2023 Tesla Model Y Long Range on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ecotricity says Tesla acting the bully in UK supercharging situation

As Tesla Motors stands ready to expand its presence in the oh-so-polite UK, green-energy company Ecotricity is accusing the California-based automaker of being a little less than civilized. The term bullying is being thrown around, and Ecotricity founder Dale Vince told The Guardian that Tesla's communication was "very dark", "shocking" and "brutal." All in the name of some well-placed Supercharger stations. Ecotricity says it had been in talks with Tesla about collaborating on charging station locations. Tesla is looking to deploy the first part of its UK Superchager network this month, but Ecotricity now says it was contacted by Tesla saying that Tesla was going to take over many of Ecotrocity's prime sites, according to The Guardian. Moreover, Tesla is taking advantage of information gleaned from a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), Ecotricity alleges. Tesla did not respond to our request for comment on this issue. Tesla said at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year that it would significantly expand its Supercharger network throughout Europe in 2014 as it introduces the right-hand-drive version of the Model S sedan to the UK. Ecotricity, which specializes in getting its energy from renewable sources, said in February that it would start offering the UK's electric-vehicle drivers 1,000 miles of free fast charging annually on Ecotricity's so-called Electric Highway. The company said at the time that it aimed to deploy fast-charging stations at 90 percent of service stations along UK highways. Tesla sold its first EV, the Roadster, in the UK all the way back in 2010.

Elon Musk: Tesla Gigafactory location announcement coming late 2014

Tesla's Gigafactory is going to be a huge deal. So huge, in fact, that Tesla's not going to announce where it will be located until later this year. You may remember that, just a month ago, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that, "The No. 1 thing is we want to minimize the risk timing for the Gigafactory to get up and running." Well, apparently getting the timing right doesn't mean rushing to get things done before they're ready. 30 percent cost decrease is "probably conservative at this point" – Elon Musk The reason Tesla needs the Gigafactory, as you may remember, is to supply packs for the company's Gen 3 car, the EV that is supposed to cost $35,000 and be able to go over 200 miles on a charge. To get down to that price point, the batteries need to be cheaper, and Musk has said that the Gigafactory should reduce the per-kWh cost of a pack by "more than 30 percent." Speaking at the annual shareholder conference this week, Musk confirmed that planning for the battery plant is "quite advanced" and that Tesla is meeting daily with Panasonic, the other partner in the deal. Panasonic was originally unsure that those kinds of cost reductions could be achieved, Musk said, "but I think they are now convinced they can." In fact, he said 30 percent is "probably conservative at this point." The Gigafactory should be up and running by the "late 2016 timeframe," Musk said, right around the time the Gen 3 car will be ready for volume production. While there will still only be one Tesla Gigafactory to begin with, Musk said that Tesla might start the process in two or three states (as opposed to just one or two, as hinted earlier). "We're probably going to do two or maybe three states all the way to creating a foundation and completing the plans and getting approvals and everything," he said. Sounds like someone wants to be ready to build gigafactories #2 and #3 in a hurry if need be. We've got more from the meeting, including videos of Musk's talk, here and here. You can read Tesla's original Gigafactory proposal here (PDF).

New Jersey votes to allow direct Tesla sales

It's not quite the law that Tesla Motors can sell its car directly to customers in New Jersey, but the state has taken one step closer to that reality. Yesterday, New Jersey's Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee voted 4-0 to approve bill A3216, which would "Permits certain zero emission vehicle manufacturers to directly sell motor vehicles to consumers and requires them to operate service facilities." The EV automaker's ongoing dealer fight took a turn for the worse in New Jersey a few months ago, when the state legislature voted in mid-March to prevent Tesla stores from conducting their business. Tesla had been selling cars in the sate, but Governor Chris Christie said the ban was just an enforcement of a law that had been on the books for years, something Tesla said was an "affront to the very concept of a free market." If A3216 becomes law, then electric vehicle makers would be able to operate "no more than four places of business in the State" as well as one service center. The bill will let Tesla "conduct the business of educating the public about electric vehicles" – Diarmuid O'Connell Speaking to the committee, Tesla's vice president of business development, Diarmuid O'Connell, said, "This is a super important issue for us in New Jersey, and as some of you would know, nationally as well. ... [The bill would] allow us to in a modest way and a reasonable way conduct the business of educating the public about electric vehicles and getting as many of those vehicles on the road as quickly as possible." Speaking for the New Jersey Coalition of Automotive Retailers, president Jim Appleton said that this solution is fine for start-up EV automakers, but that the franchise model should still be the goal for anyone selling cars. This fight isn't nationwide yet, but the FTC has come out against what it called "protectionist" anti-direct sales mandates, so we expect to be hearing more as time goes by.