Government agencies mock floating Cybertruck
Musk’s claim that Cybertruck will be able to ‘serve briefly as a boat’ is mocked by two government agencies.
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources responded with a photo of a submerged car and said:
Our derelict vessel crews are begging you to understand that anything that “serves briefly as a boat” should not be used as a boat.
Our derelict vessel crews are begging you to understand that anything that “serves briefly as a boat” should not be used as a boat https://t.co/lcrunbf1DJ pic.twitter.com/j2eL5tGcJZ
— Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources (@waDNR) September 29, 2022
And, after a Twitter user suggests Cybertruck would put the San Francisco Bay Ferry out of business, they responded:
Announcement: to prepare for the inevitability of the Nintendo 64 floatie truck flotilla rendering us obsolete, we’re adding little wheels to our ferries. Landboat will be able to serve brief as a bus, so it can cross bridges, parking lots and highways that are not too congested
Announcement: to prepare for the inevitability of the Nintendo 64 floatie truck flotilla rendering us obsolete, we're adding little wheels to our ferries. Landboat will be able to serve brief as a bus, so it can cross bridges, parking lots and highways that are not too congested.
— San Francisco Bay Ferry (@SFBayFerry) September 29, 2022
GM sales grow 74% YOY in Sept, Tesla sales grow 63%, Honda declines
In its September estimates, TrueCar says that General Motors has grown its sales most in the past year, increasing 74.2%.. GM also had the largest number of sales, at 200,000 units. Tesla is in second place with sales growth of 63% compared to the same time last year. Honda is the fastest shrinking automaker in US sales, down -15.3%.
Musk: Waterproof Cybertruck can cross rivers, lakes
Musk says the Cybertruck will be able to cross rivers, lakes, and seas, because it will be waterproof enough to serve briefly as a boat. The Cybertruck would need to be able to scale the 6.5-mile float from Starbase to South Padre Island for SpaceX-related logistics activities. Musk did not disclose any indication of how the Cybertruck would be propelled, nor did he give any estimates as to what speed he would expect it to travel, although the Cybertruck as a boat would likely travel between 5 and 10 knots.
Cybertruck will be waterproof enough to serve briefly as a boat, so it can cross rivers, lakes & even seas that aren’t too choppy.
Needs be able to get from Starbase to South Padre Island, which requires crossing the channel
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 29, 2022
Musk teases Tesla AI Day 2
Musk teases Tesla’s second AI Day, which will showcase the company’s artificial intelligence programs. The event runs from 5 to 11pm PST on September 30, 2022.
There will be lots of technical detail & cool hardware demos.
Expected technology reverals include the Hardware 4 computer and The Tesla Bot. He also responds to a Twitter user that, despite the expectation of a luckwarm response by the media:
AI/robotics engineers who understand what problems need to be solved will like what they see. As well as advanced chip & supercomputer engineers for next-gen training & inference. Note, this event is meant for recruiting AI & robotics engineers, so will be highly technical.
Pretty much. AI/robotics engineers who understand what problems need to be solved will like what they see.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 29, 2022
Tesla wants ‘thousands of humanoid robots’ within its factories
A Tesla job listing for a mechatronic technician says the company wants thousands of humanoid robots in its factories:
Tesla is on a path to build humanoid bi-pedal robots at scale to automate repetitive and boring tasks. Most importantly, you will see your work repeatedly shipped to and utilized by thousands of Humanoid Robots within our factories.
The company’s Autopilot Division aims to hire 20 software and firmware engineers, deep learning scientists, actuator technicians, and internships, to work on its Optimus humanoid robot. Musk wants the robot to work beyond car production and do household chores and care work in millions of households.
Hertz CEO: Tesla rental demand ‘very, very solid’
CEO Stephen Scherr of Hertz, which ordered 100,000 Tesla vehicles in October 2021 , says demand for the vehicles is very strong. Hertz is looking to have 25% of its fleet be electric vehicles by the end of 2024, up from 5% today.
Demand has been very, very solid. And remember, we’re seeing demand not only among leisure travelers but also corporate travelers, where in fact, corporations want their employees in an electric vehicle to satisfy some of their carbon footprint objectives. And of course, we’ve been renting to Uber and Lyft as part of their ride-sharing network. Demand across all three has been very strong.
Scherr also said the vehicles are less costly to maintain:
I’d also point out from a financial point of view. For Hertz, the maintenance is appreciably lower on (the) electric vehicles. We’re seeing it 40-50% lower, just given the nature of the car itself.
Hertz CEO on @Tesla rental demand:
“Demand has been very, very solid. We’re seeing demand not just among leisure travelers but also corporate travelers; Corporations want their employees in EVs to satisfy their carbon footprint objectives”
EV maintenance is costing 40-50% less. pic.twitter.com/GhKiIRcX6e
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) September 28, 2022
Tesla expects ‘high volume’ of deliveries, asks staff to help
In an email to staff, the car company says it is expecting a high volume of deliveries in Q3 and asks all employees, even those who don’t work in the sales and delivery department, to help with delivery tasks, include moving vehicles around, washing and preparing vehicles, delivering vehicles directly to customers, and answering customer questions on delivery day.
We will be delivering a very high volume of vehicles to eagerly waiting customers during the final days of Q3. To help ensure we can delight as many customers as possible, the delivery team is requesting additional support with key delivery-execution tasks.
Fire at Giga Berlin
A fire broke out in an outdoor pile of cardboard and wood at Tesla Gigafactory Berlin. 50 firefighters, including 12 from Giga Berlin’s own fire department, worked to extinguish the fire. Around 800 cubic meters of paper, cardboard, and wood burned. No injuries were reported. Police:
It is being investigated whether shredding work had started the fire.
Ctritics of the factory called for an immediate stop of production:
Our worst fears have come true. We demand a production stop until the causes and circumstances have been clarified, and all safety-relevant measures in the water protection area have been implemented.
Report: Tesla China to hit over 80k deliveries this month
A report from China says Tesla is targeting deliveries of about 80,000 to 90,000 vehicles domestically this month, despite insurance data from previous weeks suggesting that Tesla seemed to be having delivery challenges in the country. The report says that shorter waiting times mean scalpers who had bought the cars in hope of a large profit will now be undercut as Tesla customers wait for a possible October price cut. Estimates in China reportedly suggest that Tesla will reduce its Model 3 prices by RMB 20,000 ($2,700) and the Model Y by RMB 28,000 ($3,900). Report:
There is a tradition of price reduction: Historically, Tesla has been ahead of the market regardless of whether the price has been raised or lowered. There is room for price reduction: Tesla’s 22Q2 single-vehicle profit is 8,000+ US dollars, and its 22Q3 single-vehicle net profit hits 13,000 US dollars, equivalent to 80,000 yuan, which is extremely profitable.
$TSLA Giga Shanghai Q3 expecting 80-90k. And the main reason why wait time is now 1-4 weeks or 1-8 weeks because there are lots of scalper who booked earlier and resell it a the large profits. Now these scalper delayed delivery is quite serious. pic.twitter.com/9C2EhKBFgl
— T ⚡️ (@TeslaSg) September 26, 2022
Musk not taking Tesla private after all
In talking to our public investors, most were supportive of optimizing for long-term value creation over quarterly earnings. This was also a factor in remaining public.
In talking to our public investors, most were supportive of optimizing for long-term value creation over quarterly earnings. This was also a factor in remaining public.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 25, 2018
90,000 cars recalled
Tesla recalls 90,000 cars because of a single report of a front seat belt not being properly connected. Tesla was alerted to the seat belt issue by a customer in Europe two weeks ago and has since inspected 3,000 vehicles and its assembly process.
Tesla recently found a Model S in Europe with a front seat belt that was not properly connected to the outboard lap pretensioner. This vehicle was not involved in a crash and there were no injuries. However, in the event of a crash, a seat belt in this condition would not provide full protection.
Withdraws recommendation
Consumer Reports withdraws its recommendation for the Tesla Model S, after surveying 1400 owners, because of “worse-than-average” reliability. The car previously had the best rating possible.
As the older vehicles are getting up on miles, we are seeing some where the electric motor needs to be replaced and the onboard charging system won’t charge the battery. On the newer vehicles, we are seeing problems such as the sunroof not operating properly. Door handles continue to be an issue…Despite the problems, [Consumer Reports] data show that Tesla owner satisfaction is still very high: Ninety-seven percent of owners said they would definitely buy their car again.
Tesla Motors share price drops 10% before recovering to close off 7%.
Autopilot driverless car update
Tesla launches a beta version of Autopilot, which will be available on Thursday. All vehicles from September 2014 will be given the feature. Vehicles will rely on four major sensor systems. Ultrasonic sensors that tell the computer what’s around a 16-ft perimeter of the car; a forward-facing camera that helps determine where the lanes are and what cars are ahead of it, and which can also read speed signs; forward radar that’s used to detect fast-moving objects and which can see through rain, fog, and dust, as well as pulling from GPS and high-precision digital maps. Musk says it’s very important that people “exercise caution” and that they keep their hands on the wheel.
I don’t think that we have anything to worry about with cars driving themselves. They’re not going to take over the world…Each driver is a trainer in how the autopilot should work.
Model X launch
Musk launches the Model X SUV. The car can seat seven, has rear upward-opening “falcon” doors, and with the “ludicrous” option can reach 0-60mph in 3.2 seconds. The car also has a “bioweapon defense mode,” an advanced HEPA air filter that will clean any viruses out of the air. The car also has the best safety ratings of any SUV, a result of its low center of gravity and lack of a traditional engine. The Model X 90D costs $132,000, with a range of 257 miles and 0-60 of about 3.7 seconds; the P90D runs $142,000, 250 miles and 3.2-second acceleration.
If there’s ever a bioweapon attack, the safest place is your car. There’s actually a ‘bioweapon defense mode’ right there in the HVAC. We figure you shouldn’t have to think if you’re in an emergency.
Launch event announced
Tesla announces that the Model X will be launched on September, 29, in Fremont, California
Ludicrous Speed upgrade
Musk announces “Ludicrous Speed,” a $10,000 upgrade for the P85D Model S. The upgrade improves 0-60 time by 10 percent, to 2.8 seconds, with a quarter-mile sprint dropping to 10.9 seconds. The top speed increases to 155 miles per hour, 20 percent faster than on a standard P85D. The Model X will also have Ludicrous Speed as an option, but because that vehicle is 10 percent heavier than the S it will be slower.
Delivered 11,500 cars globally
Tesla announces its second-quarter delivery totals. The manufacturer delivered 11,507 Model S luxury electric cars from April 1 through June 30, its highest quarterly total to date, and brings Tesla’s global deliveries for the first half of 2015 to 21,537 cars. The company does not release monthly numbers.
Reveals timeline for Model 3
in an earnings call Musk reveals a tentative schedule for the Model 3, which is expected to cost $35,000 before government subsidies, saying the company plans to unveil the model in March 2016, and a sale date of mid 2017, but probably later.
I mean, we are hoping to show off the Model 3 in approximately March of next year. Again, like, don’t hold me to that month, but that’s, like — that’s our aspiration.
Adds battery into DemandLogic system
SolarCity incorporates the Tesla battery into its DemandLogic energy storage system to increase the utility cost savings customers can realize from using stored solar electricity. DemandLogic, which is being adopted by several of the largest retail, biotech and Internet companies in the U.S., allows businesses to reduce energy costs by using stored electricity to reduce peak demand, and can also provide backup power during grid outages. DemandLogic’s management software automates the discharge of stored energy to optimize savings on utility demand charges for customers.
Temporary plant shutdown
0 CommentsTesla Motors shuts down its California plant for two weeks to install new robots which are expected to boost production by 25%. The upgrade costs $100,000,000.
This represents the single biggest investment in the plant since we really started operations and enables us for higher volumes. It gets us ready to build X and to do it on the same line as the S.