Tesla Model 3 production starts tomorrow, unless there was some kind of dramatic surprise since Monday. It seems that tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people who have never before had an electric car have a reservation for a Model 3. They have a bit of planning to do.
Tesla stock has dropped dramatically from its all time high a few weeks ago. Lower delivery totals are part of that decline as analysts recalibrate their crystal balls in advance of the start of Model 3 production.
As you’ve probably read, a handful of guys and I recently got a Tesla Model S 85D for an intercity European Tesla Shuttle service we’re launching based out of Wroclaw, Poland. This last weekend, I rented the Tesla myself (but with no personal driver, unfortunately) to pick my family up from my in-laws’ “summer house” (lake house in the middle of nowhere). This place is really off the beaten track, in what I think we’d call “the boonies” in the United States.
I just wrote a piece putting Tesla’s H1 2017 sales into a bit of perspective. At the end, I started getting into Tesla sales versus gas vehicle sales in the Model S and Model X classes, but then decided this topic deserved its own piece, with a focus on how sales of of the various models changed in H1 2017 versus H1 2016.
A couple of days ago, Tesla announced its 2nd quarter sales and production totals. There were a few particularly noteworthy points. One was that Model S and Model X sales (deliveries) increased 53% compared to the 2nd quarter of 2016. Another one was that production was approximately 40% below demand … [continued]
Volvo has announced that every car it makes will come with a battery and an electric motor starting in 2019. It will also bring its first all electric car to market that year.
Big Auto gets a lot of criticism here. The problem for large automakers is that they will crush their own finances and have to write off massive investments if they rapidly shift to electric transport, but they are also exposing themselves to great threat if they are too slow electrifying their offerings. Nonetheless, it’s hard to sympathize when gas & diesel cars are destroying our planet’s climate and countless humans’ health — sometimes the moral high ground should trump the wrath of shareholders.
Tesla Model 3 production starts in a couple of days. A next-gen Nissan LEAF with long range and ProPilot is expected to be released later this year. A year ago, we thought these factors were already eating into Nissan LEAF sales and would hurt Chevy Bolt sales, and we figured the story would get worse for the LEAF in 2017. Surprisingly, US LEAF sales are up this year compared to 2016! June again saw more LEAF sales than the same month in 2016.
The new Hyundai IONIQ Plug-in Hybrid goes on sale in the UK this month, priced from £24,995 OTR, taking into account the £2,500 Plug In Car Grant. “Hyundai’s Plug-in Hybrid is the third and final variant of the IONIQ line-up – the first car in the world to offer three electrified powertrains within one body type,” Hyundai highlights.
OK, this is probably one of the easiest titles to pull off — “Geely buys Terrafugia and takes to the skies.” The consequences of one of the biggest carmakers in the world continuing its buying spree, this time with a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) startup, are interesting and revealing. China is still very determined to build its transportation industry in order to better compete in the international arena.
