Production/Delivery Status

Tesla R1 · 07-11-2008, 03:19 PM

I just got the following email from Tesla. I like the comment about the new 1.5 powertrain being "extraordinary"...

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doug · 07-11-2008, 03:43 PM

Sweet! Thanks.

TEG · 07-11-2008, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tesla R1

I just got the following email from Tesla....

So, what # in line are you?

Chris H. · 07-11-2008, 06:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TEG

So, what # in line are you?

TEG,

that information would give away TR1's identity to TM. I could be wrong, but I get the impression that he/she used a pseudonym to avoid doing that...

TEG · 07-11-2008, 07:39 PM

Oh, OK. Well, R1, are you one of the "Signature 100"?

Tesla R1 · 07-11-2008, 09:31 PM

Come to think of it, I don't think that it was appropriate for me to post Tesla's email verbatim in this forum so I removed it. If it makes its way to Tesla's official web site, I'll post a link to it.

Basically, they're saying how production is picking up and that they should be producing over 100 cars per month by December. Also, the development of the new powertrain is going well and performance is "extraordinary".

And no, I'm not one of the "Signature 100", I wish. I got on the 2009 waiting list earlier this year.

Joseph · 07-11-2008, 09:35 PM

This is super cool news.

"in addition to sales and service it is the place where all final assembly, tests and preparations are made with each car prior to customers’ delivery. We are pushing forward with planning for our next stores in New York, Chicago, Miami and Seattle."

First of all, the idea of having your car assembled where you buy it is so awesome. It really, truely fits the image Musk gives us in the company blog (Tesla Motors - feel) where he compares watching a technician service your car to a watching a chef rpepare your food at a restaurant.

I wonder if all the Tesla Stores will have final assembly of the Roadster on-site, at the store. This would be a great idea. At a production rate of ~three cars a day, it may be feasible. I assume final assembly means installing the battery pack. This be a really good idea because that would make the Roadster almost 1,000 pounds lighter during shipping, which I'm assuming saves lots of money for them.

"...they [Roadsters] will keep arriving at the rate of 4 per week (except for the scheduled factory shut down in the last two weeks of August)....In large measure we deliberately limit the production until we install our own born and bred final transmission by mid-September"

I hope it's really, really true when they say the main reason for such slow production is that they're just waiting for Powertrain 1.5. I find it interesting that they are shutting down the factory in late August, and beginning to install Powertrain 1.5 in mid-September. Maybe the two have something to do with eachother? Or maybe Lotus is shutting down the factory? I would find that strange, unless the Roadster is built on the exact same assembly line as the Elise, which I doubt because the two cars are so different. Someone correct if I'm wrong though.

Joseph · 07-11-2008, 09:37 PM

Oops...sorry R1. I already wrote a post, quoting some parts of the email, just before you removed it! I don't really think it's bad though, I mean, they know all the info. will leak out anyway.

TEG · 07-11-2008, 09:42 PM

Apparently an August holiday is SOP at the Lotus factory.

Lotus Factory closed in August? - LotusTalk - The Lotus Cars Community

mittelhauser · 07-11-2008, 10:35 PM

Well there was no request in the email that the information not be shared so I will post my copy. I certainly have forwarded the email to enough folks already that I am sure it will get out somehow. :)

Quote:

You know of course the saying “Good things are worth waiting for” ... undoubtedly we were trying the truism of this adage longer than warranted, but we have broken the logjam. We are delivering the Roadster to our customers. Already 9 production Roadsters have arrived in California, another 3 arrive this weekend, and they will keep arriving at the rate of 4 per week (except for the scheduled factory shut down in the last two weeks of August). In fact, currently there are 27 Roadsters in various stages of assembly. In large measure we deliberately limit the production until we install our own born and bred final transmission by mid-September, at which time production will start to ramp up leading toward a monthly rate of over 100 cars in December.

From the start we planned a slow production rate for the first several months to allow us time to work out the kinks of production prior to increasing the rate of production. As mentioned above, an important mile marker of our progress is the development and implementation of Powertrain 1.5, which is going smoothly. Already we have prototypes running with the Powertrain 1.5 configuration and we are establishing the manufacturing facility for the gearboxes in our own facilities. The performance of this production configuration is extraordinary.

The Roadster delivery to our customers perfectly dovetails with the Grand Opening of our second Tesla store in as many months. The first was the one in Los Angeles and it’s a huge success, and now the one in the heart of Silicon Valley right near Stanford in Menlo Park. The store in Menlo Park replicates the unique customer experience so successfully present in the LA store and more, since in addition to sales and service it is the place where all final assembly, tests and preparations are made with each car prior to customers’ delivery. We are pushing forward with planning for our next stores in New York, Chicago, Miami and Seattle.

In other news, I have hired Mike Donoughe, an accomplished auto industry executive, as our Executive Vice President of Vehicle Engineering and Manufacturing. Mike spent over 24 years at Chrysler, where most recently, as Vice President of “Project D”, he had been tapped to lead their critical redesign of their mid-size vehicle program. Mike’s addition is an example of my commitment to build a world class team at Tesla, combining the best of what Silicon Valley and Detroit have to offer, to build this company into the next great car company. Keep an eye out for additional news on this front.

On behalf of Tesla employees world wide I would like to thank all of our loyal customers and assure you that we do our utmost to justify the faith that you have shown.

Ze’ev Drori