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Nevada lawmakers debating Tesla gigafactory tax breaks today

When it comes to Nevada's financial incentives that lured Tesla Motors to build its Gigafactory in the Silver State, some lawmakers have said Gov. Brian Sandoval has some 'splain' to do. And such explanations are slated to start today, reports Reuters. When there are $1.3 billion or so worth of incentives, the conversation's likely to be a lengthy one. Nevada Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick is expected to oversee the talks about the incentives, which have been criticized in some circles as being overly generous (even the idea of massive incentives was criticized). Tesla's tax exemptions alone would amount to about $725 million, and there would be about $300 million in payroll savings. Other goodies include business-tax abatements and discounted electricity rates. Sandoval has argued that the Gigafactory, which could open by late 2016, could create $100 billion worth of economic activity during the next two decades, making it a pretty good deal for the state. The factory, to be built near Reno, will be about 5 million square feet and includes battery-maker Panasonic as an investor. It's considered vital to Tesla's goal of making a $35,000 electric car with a 200-mile range. Nevada beat out Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Tesla's home state of California for Gigafactory bragging rights, but the fight might be just beginning.

Tesla announces 'infinite mile warranty' for Model S EV drive unit

Tesla Motors has a way with words. From Superchargers to 'auto pilot,' Tesla likes to set itself apart by calling things other things. What, fast charging and autonomous drive not good enough for ya? The same thing just happened with the announcement of a new 'infinite mile warranty' for the drive unit. That's infinite, not unlimited, but whatever it's called, the new policy lifts the warranty mileage cap on the 85-kWh version of the Model S that had previously been set at four years and 50,000 miles. The new rules say that the drive unit will have the same 'limits' as the battery pack, which means as many miles as you can put on the car in eight years. Tesla will also honor the warranty no matter how many people have owned the car and is applying the warranty retroactively, so feel safe buying that used 2012 Model S until 2019 if you still want some warranty coverage. "If we truly believe that electric motors are fundamentally more reliable than gasoline engines ... then our warranty policy should reflect that." – Elon Musk Tesla has gotten some criticism recently for quality issues in Model S EVs that have been on the road for a while now. Consumer Reports, for example, described problems with their Model S after owning it for 17 months. In the warranty change announcement blog post, Tesla CEO Elon Musk admitted that Tesla made a mistake imposing a limit in the first place. "In hindsight, this should have been our policy from the beginning of the Model S program," he said. "If we truly believe that electric motors are fundamentally more reliable than gasoline engines, with far fewer moving parts and no oily residue or combustion byproducts to gum up the works, then our warranty policy should reflect that." Now it does. Tesla is warning its investors that the short-term impact might be negative, but "by doing the right thing for Tesla vehicle owners at this early stage of our company, I am confident that it will work out well in the long term," Musk said. You can read the short announcement below. Infinite Mile Warranty The Tesla Model S drive unit warranty has been increased to match that of the battery pack. That means the 85 kWh Model S, our most popular model by far, now has an 8 year, infinite mile warranty on both the battery pack and drive unit. There is also no limit on the number of owners during the warranty period. Moreover, the warranty extension will apply retroactively to all Model S vehicles ever produced.

Recharge Wrap-up: Nissan "religious" about zero-emissions, Tesla crashes at dealership, Formula E on-board video

Nissan is pretty darn serious about being king of the EV industry. Just see what Chief Planning Officer Andy Palmer has to say at the launch of the e-NV200: "When it comes to zero emissions, we're absolutely religious. We'll be the absolute, No. 1 leader in zero emissions. No doubt. That's our positioning." Bold words, to be sure. Toyota, on the other hand, ended its collaboration with Tesla (whom Nissan mustn't forget about in its quest to reign supreme in the EV world) to build the RAV4 EV, and will focus instead on hybrids and testing the waters with hydrogen cars. Says Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota North America, "I would rather invest my dollars in fuel cell development than in another 2,500 EVs." Read more at Automotive News or Autoweek. To celebrate 25 years of TDI technology, Audi is releasing the A7 Sportback 3.0 TDI Competition special edition in Europe. The Competition uses Audi's biturbocharged, 3.0-liter diesel engine boosted to 326 horsepower, giving the car a 0-62 time of 5.1 seconds. It comes with the S line sport package and is offered in four exterior colors: Daytona Gray, Misano Red, Nardo Gray and Sepang Blue. The interior is black leather, with the option of Misano Red or Agate Gray contrast stitching. The Competition edition will go on sale in August starting at ˆ72,000 (about $97,700). Audi's first Turbocharged Direct Injection engine debuted at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show in the Audi 100 2.5 TDI. See the press release down below for more details. There was another Tesla Model S crash recently, this one at the Tesla Store. The driver apparently crashed the freshly purchased car into the Tesla sign before even making it off the lot. According to Reddit user s1lentway, who was at the Tesla Store in Fremont, California when it happened, "We believe this is someone who just got their car. They must have been driving it for less than a minute and lost control, crashing right into the sign missing the showroom glass windows only by a few inches." Wrecked Exotics suggests the driver hit the accelerator instead of the brake pedal. Probably the best comment in the Reddit post: "Edison strikes again." See the original post at Reddit for more corny jokes, speculation and similar stories from other users. Take a lap in a Formula E racecar. The video below offers up the sights and sounds of a hot, wet lap in the open-cockpit, all-electric Spark-Renault SRT_01E.