car was a far more complex automobile to build, requiring parts from hundreds of vendors.  The Roadster is a two-seater sportscar that weighed over 2,700 lbs, could travel about 245 miles on an electrical charge, has a top speed of 187 mph and could do 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds. The price tag: $109,000.  

By comparison, the Elio is a three-wheeled car/motorcycle that uses a three-cylinder motor and weighs only 1,600 lbs, with a top speed over just over 100 mph, and a range of 672 miles (highway) on a tank of gas.  The price tag:  $6,800.   According to Paul Elio, Elio Motors CEO, the majority of key parts and components are sourced from about 30 vendors.

If Elio Motors can raise the startup capital they need (see above), they could conceivably begin limited production in late 2015, but I doubt they can deliver 27,000 vehicles (their current pre-orders, but I wonder how many of those pre-orders are solid)  in 2015.   It takes time to hire plant workers, especially skilled factory workers when the U.S. auto industry doing so well, and workers will be reluctant to leave a well established, well-financed employer for a startup like Elio Motors.    

Courtesy of an article dated March 31, 2014 appearing in Fast Company Exist, an article dated January 18, 2014 appearing in the Shreveport Times, an article dated September 30, 2013 appearing in Technology Tell, and an article dated January 8, 2014 appearing in USA Today 

 

TESLA TO BUILD A NEW 'GIGAFACTORY' TO MAKE LOWER COST LITHIUM BATTERY PACKS, SHARES BATTERY PATENTS WITH AUTOMAKERS TO INCREASE EV PRODUCTION

Earlier this year serial entrepreneur and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk decided to allow anyone to, “in good faith,” make use of the automaker’s patent portfolio without fear of being named in a patent lawsuit.

The goal of this new strategy, he wrote in a blog entry on Tesla’s website, was to entice other automakers to enter the electric vehicle (“EV”) market by allowing them to leverage Tesla’s technology as a platform on which to build new EVs.

In February 2014, Tesla Motors announced strong fourth-quarter results with record shipments and gross margin. Its investor newsletter also included a tantalizing paragraph:

"Very shortly, we will be ready to share more information about the Tesla Giga factory. This will allow us to achieve a major reduction in the cost of our battery packs and accelerate the pace of battery innovation. Working in partnership with our suppliers, we plan to integrate precursor material, cell, module and pack production into one facility. With this facility, we feel highly confident of being able to create a compelling and affordable electric car in approximately three years. This will also allow us to address the solar power industry’s need for a massive volume of stationary battery packs."

Understanding that it was “impossible for Tesla to build cars fast enough to address the carbon crisis,” this patent policy shift was put forth in an effort to quicken the percentage growth of EVs in the 2 billion strong global automobile fleet, currently dominated by internal combustion engine (“ICE”) vehicles.

Despite the fact that the company is bucking the conventional wisdom that patents are to be held onto by manufacturers and leveraged for license fees and exclusivity, yesterday’s second quarter earnings call showed shareholders that the manufacturer’s future lies not in patents, but in its ability to build powerful partnerships and scale.

Tesla’s current progress is providing significant disruption in the sport-luxury space. As this Head 2 Head episode shows (starting at the 1:20 mark), the Model S is selling units in excess of European competition. But this week the mission to expand the role of EVs in the global marketplace took another important step.

Tesla announced it is cooperating with Japanese industrial giant Panasonic to develop a new, US-based battery production facility. Dubbed the Gigafactory, the facility will be able to produce batteries for as many as 500,000 EVs per year by the year 2020. The scale of the production is projected to be so large, in fact, that by 2020 the Gigafactory alone would produce as much battery capacity as the entire world produced in 2013.

To be sure, the impact of the Gigafactory will positively affect electric auto sales. The Gigafactory’s scale and capacity may be felt across the technology and energy sectors as well.

Background

Panasonic has long been a partner of Tesla Motors, having supplied the automaker with the lithium-ion batteries that Tesla used in both its inaugural vehicle, the Roadster, as well as the current Model S sedan and the upcoming Model X crossover SUV.  By eschewing the creation of their own proprietary battery technology and making use of existing infrastructure, Tesla was able to cut significant costs from the most expensive part of any high-performance electric vehicle: the battery.  The planned Gigafactory is a key strategic step in carrying out Tesla’s long-term mission to deliver lower-cost EVs to consumers around the world.

Auto

The economies of scale that the Gigafactory is designed to deliver will mean that by 2017 new battery packs will cost as much as 30% less than current Model S batteries (PDF).  These upcoming Generation III battery packs will contain more power capacity than Tesla’s current fare, a key factor to the success of Tesla’s long awaited Blue Star project.

The Blue Star project is Tesla’s long-proposed, low-cost automobile model (recently dubbed the Tesla Model III), and is set to debut alongside the Generation III batteries in 2017. The 200-mile range EV’s base configuration will retail for about $35,000 — nearly 40% less than the cost of the $57,000 base price of the current Tesla Model S.

While battery production and capacity has grown worldwide over the last decade, Tesla notes that nearly all of that growth has been in Asia. In contrast to that trend, the joint collaboration between Panasonic and Tesla will take place at a facility in the American West, likely near Reno, NV and less than four hours’ drive from the Fremont plant where Tesla’s autos are assembled. Without having to ship batteries from Asia, this close proximity will lead to additional cost savings through considerably lower Model S and Model X production times.

The specifications for the Gigafactory have been published.  As reported earlier, Tesla will provide the facilities, human resources, and materials for the site, while Panasonic will invest between $200 and $300 million and focus on manufacturing techniques. Panasonic’s efforts will take up about one half of the Gigafactory facility, while the other half will be allocated to suppliers who turn raw battery cells into the finished battery modules, ready to be installed in Tesla’s vehicles, according to the press release.

 

Click Image To Enlarge

In keeping with Musk’s environmentally sustainable reputation, the facility, which will sit on 500 to 1,000 acres, will not only recycle older battery packs but will also be powered by “new local renewables,” namely wind turbines and photovoltaic panels. Musk is also the Chairman  of Solar City, which is currently ranked second among the top 250 solar contractors of 2013. This relationship would presumably add to the cost savings on the acquisition, installation, and maintenance of the solar piece of the renewable energy system meant to service the Gigafactory.

Demand for the batteries will go beyond Tesla’s own customers. Jonathan Ward, founder of LA-based Icon, a specialty auto manufacturer and modification shop, has indicated interest in using not only Tesla’s patents but also the very platform of the Model S to build a vehicle he’s calling the Helios.

Helios would be Icon’s “revisionist approach” to automobile manufacturing; a car that in Ward’s words, “[Fuses] vintage design with the best modern drive experience and technology.”   To be clear, Icon’s Helios, which is in the earliest stages of design, is a lifestyle vehicle that takes the likes of Chrysler’s once-popular but now discontinued 1930s-style PT Cruiser to an extreme, almost aeronautical level.  For those who feel that the subtle lines of Tesla’s Model S lack flare, the dramatic curves of Ward’s Helios have the potential to expand the market for Tesla’s automotive technologies.

​​Despite selling an impressive 95,000+ units since 2010 (in 35 countries and on four continents), Nissan, the world leader in EV sales, plans to significantly augment the look and range of the Leaf, its flagship EV in favor of a look more like Tesla’s Model S.  While most automakers favor incremental changes to best-selling vehicles like the Leaf, Nissan has said that its next -generation Leaf will abandon its low-impact, hybrid-like styling in favor of something more sporty.   In a move that signals direct competition with Tesla, Nissan is developing a vehicle related to the Leaf, but built under the Nissan’s upscale Infiniti marque, in order to market an EV with a performance/luxury message not unlike Tesla’s Model S and the upcoming Model III.​

While there’s currently no indication that Nissan will seek to make use of Tesla’s technologies, with over 40 percent of the Leaf’s global sales in the US market, it’s almost certainly something the company will consider. Even though Nissan is working on new batteries that allow for nearly 200 miles of range, it could instead choose to install Tesla’s similarly ranged Generation III modules into the Leafs it produces in Smyrna, TN. Tesla’s economies of scale may be able to reduce the cost of the American-born Leaf.

Technology

Today’s power-hungry mobile and laptop devices use similar lithium-ion technology to what Tesla uses in its vehicles. The challenge Tesla faces in packing more range into its vehicles is essentially the same challenge device makers like HP, Microsoft, and others face in trying to get more hours of life out of their gadgets.

As the Gigafactory’s massive scale lowers the cost of of lithium-ion batteries, Tesla becomes more and more attractive as a battery supplier to any portable device manufacturer interested in cutting costs and growing profits. Tesla’s dedication to renewable energy supplies in the production of both its batteries and its vehicles also make it an attractive supplier to Apple, which stands staunchly behind its environmental record and which also seems to consistently stretch the resources of its component vendors with every new iPhone.

Energy

Tesla and Panasonic are betting big that the demand for EVs will go up as battery prices come down and as so-called range anxiety is quelled by ever more powerful cells. Meanwhile, others are excitedly studying Tesla’s emerging energy storage capacity in a somewhat more stationary light.  As intermittent energy sources (e.g. photovoltaics and wind turbines) become popular energy solutions in the US and abroad, both commercial and home users are looking for ways to store the energy generated by the sun (or wind) for cloudy (or not so breezy) days.

In conventional energy generation (fuel oil, coal, gas, or other hydrocarbons), power utilities often scale their energy resources to the demands of their consumers. This can often mean brownouts as demand spikes and utilities rush to burn more hydrocarbons to create power. When demand is lower than expected, utilities burn more hydrocarbons than are needed, and that energy goes to waste.

Tesla’s low-cost batteries could offer a cheap and powerful solution to a problem that utility analysts almost uniformly believe is currently expensive and requires significant subsidies. Aside from the wasted fuel burned, the techniques for storing energy, which can include maintaining fields of volatile molten salt, are again expensive and hardly scalable compared to the Gigafactory’s projected output. Additionally, while few utilities practice energy storage today, California has proposed a rule that will force its utilities to get into the storage business by 2024.

Bolstered by strong earnings, significant profits, and growing demand for its products, Tesla’s vision for the future of EVs has the potential to continue to transform auto while also delivering technology to help mobile and portable devices profitably scale and to help the country make significant gains in energy storage. The vision (as is the case with every vision tied to Musk) is bold. We look forward to covering the implementation.

COMMENTARY:   The Tesla CEO envisions “a plant that is heavily powered by renewables, wind and solar, and that has built into it the recycling capability for old battery packs.”

Musk said in a previous earnings call. 

“It is going to be a really giant facility, like say we are doing that something that’s comparable to all lithium-ion production in the world in one factory,” 

Investment bank Barclays writes,

“For the time being, our model does not reflect the additional cost of building out a gigafactory, or the significant potential revenue that Tesla could generate from non-automotive sources such as grid storage. Optionality could provide upside for the stock, as investors consider the potential upside to revenue from non-automotive sources.”

Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas wrote in a January research note, adding,

“We believe the days when Tesla was known as purely an auto company are numbered.  We are witnessing the most disruptive intersection of manufacturing, innovation and capital experienced by the auto industry in more than a century.”

Jonas also claimed.

“Tesla may be in position to disrupt industries well beyond the realm of traditional auto manufacturing. It’s not just cars.”

Competition for Gigafactory Plant Sites

Tesla Motors has stirred up some competition among four Southwestern states that want the automaker to place its new Gigafactory within their respective borders.    According to USA Today, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas are all crossing their fingers that Tesla will bring its Gigafactory for lithium-ion batteries to their state. Tesla recently announced the four states as finalists for the factory's location.  

 Click Image To Enlarge

Tesla's Gigafactory aims to create electric vehicle batteries on a mass scale, which will bring battery costs down and help the automaker deliver an affordable EV. Right now, the company offers its high-end, all-electric Model S sedan that has a starting price of $69,900 in the U.S.   Tesla said the giant factory would create 6,500 jobs, which is an attractive offer to these states. 

Click Image To Enlarge

Tesla will invest around $2 billion in the plant through 2020 while investors will pay another $2-3 billion for a total $4-5 billion investment.    All four states are good candidates because they have the climate and terrain necessary to power the plant, which will run on solar and wind.    Nevada would be the closest option for Tesla, since its EV manufacturing plant is in Fremont, California. New Mexico would likely be favorable to Tesla as well, since the automaker previously planned to manufacture its EVs in the state before settling on the California factory.  

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Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry, said New Mexico would be an “ideal” location for the $2 billion factory according to reports in the Albuquerque Journal. He told the Journal that he believes Tesla will announce plans to build the facility in New Mexico in the next “six to eight months.” According to the Journal,

“The analyst said the factory would be capable of generating 30 gigawatts of production capacity a year, which would make it the largest such facility in the world. It may also manufacture a hybrid battery pack that could increase the driving range on Model S cars by 10 percent to 15 percent.”

Jon Barela, secretary of the New Mexico Economic Development Department, in a statement said. 

"Gov. Susana Martinez, state and local leaders greatly admire Tesla. We are believers in the company's vision and philosophy.  This is an incredible company that is changing the world for the better. We are ecstatic that New Mexico is a finalist for this phenomenal project."  

While Arizona has the sunshine Tesla needs in abundance, the state's fiscal conservatives might not be onboard with so many incentives funded by taxpayers.  Texas is another good choice, because it already provides space for other auto plants and is close to auto manufacturing infrastructure in Mexico. But Tesla has had issues with Texas in the past that could ruin future business together.  

Last April, Tesla CEO Elon Musk showed support for House Bill 3351, which would allow distributors and manufacturers of electric vehicles (EVs) only to sell directly to customers without the use of dealerships in Texas. The state fought Tesla in an attempt to protect the position of auto dealers, which can lobby a lot harder than Tesla.   

However, Tesla could strike a deal with Texas where the automaker demands the anti-dealership sales model in exchange for bringing the Gigafactory to the Lone Star state.   

The giant Gigafactory will span 500 to 1,000 acres of land and have a space requirement of 10 million square feet. It aims to produce 35 GWh of cells and 50 GWh of battery packs a year.   

Tesla added that it's getting ready to produce 500,000 EVs a year in 2020, and the Gigafactory will supply those battery packs. What's more is that Tesla expects the per-kWh cost of a Tesla battery pack to be lowered by more than 30 percent once the factory is up and running for the first year.   

Construction will continue through 2015, and in 2016, equipment installation is set to begin. The year 2017 will finally see production launch, and will gun for the half million EVs produced in 2020.

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An energy investor contact emphasized that the battery pack is the strategic component to Tesla’s vehicle, and just as Apple often does for critical technology, Tesla is vertically integrating — or possibly taking an Apple/Foxconn funded manufacturing partnership approach.

“Musk has the ability to mark up the price of his high-end finished vehicle — whereas most battery manufacturers/developers are stuck in an incredibly competitive market, requiring massive scale, with little pricing power and visibility to end consumers.”

Courtesy of an article dated August 1, 2014 appearing in VentureBeat, an article dated March 3, 2014 appearing in DailyTech, an article dated February 27, 2014 appearing in Green Tech Media, an article dated February 26, 2014 appearing in Mashable

 

 

HARLEY-DAVIDSON UNVEILS THE 'LIVEWIRE', ITS FIRST ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE, AND SURPRISINGLY IT DOESN'T SUCK

The LiveWire, Harley-Davidson's first electric motorcycle (Click Image To Enlarge)

Harley-Davidson is more than a motorcycle, or even a brand. It is an icon, one that brings to mind big, loud bikes ridden by burly men with tattoos and beards.

The company has long been known for rumbling V-twin engines and the open road. All of which makes the idea of an electric Harley seem downright absurd.

It’s actually pretty cool.

The LiveWire is the first electric two-wheeler out of Milwaukee. We spent an afternoon riding one amongst the weeds and broken glass of an abandoned Marine Corps runway outside Los Angeles last week and came away impressed. The Hell’s Angels aren’t going to be riding them anytime soon, but the bike offers an entertaining blend of power and comfort. It doesn’t sound anything at all like a proper Harley—or a “fighter jet landing on an aircraft carrier” as Harley brass say—but it’s got a futuristic sound that brings to mind an airliner taking to the air.

The LiveWire may not rumble like the Harleys everyone knows, and it doesn’t perform like them. But it’ll hit 60 mph in under four seconds and it’s got more style than other electrics we’ve ridden. Now Harley has to find out if anyone actually wants the thing.

Cutting weight and potatoes

If Harley-Davidson isn’t the world’s most famous motorcycle, it’s close. The company has been building motorcycles since 1903, and typically subscribes to the bigger-is-better school of engineering. But even Harley-Davidson knows the times are changing, and it recognizes the need to diversify a customer base dominated by middle-aged white guys.

The Los Angeles Police Department has bought a Zero MMX electric motorcycle, that offers the advantages of a regular motorcyle with the addition of stealth. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Upstarts like Zero Motorcycles, BRD RedShift and Brammo have proven one way to attract younger, urban riders is selling small, compact bikes powered by batteries.

BRD RedShift all-electric motorcycle. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Even major players like Yamaha are giving electrics a go. So Harley is trying it out, too.

Mark-Hans Richer, Harley’s top marketing guy, says. 

“Any business has always got to look ahead to see where customers are interested in going, and see where society might be going,” 

 

That said, this isn’t a production model. Not yet, anyway. Harley is taking a few dozen LiveWires on a tour, dubbed Project LiveWire, of the United States and Europe. It will invite people in each city to check out the bike and provide feedback. The tour starts Monday in New York.

The key challenge in building the LiveWire was the shift from building a bike around an engine to building one around a battery.  A battery is heavy—Harley wouldn’t say what the pack weighs, but one EV expert told us something with the range and recharge time Harley claims would be around 250 pounds—so engineers had to cut weight elsewhere. The cast aluminum perimeter frame wrapped around the battery box weighs just 14 pounds, which makes it a full eight pounds lighter than the Zero’s frame. The wheels have hollow spokes, and Harley claims they’re among the lightest aluminum wheels it’s ever produced. There’s no need for an exhaust system, which not only saves weight but gives the bike a sleeker look. The result is a clean, tightly packaged bike without frivolous details.

 

Harley did most of the chassis work—it’s been building bikes since the dawn of internal combustion, so it’s got that down pat—but brought in experts like Mission Motors for help with things like the motor controller.

Speaking of the motor, the LiveWire marks quite a departure from Harley’s signature sound. You don’t get the syncopated “potato, potato, potato” that is synonymous with a 60-degree V-twin engine. But even though it’s electric, and therefore has no engine, the LiveWire had to live up to Harley’s “look, sound, and feel” mantra. That took a lot of work, but company president and COO Matt Levatich insists the result is “not contrived.”

The high-pitched whir of the longitudinally-mounted, three-phase AC induction motor reverberates through the chassis, amplifying the sound. It starts off quietly, then builds in pitch and volume as the bike gains speed. It’s louder than you’d think, and though it’s not going to set off any car alarms, it’ll definitely make you smile.

Click Image To Enlarge

What customers want

The LiveWire offers 74 horsepower, 52 foot-pounds of torque and a (governed) top speed of 92 mph. It’s more powerful and quicker off the line than the $13,000 Zero DS, but it’s got less torque and range. That said, it’s got more torque and power than Harley’s Iron 883.

Still, Harley execs and engineers don’t like talking about specs. They don’t want potential customers making judgments based on what the LiveWire offers right now. The LiveWire is a work in progress, based on “what we think our customers are looking for,” Richer says. The company hopes to glean more info during the LiveWire tour, and iterate accordingly to suit consumer tastes. Think of this as LiveWire v1.0.

Harley isn’t saying much about the drivetrain beyond saying the bike uses a lithium-ion battery with a range of 53 miles. It charges in 3.5 hours at 220 volts. Assuming the bike has a 3.3 kw charging system like other electric motorcycles, some back-of-the-envelope math suggests the LiveWire uses a 10 kilowatt-hour pack. Twist the throttle and the bike leaps forward with authority. Roll off the throttle and the regenerative braking kicks in, bringing the bike down from speed with due efficiency.

Click Image To Enlarge

Harley emphasizes its excitement over the LiveWire, but downplays its importance. An electric bike is just an idea, something that could draw younger, urban buyers to the brand. Companies like Zero have had some success with that strategy, and even convinced a few police departments to add electrics to their fleets.

Richer says.

“This is just part of us understanding where the world might want to go.”  

The upside of so cautious an approach, of course, is there’s less fallout if the bike is a flop.

New direction

That’s not out of the question. Harley’s past forays into the potentially lucrative market for smaller, city-focused bikes have ended poorly.  That hasn’t kept it from trying again this year with the launch of the Street, a simpler, cheaper, bike made for city riding.  The LiveWire is another step in that direction.

Levatich says.

“Why can’t Harley do some of these other cool things, too, and see where it takes us?” 

COMMENTARY:   Now that's what I call a cool looking all-electric motorcycle.  What I don't like about Harley-Davidson's new all-electric motorcycle is the 53-mile range on a battery charge. That's just not going to cut it if you start using it for commuting long distances like here in the San Francisco Bay Area.  You might be able to make it from Walnut Creek to San Francisco on a charge, but you would have to recharge it there, in order to get back home.  

Harley-Davidson did not provide any prices, but I would like to know what the LiveWire is going to cost owners initially.  I don't think it is going to attract hardcore Harley riders, who prefer the loud roar and rumble of their choppers, a principal reason why they bought one in the first place. The LiveWire does not live up to the Harley image, so it makes sense to introduce the bike to younger, more environmentally conscious, urban riders who travel short distances close to where they live.  

From a strictly marketing standpoint, I would not produce the LiveWire under the Harley-Davidson brand, because the brand is too closely identified with loud rumbling motorcycles, not electrics.  So marketing the LiveWire under the LiveWire brand name makes more sense to me, because it distances itself from Harley-Davidson's image.  

Courtesy of an article dated June 19, 2014 appearing in Wired