Cars

Following blowout earnings and a strong forecast, TSLA stock price is rocketing upwards opening at 215 and still up 7%. Bullish analysts are also upping their forcasts:

“We raise our PT to $253 (from $230) as we begin to give TSLA credit for executing on improving manufacturing margins, noting that near-term demand appears to be outstripping our previous estimates. Our PT is based on 25x 2020E non-GAAP EPS of $20.33 (from $18.50).” Northlan Capital Markets said in a  note to clients

“TSLA’s drivetrain technology generates a significant amount of torque. We continue to believe that TSLA could easily develop vehicles for light and medium duty hauling. We also see an opportunity for TSLA to begin to offer value added services/aps from its platform not dissimilar to other consumer electronic devices which could generate high-margin revenue from an already loyal customer base” it added.

Nice interview with Tesla CTO JB Straubel in the MIT Technology review. In it he talks about how doing the technology internally rather than outsource in key areas like digital motors, laptop Lithium cells and Superchargers allowed them to innovate faster.  And that allows them to make the next big step:

[JB:] People think the battery accounts for most of the cost of an electric car, but that’s not the case at all. For the Roadster [Tesla’s first car], the battery was already down below half the cost. Now we’re down to a quarter of the cost in most cases. We’re on track to getting to costs that will allow us to make a $35,000 car [the cost of the GM Volt] with a greater-than-200-mile range. It doesn’t require some mythical invention. All the pieces are fundamentally there.

Bloomberg asked for my input on Tesla’s battery factory and if it really made sense for Apple to get involved. I am skiing in Vermont this week so the red hoodie is my casual Wednesday. Also, 9to5Tesla?

Musk was vague on a possible Tesla acquisition but did confirm talks with Apple.

If one or more companies had approached us last year about such things there’s no way we could really comment on that. We had conversations with Apple, I can’t comment on whether those revolved around any kind of acquisition…

If there was a scenario where it seemed like it would be more likely that we would be able to create the mass market sort of affordable, compelling car then possibly it would make sense to entertain those discussions. I don’t currently see any scenario that would improve that probability, so that’s why I think it’s very unlikely.

Tesla has released  financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2013, by posting the current Shareholder Letter, which can be found at the following link on the investor relations section of the Tesla website:http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/ABEA-4CW8X0/2612790357x7382497x727013/9885dd26-2e82-4052-b171-3685fd8150b3/Q4’13%20Shareholder%20Letter.pdf

Key facts:

• Record 6,892 Model S vehicles sold and delivered in Q4
• World’s highest Consumer Reports customer satisfaction score of 99/100
• Q4 auto gross margin of 25% with no zero emission vehicle (ZEV) credit revenue
• Supercharger network built across most of USA and Northwest Europe
• Net income of $46M and $0.33 EPS (non-GAAP), loss of $16M and $(0.13) EPS (GAAP) in Q4
• Positive free cash flow of $40M in Q4
• Expecting over 55% vehicle delivery growth in 2014 and 28% auto GM by Q4

Webcast Instructions

As previously announced, Tesla management will host a live question & answer (Q&A) webcast at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time) to discuss the company’s financial and business results and outlook.  To access the webcast, go to http://ir.teslamotors.com.  Under “Events & Presentations,” you will see a link to the Tesla Fourth Quarter 2013 Financial Results Q&A Webcast; click on that.  Click on “Listen to webcast,” which should take you to a registration page.  Once you’ve completed that information, you should be taken to the webcast page.  Again, the webcast itself will begin at2:30 p.m. Pacific Time (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time)

Nice little portable electric ride for those in wheelchairs.

Kenguru has a long, courageous back story. The original concept, developed by Istvan Kissaroslaki from Hungary many years ago, hadn’t been able to go to market without substantial financial backing. But in 2010, Stacy Zoern, an American lawyer disabled from a muscle disease, came across the Kenguru online and thought it was just what she needed. Zoern eventually convinced Kissaroslaki to move the company to Austin, Texas. The pair has been aggressively pursuing investors ever since.

So nice and portable in fact, I’d be tempted to take this thing inside.

[tweet https://twitter.com/HighTechJoe/status/434141930704740353]

The rear end strength is important, especially with the rear facing child seats in the back which Tesla has said could take a highway speed impact.  Well, above you see the results of a rear ending . The Tesla barely looks scratched while the other car looks like those EV1s that GM tried to get rid of.

Update: Pictures and more info from the driver below:
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I like this kickstarter campaign. If they can somehow get the price under $1000 and deliver a great experience, they’ll have a hit. Anything more and you might as well grab a Copenhagen wheel.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heIOboRRcBE]

If you’ve been waiting for Audi to get its electric act together, this is good news:

The second patent appears to show a new-generation Audi all-wheel drive system which uses an electrically driven rear axle. This is a logical progression for the traditional quattro system, combining rapid-reacting all-wheel drive and electric drive.

With V6 of the Tesla Model S software ready to roll out and a pending Gigafactory plant set to be announced very soon, TSLA shares rocketed upwards to 196 before settling in the mid to low 190s. Tesla’s Market Cap is now closing in on $25B as well. That’s almost $1million per Model S sold.

[tweet https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/432629198662807553]

What’s in V6? CEO Elon Musk talked V6 at the beginning of the recent Oslo Q&A: Tesla adding real time traffic, any instant music and total control over suspension in Model S 6 update though it isn’t certain if all updates will be in all places (music is different per country currently).

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJUA_dVVMjo]

Also Elon Musk: iPhone user. 
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http://instagram.com/p/kINMcVK5BM/

Well at least the area around the electric charger banks would indicate as much as this Instagram picture taken by @GODY. Perhaps that’s why so many seem to be jumping ship to work at Tesla?

[tweet https://twitter.com/KristinPaget/status/431859070492884992]

Tesla has been picking up a number of Apple employees over the past months. Only weeks after poaching Apple Mac Hardware Vice President Doug Field to run Vehicle Design  Tesla snapped up Director of Manufacturing technology Rich Heley. Now they have a high profile software/network  security researcher on staff.

Today, Kristin Paget  tweeted that she’d be joining Tesla on Monday morning.

From Re/Code: 

Neither Apple nor Paget talked much about what she did at the Cupertino, Calif.-based company, though her business card there carried the awesome title of “Hacker Princess.”

Paget, a transgender woman, has been well known in hacker circles both before and after her transition and previously helped Microsoft in its efforts to secure Windows Vista. At Defcon in 2010, Paget demonstrated how to build a fake celltower to intercept cellphone calls.

[tweet https://twitter.com/KristinPaget/status/431859340325040128]

Paget worked at Apple since 2012 where she came from various other high profile security jobs including Ebay and Google and fixing Microsoft’s Vista.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX90oDuwhPk]

It is never funny when someone dies and as a biker, I’m extremely sensitive to biker deaths, but this lawsuit seems a bit absurd.

The suit — which also names Palo Alto-based Tesla Motor Co. — alleges that Jain carelessly and negligently drove into [biker]Alper. It also contends that the Tesla in the crash was “defective and unreasonably dangerous when used in a normal, intended and foreseeable manner,” according to the lawsuit. The complaint mentions funeral expenses but does not seek a specific amount of money.

Tesla attorneys have not yet responded to the complaint, which was filed in Santa Cruz County Superior Court.

According to the initial CHP report on the crash, Jain bought the car new about 10 days before the crash. He told officers that the car had a strong, new-car smell that prompted him to use a baking soda car freshener in it.

Jain told authorities that the smell caused him to fall asleep and there were no mechanical problems with the car, according to the report.

I don’t think the Tesla “new car scent” is any different than any other.  This sounds like an excuse but the lawsuit is even stranger saying the new car smell was the cause of the driver negligence.

With Tesla a relatively unknown among normals until very recently hitting the top 5 this year is an achievement.

several other brands—including Tesla—are moving up the rankings.

These scores reflect how consumers perceive each brand in seven categories: quality, safety, performance, value, fuel economy, design/style, and technology/innovation. Combining those factors gives us the total brand-perception score. While the scores reflect a brand’s image, they do not reflect the actual qualities of any brand’s vehicles.

The key word here is “perception,” as influenced by word-of-mouth, marketing, and hands-on experience. Often, perception can be a trailing indicator, reflecting years of good or bad performance in a category, and it can also be swayed by headlines, such as Subaru and Tesla garnering awards, or brands being caught in widespread recalls, such as Honda, Jeep, and Toyota.

For 2014, Toyota has a 25-point advantage over second-place Ford, reflecting a five-point gain over the previous year for Toyota and a three-point improvement for Ford. It could be interpreted that the safety concerns that saw the Toyota score stumble a few years ago have faded, returning the brand to its position as the perceived industry leader.

Honda lost 16 points this year, while Chevrolet seemed to find them, increasing its score by 13 points.

The brand to watch is Tesla Motors, which jumped from 47 points last year, to fifth position and 88 points this year. Tesla had a strong, very public year, with soaring stock prices, magazine awards, sterling crash-test performance, and even claiming the spot as the top-rated car by Consumer Reports. Innovation, performance, and sleek styling is clearly gaining attention and making a positive impression. By accumulating points in several categories, Tesla was able to raise its overall score. This highlights the value of being good at multiple things, rather than relying on a single facet.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5d1cc-QHHM]

From CBS

For the first time, two Tesla electric cars drove from Los Angeles to New York in 76 hours. They were charged by supercharger stations, which deliver a quick charge to the cars that can last hundreds of miles. Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk spoke with CBS This Morning saying, “This is an important, historical milestone.”

Still with the fires?

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJUA_dVVMjo]

(another view)

There is so much info in this video. Redditors have broken down the big points:

-Model X will be only about 5 cm longer than the S.

-Model X will be in early stages of production by end of Q1 2015, and shipped globally 3-5 months later.

-AWD on Model X will have no efficiency loss, which is the first of its kind.

-Model X Falcon wing doors will have sensors to stop it from hitting nearby cars or low ceilings in a garage.

-Model X 3rd row seats in the back will be removable or fold down, and there is potential to take out the 2nd row to make it a cargo van-like transportation vehicle.

-In order to make the Model E, Tesla needs cost per KW to go down ideally by 40% but Elon said it’s still doable if only 30%.

-They are improving the seats in the Model S, some changes are actually being made on the production line now. He said they might allow existing customers the ability to come in and change out the seats for a small fee.

-Elon is fairly confidant Tesla will have the first autonomous or autopilot vehicles on the road. He was a bit uncomfortable saying when, as to not release big news too early.

-Lots of cool updates over air coming, like proximity lines in the reverse camera, improved radio quality, etc.

-Tesla predicts the value of a Model S after 3 years will be significantly higher than their guarantee.

-Elon stated he believes one can expect the Model S to last up to 20 years, compared to most ICE cars now lasting between 10-15.

-Elon doesn’t rule out the possibility of Tesla Motors expanding to Air and Sea transport, but he says that’s a long ways away as they have to stay focused on their current projects with their finite resources.

EDIT: Forgot to add that a few people from the crowd asked Elon if it’s true that they will void their entire warranties if they mod their cars. Elon seemed to disagree with what they were told by the service centers, in that he thinks the subsystem that is modded would be what gets voided. Example, if you mod your sunroof, then you no longer have a warranty on the sunroof.

Another Q&A from the Netherlands below:
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Saleen, and aftermarket and original manufacturer of US automobiles has announced it will make a special Tesla model. Saleen typically supertunes the ICE engines of American musclecars and adds ground effects and other upgrades to add value, usually doubling the price of the car.

With the Model S, it will be a little tricky because Tesla typically controls the drive train of the vehicle with custom software and upgrades that controls performance.

That being said, there is lots of room for customization in the interior with many people wanting  a more luxurious finish.  However, Saleen often leans toward sports and less toward luxury in its designs.

The Press release (below) is ambiguous in its intentions but it will be interesting to see what they come up with.
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[tweet https://twitter.com/teslamotors/status/429968077120225281]

We’re not sure yet if they broke the Guinness record but we’ll update when/if they announce.
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