Tesla Will Succeed

 Tesla Will Succeed originally published April 19, 2013|

There have been some negative articles as well has some great accolades for the Tesla Model S. Perhaps some of you have you had a change of heart regarding Tesla in light of recent announcements of their profitability, sales or supposed range? There is a place for Tesla, like it or not.

A Tesla factory employee informed me a battery could be swapped in 90 seconds with an automated station. It is my contention the Model S could possibly revolutionize livery service in cities like Las Vegas. Have you seen how many expensive Cadillac Escalades and limousines are in that city? Recently a cab driver informed me he does about 150 miles a shift in Vegas. Sounds very realistic for a Model S, never mind a battery swap, just a 30-40 minute recharge.

Let’s also keep in mind this is not a slapped together kit car. It is a highly engineered vehicle by many brilliant minds in Silicon Valley with multiple patents in battery and EV powertrain management.
The $60,000+ price range offers a HUGE market for buyers who wish to be environmentally conscious and never bother with an oil change or trip to the gas station, again. I can't begin to tell you how many females embrace it on these points alone. 

Add stunning styling on the level of Maserati, Aston Martin and Fisker and looks alone will help it sell.
Regarding a 250 mile daily range, there are plenty of suburban/urban cycle owners of sports, muscle, SUV, truck & luxury vehicles that see that gas fill-up interval and hardly ever travel farther than that in a day unless flying. This is while taking the nightly "fill-up" into consideration. Of course some only put a few gallons in at a time, or never go below half empty. A nightly fill-up just means more
convenience for “those people.”

Tesla may make a great acquisition for one of the major automakers, or stay independent, but one thing is for certain – his name will forever be among the most remembered in automotive history.
As an aside, AutoWeek published an editorial knocking Tesla and later a supporting letter by Mr. John Goreham regarding his negative outlook on Tesla and Fisker. He also referred to the Tesla as a supercar.

I believe Nissan defined a supercar as: 0-60mph under 4 seconds, Top speed of 190+mph and capable of 1g of lateral acceleration on a skidpad. The Tesla Model S is very quick and does offer instantaneous acceleration, but battery management probably won’t allow over 150mph like many gas powered sports cars (Update 8/2020:  A top speed of a claimed 163mph per Tesla for their S Performance model).

A better label would be a supersedan with a sub-4 second 0-60mph like several all wheel drive Audis, Mercedes E63 and Porsche Panamera Turbo. With a great launch the rear wheel drive BMW M5 and maybe the Dodge/Chrysler SRT-8s may qualify as well. What we do know, is most of these gas powered supersedans will do at least 115mph in the quarter mile and have a top speed of over 170mph.
Sometimes that is all that matters.

Update 8-2020. Tesla now has sold over one million cars, their stock is at $1,650.71 as of this typing and factories are built and planned in the US, China and Europe. Tesla sales may take a hit when the competition finally catches up in range and price, but being a mass producer of commuters and an energy company (solar roof and battery storage), they aren't going anywhere.