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Tesla drops Model S prices in Europe due to strengthening euro [UPDATE]

Tesla Motors has been thinking about European Model S sales for years, but things haven't always gone as planned. While sales have been brisk in Norway, the car is less popular in places like Germany, where sales have been slow - less than 100 units sold in the first two months - according to Inside EVs, which prompted the introduction of a special Autobahn package. To reverse the trend, Tesla is putting on its finest plaid polyester suit and is slashing prices like they're going out of style. Yes, we know Tesla doesn't have traditional dealerships and the whole suit thing is an old stereotype, but sometimes you just gotta run with it. Tesla PR in America hasn't responded to our request for confirmation (see update below), but online sources show the drops are fairly substantial. In Germany, for example, Tesla has dropped almost 7,000 euros ($9,700 US at today's exchange rate) off the price, down to 65,300 euros ($90,600), while in Holland, the new price is down 4,000 ($5,500) euros to 66,200 ($91,900). No reason was given for these drops, but we can't help but suspect that demand isn't too strong at the moment. To help increase sales, Tesla recently announced an expansion of its Supercharger network on the continent. The price of the Model S has not dropped in the US, where the base model starts at $69,900 before incentives. *UPDATE: Tesla's director of global communications, Elizabeth Jarvis-Shean, said that our speculation that demand is low is "simply incorrect." She added: "Changes were made two months ago to all the base prices of Model S across our markets in the Euro-zone due to the strengthening of the Euro. We continuously evaluate currency fluctuations to be able to offer our customers the best price for Model S. Prolonged currency exchange rate fluctuations are the reason for the adjustment of the base pricing of the car."

Investigators Find No Defect Trend With Tesla Motors' Model S

Federal safety investigators said Friday they have found no apparent defect trends in the Tesla Model S, an electric luxury car that has its share of fans and critics. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration closed a four-month investigation into whether the car's batteries were at heightened risk for underbody strikes and subsequent fires. Even though no defect trend was found, Tesla Motors said in a written statement it would further protect the bottom of its cars with a reinforced underbody shield. The California-based automaker started adding the shields on March 6 and will retrofit older models free of charge. It will also increase the ground clearance of new cars. "This fix should eliminate the potential of a battery-pack fire under all but the most extreme circumstances," said Karl Brauer, a senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book. Although there are more than 194,000 car fires in the United States every year, NHTSA investigators began a preliminary investigation into potential trouble on Nov. 15, 2013 following two Model S fires, one in Tennessee and one in Washington. No one was injured or killed in either fire. Roadway debris punctured the battery pack near the front of the compartments in both cases, damaging the batteries' lithium ion cells that then began "thermal runaway" events. The opposite ends of the debris had dug into the pavement and jutted upward. Tesla called this a "piking effect." The company said it has conducted 152 vehicle level tests, and that the new shields prevented any damage or penetration of the new shields. The first is a rounded, hollow aluminum bar that's followed by a titanium plate. The third layer of protection is made of solid aluminum. (There's video of the new plates in action on the Tesla Motors website). "We have tried every worst-case debris impact we can think of, including hardened steel structures set in the ideal position for a piking event," Tesla Motors founder Elon Musk wrote on the company's blog," essentially equivalent to driving a car at highway speed, into a steel spear braced on the tarmac." Approximately 15,805 vehicles are eligible for the upgrades, which NHTSA says should reduce the frequency of underbody strikes and subsequent fire risks. But the agency did note that the closing of the investigation did not necessarily constitute a finding that a defect does not exist. "The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by new circumstances," it said.

Recharge Wrap-up: No Tesla Gigafactory deal with California, BMW i3 recalled

Before the Nevada announcement was hinted at, a deal to incentivize a Tesla Gigafactory in California fell through. Tesla was looking for around $500 million in incentives, which the California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development was willing to offer in tax breaks along with making the permit and environmental processes easier. According to Senator Ted Gaines, there still remained "a gap between what Tesla wanted and what California was willing to offer," the contents of which were undisclosed. California could still be chosen for another of Tesla's battery plants, should those ever materialize. Read more at The Desert Sun. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) will consider allowing a bit of compliance flexibility to its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) regulations for some automakers. CARB will hold a hearing to discuss giving intermediate volume manufacturers (IVMs) - carmakers that do between 4,501 and 60,000 new vehicle sales in the state - some leniency catching up to the larger manufacturers when it comes to clean vehicle production. The ZEV regulation changes take into account the amount of revenue IVMs have available for developing the cars, particularly plug-in hybrids. Read more at Green Car Congress or see the notice from CARB here. Certain units of the BMW i3 are subject to an airbag recall. For cars built March 31, 2014, the passenger airbag inflator may have been assembled incorrectly, which could keep it from deploying when needed. Owners will be notified by BMW, and the problem will be fixed for free. The recall also affects certain 2014 Mini Cooper models. Learn more at the NHTSA website. The Renault-Nissan Alliance is providing 200 electric vehicles to telecommunications company Orange in France. The cars, which will include the Nissan Leaf, Nissan e-NV200, Renault ZOE and Renault Kangoo ZE, will be used mostly for carsharing. Through the program, Orange employees can book a car for work or personal travel using a smartphone. The Alliance will also help Orange install charging stations for the new cars. The addition of the EVs to the fleet will help Orange achieve its goal of reducing its carbon footprint by 20 percent by 2020. Read more in the press release, below. Jianghuai Automobile Company (JAC) is delivering its first 100 EVs to the US. The shipment is part of a larger order of 2,000 cars to be sold by GreenTech Automotive in the US market. Read more at ECNS.