Here's what's new at Tesla following their shareholder meeting

[William Gayde]

Shareholder meetings are full of business formalities as well as hints of upcoming products and discussion on the company's future. At Tesla's annual meeting, CEO Elon Musk talked about new vehicles, reflected on past challenges, and hinted at some big future announcements.

Musk teased the upcoming Model Y once again. The Y will be a crossover SUV positioned between the Model X and the Model 3. It's expected this new model will have a simpler electrical design than current vehicles in an attempt to lower the amount of wiring used and make production of the cars more automated. The target release is 2019, built on a new platform rather than using a modified Model 3 chassis.

The construction for the Model X SUV borrowed heavily from the Model S platform. This is usually done to cut out unneeded design work, but Musk now views that as a mistake. He didn't go so far as to call the Model X a failure, but he did wish they had designed "an SUV the way an SUV should be designed."

Moving to the much anticipated Model 3 that is launching this summer, Musk is planning to keep initial configurations very simple. Pre-orders will start at the end of the month, but some of the more advanced customization options will wait until the platform matures down the road. This was another lesson learned from the Model X rollout.

The last big topic covered was Tesla's work on a semi truck. This big rig is being designed with input from real truckers in hopes that the vehicle will be successful right off the bat, so they can crank up the production volume as soon as possible. Musk also hinted at another big announcement at the semi truck reveal in September. He recommended "showing up for the semi truck unveiling” because “maybe there’s a little more than we’re saying here. Maybe. Could be. Who knows?”

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https://www.techspot.com/news/69617-here-what-new-tesla-following-their-shareholder-meeting.html

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Enough with the cars already Tesla, lets see the truck instead. If you've seen one Tesla car, you've seen 'em all.

 

[Kotters]

Enough with the cars already Tesla, lets see the truck instead. If you've seen one Tesla car, you've seen 'em all.

I disagree. I'm pretty interested in Tesla cars, and they're pretty different in my mind.

 

[cliffordcooley]

A trucks range will be less if it is used as a truck. Battery capacity and charging would need to double for trucks range to be on par with cars. At the current manufacturing/availability stage, I'm not sure it would be worth it just yet.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

I disagree. I'm pretty interested in Tesla cars, and they're pretty different in my mind.

They are for the time being but as with everything else, the lustre quickly fades the more we become accustomed to them. I'm sure as more well known big manufacturers manufacturers release their electric cars and the more affordable they become, Tesla's car division will sell out to one of them and concentrate more on it's battery business.

 

[Uncle Al]

Personally, I'd like to see Musk go after the rights for development and sale of that new battery invented at Purdue University this week. High capacity and the ability to recharge in seconds is incredible and seems to defy a few laws of physics. If anyone else claimed it I would have my doubts, but having worked with Purdue's engineering department over the years, this would appear to be rock solid and a sure fire way for Musk to catapult forward with his battery factories as well as the electric cars ..... hope he's listening!

 

[captaincranky]

Right, a Tesla stockholders meeting basically involves Musk running his mouth about what's going to happen, (or might happen), not what has.

You'd think he'd get the car on the street, before he starts blowing BS around about an SUV and a Truck. But, nooooooooo.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

A trucks range will be less if it is used as a truck. Battery capacity and charging would need to double for trucks range to be on par with cars. At the current manufacturing/availability stage, I'm not sure it would be worth it just yet.

A full electric truck would indeed be worthless ATM for those who use it as a truck. For the vast sea of driveway trophy owners, however, it would work well.

that being said, a gas or diesel electric hybrid (ala railroad locomotive) would be incredibly useful. The chevy volt has shown the efficiency gains that can be had from this kind of setup.

 

[captaincranky]

A full electric truck would indeed be worthless ATM for those who use it as a truck. For the vast sea of driveway trophy owners, however, it would work well.

Well first, the copy states Musk is talking about a "semi". Not that many people buy Kenworths or Diamond Reos, to park in their driveways and wash.
For reference purposes:

that being said, a gas or diesel electric hybrid (ala railroad locomotive) would be incredibly useful. The chevy volt has shown the efficiency gains that can be had from this kind of setup.

Well, part of the reason a locomotive is a "hybrid", is due to the complexities of driving wheels off the Diesel engines themselves. I'm sure the massive stall torque of the electric motors is quite handy, but the issues in designing a workable transmission are a part of the puzzle. A quick video on what inside a loco:

 

[yRaz]

A trucks range will be less if it is used as a truck. Battery capacity and charging would need to double for trucks range to be on par with cars. At the current manufacturing/availability stage, I'm not sure it would be worth it just yet.

Diesel engines in those trucks are expensive to own and to maintain. An oil change could cost you $400+ in a semi. On top of that the cost of electricity.

There is significant cost benefit to having electric trucks instead of diesel. Not to mention that a lot of the power can be recovered through regenerative breaking instead of a standard engine break that makes tons of noise.

I'd also bet that the torque in an electric truck would have significant advantages over diesel.

 

[captaincranky]

Diesel engines in those trucks are expensive to own and to maintain. An oil change could cost you $400+ in a semi. On top of that the cost of electricity.

There is significant cost benefit to having electric trucks instead of diesel. Not to mention that a lot of the power can be recovered through regenerative breaking instead of a standard engine break that makes tons of noise.

Have you ever actually try to drive one of those things?

More importantly, the GVW in PA is 80,000 Lbs. One of those full grown Tesla thingys maybe hits 6,000.

Let's divide, shall we. 6,000 goes into 80,000, oh say maybe about 13 1/3 times. That would mean, with present technology, you would need about 13 times the battery weight of a Tesla, to go a mere 250 miles.

As for harvesting energy with regenerative braking, well, it's not a golf cart we're discussing.

All these magical solutions people have been suggesting like, "make it a hybrid like a locomotive", simply points to an excessive amount of idealism, and a poor understanding of existing technology..

A diesel electric locomotive Is all wheel drive. Ergo, were we to attempt to run it directly off the engine, the transmission required would be an engineer's worst nightmare. Solution, we put a traction motor at every axle. And yes, the stall torque of an electric motor(s) is a big plus, but it isn't the over riding consideration.

Every time Elon Musk opens his big mouth, he expects someone to hand him millions, if not hundreds of milions of dollars. All his crap, his entire shtick if you will, is pretending he's in it for the good of the human race. He's in it for him, period. How else on God's green earth, could some jacka** have a company that turned a profit only a couple of times in it's existence, have made Musk a multi-billionaire?

 

[yRaz]

Have you ever actually try to drive one of those things?

More importantly, the GVW in PA is 80,000 Lbs. One of those full grown Tesla thingys maybe hits 6,000.

Let's divide, shall we. 6,000 goes into 80,000, oh say maybe about 13 1/3 times. That would mean, with present technology, you would need about 13 times the battery weight of a Tesla, to go a mere 250 miles.

As for harvesting energy with regenerative braking, well, it's not a golf cart we're discussing.

All these magical solutions people have been suggesting like, "make it a hybrid like a locomotive", simply points to an excessive amount of idealism, and a poor understanding of existing technology..

A diesel electric locomotive Is all wheel drive. Ergo, were we to attempt to run it directly off the engine, the transmission required would be an engineer's worst nightmare. Solution, we put a traction motor at every axle. And yes, the stall torque of an electric motor(s) is a big plus, but it isn't the over riding consideration.

Every time Elon Musk opens his big mouth, he expects someone to hand him millions, if not hundreds of milions of dollars. All his crap, his entire shtick if you will, is pretending he's in it for the good of the human race. He's in it for him, period. How else on God's green earth, could some jacka** have a company that turned a profit only a couple of times in it's existence, have made Musk a multi-billionaire?

Well I don't think your range comparison is accurate. Objects in motion stay in motion unless acted on by an outside force. That 80k pounds gives it a lot of force to regenerate with. From what I've seen with electric semitruck concepts it seems like manufacturers feel a 1200 mile range on a single charge is possible.

And everyone likes to talk about how our cars and energy use at home is the source of all these CO2 emissions. Fact of the matter is that the shipping I did try is by far the largest source of CO2 emissions.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Diesel engines in those trucks are expensive to own and to maintain.

I wasn't talking about a tractor and trailer rig. You are making my comment an understatement when referring to a tractor and trailer rig.

I was talking about personal trucks (Silverado, F150, Tundra, etc....). Even a small truck would require more power than a Tesla, or else you wouldn't be able to use it as a truck.

 

[captaincranky]

Well I don't think your range comparison is accurate. Objects in motion stay in motion unless acted on by an outside force.
That 80k pounds gives it a lot of force to regenerate with.

And a body at rest tends to remain at rest. If you're going to quote the most simplistic of Newtonian principles, at least recite the whole thing. Speaking of "at rest", aren't gravity and hills considered "forces"? You know, the whole "in motion" thing only fully attaches if you shoot the truck into space.

Besides if you could recapture all that energy, wouldn't that be what's called, "a perpetual motion machine"

From what I've seen with electric semitruck concepts it seems like manufacturers feel a 1200 mile range on a single charge is possible.

"Manufacturers feel", "based on potential improvements in battery technology". "Maybe someday". For the time being, I guess we'll suffer with the Diesels.

And everyone likes to talk about how our cars and energy use at home is the source of all these CO2 emissions. Fact of the matter is that the shipping I did try is by far the largest source of CO2 emissions.

And here I thought it was Volkswagens.

 

[Kotters]

Right, a Tesla stockholders meeting basically involves Musk running his mouth about what's going to happen, (or might happen), not what has.

You'd think he'd get the car on the street, before he starts blowing BS around about an SUV and a Truck. But, nooooooooo.

You're not very familiar with Musk or the businesses he's involved with, are you?

 

[captaincranky]

You're not very familiar with Musk or the businesses he's involved with, are you?

I'm guessing you're going to tell me all about it though, aren't you?

Teslas really doesn't turn a profit all that often. Not to mention Musk sold a lot of Tesla stock after the "auto pilot" crash of one of their cars. Musk keeps turning in losing quarters, while making it up on bullsh*t, charisma, incomplete projects, and plans for the future.

Oh, and the "Giga Factory", well that's mostly money he talked out of Panasonic.

So while Tesla was dumping a 200,000,000 dollar loss on one quarter, Musk was busy flapping his gums about how, "I'm going to have a spacesuit designed for easy mobility on my martian colony". (It's called "deflection"). I wondered, will he have the suit done by the time they get to Mars and nuke the polar caps.

Later, Musk comes out running his mouth about how, "we might we living in a computer simulation". Well, way back when, we used to get really blasted on reefer, and then chat for hours about whether you're a figment of my imagination, or I of yours. It's called "existentialism", and if you're into it go read a book by Jean Paul Satre, instead of listening to a Musk press conference.

His rocket blows up on the pad, and he accuses someone of shooting it down.

So, how much more do I need to know?

What can I tell you, "haters gonna hate".

 

[captaincranky]

Well I don't think your range comparison is accurate. Objects in motion stay in motion unless acted on by an outside force. That 80k pounds gives it a lot of force to regenerate with. From what I've seen with electric semitruck concepts it seems like manufacturers feel a 1200 mile range on a single charge is possible.

And everyone likes to talk about how our cars and energy use at home is the source of all these CO2 emissions. Fact of the matter is that the shipping I did try is by far the largest source of CO2 emissions.

Here's the whole story, including the emission protocols on the newest Detroit Diesel the DD-15: http://www.truckinginfo.com/channel...ory/2008/01/detroit-diesel-s-dd15-debuts.aspx

BTW, the recommended oil change interval is 50,000 miles! So now, even at your price, that doesn't really sound so bad, now does it?

 

[yRaz]

Here's the whole story, including the emission protocols on the newest Detroit Diesel the DD-15: http://www.truckinginfo.com/channel...ory/2008/01/detroit-diesel-s-dd15-debuts.aspx

BTW, the recommended oil change interval is 50,000 miles! So now, even at your price, that doesn't really sound so bad, now does it?

Damn you, Cranky. It's not that I don't want to argue with you, you just make it too much work for me to want to bother. You win this round.

 

[Kotters]

I'm guessing you're going to tell me all about it though, aren't you?

Teslas really doesn't turn a profit all that often. Not to mention Musk sold a lot of Tesla stock after the "auto pilot" crash of one of their cars. Musk keeps turning in losing quarters, while making it up on bullsh*t, charisma, incomplete projects, and plans for the future.

Oh, and the "Giga Factory", well that's mostly money he talked out of Panasonic.

So while Tesla was dumping a 200,000,000 dollar loss on one quarter, Musk was busy flapping his gums about how, "I'm going to have a spacesuit designed for easy mobility on my martian colony". (It's called "deflection"). I wondered, will he have the suit done by the time they get to Mars and nuke the polar caps.

Later, Musk comes out running his mouth about how, "we might we living in a computer simulation". Well, way back when, we used to get really blasted on reefer, and then chat for hours about whether you're a figment of my imagination, or I of yours. It's called "existentialism", and if you're into it go read a book by Jean Paul Satre, instead of listening to a Musk press conference.

His rocket blows up on the pad, and he accuses someone of shooting it down.

So, how much more do I need to know?

What can I tell you, "haters gonna hate".

I was going to tell you he's put several cars on the road. And you seem to have mistaken internet rumors as "Elon Musk said..." in regards to the pad explosion?

You're way too invested in hating on a dude that makes money and produces cool stuff. Take a breather, then come back.

 

[Phr3d]

Brutal summaries aside -- I'm Not sending Elon a Christmas card this year..
hehe

 

[captaincranky]

I was going to tell you he's put several cars on the road....[ ]...

Yes he has. Unfortunately, not in any significant quantities. When you consider Tesla's volume of sales, against "the big three", Teslas are a drop in the bucket. Also, the phenomenon with them, is they are being adopted by some Hollywood elite, presumably to present a favorable view of their "ecological responsibility". At present, the base price of a Tesla is rather exorbitant. Hopefully this will change, assuming Musk does the right thing, and brings the model 3 in "on time". Musk is "always playing with house money", and one has to wonder how much of the Model 3's money has crossed over to Musk's personal bank account.

Besides, the Tesla factory is having some labor problems with safety ATM, that is of course unless you choose to believe the major news outlets are propagating and/or perpetuating "fake news stories", against your hero.

And you seem to have mistaken internet rumors as "Elon Musk said..." in regards to the pad explosion?

Actually, most to all of my Internet tech news come from Techspot. Now, one would have to assume by your statement, that Techspot news has joined "the rumor mill" as well.

You're way too invested in hating on a dude that makes money and produces cool stuff. Take a breather, then come back.

And I might say that you're too interested in idolizing a dude who is nothing but a parasitic philanderer.

Anyway, herewith my counter proposal:

So, how 'bout if you stop sniffng all of Musk's crap with rose scented nostrils, and I stay exactly where I am.