As promised Tesla took the wraps off its all-new Model X at the company’s design studio in California. The X is a mixture of SUV and minivan, and it has falcon doors!

The car is basically a jacked-up version of the Model S with tons of interior space, and optional four-wheel-drive system. Tesla hopes to put this car into production in late 2013.

AWD models come with two electric drievetrain on front and rear axles, and can be had in two normal or Performance versions. Like the Model S, Model X will be offered with a 60 or 85 kWh battery.

The main feature of this crossover, however, is the massive falcon wings doors. Apart from the fact that they look incredibly vulgar, especially on a car like the X, they are hugely practical. A point already proven by Mercedes SLS.

They will result in easier access to the third row seats in the X. The second-row seats slide all the way forward as well. The doors are also useful in narrow parking spaces.

The interior is pretty unique, with a massive touchscreen in place of all the conventional controls. It’s a concept that’s might work, but needs a bit of getting used to. To add an air of luxuriousness, Tesla has trimmed the dashboard with real timber.

As mentioned the car is powered solely by electric motors, and therefore has zero emissions. The Model X is a sizable thing and is probably very heavy either, so there are some concerns regarding its performance and, more importantly, its real world range. Tesla is yet to reveal the official specs of the car, but they promise a sub 5-second 0 to 60 time for the Performance models.

Source: Tesla Motors

Following the Twitter announcement of Tesla Model X unveil at Tesla Design Studio on February 9, now the company releases the first teaser shot of the car. The Model X is an electric crossover, and judging by the picture, it looks like a jacked-up version of the Model S sedan. We’re not complaining, of course, as the Model S is one of the prettiest four-door cars we’ve ever seen. Yep, that good!

Stay tuned for more on Tesla X in the coming days.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed – on his twitter account – his company will be unveiling the long-awaited Model X at Tesla Design Studio on February 9, not in Silicon Valley, in California. As for the facts known about the Model X, it’s a crossover vehicle, and it’ll be based on the same platform as the upcoming Model S sedan. That’s about it.

No date has been set for the car’s market launch, but Mr. Musk says the premier “is gonna rock.“

Tesla recently finished production of the Roadster for the American market with the Final Edition models. But they are offering an updated 2012 model for Europe, Asia and Australia.

In 2014 there will be an entirely new model of the Roadster. These limited-production electric roadsters feature new innovations and options, plus visual tweaks. They get a range of new colors including Cosmic Black, Galactic Gray and Magma Orange – with new, complimentary interior colors, for example.

Another great feature is the rear snow cover and improved motor and inverter systems for even better performance in snow and ice, making the car suitable for Europe.

Other features include:

• Improved air conditioning for driver comfort in the hottest months
• Xenon headlamps ideal for rural night driving
• Enhanced front windscreen seals to make the cabin even quieter
• Two new Mobile Connectors available for charging in Europe and Japan
  • The Tesla IEC Type 2 (Mennekes) Mobile Connector enables charging from Type 2 stations and outlets, the most common EV charging infrastructure in Europe
  • The J1772 Mobile Connector enables charging from a developing infrastructure of public J1772 charge stations in Japan

With the Roadster now out of the picture for a while, Tesla shifts focus to the Models S sedan, going on sale from Fall 2012.

This unbelievably gorgeous four-door sedan will be available in two S and S Performance versions, powered by 40, 60 and 85 kW batteries, starting at $49,900 for the base model going up to $79,900 for the Performance model which does 0 to 60mph in 4.4 seconds, tops out at 130 mph, and comes with extra equipments and features.

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It seems Tesla has learned its lesson with the Roadster. Because the Model S has none of that car’s drawbacks. Sure, range anxiety problem still exists, but it’s really hard to fault this car in any other aspect. It has decent performance, offers lots of luxury features, and above all, looks utterly magnificent.

The Model S will make up for all the money Tesla lost on the Roadster.

Tech specs:

Click to enlarge

Visit Tesla website for further details and all the options.

The Silicon valley-based car maker Tesla is working on the second generation Roadster, to be launched in three years time.

Tesla has been losing money for as far as we remember, but they believe they have changed the auto industry and for that reason alone, they should soldier on. They do have a point. Before Tesla nobody really cared about electric cars.

The next Tesla Roadster will no longer be based on the Lotus Elise. Instead it will be based on a “third-generation platform”, a shortened version of what the Tesla S sedan is built upon. After the recent feud with Top Gear over the review of the Roadster, they apparently are done with anything British!

The new platform will spawn other models as well, including a 3-Series rival to supplement the Model S range.

Source: Autocar

Not sure if it means that Model S is finally on its way, but Tesla released a cool video of the car rolling with the company’s pride and joy, the Roadster. A while ago we also had a video of the car testing on the race track. That is to make sure the S is more than just a pretty face and that it actually works in the real world. Besides the performance, Tesla also promises very good range for the S, some 300 miles.

Tesla Motors might still be losing money but they are determined to make a no compromise car with the new S model. They recently released a new video of testing the cars in Alpha phase. It includes testing the car’s performance on the race track. Model S Tesla sill be a huge leap forward for electric cars, mainly because of its awesome looks. It’s not a direct rival for Fisker Karma, because that is a hybrid and this, a full-on electric car. They both attract the same kind of customers though: high-rollers who think it’s now cool to be, or at least act, green!

Video after the jump.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The superb Tesla Model gets one step closer to production as the company releases pictures of the car in Alpha phase of development.

It’s amazing how a bunch of geeks from Silicon Valley could come up with such a nice design. It looks like the iPhone4 of the automotive world! Honestly, a car this good-looking should have an AMG V8, not some Toyota-developed laptop batteries.

One would imagine the reason it’s taking them so long to release the actual production model, is because they’re having some difficulties arriving at the claimed range of 300 miles or 480 km for it. That said, they’ve already clarified the 300 miles model is a top of the range, expensive model. Cheaper ones will have 230 and 160 miles. We think the last one is more realistic. Top Gear will be more than happy to test it for Tesla!

If I ever buy this car, I’d rip the batteries out and put a Merc’s 6.3 liter V8 in it. Oh yea!

Three years after Top Gear reviewed Tesla Roadster, the makers of the car have no decided they didn’t like what they said in the show and therefore they are suing Top Gear and BBC!

They had expressed their anger with Clarkson’s review of the car at the time, but three years on they are apparently started to see the effect of Jezza’s strong comments. Tesla is angry that the show is repeatedly aired on different channels, and it’s on the Internet, and on DVD and on the lips of the nation to be honest.

But what are they complaining about? Well, in that film the roadster apparently ran out of charge way way sooner than it was supposed to run out. Then they show the car being pushed by the crew inside a hanger where it had to be recharged for hours. That scene was too much for Tesla to watch and it’s still hurting them. Jezza also claimed that the back up Roadster suffered from complete brake failure and it also overheated. Again, Tesla says rubbish, you just made that up to make the show more interesting.

“The programme’s lies are repeatedly and consistently re-broadcast to hundreds of millions of viewers on BBC channels and web sites, on other TV channels via syndication; the show is available on the Internet, and is for sale on DVD around the world,” Ricardo Reyes, Tesla vice president of communications was quoted as saying by TGDaily.
“Today, we continue to field questions and explain the serious misconceptions created by the show.

Tesla demands BBC to correct the review or stop broadcasting it. BBC has not yet responded officially, but sources close to them suggest that they are prepared to defend vigorously. Tesla is actually doing it. This case will only make Top Gear more popular. The Silicon Valley boys better make their cars right!

Tesla Model S is a rare thing. It is an EV that you might actually want! I know people say the same thing about the Tesla Roadster, but to be honest that car is too ugly and too expensive. With the S though, Tesla has learned its lesson, so it’s very incredibly beautiful, and thanks to the cheaper batteries they’re developing in cooperation with Toyota and Daimler, it won’t cost more than a proper luxury sedan. Here’s a video of the Tesla S having a nice and calm road test in Alpha mode. Like a software, they’ve divided Model S development into Alpha and Beta phases! It’ll also feature a 17-inch touchscreen inside the cabin powered by NVIDIA graphics. Sounds kinda geeky, but cool.

Tesla Motors is finally ready to officially launch its Roadster electric sports car in the land down under. Tesla Roadster 2.5 approved for Australian roads is now available to order starting at AUD 206,188. A Tesla Roadster will be on display for the public from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 15 in First Fleet Park at Circular Quay.

Tesla Motors has sold more than 1,500 Roadsters to customers in over 30 countries. The company sells cars directly to customers, both online and through its growing network of global showrooms, which will soon include Sydney. Australia can increase the sales, not significantly of course.

The 2.5 is the latest version of the Tesla Roadster. The hand-built, carbon fiber Roadster is the only car that delivers supercar performance with zero tailpipe emissions. Powered by a liquid-cooled battery pack, the Roadster delivers 215 kW (288 hp) and 400 Nm of instant torque. It accelerates from 0-100 km in less than four seconds and consumes no fuel. The Roadster plugs into any conventional electrical socket and can travel over 360 kms on a single charge. It is the only sports car in the world that can be charged with solar, hydro and wind energy.

The silicon valley-based start-up electric car maker Tesla has been in financial trouble since day one. Even their IPO didn’t help much, you certainly remember the recent drop in their stock price. But that brought in Daimler and Toyota as investors, and they are going to help Tesla make batteries at lower cost. And that will eventually make them profitable, hopefully!

Tesla has been delivering the sport Roadster since 2008 with a starting price of nearly 110,000 USD, which is quite high, but they have an annual production volume of around 1000 units. With the new Model S sedan though, they are going to make at least 20,000 units a year and that means in spite of lower MSRP of around 60,000 USD, it’s going to be profitable due to the larger production volume.

Tesla Model S uses the same sort of batteries as the Roadster which are known as laptop batteries, even though they are not quite the same. Thanks to the new plans backed by Daimler and Toyota, Tesla’s new battery packs are going to be more cost effective, reportedly four times better than the ordinary lithium-ion packs. Will 2011 be the first profitable year for Tesla?

via: Bloomberg

Tesla realized a good way of getting more public attention is to get involved with art and culture. So at the Miami Art Basel festival – where Maybach came up with an sculpture – they revealed an art car based on the Tesla Roadster. The artist responsible for this is Laurence Gartel. He’s used digital art to create this and the vinyl wrap to implement it. It’s not like the old days when the artist had to paint the car with a brush! But because of that old art cars are  all full of soul and passion, this one isn’t.

While making 700+ hp cars, Brabus also has to do some environmentally friendly activities to balance things out. But this being Brabus, even their green efforts are ambitious!  They have a new customization program for the Tesla Roadster, titled the Green Package, and it comes with a high-tech quick charging station for the customer’s garage and free electricity for 30,000 kilometers.

The quick charger is three times faster than charging the two-seater at a normal household power outlet, yet it takes 6 hours to fully charge the batteries. The Green Package also includes a one-year pass for free use of all public RWE charging stations.

There are also more conventional upgrades as well, for instance you get a revised the front fascia with an especially light carbon-fiber front lip and LED daytime running lights integrated into the front grille. The sides of the TESLA are refined with futuristic BRABUS underfloor ‘Space Lights.’ They are activated with the keyless fob or by opening a door, and at the rear you get rear wing and the BRABUS rear diffuser.

Although it’s called Green, but Brabus can provide much more than that, from conventional metallic and non-metallic paints in any color imaginable to matte paints and effect paints with genuine crystals!

Tesla Roadster is also equipped with weight-optimized BRABUS Monoblock S alloy wheels in size 7Jx18 in front and in size 8.5Jx19 in the rear. The matching high-performance tires in sizes 215/35 ZR 18 in front and 255/30 ZR 19 on the rear axle were selected specifically for their low rolling resistance.

The package for the TESLA Roadster also includes exclusive options for the interior, which includes items like scuff plates with illuminated BRABUS logo and soft and durable BRABUS perforated lightweight leather and Alcantara. But the most interesting feature is the new speed-dependent space sound generator by which you can choose between various engine sound simulations such as the sound of a typical V8, a racecar or two futuristic soundscapes called Beam and Warp!

Toyota revealed the much anticipated electric SUV, RAV4 EV Concept developed jointly with Tesla at the Los Angeles Auto Show. This car reminds us why we don’t like green cars much! It looks awful, it is literally a refrigerator with some wheels on it. And it’s not that groundbreaking either, it only has a range of 100 miles. Toyota wants to launch it by 2012, let’s hope they change it till then!

Tesla Motors was in charge of building and supplying the battery, as well as other related parts in this project, And Toyota had to fit this system into the RAV4 without any compromise on space and performance.

Despite their best efforts though, the RAV4 EV weighs approximately 220 pounds more than the current RAV4 V6. Of course they claim it is just as fast to 100 km/h from standing still.

This added weight factor required significant retuning of major components and a prioritized focus on weight distribution. Not only were suspension and steering modified significantly, major components needed to be relocated to better balance the increased mass of the battery pack.

As for the practicality, the car has a 73-cubic-foot cargo area with rear seats folded down – no cargo space was lost in the conversion to an electric powertrain. he interior received custom seat trim, multimedia dash displays, push-button shifter and dashboard meters.

The exterior is pretty much ruined with new styling touches including a new front bumper, grille, fog lamps and head lamps. New EV badging and the custom “mutually exclusive” paint color.

The demonstration vehicle Toyota is currently testing is powered by a lithium metal oxide battery with useable output rated in the mid-30 kwh range. However, many decisions regarding both the product, as well as the business model, have not been finalized. Battery size and final output ratings, as well as pricing and volume projections of the vehicle Toyota plans to bring to market in 2012, have not been decided.

The Japanese maker of electric appliances announced that they are expanding business relationship with the American maker of electric cars.Tesla currently uses Panasonic battery cells in its advanced battery packs.  Panasonic has invested $30 million in Tesla, through the purchase of Tesla common stock in a private placement at a price of $21.15 per share.

Both companies will also collaborate on the development of next generation battery cells designed specifically for electric vehicles. Panasonic and Tesla intend to explore joint marketing and sales of battery packs that would be designed and assembled by Tesla using Panasonic’s battery cells.

“Panasonic aims to be the number one Green Innovation Company in the Electronics Industry by 2018, the 100th anniversary of our founding,” said Naoto Noguchi, President of Energy Company, a unit of Panasonic responsible for the battery cell business. “Our sophisticated lithium-ion battery cell technology, combined with Tesla’s market-leading EV powertrain technology, helps us fulfill this goal by promoting sustainable mobility. We are proud to strengthen our relationship with Tesla Motors.”

“It is an honor and a powerful endorsement of our technology that Panasonic, the world’s leading battery cell manufacturer, would choose to invest in and partner with Tesla,” said Tesla CEO and cofounder Elon Musk. “Panasonic offers the highest energy-density cells and industry-leading performance with cutting edge Nickel-type cathode technology. We believe our partnership with them will enable us to further improve our battery pack while reducing cost.”

Another day, and another recall announcement! This time its the American electric sportscar maker, Tesla who is recalling 439 units of its Roadster 2.0 and 2.5 models to fix an issue with the 12-volt cable behind the front headlamps which apparently is improperly placed. This cable can cause a short, which eventually can result in it catching fire.

The cable in question supplies power for a number of vital objects such as lights and airbags. Since as Tesla has not a big network of dealer and service stations, they are planning to dispatch the repair teams to the homes or offices of owners. They will inspect the car and install a protective sleeve for that cable.

Tesla says that the main battery pack, consisting of over 6,800 units of laptop batteries, or the power system are not affected by the problem.

Instead of making their SUVs more efficient, Toyota is taking a shortcut and developing all-electric 4x4s to solve the problem of high fuel consumption altogether! Currently there are two models in the works based on Lexus RX and Toyota RAV4. These cars are being built upon the prototypes provided by Tesla Motors.

Press Release:

TESLA MOTORS, INC. (Tesla) and TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) today announced that the two companies have signed an agreement to initiate the development of an electric version of the RAV4 as announced in May of this year by Elon Musk and Akio Toyoda. With an aim to market the EV in the United States in 2012, prototypes will be made combining the Toyota RAV4 model with a Tesla electric powertrain. Tesla plans to produce and deliver a fleet of prototypes to Toyota for evaluation within this year. The first prototype has already been built and is now undergoing testing.

In May, Tesla and TMC announced their intent to cooperate on the development of electric vehicles, parts, and production system and engineering support. Tesla seeks to learn and benefit from Toyota’s engineering, manufacturing, and production expertise, while Toyota aims to learn from Tesla’s EV technology, daring spirit, quick decision-making, and flexibility.

TMC has, since its foundation in 1937, operated under the philosophy of “contributing to society through the manufacture of automobiles,” and made cars that satisfy its many customers around the world. TMC introduced the first-generation Prius hybrid vehicle in 1997. The company also plans to introduce EVs into the market by 2012.

Tesla’s goal is to produce increasingly affordable electric cars for mainstream buyers – relentlessly driving down the cost of EVs. California-based Tesla designs and manufactures EVs and EV powertrain components, and is currently the only automaker in the U.S. that builds and sells highway-capable EVs in serial production.

Tesla Motors is loaded again and decided to release an update for the Roadster. It’s not a completely new model, so they simply call it the Tesla Roadster 2.5 and they say its been thoroughly improved based on customers’ feedbacks. The new model which features some new hardwares, will debut simultaneously in Tesla’s new showrooms in Copenhagen and Newport Beach.

Tesla Roadster 2.5 gets a new front fasica and a new rear diffuser, plus newly designed wheels in silver or black, improved interior with new comfi seats and a new optional navigation system. So the performance and all the technical specs remain the same as Tesla 2.0. But the price, which will be announced later, will not remain the same, that’s for sure!

“Although development of the Model S is our main focus, this shows that we still care a great deal about improving the Tesla Roadster,” said Tesla CEO Elon Musk. “These improvements are a direct result of customer feedback and come only a year after release of Roadster 2.0, showing an exceptionally rapid pace of innovation. Where feasible, we will also offer existing customers the ability to purchase the upgrades now available in version 2.5.”

New features in Roadster 2.5 include:

-A new look, which includes a new front fascia with diffusing vents, and rear diffuser reflecting the future of Tesla design
-Directional forged wheels available in both silver and black
-New seats with improved comfort, larger more supportive bolsters and a new lumbar support system
-Power control hardware that enables spirited driving in exceptionally hot climates
-An optional 7” touchscreen display with back-up camera
-Improved interior sound reduction including new front fender liner material make the cabin even quieter