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Recharge Wrap-up: Infiniti considers EV for China, NextEV hires former Tesla, Apple engineer

NextEV has hired Tesla Autopilot and Apple veteran Jamie Carlson as Senior Director of Advanced Technologies. The seasoned autonomous driving engineer joins fellow former Autopilot engineer Kurt Thywissen, who is now NextEV Senior Director of Human-Machine Interaction. NextEV, which is working on an all-electric supercar before focusing on mainstream EVs, recently obtained a self-driving car permit from California and opened its North American headquarters in San Jose. Read more at Electrek. Infiniti is considering launching its first EV in China. "When I think about EV, we design it for China definitely, even as the first market to launch," says Infiniti President Roland Krueger. "We are discussing this internally constantly what is the right timing for Infiniti to have such vehicles." Infiniti has held back on launching an EV, focusing instead on hybrids, but says it could be "very fast" in deploying an EV once it decides to do so. Having Nissan and Renault backing Infiniti, the luxury brand is confident about its access to proven EV technology. Read more at Automotive News Europe. Thrifty car rental has added a Tesla Model S to its fleet in Canberra, Australia. Available at the Canberra Airport, it's the first luxury EV offered for rent from a mainstream rental company in Australia. Australia's capital offers a small registration discount and no stamp duty for EVs, making it a cheaper and more practical place to locate the country's first rental Tesla. Thrifty's parent company, NRMA, is calling on Australia's other states and territories to remove financial and regulatory barriers to EV technology. Read more at The Motor Report.

Here's how buying a Tesla Model S works in China

When it comes to selling and delivering the California-made Tesla electric vehicles in China, we know there's a bit of a time difference. And that difference may be more a matter of months than hours as the California-based electric vehicle maker prepares to start sales in the world's most populous country, Forbes says. Not that it makes Tesla any less confident about its prospects there. Tesla's first showroom in China opened in Beijing in early November and a service center popped up about 13 miles away from there. The company is asking for an upfront $2,400 deposit on its Model S sedans and another $19,500 deposit after customization is complete. Foggier, though is the estimated delivery time, which for vehicles ordered this month can range from July to October, depending on who's doing the estimating, according to Forbes. Tesla representatives didn't respond to our request for clarification but you can get more details in Forbes. Still, Tesla executives have said they expect for China to account for about a third of global sales this year and as much as half in 2015, which could mean about 25,000 vehicles purchased in the country. All this despite the fact that Tesla, like other automakers, has upped the price of its cars for China compared to the levels in other countries. Tesla in January set a base price for the 85-kilowatt-hour Model S of more than $120,000 (depending on the exchange rate) in China. The company says that the price could have been higher, but it wanted to set a fair price.

Pebble Beach Concept Car Lawn adds class to the grass

While Pebble Beach is traditionally thought of as the refuge of the pristine and pricey vintage vehicles of the world, there's no shortage of newer vehicles on display. And when we say "new," we mean really new. As in, not even in production new. This is the concept car lawn, and it's home to an eclectic group of vehicles from past and present.
Of course, calling it the "concept car lawn" is a bit of a misnomer this year (as it has been in previous years, too). Production models like the Alfa Romeo 4C were on display, alongside known quantities like the Hennessy Venom GT and modified versions of already-on-sale models, like the Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Waterspeed Collection.
There were a few concepts on display, though. Toyota debuted the critically acclaimed FT-1 Concept in a new shade, while BMW's Beijing Motor Show stunner, the Vision Future Luxury, was also parked on the expensive grass. Also appearing were the Nissan GT-R in sheep's clothing, the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge, and the recently debuted McLaren P1 GTR.