Free Republic

After posting a fairly disappointing 918 Volt sales in January – the first time sales were under 4 digits in 2 years (603 - Jan 2012), the extended range Chevy bounced back a little in February notching 1,210 deliveries. Year-over-year, this February’s result was up against some fairly stiff competition as 1,626 were sold this month a year ago, meaning sales were off 25.6%. For the year to date, 2,128 Volts have been sold as compared to 2,766 – off 23.1% There just isn’t enough casr to even get the Volt a fighting chance as the General opted to produce...

Tesla reveals $5 billion Gigafactory, the world's largest battery plant By Justin Hyde 6 hours ago Motoramic   .View photo Tesla Motors No automaker has quite the momentum that Tesla Motors enjoys today. It sells every car it builds easily, with customers queuing around the globe. It's considered the best car for sale in America by several critics, and Wall Street has bought into Elon Musk's vision with a fervor rarely seen outside riverside baptisms. And yet everything Tesla stands for today and wants to accomplish in the future rides on a single stubborn, expensive piece of technology — the...

Tesla May Raise the Green Bar With New Battery Factory Eric Schaal | More Articles February 22, 2014 As is often the case with Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA), expectations for the electric car company’s battery factory are sky-high. Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk recently noted that the soon-to-launch factory would produce more lithium-ion batteries than all other sources on earth combined. In fact, word that the factory will be powered by sun and wind helps Tesla toward its stated goal of changing the sustainability quotient of the auto industry and thus U.S. culture as a whole.Musk’s appearances at town-hall-style meetings in Europe in...

So far the story of Tesla Motors has been about exciting electric luxury cars and an even higher performing stock. Next week it will reveal plans for a much less sexy innovation that is more important to the company's future than either of those things: A huge new lithium battery factory dubbed the "Gigafactory" by Tesla founder Elon Musk. The plant is the key Tesla needs in order to produce an "affordable" long-range electric car in substantial enough numbers to join the ranks of the major automakers. "It's the future of the company," said Craig Irwin, analyst with Wedbush Securities....

There are two electric cars on the market that have received a lot of attention in the media. One is GM's Chevy Volt and the other is the Tesla Model S. Extravagant claims have been made by both manufacturers to have us believe that these that these automobiles are practical and economical to drive. As we shall see, that is not really true when one takes into account all the factors which contribute to the total operating cost of each of these two vehicles. Chevy VoltThe manufacturer claims that "The Chevy Volt is the most fuel-efficient car with a gasoline...

Recs 2   Proof That Demand for the Tesla Motors, Inc. Model S Is Healthier Than You Think By Nickey Friedman | More Articles | Save For Later February 13, 2014 | Comments (4) Demand has been so strong, you would think that Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) had the most popular commercial aired during the Super Bowl. Nope, Tesla has still refused to spend a single dime on advertising. If there was any concern about value and demand of Tesla's electric cars, there is a new indicator should quickly remove any last doubt.Tesla draws a crowd. Source: Tesla Motors The production...

What You Need to Know About Tesla Motors' Big Plans for the Chinese Auto Market By Tamara Walsh | More Articles | Save For Later February 13, 2014 | Comments (1) Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) is hoping to unlock even more growth as it expands its operations overseas. The electric-car maker recently entered the world's largest auto market and plans to officially begin Model S deliveries in China as soon as next month. However, the real potential for Tesla comes as the automaker prepares to install its Supercharger network there.Value creation at its bestTesla's Supercharger network creates tremendous value for...

In 2010, President Obama said he wanted 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015. They won't be there, and it wouldn't matter if they were. A nation full of electric cars will make no ecological difference. So what if nearly half of us were driving EDVs (hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric vehicles) by 2050? Wouldn't that mean a cleaner environment? After all, it's those fossil-fuel-burning dinosaurs that are ruining the world, isn't it? Not necessarily. A recent North Carolina State University study "indicates that even a sharp increase in the use of electric drive passenger vehicles (EDVs)...

Energy independence, a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, lower fuel costs: All of these promises are factors behind the rise in electric vehicles' popularity. Unfortunately, they're more fiction than fact. Here's why, and how it could affect companies like Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) .Do you want cancer with that battery?Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy undertook a study to look at the environmental impact of lithium-ion batteries for EVs. The study showed that batteries that use cathodes with nickel and cobalt, as well as solvent-based electrode processing, have the highest potential for environmental impacts, including...

The nation’s oil capital has become a model for progress in electrically powered vehicles, boasting the nation’s third-largest municipal hybrid fleet, according to new report from advocacy group Electrification Coalition. More than half of the vehicles in the city’s light-duty fleet are hybrids, according to the report. Among the city’s alternative-fuel vehicles are 27 Nissan LEAF battery electric vehicles and 15 Toyota Prius plug-in electric hybrids. The report applauds the city for reorganizing its fleet management to better support electric vehicles, including promoting their use in an employee car-sharing program and creating a network of charging stations. The report estimates...

General Motors has announced that Mary Barra will be replacing Dan Akerson as CEO as of mid-January. Ms. Barra was previously the head of global product development. As such, she already has to take partial responsibility for the over-hyped and low-selling Chevy Volt along with the upcoming Cadillac version of the car. With Consumer Reports now stating that the new Cadillac ELR (a glorified Chevy Volt) gave them "sticker shock," will the ELR be the first major embarrassment for Ms. Barra? Anyone who has followed the Chevy Volt story could have guessed at what the prospects for a gussied up...

What do the poor need most? Jobs? Nah. In Governor Moonbeam’s California they need free electric cars.Free means that you’ll be paying for them. Even if you’re not a California resident, there will probably be Federal money involved. “The California Air Resources Board is now embarking on a program that would help poor people buy energy-efficient vehicles. In one scenario posed by the agency, a “voucher” might even pay the full price for a Nissan Leaf, an electric car with an MSRP above $21,000, or for used cars with lower price tags.” But it only stands to reason. If...

I have to hand it to General Motors and those Chevy Volt supporters who continue to come up with creative ways to espouse the virtues of the slow selling and heavily subsidized vehicle. They just won't give up. The latest figures being presented in political fashion utilize large numbers that, on the surface, appear impressive. When analyzed, the figures give more insight into just how much taxpayer money is being wasted on green subsidies, particularly on electric vehicles (EVs). Sound the trumpets! According to Green Car Reports, the Chevy Volt has saved 17 million gallons of gas to date. Now...

DETROIT -- Tesla Motors (TSLA) shares dropped Monday after reports of a second fiery crash involving the Palo Alto company's Model S electric car.

A fire (screen capture from Jalopnik.com) that torched a Model S from the formerly Teflon Tesla Motors on Tuesday blackened its front end, lowered its stock price, and (further) revealed a corporate arrogance not seen since Fisker Karmas were alight. But CEO Elon Musk saw to it that taxpayers werefully paid back their $465 million Department of Energy loan, so as watchdogs over the public purse we can forget all about it and just go on about our business – right? Wrong. The incident near Seattle still should be of great concern because Tesla still heavily depends on tax breaks...

French President François Hollande hailed “a new industrial revolution” in inaugurating Friday a new lithium battery plant built by the Bolloré group, which manufactures the Bluecar made popular by France’s electric-car sharing scheme. … Earlier in the day, as he attended an environmental conference in Paris, Hollande vowed to halve energy consumption in France by 2050 and cut fossil fuels by 30% by 2030. The French president has also made electric cars “a priority.” …

Germany hopes to put one million electric cars on the roads by 2020, but just 3,000 have been sold this year. A study released on Tuesday casts doubt on sales projections. Electric cars have been among the highlights of the IAA motorshow in Frankfurt which opened last week. New models include the BMW’s i3. … Researchers argue that the best scenario for electric cars is for the price of batteries and energy to decrease, while diesel and petrol gets more expensive. …

General Motors Co. GM +1.89%is developing an electric car that can go 200 miles on a charge for around $30,000, officials at the largest U.S. auto maker said, offering a challenge to luxury electric-car startup Tesla Motors Inc. TSLA -0.58% Doug Parks, GM's vice president of global product programs, disclosed the effort on Monday at GM's battery laboratory and test facility in Warren, Mich., but didn't say when the car would be available. He said while the technology is available now, the cost of the batteries remains too high to be able to pull off the feat today. GM's move...

America will not achieve President Obama’s goal of 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015. This is despite large subsidies from the federal government and many states for making batteries and vehicles as well as additional subsidies for purchasing these vehicles. Very few consumers are interested in expensive cars with limited range and the anxiety of not knowing if the battery charge will last for their entire journey. As a result, manufacturers are dropping prices in order to sell the vehicles they are forced to produce. First Nissan slashed prices of its plug-in vehicles early this year, then...

Electric cars are currently more damaging to the climate than some other vehicle options, mainly because of the emissions involved with producing large batteries, according to a report from Climate Central. The nonprofit research organization acknowledged that electric cars have helped to lower U.S. vehicle emissions because they are consuming electricity produced increasingly from natural gas, which burns cleaner than coal. “But when all the carbon emissions associated with building and driving electric and high-mileage gasoline cars are included in the analysis, the all-electric advantage goes up in smoke,” Climate Central said. “In the vast majority of states, the significant...