Disclaimer: I have been hesitating whether to write this article for some months now. I am not an engineer. I am an environmental advocate and avid cleantech follower. I had really hoped an engineer would cover this story, but I have not seen an article that covers this aspect of Tesla’s technology. (I could have missed it.)
Munro & Associates in Auburn Hills, Michigan, is in the business of taking cars apart. The company’s teardown reports reveal the juicy details of every single component — how they work, where they came from, and how much they cost. Automakers pay sizable sums for these reports, in order to figure out what their competitors are up to. Sandy Munro’s 2018 teardown of a Tesla Model 3 delivered some important insights into the California carmaker’s strengths and weaknesses. What about other electric cars?
The weekly Autoline show from the Detroit area recently invited Sandy Munro back to talk about Tesla in China. Munro was once one of Tesla’s most ardent skeptics, when he famously compared the Model 3 build quality to a “Kia from the ’90s.” After spending some more time tearing down the Model 3 and learning more about it, Sandy warmed to the company and had much more complimentary things to say about the company, including calling the Model 3 electronics “Like a Symphony of Engineering.”
Tesla says the motor and gearbox for the Model 3 have survived 1 million miles of use with little to no signs of wear.
“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “To talk of many things…
of reluctance machines
and induction machines
of Carborundum
and other amazing things…
and of course the question of whether pigs have wings”
Any Tesla enthusiast knows full well that the name originally chosen for what was then Tesla Motors was based on a motor design credited to Nikola Tesla, who lived in the 19th century. Virtually every car that Tesla has produced, from the Roadster to the Model S to the Model X, has been powered by a version of that venerable 3-phase AC induction motor.
Tesla has opened up the floodgates of information on the Q1 2017 earnings call, with big updates on the Tesla Solar Roof tiles, the Model 3, and even a bit about how the Tesla Semi will make use of the Model 3 motor and other existing components.
