2009 Nissan 370z Automatic Xenons Black On Black 46k Mi Texas Direct Auto on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Weekly Recap: The cost of Tesla's ambitious plans for growth

Tesla has ambitious plans for growth, and they won't come cheap. The electric-car maker said this week it plans to spend $1.5 billion in 2015 to expand production capacity, launch the Model X crossover and continue work on its Gigafactory, which is being built outside of Reno, NV. The company is also investing in its stores, service centers and charging network, which is expected to grow by more than 50 percent this year. Plus, it's still working on the Model 3, which is scheduled to arrive in 2017. "We're going to spend staggering amounts of money on [capital expenditures]," Tesla chairman and CEO Elon Musk said on an investor call. He then added: "For a good reason. And with a great ROI [return on investment]." They're bold plans, and Musk is clearly willing to put Tesla's money where his mouth is. That's why the company is projecting a whopping 70-percent increase in deliveries this year, for a total of 55,000 cars. A large chunk of that growth will come from the addition of the Model X crossover to Tesla's portfolio, and the company already has nearly 20,000 reservations for it. More than 30 Model X prototypes have been built, and it is expected to begin shipping to customers this summer. Musk said he's "highly confident" the vehicle, which has experienced delays, will arrive on time. The company also had more than 10,000 orders for the Model S at the start of the year. The big spending plans caused a stir, even though Tesla spent $369 million on capital expenditures in the fourth quarter alone. In a note to investors, Morgan Stanley analysts called the costs required to keep pace with Tesla's demand "eye-wateringly high," and said the $1.5-billion figure was nearly double their expectations. Still, Musk is not thinking small and suggested that his company could be as big in 10 years as Apple is now if Tesla's growth continues. His optimism comes as the company actually reported a $294-million net loss in 2014, more than its $74-million loss in 2013. The money, however, continues to roll in, and total revenues increased to $3.2 billion in 2014, up from $2 billion in 2013 and a dramatic surge from $413 million in 2012. More of the same is expected this year, and the company could reach $6 billion in revenue. As Morgan Stanley noted, it "seems Tesla is preparing to be a much larger company than we have forecasted." It's certainly spending that way.

Daimler and Nissan to build luxury cars at new plant in Mexico

A few years back, when Daimler was looking for a partner to spread the cost of development of small cars, it agreed to collaborate with Nissan on future products, such as vehicle platforms and drivetrains. The latest development in the collaboration concerns the assembly of small luxury cars for Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz at a Nissan plant in Mexico, two unnamed sources told Reuters.
The plant in question, Aguascalientes, is a $2 billion project that will open later this year next to an existing Nissan factory. The upcoming Infiniti Q30 four-door hatchback is expected to be built there, possibly alongside the Mercedes GLA-Class, which is one of several candidates Mercedes is considering to build at this facility, Reuters reports. The GLA will debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show this month, and initial production of the model will take place in Germany. The Q30 could follow a similar path, with assembly starting at Nissan's Sunderland plant in the UK, and then expanding to Aguascalientes later on.
The underlying platform of the Q30 and GLA, codenamed New Generation Compact Car (NGCC), was developed by Daimler. The Q30 would be the first Infiniti produced under the automakers' agreement. Last year, Nissan agreed to make engines that would find their way into Mercedes and Infiniti vehicles.

Nissan e-NV200 EV charges into Tokyo

Nissan has already shown its e-NV200 in Detroit and Frankfurt in conceptual form, now its home market is getting an up-close look at the production all-electric compact van at the Tokyo Motor Show. While it doesn't sound like the e-NV200 will be making its way to the US anytime soon, it will go on sale on sale in Europe in the middle of next year and in Japan by early 2015.
The electric NV200 will be built in Barcelona, Spain, and while that EV-minded city has committed to using the van for public transportation, Nissan's hometown of Yokohama, Japan will also put the zero-emission vehicle to work in its public services fleet. Nissan has yet to reveal the production specs for the e-NV200 - including range - we do know that it will share much of its drivetrain with smaller Nissan Leaf. Check out the press release posted below for more information about the e-NV200 and Nissan's EV efforts in Yokohama.