2024 Tesla Other on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Nevada's $1.2 billion deal for Tesla Gigafactory lets EV company sell direct

Now that the Nevada deal for the Tesla Motors Gigafactory has the governor's signature, we've got more details on the automaker's $1.2-billion benefits package. As originally reported, this is the broad breakdown: $725 million for a 20-year 100 percent sales tax abatement $332 million for a 10-year 100 percent property tax abatement $120 million in transferable tax credits $75 million in transferable tax credits worth $12,500 per job times 6,000 jobs). $27 million for a 10-year, 100 percent modified business tax abatement $8 million in discounted electricity rates for eight years New reports say that one way that state legislators freed up some money ($125 million) was by ending a long-standing tax break for insurance companies. Legislators also eliminated some tax credits for movie companies to give the money ($70 million) to Tesla. One surprising side benefit for Tesla is the ability to sell its EVs directly to customers in Nevada. The state hasn't been a big player in the EV dealer fight issue, but now the company's right to sell cars there is secure. What does Nevada get out of the deal? Well, a lot of publicity, for starters, but also a big new employer. The state is also requiring that at least half of all the workers at the $5 billion Gigafactory be from Nevada, but there is a way for Tesla to get waivers around this if needed. Add that all up and you get what state Assemblyman Ira Hansen called, "arguably the biggest thing that has happened in Nevada since at least the Hoover Dam." Not everyone is so positive. A Las Vegas schoolteacher told the Nevada Appeal, "I think it is kind of ironic that a renewable energy, a green energy car company we are courting to come to our state, that one of the things we are giving them is free energy." You can watch a video of the September 4th Tesla/Nevada announcement and read the governor's press release about signing the bill below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Governor Brian Sandoval Signs Historic Legislation Thanks Legislature for Thorough Review and Approval CARSON CITY, NV - September 11, 2014 Governor Brian Sandoval signed Assembly Bills 1, 2, and 3, and Senate Bill 1, legislation from the 28th Special Session of the Nevada Legislature, tonight in a ceremony that was open to members of the Nevada Legislature and the public.

Tesla open-sources all its patents

When Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that he's thinking about something, you definitely need to pay attention because it's likely something big. In an eloquently worded press release (a very rare thing indeed) Musk explains reason after reason why Tesla is opening up all of its patents, effective immediately.
According to the missive, Tesla initially applied for patents on its technology because it was afraid bigger, more powerful automakers would take its ideas and destroy the tiny automaker. However, that hasn't happened. Musk claims that while the company has grown, "electric car programs (or programs for any vehicle that doesn't burn hydrocarbons) at the major manufacturers are small to non-existent." At the same time, the global auto industry continues to grow, and Tesla's main competitors aren't from other electric carmakers, but the traditional internal combustion engine.
Musk claims that if you walk into the company's lobby right now all of its patent forms are gone from the walls. "We believe that Tesla, other companies making electric cars, and the world would all benefit from a common, rapidly-evolving technology platform," he writes.

Tesla takes New York Times to task for damning Model S review

The social media tête-à-tête between the New York Times and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, stemming from a defamatory review by John Broder of the Model S and Tesla's new "Supercharger" network on the East Coast, is heating up in a major way. Just yesterday we summarized the Twitter spat, and now Musk has expanded upon the data recorded during Broder's test drive - adding major credence to the criticism of the NYT writer.
The smoking gun in this case is the information that was captured by the data recorder in Broder's loaned Model S. The data recording function is one that is only activated for consumers when permission has been expressly granted, says Musk, but is always turned on in the case of media vehicles. Thusly equipped, Broder's vehicle was keeping track of speed, charging data, map data and more, presumably without the writer's foreknowledge.
The evidence recorded by the in-car systems happens to contravene Broder's most damning claims of the Tesla, says Musk in his article titled A Most Peculiar Test Drive. First, and perhaps most shockingly, the Model S "State of Charge" log shows that Broder's test car "never ran out of energy at any time." Broder's reporting indicated that the car ran completely out of juice at one point and had to be evacuated on a flatbed truck. The data log also points out that the trip was made at speeds ranging from 65 to 81 miles per hour, where the writer claimed to have set the cruise control at 54 mph, with periods of driving as slowly as 45 mph.