Elon Musk reportedly sets trap for loose lipped employees
The breathless style of writing at which Valleywag has made a name for itself isn’t the sort of thing we often link to, but we’ll make an exception today. According to the Gawker team , Tesla CEO Elon Musk is not making any friends in his own company; in fact, Valleywag claims that Musk recently tried to pinpoint people on his team who may be leaking confidential information to the media. The tactic? Sending each employee a slightly altered version of an email about stopping the leaks and then checking to see which version made it to the media. It reportedly backfired in a pretty big way. Valleywag reports that Musk did not let his own executives know of this plan to smoke out the leaker. One of them unknowingly forwarded his version of the email within the company, which made it clear to the rest of Tesla’s workforce that they were being set up. We contacted Tesla about this story, but got a simple “No Comment.” That’s fine for us, but it might be a long, long month before the Model S unveiling on the 26th . Follow the source link to Car Blog Greena version of the email, presumably one of many, that Musk sent to his employees. Thanks to Yanquetino for the tip! [Source: Valleywag ] Auto Blog: Etc. , EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors , Green Daily Elon Musk reportedly sets trap for loose lipped employees originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Leave a commentGreenlings: How power-split parallel hybrids work
Over the past decade, if there is one word that has become synonymous with green motoring it is hybrid. Ever since Toyota launched the first modern commercially viable hybrid with the original Prius (above) in 1997, over one million of them have hit the roads. Of course, as is so often the case, this overnight sensation was anything but. In fact, the technology was nearly a century in the making. The first known hybrid was developed by the original Ferdinand Porsche back around the beginning of the twentieth century. The hybrid, as we mostly know it today, was actually developed and patented by engineers at TRW in the late 1960s. While most people have by now heard of hybrids and know that they can improve efficiency, few understand how they work. Since the debut of the Prius, most automakers have been working on hybrids and have developed their own variations in an attempt to reduce the cost and/or improve the efficiency. Let’s start (after the jump) with a look the power-split parallel hybrid as popularized by Toyota and Ford. Gallery: 2010 Toyota Prius Continue reading Greenlings: How power-split parallel hybrids work Auto Blog: Hybrid , GM , Mercedes Benz , Toyota , AutoblogGreen Exclusive , Green Daily Greenlings: How power-split parallel hybrids work originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 05 Mar 2009 11:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Geneva 2009: NV200 may come to America with electric drive
Click above for a high-res gallery of the Nissan NV200 Nissan is getting into the light commercial vehicle market in the U.S. next year with its new NV2500 and, possibly, with the NV200 that debuted in Geneva this week. The NV200 is a compact van based on Nissan’s European B-segment platform used for the Micra. It can be configured as a seven-passenger van or a cargo van with up to 145 cubic feet of cargo room. In Europe, it’s powered by gas or diesel engines of 1.5L or 1.6L capacities. However, if we get the NV200 here there is a distinct possibility that it could come with electric drive. While we were running around in Switzerland, our good friend Mike Levine from PickupTrucks.com was at the NTEA work truck show in Chicago. There he caught up with Joe Castelli, Nissan’s vice president of light commercial vehicles and fleet, and they discussed alternative drive possibilities. Castelli told Mike that, “dA hybrid or electric vehicle has to be considered for commercial vehicles.” Just as Ford has concluded with its upcoming Transit Connect EV , Castelli admits, “Electric vehicles aren’t going to work if you’re driving 300 miles a day on the road. But if I’m at a construction site all day or I’m a florist making lots of stops a quarter-mile apart than I can get away with an electric vehicle.” Given Nissan’s major emphasis on electric vehicles in the coming years, it makes perfect sense to electrify a vehicle like the NV200. Packaging a battery under the flat load floor would be relatively straightforward and the short range duty cycle for commercial applications would play to the electric’s strengths. Castelli even acknowledged that electric or hybrid drive is not out of the question for the larger NV2500. [Source: PickupTrucks.com ] Photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc. Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Nissan , Geneva Motor Show Geneva 2009: NV200 may come to America with electric drive originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Tesla Roadsters to whisk actors to Oscars?
Click above for a high-res gallery of the Tesla Roadster Sounds like we might have a good reason to tune in to the Acadamy Awards on Sunday. Rumor has it that this year’s festivities may well take on a green theme before they even begin. How so? It’s no secret that a bunch of celebrities and otherwise very well off individuals have purchased Tesla Roadsters , and Rachel Konrad, senior communications manager at Tesla Motors, has said that many of these well-known owners are also advocates of the brand. According to Inside Line , reports from the overactive Hollywood rumormill are that a few of the invited celebs may be planning to show up at this weekend’s Oscars in their very own electric sportscars. Like who, you ask? Matt Damon, George Clooney, Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, who has been nominated for an award for his performance in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button . Gallery: Jason Calacanis’ Tesla Roadster [Inside Line] Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors , Green Daily Tesla Roadsters to whisk actors to Oscars? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 08:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green | Car Blog Green
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Tesla Roadsters to whisk actors to Oscars?
Posted in Auto Green | a-friend-via, academy awards, entry, green-daily, matt damon, mattdamon, tesla, tesla-motors, teslaroadster | Leave a commentAn all-Tesla racing series? Nothing factory-sanctioned for now
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors , Racing The Lotus Elise and Exige are extremely popular among owners as track cars, thanks to their light weight and phenomenal handling. Given its chassis DNA from the Elise, the idea of using the Tesla Roadster in a similar manner has come up repeatedly over the last two years. We first raised the idea with then-Tesla sales honcho Darryl Siry in November 2007, who explained that the Roadster as it was then constituted wouldn’t work very well because the motor would overheat causing a loss of performance. The upgraded 1.5 version of the powertrain certainly improved the cooling of the motor but it’s still unclear how well it could manage under sustained hard running. Apparently, some prospective Roadster owners in the Middle East are interested in starting up a single-make series. A report earlier this week indicates they are in talks with the manufacturer so we contacted communications manager Rachel Konrad find out what’s happening. According to Konrad ” I can confirm we’ve seen increased demand in the Middle East in recent months, and some customers there have said that they may race their Roadsters.” Konrad goes on to say ” The Roadster’s acceleration certainly makes it competitive against other premium sports cars, so it’s not surprising that some customers are interested in competitions. However, Tesla itself has no plans to officially sponsor or endorse a racing series, and the company remains focused on ramping up production and delivering cars to about 1,000 customers who have not yet taken delivery .” So, it may or may not happen and if it does, the car owners are apparently on their own. Gallery: Jason Calacanis’ Tesla Roadster Gallery: Trying out Jason’s Tesla Roadster Photos copyright (C)2008 Drew Phillips , Sam Abuelsamid, Sebastian Blanco / Weblogs, Inc. [Source: Lotus Enthusiast , Tesla] An all-Tesla racing series? Nothing factory-sanctioned for now originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Posted in Auto Green | entry, light, motor, tesla-motors, teslamotors, teslaroadster, teslaroadsterracing, teslaroadstersport | Leave a commentTesla holds customer town hall to explain price increases
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors Click above for high-res image gallery of Jason’s Tesla Roadster Tesla Motors held the first of a series of customer town hall meetings at its Menlo Park store on Tuesday to try and assuage anger over recently announced price increases . A couple of attendees have posted their thoughts about the meeting around the web. As usual, CEO Elon Musk was forthcoming with information, although it some cases it may actually raise more fears than calm them down. For example, when responding to a query about the price hike, Musk responded, “It was a really close call at the last round of investments, I can’t shoulder the load of the company alone and I couldn’t continue the company like that.” Musk also revealed that the company would be getting an investment from a “well respected company” in the next week or so. In the current environment, that may not have been the safest response if the deal has not yet closed. If something happens and it falls apart, the company could end up looking worse. Musk blamed the new $3,000 price for the high-powered charging cable on the cost of making the current one and said a new, less expensive version is being developed. A 440V charger that would facilitate 45-minute charges is in the works, he said, possibly for 2010. Musk also announced that the Model S would be shown to customers and VIPs at an event at the Space-X headquarters in Los Angeles on March 5. Tesla is also working on drivetrain 2.0 with an eye on cost reduction. Gallery: Jason Calacanis’ Tesla Roadster Gallery: Trying out Jason’s Tesla Roadster Photos copyright (C)2008 Drew Phillips , Sam Abuelsamid, Sebastian Blanco / Weblogs, Inc. [Source: Planettesla , TeslaMotorsClub ] Tesla holds customer town hall to explain price increases originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Posted in Auto Green | a-friend-via, current, elon musk, entry, low speed vehicle credit, meetings-at-its, price, space, tesla, tesla-motors, teslaroadster, thoughts, wheels-or-top | Leave a commentTesla calls Townhall meetings after email fails to calm angry buyers
Auto Blog: Etc. , EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors , USA It seems that even a new explanatory email from CEO Elon Musk has had little calming effect on the firestorm ignited by the increasing of prices for locked-in Tesla buyers . To avoid further damage from what is fast turning into a PR nightmare, the company is turning to a previously-successful approach and has announced a set of town hall meetings. Scheduled for the 26th and 27th at the Los Angeles and Menlo, CA stores respectively and hosted by Elon and other staff, the events can be attended in person or by phone. What, no internet hookup? The ineffective email attempted to explain the price increases by linking the need for Tesla Motors to show they can make a profit (so they can get loans to advance the making of the Tesla “S” ), with the cost of building the Roadsters originally costing far more than they would be sold for. An audit in the summer of 2007 revealed to them that their $92,000 car was going to cost $140,000 to build. Thus the eventual change of top management and the slew of other cost cutting measures that followed. Hopefully, the story will be more compelling when told in person. Don’t forget to tune in next week for another episode of “As the Tesla Turns.” Hit the jump now to Car Blog Greenthe email for yourself. [Source: Tesla Motors Club ] Continue reading Tesla calls Townhall meetings after email fails to calm angry buyers Tesla calls Townhall meetings after email fails to calm angry buyers originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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London mayor drives the Tesla Roadster, wants something else
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Tesla Motors , Green Daily , UK Click above to enlarge Sure, the big news in the Tesla world are the somewhat sneaky price increases that people on the buyers’ list now have to deal with. But, if you’re more of a fanboy who just wants to hear the good news, then you’ll like this story about London Mayor Boris Johnson. During a preview of the IQ 2 Green Festival , Johnson went for a test drive in a Roadster and it just enhanced his desire for an electric car, just not the Roadster. Johnson might not like the London congestion charge , but he does like EVs and told Tesla’s UK sales and marketing director that, “What I really want is a people carrier.” Cochrane replied, “You’ll get one.” Possibly, but not from Tesla Motors any time soon. If you’re jealous of Johnson’s drive and live near London, listen up. The organizers of the Intelligence Squared Green Festival are raffling off four chances to test drive the Tesla Roadster. You can find the details in the press release after the jump. Gallery: 2009 Tesla Roadster v1.5 [Source: The Intelligence Squared Green Festival on Climate Change] Continue reading London mayor drives the Tesla Roadster, wants something else London mayor drives the Tesla Roadster, wants something else originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 19 Jan 2009 11:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Clarkson explains himself in written Tesla review, loves hydrogen
Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Hydrogen , Tesla Motors Click above to watch the video Just when we thought the whole sordid ordeal was over and done with, Jeremy Clarkson has stirred the pot again, this time in print for his regular column at the Times. We’re referring once again to the Top Gear review of the Tesla Roadster, which sparked controversy after showing a scene of the electric roadster being pushed into a garage after running out of power… except that it didn’t run out of power at all. A bit later, the BBC, which produces the series, admitted that the scene was faked and was meant to depict what would actually happen in the case of a depleted battery pack. Clarkson, though, responded that he wasn’t allowed to drive the car into the garage and that was why it was filmed being pushed. Um, right. After reading Clarkson’s review online, it’s clear that the biggest problem the TG presenter has with the Roadster is that it’s not powered by hydrogen . Clarkson suggests that even if the car were completely flawless, it would still be old-tech, since hydrogen is clearly the fuel of the future as far as he’s concerned, and until then, apparently we should all be content with fossil fuels. And on that bombshell, we consider this case officially closed. [Source: Times Online ] Clarkson explains himself in written Tesla review, loves hydrogen originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Detroit 2009: Honda FT-EV on the stand
Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Toyota , Detroit Auto Show Click above for high-res gallery of the FT-EV We were introduced to the FT-EV , Toyota’s surprise battery-powered Detroit Auto Show vehicle , the other day – but only via official press photos. We’ve now had a chance to check out the shiny decorations on the FT-EV here in Cobo Hall and can bring you some pics of the electric city car. This small EV – it’s based on the iQ mini-car after all – is absolutely covered in gold circuit board and animal stickers. Oh, and some flowers. You also can’t miss the EV badging on the front , sides and back . A more demure version of this concept car should ready for production by 2012. Click here for more information, a video and the official pics. Gallery: Detroit 2009: Toyota FT-EV Detroit 2009: Honda FT-EV on the stand originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 12 Jan 2009 17:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Posted in Auto Green | a-friend-via, a-video-and, badging-on-the, electric-power, entry, ford ka u.s., teslaroadster, time, top gear, topgear, toyota | Leave a commentGet Approved!
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