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[ToxicAdam]

Tesla Motors filed papers to go public on Friday, betting the time is right to raise $100 million on the stock market from investors eager to get a share of the nascent electric-vehicle market

The high-profile Silicon Valley company said it plans to use the proceeds from an initial public offering to continue manufacturing versions of its all-electric Roadster sports car and build the Model S, a luxury sedan.

How Many Roadsters Have Been Sold: Tesla says it has sold 937 Tesla Roadsters to customers, as of December 31, 2009.

Losses and Revenues: As of September 30, 2009 Tesla says it has generated $108.2 million in revenues, has a deficit of $236.4 million and lost money every year including $30 million for the year ended December 31, 2006, $78.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2007, $82.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2008, and $31.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2009. “We have had net losses in each quarter since our inception. We believe that we will continue to incur operating and net losses until at least the time we begin significant deliveries of the Model S, which is not expected to occur until 2012, or possibly later.”

Model S, Interest and Price: Tesla says it has 2,000 customer reservations (each which have already paid $5,000) for the Tesla Model S, as of December 31, 2009. The base price of the Model S is supposed to be $49,900, including a federal tax credit of $7,500, but Tesla also says that the company has “only recently begun the component procurement process for the Model S, which limits our ability to accurately forecast the cost of the vehicle.” “Final pricing for the Model S will not be known until 2011 at the earliest,” says Tesla. Tesla intends to start “volume production” of the Model S in 2012 with a target yearly production of about 20,000 cars per year.

3-Kinds of Range for Model S: Tesla says it plans to make the Model S available with three types of range – 160 miles, 230 miles, and 300 miles, on a single charge – “to allow customers to purchase an electric vehicle that best matches their personal driving needs.” The 160-mile Model S will cost $49,900, and Tesla has not determined the price of the Model S’s with the higher range.

How Far Along Is Tesla on the Model S?: “We currently have a drivable early prototype of the Model S, but do not have a full production intent prototype, a final design, a manufacturing facility or a manufacturing process.”

Not Selling Current Roadster After 2011 & Next-Gen Roadster Not Until 2013: Tesla will have a big ol’ gap in its Roadster sales. Tesla says: “Prior to the launch of our Model S, we anticipate our automotive sales may decline, potentially significantly as we do not plan to sell our current generation Tesla Roadster after 2011 due to planned tooling changes at a supplier for the Tesla Roadster, and we do not currently plan to begin selling our next generation Tesla Roadster until at least one year after the launch of the Model S, which is not expected to be in production until 2012.”

Future Models Beyond S: Tesla says future models “may include a sport utility vehicle, commercial van or a coupe.”

The Loan: Tesla received a $465 million long-term loan under the United States Department of Energy’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Incentive Program which will be used to build the Model S plant and an electric powertrain production plant.

Tesla Stores Doubling This Year: Tesla currently has 10 stores operating and plans to “nearly double” that amount by the end of 2010, and a target of approximately 50 stores within the next several years.

Potential Delays of Model S: Given there were so many delays of the Roadster, who knows if the Model S will arrive on time in 2010. Tesla notes in its risk section: “we may experience significant delays in the design, manufacture, launch and financing of the Model S.”

Range on a Single Charge Drops Dramatically: Wow. Really? “We currently expect that our battery pack [for the Roadster] will retain approximately 60-65% of its ability to hold its initial charge after approximately 100,000 miles or 7 years, which will result in a decrease to the vehicle’s initial range.” In addition “battery performance, specifically its ability to store electricity over time, is not covered in either the New Vehicle Limited Warranty or the Extended Service Plan.”

Tesla Rangers to the Rescue: Tesla started the Tesla Rangers program in October 2009 to maintain the EV fleet.

Roadster Suppliers: “The Tesla Roadster uses over 2,000 purchased parts which we source from over 150 suppliers, many of whom are currently single source suppliers for these components.” Lots of opportunities for delays ad hiccups.

More info at the link

Seems doomed.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

Bust a Nut is a great album.

 

[Wads]

I like the looks of the S model, but seems a bit pricey! Sucks about the batteries too...

 

[Mikey Jr.]

What happens when the decrease in charge goes down after 7 years? Is it easy to replace the battery? If so, how much is it?

 

[Slayer-33]

What happens when the decrease in charge goes down after 7 years? Is it easy to replace the battery? If so, how much is it?

$$,$$$$ :lol (maybe)

 

[Pimpwerx]

I'd buy some shares, but that gap before the Model S is worrying. If there wasn't gonna be a lull in sales, it might be a worthwhile investment. Not so much for this company blossoming, but for the inevitable buyout. Someone's gonna buy this tech if it's any good. PEACE.

 

[mckmas8808]

What happens when the decrease in charge goes down after 7 years? Is it easy to replace the battery? If so, how much is it?

Important questions Tesla.

 

[HyperionX]

I'm sure they'll sell a handful to the extremely wealthy and last for a few years.

 

[speculawyer]

I'm a big advocate of EVs . . . but I would not buy into this IPO.

They are too wasteful, deceptive, and disorganized. I like the drivetrain but the batteries suck. Elon Musk seems to have a bit too much of an ego.

I don't believe they'll be able to fulfill the promises they've made with the Model S. I'd like to believe it but from what I've seen of them, they are just too inefficient.


But I would love to own one of those Roadsters. A Tesla dealer is nearby and I see them all the time. Definitely a sweet ride. I just wish they used a different battery chemistry, put in a smaller batter so it was cheaper, and were more efficient at building them so they were cheaper.

 

[polyh3dron]

My uncle has one of those Tesla Roadsters. That thing is insanely fucking fast.

 

[Pimpwerx]

My uncle has one of those Tesla Roadsters. That thing is insanely fucking fast.

You're the first person I know with experience with one. They're so rare, I haven't even seen one in Miami. And I've seen everything down here, including McLaren F1 and Bugatti Veyron. Any other firsthand info? How's it handle, sound, accelerate, etc? PEACE.

 

[speculawyer]

What happens when the decrease in charge goes down after 7 years? Is it easy to replace the battery? If so, how much is it?

You can replace the battery pack but it is damn expensive.

They really need to change their battery chemistry. Other battery chemistries such as Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) can handle far more cycles and will still have like 80% capacity at the end of their life.

They build their packs literally out of thousands of laptop batteries. It made sense at the time they initially designed the Roadster, but it doesn't make sense now that there are many other battery chemistry types better suited for automotive applications that come in prismatic forms that are cheaper, last longer, and are safer.

 

[loosus]

I'm a big fan of electric and hybrid cars in general, but man...this does not seem worthy of investment. These cars are simply too expensive, and their volume is way too low.

And frankly, their losses seem too high for such a small company.

I don't know...there might be something here, but I am not touching their IPO.

 

[speculawyer]

My uncle has one of those Tesla Roadsters. That thing is insanely fucking fast.

0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds. That blows away Porsches, Corvettes, Ferraris, etc.

EVs have 100% torque at 0 RPM, so they are beasts off the line.

That is something that all EV people admire about Tesla . . . they showed that EVs can be muscle cars.

 

[polyh3dron]

I've only ridden in it a couple times, but as far as the sound goes it's really quiet as you would expect, and the acceleration is like nothing I have ever felt before. When you sit on the seat your legs just go straight forward and you fully extend them like you're sitting on the floor, so that part was weird. I don't remember much else other than that.

 

[siddx]

0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds. That blows away Porsches, Corvettes, Ferraris, etc.

EVs have 100% torque at 0 RPM, so they are beasts off the line.

That is something that all EV people admire about Tesla . . . they showed that EVs can be muscle cars.

you have to be a little more specific when making a blanket statement like that. a 0-60 in 3.9 doesn't blow away any of those. It bests a few by a few tenths of a second. Corvette? The base model is slower by a tenth of second (manual). Porsches? Only the boxster is significantly slower, the cayman slower by just a few ticks. Ferraris? Only the 612 which is an overweight pig, and even then it's by just half a second.

And most importantly all of those, even fatty 612 and skittish Corvette, handle a thousand times better than the tesla. Comparing the roadster with any of those cars is silly, its not a sports car, its a way for rich hippies to feel unique.

 

[speculawyer]

you have to be a little more specific when making a blanket statement like that. a 0-60 in 3.9 doesn't blow away any of those. It bests a few by a few tenths of a second. Corvette? The base model is slower by a tenth of second (manual). Porsches? Only the boxster is significantly slower, the cayman slower by just a few ticks. Ferraris? Only the 612 which is an overweight pig, and even then it's by just half a second..

Oh, so the very first car the company made only beat these companies that have been making cars for decades by a tenths of a second. Well we are only talking about a little over 3 seconds, so tenths of a second are a lot.

But if 3.9 seconds isn't good enough for you, you can get the newer Sport model that comes in at 3.7 seconds.
http://www.teslamotors.com/performance/perf_specs.php

 

[siddx]

Oh, so the very first car the company made only beat these companies that have been making cars for decades by a tenths of a second. Well we are only talking about a little over 3 seconds, so tenths of a second are a lot.

But if 3.9 seconds isn't good enough for you, you can get the newer Sport model that comes in at 3.7 seconds.
http://www.teslamotors.com/performance/perf_specs.php

It's not hard to make a car that can go fast, and its not a bragging point worthy of anything unless it's combined with other attributes that take advantage of that speed. The tesla does not do so, because it is not a good car.

Also, tesla didn't make shit, it took a Lotus and put a heavy battery in it. Ruining the Lotus.

 

[bone idle]

It still amazes me that greater advances haven't been made in battery technology. So many of the problems we face as a civilization are due to problems with storing electricity. Does anyone here know of anything revolutionary that's being researched?

 

[siddx]

It still amazes me that greater advances haven't been made in battery technology. So many of the problems we face as a civilization are due to problems with storing electricity. Does anyone here know of anything revolutionary that's being researched?

There is constant research being made into battery technology at most major car companies, especially japanese companies. Unfortunately we wasted a lot of time and money on that ethanol nonsense.

 

[Al-ibn Kermit]

You can replace the battery pack but it is damn expensive.
They really need to change their battery chemistry. Other battery chemistries such as Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) can handle far more cycles and will still have like 80% capacity at the end of their life.
They build their packs literally out of thousands of laptop batteries. It made sense at the time they initially designed the Roadster, but it doesn't make sense now that there are many other battery chemistry types better suited for automotive applications that come in prismatic forms that are cheaper, last longer, and are safer.

LiFePO4's also do have slightly less kW/h/kilogram than the other Li-ion batteries. That seems to be a negligible difference though and some EV car makers already use those types of batteries like in this Chinese car:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BYD_F6DM