Tesla! Tesla! Tesla!

[Razors Edge ★]

Not only cranking out a nice profit:

Wall Street expects Tesla, after the bell on Wednesday, to report roughly $5.3 billion in annual profit on around $53 billion of sales last year, according to analysts surveyed by FactSet. That is up from $721 million in profit and $31.5 billion in sales in 2020, when Tesla generated its first full-year profit.

...but also some other fun stuff!

Mr. Musk has also teased a $25,000 car aimed at making electric vehicles accessible to a wider array of customers and a refreshed version of the company’s first production car, the Roadster sports car.

Analysts expect Tesla to build on last year’s momentum by delivering nearly 1.5 million vehicles to customers in 2022, according to FactSet. That is consistent with the company’s target of increasing deliveries by 50% annually, on average, in the coming years.

[donkpow]

Let's see what the behemoth GM says.

[Razors Edge ★]

6 minutes ago, donkpow said:

Let's see what the behemoth GM says.

"We should have bought them when they were a cool billion"???? 

[Page Turner]

[Page Turner]

20 minutes ago, donkpow said:

Let's see what the behemoth GM says.

 

The story of the EV1 demise by Mark Looper.

[donkpow]

27 minutes ago, Page Turner said:

The story of the EV1 demise by Mark Looper.

[Razors Edge ★]

1 minute ago, donkpow said:

Exactly.  We're so far beyond the EV1, it's like comparing a Commodore 64 to @jsharrwick's sweet new rig.

[donkpow]

5 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Exactly.  We're so far beyond the EV1, it's like comparing a Commodore 64 to @jsharrwick's sweet new rig.

GM was a total wreck back then. Priority One was CYA.

[Page Turner]

16 minutes ago, donkpow said:

GM was a total wreck back then. Priority One was CYA.

...GM is solid now.

[Razors Edge ★]

39 minutes ago, Page Turner said:

...GM is solid now.

General Motors Co. confirmed plans for a multibillion-dollar investment to produce electric pickup trucks in Michigan, giving the Great Lakes region a boost as competition intensifies between states to win a bigger role in the industry’s shift to battery-powered cars.

The auto maker on Tuesday said it would convert a suburban Detroit factory into a center for the production of electric pickup trucks and build a battery-cell plant in Lansing, Mich. It plans to spend $4 billion to convert its Orion Assembly factory to build plug-in trucks and will split the cost of the $2.6 billion battery factory with partner LG Energy Solution.

On top of this spending, GM plans to invest about $500 million into two assembly plants near Lansing.

Altogether, GM plans to contribute nearly $6 billion of the $7 billion in the total costs for the projects, a figure that the car company says is its single largest investment in history. The spending is expected to create 4,000 jobs in the state, the auto maker said. Plans for the Orion revamp and the new battery-cell plant were first reported last month by The Wall Street Journal.

[Page Turner]

...so do you think those are gonna catch on fire when you recharge them too ?

[donkpow]

13 hours ago, Page Turner said:

...GM is solid now.

At least they are admitting faults. Before, they would deny any problem existed.

[Parr8hed]

Let's talk when they can pull a camper. 

In all seriousness I keep eyeballing the ford electric truck.  It could be a replacement for my one fiddy when it dies.  

[Razors Edge ★]

56 minutes ago, Parr8hed said:

Let's talk when they can pull a camper. 

In all seriousness I keep eyeballing the ford electric truck.  It could be a replacement for my one fiddy when it dies.  

It's coming, but definitely is FAR from here. - batteries are heavy, range is greatly impacted, and folks pulling trailers often like to go long distances.

Weight and Towing Capacity

In the past, most EVs didn’t emphasize towing, which limited their usefulness when pulling a camper or cargo trailer. One exception is the Tesla Model X, an SUV/crossover with 5,000 pounds of towing capacity. That’s a relatively modest number compared to the gas-powered competition, but it does give owners the ability to pull small and medium-sized trailers.

The next generation of electric vehicles will offer even higher towing capacities. For instance, the aforementioned F-150 Lightning can tow up to 10,000 pounds, while the new GMC Hummer EV is rated to pull 7,500 pounds. Rivian’s R1T truck has a towing capacity that exceeds 11,000 pounds and its R1S SUV can tow 7,700 pounds making either a good option even for large towables.

An EV’s electric motor gives it near-instant torque and plenty of power, which come in handy when pulling a trailer. But, as already mentioned, the vehicle’s battery packs add additional weight, leading to much heavier gross vehicle weight ratings (GVWR) and gross combined weight ratings (GCWR). The GVWR is a vehicle’s maximum loaded weight—including passengers and cargo—while its GCWR is your GVWR plus the loaded weight of your trailer.

The GVWR and GCWR are assigned by the manufacturer and represent the heaviest weight a vehicle can safely operate, both on its own and when towing a trailer. Exceeding either of those numbers is not recommended, and since EVs are already heavy by their nature, their gross weight and gross combined weights will be higher than those of gas-powered vehicles. The result is longer braking distances, less maneuverability, and a reduction of your EV’s driving range.

An example of this is the Hummer EV, an extremely heavy passenger vehicle that tips the scales at over 9,000 pounds. The electrified Hummer is rated to carry an additional 1,300 pounds of cargo. When you add in its 7,500-pound towing capacity, the EV and RV combined could exceed 17,800 pounds. That is a lot of weight to control out on the road, and drivers may need time to adjust to handling such heavy equipment, particularly when towing a fully loaded travel trailer.

[MickinMD ★]

18 hours ago, Razors Edge said:

Not only cranking out a nice profit:

Wall Street expects Tesla, after the bell on Wednesday, to report roughly $5.3 billion in annual profit on around $53 billion of sales last year, according to analysts surveyed by FactSet. That is up from $721 million in profit and $31.5 billion in sales in 2020, when Tesla generated its first full-year profit.

...but also some other fun stuff!

Mr. Musk has also teased a $25,000 car aimed at making electric vehicles accessible to a wider array of customers and a refreshed version of the company’s first production car, the Roadster sports car.

Analysts expect Tesla to build on last year’s momentum by delivering nearly 1.5 million vehicles to customers in 2022, according to FactSet. That is consistent with the company’s target of increasing deliveries by 50% annually, on average, in the coming years.

Tesla is an exciting company and I'm rooting for it, but it's too risky for me.

My concern is that the other car makers can easily duplicate what Tesla does - even software - and they have much better financing, engineering teams, and national networks.

Most of the big car and truck makers have already announced a deadline when they'll be making 100% electric cars.  When that occurs, Tesla may become a niche player.

[donkpow]

Tesla is doing more than cars. You can throw Tesla in with space travel, robots, battery development, AI, ..... That's the stuff that is going to make the companies viable in the future. If their vision of the future is accurate.

[Parr8hed]

4 hours ago, Razors Edge said:

It's coming, but definitely is FAR from here. - batteries are heavy, range is greatly impacted, and folks pulling trailers often like to go long distances.

Weight and Towing Capacity

In the past, most EVs didn’t emphasize towing, which limited their usefulness when pulling a camper or cargo trailer. One exception is the Tesla Model X, an SUV/crossover with 5,000 pounds of towing capacity. That’s a relatively modest number compared to the gas-powered competition, but it does give owners the ability to pull small and medium-sized trailers.

The next generation of electric vehicles will offer even higher towing capacities. For instance, the aforementioned F-150 Lightning can tow up to 10,000 pounds, while the new GMC Hummer EV is rated to pull 7,500 pounds. Rivian’s R1T truck has a towing capacity that exceeds 11,000 pounds and its R1S SUV can tow 7,700 pounds making either a good option even for large towables.

An EV’s electric motor gives it near-instant torque and plenty of power, which come in handy when pulling a trailer. But, as already mentioned, the vehicle’s battery packs add additional weight, leading to much heavier gross vehicle weight ratings (GVWR) and gross combined weight ratings (GCWR). The GVWR is a vehicle’s maximum loaded weight—including passengers and cargo—while its GCWR is your GVWR plus the loaded weight of your trailer.

The GVWR and GCWR are assigned by the manufacturer and represent the heaviest weight a vehicle can safely operate, both on its own and when towing a trailer. Exceeding either of those numbers is not recommended, and since EVs are already heavy by their nature, their gross weight and gross combined weights will be higher than those of gas-powered vehicles. The result is longer braking distances, less maneuverability, and a reduction of your EV’s driving range.

An example of this is the Hummer EV, an extremely heavy passenger vehicle that tips the scales at over 9,000 pounds. The electrified Hummer is rated to carry an additional 1,300 pounds of cargo. When you add in its 7,500-pound towing capacity, the EV and RV combined could exceed 17,800 pounds. That is a lot of weight to control out on the road, and drivers may need time to adjust to handling such heavy equipment, particularly when towing a fully loaded travel trailer.

Range is the big problem.  And weight.  There is something about having a big old heavy diesel to pull your camper in bad weather or up mountains, etc.  Controls the camper so much better than even a "light" f150.  

[12string]

Roadster!  Roadster!  Roadster!

Loved that one

[Page Turner]

2 hours ago, donkpow said:

Tesla is doing more than cars. You can throw Tesla in with space travel, robots, battery development, AI, ..... That's the stuff that is going to make the companies viable in the future. If their vision of the future is accurate.

...how many other electric cars can you drive into orbit ? None.

And for sure the batteries are not gonna catch on fire out in space. #winning

[shootingstar]

Just hope our electrical charging infrastructure and power grid, can support ev's going all over the country..