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Tesla Motors General Annual Meeting

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Tesla's 1st annual meeting: low-key, high return

Some choice figures:

Musk described how the company had grown since last June, from 650 employees at the time of the initial public offering to more than 1,100 now. Tesla has sold more than 1,650 of its first car, the $109,000 Roadster, up from 1,063 last June.

The company also has taken 4,600 reservations for the $57,400-$77,400 Model S sedan, which will be built in Fremont and will hit the market in mid-2012. The company plans to make 5,000 of the sedans next year, increasing to 20,000 in 2013.

Musk said Tesla may unveil a prototype of the Model X this December and plans to start production by the end of 2013.
 

Thanks! And these two bits may be interesting for some here:

Musk said the company planned to offer another, more affordable car some time in the next four or five years, targeting the $30,000 price range. Tesla may also introduce a new version of its Roadster after the Model S launch, possibly in three years.

"Right now I think we've got to focus on the Model S," he said.
 
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Tesla Motors tweeted this link: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110601/OEM01/110609983/1179

The part about the $50 million Schuler SMG hydraulic stamping press was interesting to read...the eight month installation is completed.

EDIT: The above article is now behind a pay wall. This one seems to be more or less identical: Tesla: Factory on track for 2012 Model S launch - AutoWeek


Apparently the same text has appeared in a number of online sites.

At the hour-long meeting on Wednesday in San Jose, Calif., Musk detailed Tesla's progress with the former NUMMI plant. The latest milestone: completing an eight-month installation of a $50 million Schuler SMG hydraulic stamping press that Tesla acquired from "a company in Detroit" for $6 million, including the cost of shipping the tooling with 70 trucks. Musk called it "the largest hydraulic stamping press in North America."

Regarding charging stations, Musk said that Tesla vehicles' extended range means that the company could cover cross-country drives with 13 charging stations. He said eight to 10 stations on each seaboard could cover the U.S. coasts. At an expected investment of about $25,000 per station, "for a couple million dollars you have covered the country," Musk said
 
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Regarding charging stations, Musk said that Tesla vehicles' extended range means that the company could cover cross-country drives with 13 charging stations. He said eight to 10 stations on each seaboard could cover the U.S. coasts. At an expected investment of about $25,000 per station, "for a couple million dollars you have covered the country," Musk said


That's an interesting line of thought... I wonder if Tesla are going to get into the infrastructure business?
 
I think Tesla should focus on fast chargers between major cities only. The other companies seem to want to place all their chargers in cities which doesn't help at all for travel. Placing chargers every 100 miles would be ideal.
 
I think Tesla should focus on fast chargers between major cities only. The other companies seem to want to place all their chargers in cities which doesn't help at all for travel. Placing chargers every 100 miles would be ideal.

Yes, and what else goes there besides the charging equipment? If you are stuck for a while waiting for a charge, hopefully there is something else to do. At roadside "rest stops" with restrooms and a place to sit down is a start. Having a snack/coffee shop would be good if possible. Perhaps partnering with existing nationwide business would be a good idea? A fast charger at every Starbucks? Every Subway? Every McDonalds? I think we have mixed feelings about partnering with gas stations, but they do tend to have the mini-marts with restrooms and tire air spread out along highways between cities.
 
I have no personal problem with any charge station providers partnering with gas stations. The more we expose ICE drivers to electric cars, the better!
From a personal standpoint, I do not want to hang out at a carcinogenic gasoline station for any reason. I'd rather be at a Starbucks for an hour. And I don't even like coffee.
 
For the health of the company, Tesla should concentrate on producing cars. I know they want to controll everything, but they need to be careful that they don't get in 'over their head' with expendatures and run out of cash before they can turn a profit.
 
For the health of the company, Tesla should concentrate on producing cars. I know they want to control everything, but they need to be careful that they don't get in 'over their head' with expenditures and run out of cash before they can turn a profit.
I was trying to understand why they quoted a projected price for the proposed Tesla charging infrastructure.
Thoughts:
#1: They are trying to say that it isn't that expensive?
#2: They are planning to ask for some grant money to help fund it?

What kind of charge station would one expect to get for $25,000 each? (I assume that includes site prep/construction costs too?)
 
I was trying to understand why they quoted a projected price for the proposed Tesla charging infrastructure.
Thoughts:
#1: They are trying to say that it isn't that expensive?
#2: They are planning to ask for some grant money to help fund it?

What kind of charge station would one expect to get for $25,000 each? (I assume that includes site prep/construction costs too?)


In many areas of California, $25000 would not even buy the footprint for the charging station and parking spot.
 
Well, if you are doing a long drive through the desert, what do you find in the middle of nowhere with power? A gas station... Maybe a campground... Indian Casino...
If we are serious about getting off of gas, perhaps there should be a mandate/regulation that says that all gas stations must have a J1772 charging station? And maybe an incentive for campgrounds and RV parks (e.g.: KOA) to include EV charging stations there too? (I know some have done the road trips with RV/NEMA14-50 adapter, but sometimes they end up paying the overnight camping fee just to get a couple hours of charge. Having dedicated EV spots with J1772 would make them more EV friendly.)
 
For the health of the company, Tesla should concentrate on producing cars. I know they want to controll everything, but they need to be careful that they don't get in 'over their head' with expendatures and run out of cash before they can turn a profit.


To be able to say you can cross America or drive either coast, for an installed cost of $2m, would be a great piece of marketing. At 1% of the current funding round, it would be a bargain.
 
To be able to say you can cross America or drive either coast, for an installed cost of $2m, would be a great piece of marketing. At 1% of the current funding round, it would be a bargain.

I agree with your statement, but I don't know how they can say $2M for the cost. I believe they are way off by a factor of 100. I have penciled the cost of a station with multiple spots, and I don't know how they can do it for $25K even for one spot. DC fast charge unit by many manufacturers is about $60K equipment only, not infrastructure or installation. Then there is maintenance and operation.

I desperately want Tesla to succeed on their own, and it all boils down to CASH. They have shown that they can sell cars, online without any stores or fluff. If the success of the company falters later due to a lack of funds because of all the 'extra stuff', I get to say "told ya!"
 
Probably the $2M figure is a mixture of DC fast chargers and HPC-class chargers. Let's assume some sort of hub system, with DC fast chargers on major routes fed by HPC-powered routes. For $2M you could probably cover the country enough to get most people where they want to go. Obviously this would be a bit thin - sufficient for early days when there are relatively few Teslas on the road. As sales of the cars grow high volume locations would need multiple chargers. But that growth would probably happen on its own.