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Tesla Model 3 Has Arrived In Europe — Thoughts From Our Test Drive

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Cars Published on February 2nd, 2019 | by Jos Olijve
Tesla Model 3 Has Arrived In Europe — Thoughts From Our Test DriveTwitterLinkedInFacebookFebruary 2nd, 2019 by Jos Olijve
Photos by Jos Olijve and text by both Jos Olijve & Maarten Vinkhuyzen
It was 6 weeks ago, early December 2018, that European reservation holders were asked to configure their Tesla Model 3’s. The expectation was deliveries would begin somewhere in second half of the first quarter of 2019, but many were also doubtful of that timeline.
Last week, reservation holders received an invitation to experience the Model 3 at a local showroom. I was one of those reservation holders, and after years of reading and writing about the Model 3, after just sitting in it at the Paris Motor Show, we could not wait for the change to drive it.
A small number of Model 3 Performance cars for test driving were sent ahead of the first shipload of customer Model 3’s that will arrive in early February in Zeebrugge, Belgium. Those cars arriving soon are for those who did not wait and ordered their cars untested, as will be the case for the next 2 or 3 shiploads of cars. (And as many a Wall Street analyst can explain, selling thousands of the highest trim levels sight unseen is clear proof that there is no demand for the Model 3 in Europe, but that is for another article. )
Let us state that it is not fair to have the Long Range Performance with the Premium Upgrade Package for a test drive when your budget would really like a Standard Range basic version. Now, there are serious questions. For example: Is the Standard Range with rear-wheel drive just as sticky to the road as the all-wheel drive? Is the cornering just as effortless as in this Performance model? Is the Performance chill mode comparable to the Standard Range normal mode?
Maarten inspecting the Model 3 before the test drive.
This is what others have called the best car for the money. That is not only about lack of experience with all the competitors below €100,000. A 25 minute test drive on a predefined route with a co-pilot handling the touchscreen is not enough to get even a little understanding of the car
This Model 3 has so much more potential than the average city car. Whereas an hour in the city cars we drive now or two hours in a Renault Zoe or Nissan Leaf was enough to confirm that they would suffice as daily drivers, one needs a week road tripping through Europe and perhaps two days on a circuit to get to know this car and what it can do.
We can try to play the role of car reviewer, but there are many far better reviews from professional reviewers. What we can give you are a few first impressions from common people. For this test drive and review, Maarten is driving the car, and Jos is a passenger at the backseat.

Jos
Maarten was not alone on his trip to Tilburg on this misty, rainy day. He invited me to join him as a photographer and because he was interested in my experience and opinion as a passenger in the backseat.
When we arrived, we were heartily welcomed by the Tesla employees. The agenda was fully booked during the days of this Test Drive Event, they told us. All was on schedule and a Deep Blue Metallic Model 3 stood waiting for us.
Maarten
The spartan interior was great. I never liked the intimidating plethora of knobs and dials that is considered luxury. It only tells me that I need to spent a day with the manual to learn most of them, and I know that I will have forgotten how to switch to daylight savings time when the days get longer. I have worked 30 years in IT, and I have learned that the simpler the user interface, the better. The Model 3 has a brilliant user interface — it is just a pity that touchscreens hate my fingers and mostly ignore them. But that’s nothing that can’t be solved with a trackball or a velvet-tipped pencil.
No unnecessary knobs and dials, simple and elegant.
Jos
My first impression was a spacious car with a plain, spartan interior. However, I was disappointed by the synthetic leather upholstery.
Maarten
“That is Tesla special vegan leather. You can spoil a glass of wine on it and there is no problem.”
Jos
“I have no intention of drinking wine in the car, but it is good to know. … For me I like the upholstery a bit more cuddly.”
The safety glass roof is amazing. On this rainy day the grey clouds formed a great panorama. The roof also functions as a sun blocker. I had that funny thought that I would like to see the exterior of the car while riding in it. Okay, we can go to the moon and I understand that my wish might be too much…
When you don’t know it is Tesla special vegan leather, it looks like cheap synthetics.
Maarten
I am getting stiff in the joints. I also tend to doze off once in a while. So, the most important feature of the Model 3 for me is the Full Self Driving option, which won’t be available in the foreseeable future. Another consequence of those joints is that I needed help getting the driver seat in the right position.
Few things are as easy as driving an EV, though. Carefully press the accelerator and point the nose where you want to go.
Jos
The car produced more noise than I expected for an electric car. The noise is due to the winter tires, our co-pilot explained.
Meanwhile, the pre-defined route brought us through a new housing estate from one rotary intersection to the next. In the backseat, I was uncomfortably shuttled from one end to the other. What is really missing is a handgrip you can hold onto during accelerations and when going around a corner. Most cars have one and I think in an electric car it is indispensable, especially in sport mode.
Maarten
I tried to get the famous Tesla smile on Jos’s face. Thirty years ago, making a wheelie after a traffic light did give a positive reaction. I don’t know whether it was the front wheels staying on the road or just getting a bit mature, but it was not appreciated this time. If eyes could kill, I would be at least severely wounded.
I decided to drive very carefully, like a limo driver.
Jos
I suppose that the heart of the biker that Maarten used to be was ticking again. Our Tesla co-pilot was so empathic that he changed the chill mode into sport mode, all to please grumpy old man Maarten. A few minutes later, we arrived at a traffic light, followed by a straight road. And as you can guess, Maarten could not resist pressing the accelerator deeply. … Unlike the front tire of the motorbike of times past, the Tesla car did not start prancing. Instead, it caused an immense g-force on me in the backseat. Not very comfortable.
Maarten
One last attempt at putting the Tesla smile on Jos’s face. It failed. Only chill mode with Jos aboard.
Jos
This example shows that the capacities of a car can have great effects on the behavior of the driver. It is something to keep in mind for safety and comfort of other people in the car and on the road. The position of the driver is very different from the one on the backseat. The driver has everything under control and the g-forces are less felt in the front.
Both together
The car is big but not too big for most of Europe. The heated seats are not just heated — they get hot, perfect for Maarten’s back.
Leg room in the back depends on the one in the front seat.
Jos prefers real suede leather, Maarten fancies cloth.
Of course, we checked the trunk — enough room, with extra space for tools and other items underneath.
A really deep trunk.
With its range and charging capabilities, there is nothing you cannot do with this car. For those in Europe who think that the Audi A4, Mercedes C-Class, or BMW 3 Series is the car for them, the Tesla Model 3 is likely a better car for their interests.
This year, the number of Tesla cars on European roads will more than double. This time, not only in Scandinavia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK, but all over Europe. There is no telling what the enhanced visibility will do to demand. With better price/performance and availability of the S, 3, and X models than the competing Jaguar, Audi, Porsche, or Mercedes offerings, Tesla will again prove Wall Street wrong.
Tesla has prepared for this with a decent expansion of its superfast charging network in Southern Europe and the beginning of it in Eastern Europe. What is missing is a sales and service network in the larger European countries. Interesting times ahead.
What a surprise — today, Jos passed a Deep Blue Metallic Model 3 in the wild, in my own village/town of Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. Was it the same one or another?

About the AuthorJos Olijve Jos Olijve graduated in clinical psychology in that special period of the 20th century when unemployment was at its highest ever among young academics. She retrained and worked as an information analyst before switching to general and educational journalism. She made her own photo illustrations for her articles, and got appreciated for her photography besides her writing. Later on, website management gave her the opportunity of combining her writing, visual, and technological skills. Meanwhile, she raised two fantastic kids. She is now supporting her colleague Maarten in editing his articles and making beautiful photo shoots.

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My First Tesla Shareholder Call As A Tesla Investor

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Cars Published on February 1st, 2019 | by Carolyn Fortuna
My First Tesla Shareholder Call As A Tesla InvestorTwitterLinkedInFacebookFebruary 1st, 2019 by Carolyn Fortuna
For most people, you buy a stock because someone you know is excited about it. Maybe that person is a day trader or has a track record of choosing a solid portfolio of growth stocks. That person’s energy and enthusiasm is contagious: you want to jump in and take a teeny portion of your net worth, just a snip of your meager life savings, to a whole new level. And, if that stock is Tesla [TSLA], the thought of becoming a Tesla investor is doubly thrilling, as you’ll be joining a group of visionaries who feel a positive shift toward the future.

I’m one of those new Tesla investors. A longtime educator who apportioned a small amount of my biweekly paycheck into a 403(b) account, I saw my first Tesla in 2013 while traveling through an upscale hippie town in western Connecticut on the way to Lime Rock Raceway. I thought of Tesla at the time as little more than another new car on the market.
Tesla, as the first EV with long enough range to serve as a replacement for a gasoline car, was soon seen as different. It was an EV that was also a practical everyday car. The company created a Supercharger network that had been missing with prior EVs (and other non-Tesla EVs since), making charging options fast and convenient. The company’s CEO, Elon Musk, took good ideas and made them a reality — “the point of all this was, and remains, accelerating the advent of sustainable energy, so that we can imagine far into the future and life is still good.”
Since then, I’ve been writing about environmental issues for CleanTechnica and other EV websites, and I’ve come to understand the special place that Tesla holds in the marketplace. It’s more than an automobile company: it’s a movement, a mission, a disruptor. It’s leading the energy industry toward advanced technologies for a sustainable economy.

No, I don’t own a Tesla automobile. I’d love to own a Model 3, of course! But I’m one of those people to whom Musk referred to in the Q4 2018 earnings call:
“The demand for — the demand for Model 3 is insanely high. The inhibitor is affordability. It’s just like people literally don’t have the money to buy the car. It’s got nothing to do with desire. They just don’t have enough money in their bank account. If the car can be made more affordable, the demand is extraordinary.”
But what I could do was buy Tesla stock. The climate crisis and related growth had already led me to divest from fossil fuel stocks in my existing portfolio. Like many others, I lean toward mission-driven investment strategies, and the trend seems to be pointing in that direction for many others similarly.
In late summer 2018, after Musk announced via Twitter that he had secured enough funding for a massive private buyout of Tesla, the SEC stepped in with sanctions. When Tesla stock dropped in value, I saw an opportunity and made my first purchase. Since then, the stock has risen and, while it is fluctuating, I’m pleased with my decision. I do plan on staying “long,” putting my money into the Tesla movement and feeling like I’m part of something important and rare.
I’ve bet on the future, after all.

Listening to the Investor’s Call with a New PerspectiveAs a writer for CleanTechnica, I generally tune into the quarterly Tesla shareholder communications. I take notes, read the shareholder letter, listen to the earnings call, and study the subsequent transcript. The late January 2019 communications felt different to me, however. I was one of the people to whom Tesla was speaking!
Several points during the earnings call caught my attention and confirmed my confidence in my Tesla stock.
Tesla achieved an 80% market share of US EV sales last year.The company began construction of the Gigafactory in Shanghai, and by the end of this year, they expect to be producing Model 3s using a complete vehicle production line. Musk acknowledged that the company is getting a lot of support from the Shanghai government as well as the national government.With the combination of cells produced at the Gigafactory in Nevada, cells produced in Japan, and cells produced locally in China, Tesla is confident it has a sufficient supply to hit its productions targets there.Tesla predicts strong growth in its battery and stationary storage businesses.With concern about a 2019 recession looming and possible scenarios of lower volumes and tight pricing, Tesla anticipates a good shot of being profitable and generating free cash flow nonetheless. If such a recession does come, Elon plans to manage the business adequately through frugality.Elon continued to refer to Tesla’s relevance in regard to the acceleration of sustainable energy, which is absolutely fundamental due to its importance for humanity.Yes, I realize that Tesla stock was off a bit at the beginning of January, partially due to total sales numbers not being what some shareholders expected and partly due to the 50% cut in the federal tax credit for buying a Tesla. But the Tesla board is more robust than ever, with the addition of 2 veteran business people: Oracle founder Larry Ellison and Walgreens’ executive vice-president and global chief human resources officer Kathleen Wilson-Thompson. And lots of investor advisors are telling their clients that they believe Tesla is on track to post one of the market’s most robust year-over-year earnings increases in 2019.

Final ThoughtsLike many others, I will likely add to my shares of the company over time as I have more free capital to invest.
After all, Tesla is on the frontlines of climate action. One of the best things I can do for the environment is support the company. As more people end up buying a share of Tesla, or 2+, we can show how are investing in the company as another way to do our part in climate action. I do intend to stick with the stock through most anything, because I see its survival and growth as critical to getting the climate under control. This is a narrative that we should see playing out more and more, which makes Tesla stock a rather unique case.
I feel that Tesla will continue to see massive sales growth in the coming years, as Teslas become more common on the streets around us. As other people outside the sustainability community begin to gain awareness as to the role Tesla has taken in the push toward renewable energy, and as more people start to recognize Teslas in their own neighborhoods, the stock will certainly rise in value.

About the AuthorCarolyn Fortuna Carolyn Fortuna, Ph.D. is a writer, researcher, and educator with a lifelong dedication to ecojustice. She's won awards from the Anti-Defamation League, The International Literacy Association, and The Leavy Foundation. She’s molds scholarship into digital media literacy and learning to spread the word about sustainability issues. Please follow me on Twitter and Facebook and Google+

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Electric Car Tipping Point Is At Hand

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Batteries Published on February 1st, 2019 | by Guest Contributor
Electric Car Tipping Point Is At HandTwitterLinkedInFacebookFebruary 1st, 2019 by Guest Contributor
Originally published on EVANNEX.
By Charles Morris

Could 2018 go down in history as the beginning of the end for fossil-powered vehicles? Several auto industry analysts quoted in a recent Financial Times article (via The Drive) think it’s a possibility. “We will probably see the peak of combustion engine car sales in 2018,” Felipe Munoz, an automotive analyst for Jato Dynamics, told FT, adding that his company’s ‘optimistic’ forecast for the global auto market had changed in the last six months.”
EVs like the Tesla Model S are changing car buyers’ impressions of driving electric. Photo via Tesla ShuttleAfter several years of record growth, auto sales in China, Europe, and the US are leveling off. “When you look at 2018 since the summer, new car sales in all of the important markets are going down,” Axel Schmidt, global automotive lead for Accenture, told FT. “Selling combustion engine cars to customers — this will not grow in the future.”
Selling electric cars to customers, however, is expected to grow. Moody’s forecasts that the market share of EVs will rise to 1.6 percent, offsetting the decline in ICE vehicle sales. Most of the growth in EV adoption, at least in the near term, will happen in China, where automakers are investing huge sums in electrification as the government is making it almost impossible for them to expand production of gas-burning cars.
Of course, the US and European automakers have been producing EVs for years — and selling very few (except for a certain California company). Fossil fuel-burning cars won’t be going away if consumers continue to demand them. However, there’s good news on this front as well. Last May, a survey by AAA found that 20% of respondents said their next vehicle would be an EV, up from 15% in 2017, when AAA first posed the question.
Photo via EVmatch
More recently, a survey conducted by the popular video series Fully Charged found existing EV owners to be overwhelmingly happy with their choice to go electric. Out of some 7,700 responses to the audience survey, 88 percent of plug-in car drivers said they would never go back to driving an ICE vehicle. (See Motor1 or Renewable Energy Magazine for more details about the Fully Charged survey results.)
As savvy observers of the scene know, most consumers won’t buy EVs to save money, or for their environmental benefits, but because they are better vehicles. “We’ve always maintained that, simply because they are better technologies, electric vehicles and renewables will become mainstream, and this is borne out by our survey,” said Fully Charged host Robert Llewellyn. “It’s the cars in particular that are starting to turn heads, and having driven all of them from the Tesla Model 3 to VW’s hotly-anticipated I.D., I can honestly say that there’s a really cool choice of electric cars for almost every budget.”
As any Tesla owner can attest, it’s the test drive that sells an electric car. “Having experienced how impressive electric cars are, we were not surprised to see so many other drivers saying that they won’t go back to the combustion engine, but it might shock those that have yet to switch,” said Llewellyn. “Perhaps more surprising was that the two-thirds of our audience who are yet to buy an EV intend to do so in the next couple of years.”
Related story: The Economist: Global Tipping Point For Electric Cars In 2018 (Video)

About the AuthorGuest Contributor is many, many people. We publish a number of guest posts from experts in a large variety of fields. This is our contributor account for those special people. 😀

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Tesla Model 3 = Most Loved Car In USA

Hot news off the press (and found on Twitter thanks to Earl of Frunkpuppy) is that the Tesla Model 3 is now the most loved car in the US according to these owner surveys

Tesla: Model S & Model X Production, AR Production Improvements, And Model Y Rumors

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Cars Published on January 24th, 2019 | by Steve Hanley
Tesla: Model S & Model X Production, AR Production Improvements, And Model Y RumorsTwitterLinkedInFacebookJanuary 24th, 2019 by Steve Hanley
It takes a lot to keep up with everything that’s happening at Tesla these days. After the company announced it was laying off 3,000 production workers last week, the media has been filled with scary headlines about how the company is fighting for survival. Now, to stir the pot even further, comes news that changes are taking place in the production of the Model S and Model X.

CNBC reports it has been told by several recently laid off workers that the company has suspended nighttime production of the Model S and Model X at the factory in Fremont. Is there a connection between that and the decision to stop selling the 75 kWh battery version of those cars? Possibly. Both cars now cost nearly $20,000 more than they did when the 75 kWh battery was available. It’s no surprise such a significant price increase might have an impact on demand.
A former Tesla engineer tells CNBC the company is debating whether to “sunset” either the Model S or the Model X, although what that means exactly was not explained and a key note there is that it was a former Tesla engineer. Also, we’ve never heard before that the Model S or Model X would be pulled at some point — quite the opposite, that they’d always be Tesla’s top-tier offerings. Who is this former engineer? We don’t know, but she or he also said there was no upgrade team for the S or X working on a vehicle refresh.
Tesla has learned a lot about manufacturing automobiles since the first Model S rolled off the line in June of 2012. There is surely some potential improvement to the production process if tackled comprehensively. Also, with the lower-cost Model 3 now at steady, high-volume production, there is less need (and probably less demand) for the lower-range Model S 75D.
In a statement to CNBC, Tesla said, “We recently announced that we are no longer taking orders for the 75 kWh version of Model S and X in order to streamline production and provide even more differentiation with Model 3. As a result of this change and because of improving efficiencies in our production lines, we have reduced Model S and X production hours accordingly. At the same time, these changes, along with continuing improvements, give us the flexibility to increase our production capacity in the future as needed. We’ll be providing more details on our earnings call next week.”
There is a bit of confusion here. Some outlets are claiming that Tesla Model S and X production output is being cut significantly. The statement from Tesla indicates production hours are being cut and improved efficiencies on the production lines actually provide “the flexibility to increase our production capacity.” Hmm, which way are the sales going — up or down?

Augmented Reality Comes To ManufacturingTesla has a passion for robotic assembly techniques as it races to create “the machine that builds the machine.” But just a short while ago, Elon Musk admitted that robots have their limitations and that there is no substitute for human workers when it comes to getting the job done. “Yes, excessive automation at Tesla was a mistake. To be precise, my mistake. Humans are underrated,” he tweeted last April. Tesla hired a lot of new workers last year, then trimmed many of those new hires from its payroll last week.
On a related note, Tesla recently filed a patent application for new augmented reality technology it says will speed up production while improving the accuracy of the assembly process. According to Teslarati, the patent application has the following explanation:
“There are many practical applications for the augmented reality (AR) manufacturing techniques discussed herein. In some embodiments, the AR device is used to program a robot to assemble one or more parts including identifying and marking the precise location and order of welds, self-pierced rivets, laser welds, adhesives, sealers, holes, fasteners, or other mechanical joints, etc. As another example, the AR device can be used to inspect the quality of the assembly for a vehicle such as whether the locations of welds are correct, whether the interfaces between parts such as body panels are within tolerances, whether holes are drilled or punched at the correct location, whether the fit and finish of assembly is correct, etc.
“In some embodiments, vision recognition is utilized. Individual sheet metal components and/or assemblies that are or will be part of the body-in-white (also known as the structural frame or body) are recognized. Once the component/system has been identified, computer-aided design (CAD) information (e.g., information and/or symbols associated with the mechanical joints) is aligned/scaled and rendered on corresponding identified physical model components. The application of the disclosed techniques applies to many different contexts of manufacturing.
“For example, the AR device can be used to map the quality of a coating on an automotive part such as determining the thickness of an e-coating on a vehicle body and identifying problem areas that are difficult to coat. In some embodiments, the AR device is used to map out a factory floor and to identify the precise location and orientation robots should be installed at to build out an assembly line. The robots are positioned based on the AR device such that the installed robots will not interfere with each other or other obstructions in the environment.”
Credit: US Patent Office
Tesla has set very aggressive goals for its Shanghai factory, which it hopes to have up and running just over a year from now. Could AR technology play a role in bringing the new facility online quicker and turning out high quality cars sooner than many think possible?
Tesla Model Y TimelineThere is much speculation at the Model 3 Owners Club about the Model Y, based on a story on Seeking Alpha that suggests Tesla may not begin taking reservations for it until it is close to the time of production — a reversal of the hoopla that preceded the Model 3 launch. Keep in mind that everything that follows is little more than unsubstantiated rumors. The official reveal is widely expected in March, although the company has not said anything on that subject. [Editor’s note: I asked Elon Musk about the reservation and rollout plan for the Model Y on Tesla’s 3rd quarter financials call, specifically hoping that Tesla would delay reservations until close to production time. We’ll see. —Zach]
Model 3 Owners Club member LoveSword added this on the forum last month: “Here is a ‘I heard from a guy who heard from a guy…’ addition (grains of salt and all that): One of the Rangers that’s been out to work on my car has been with Tesla since Roadster days. He went through orientation and is friends with a guy who has risen within the company. According to the Ranger, when he talked with this guy about the Y he was told, ‘You wouldn’t believe how far along we are already on the Y.’ That was in September when the Ranger was out for my headlight replacement. So… there’s that.”
One topic of discussion is whether the Model Y will have falcon-wing doors like its Model X big brother. Elon tweeted 3½ years ago that it would, but he deleted that tweet the next day and, since then, he has been quiet about the details of the Model Y. On the Q2 Tesla earnings call in 2017, he said his engineers had brought him back from the “cliffs of insanity,” and then added: “After talking to my executive team, the Model Y will use a significant amount of Model 3 components.”
On the falcon-wing door subject, Model 3 Owners Club member 11thIndian offered this opinion: “If you want them, then I guess you can point to [Musk’s statement from 2017] and be hopeful. From my perspective as someone who does not want them, that tweet was made so long ago in terms of the Model Y’s development, I give it no credence whatsoever now. And honestly, if the Model Y is the budget Model X, then the Falcon Wing Doors are the first thing to go in terms of complexity and cost.”
When will the Model Y get here and what will it look like? Hopefully the car that is supposed to break the back of the internal combustion car industry will be revealed in March and all our questions will be answered.

About the AuthorSteve Hanley Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Rhode Island and anywhere else the Singularity may lead him. His motto is, “Life is not measured by how many breaths we take but by the number of moments that take our breath away!” You can follow him on Google + and on Twitter.

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Own Tesla Stock? Want To Ask Elon A Question On Shareholder Call?

Editor's note: CleanTechnica, EVANNEX, and surely others were given a sneak preview of some Tesla investment news from Galileo Russell. The TSLA YouTuber has been working on a way to give retail investors a bigger voice on Tesla (and other) financials calls. Read on below to learn more and participate

Tesla vs. Clayton Christensen’s Idea of Tech Disruption

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Batteries Published on January 26th, 2019 | by Guest Contributor
Tesla vs. Clayton Christensen’s Idea of Tech DisruptionTwitterLinkedInFacebookJanuary 26th, 2019 by Guest Contributor
Originally published on EVANNEX.
By Charles Morris
The words “innovation” and “disruption” have been casually tossed around in the press so much that, like “awesome,” they’ve lost most of their meaning for the average reader. However, there’s a whole community of people who study these phenomena in minute detail, and Dr. Clayton Christensen is one of their prophets. Recently, a doctrinal difference between Christensen and Elon Musk has catalyzed a lively theological debate.
Two iconic figures in the realm of business disruption, Elon Musk and Dr. Clayton Christensen (Images: Wired UK / Nieman Reports)To simplify for the layman, Dr. Christensen is an exponent of “low-end disruption,” whereas Tesla is an object lesson in “high-end disruption,” the concept that innovation can begin at the high end of a market and later trickle down to the mainstream. In December, Elon Musk tweeted, “Clayton is wrong. New tech is always expensive. Tech disruption occurs at *high end*, eg computers & cell phones. It takes many iterations & vast economies of scale to achieve mass market affordability.”
Far from being offended, Dr. Christensen replied, “We’re all rooting for you!” and invited Musk to join him for a chat on innovation.
Jay Gerhart, a practitioner of disruptive innovation theory and “a huge fan of both of these brilliant men,” set out to reconcile their conflicting positions in an article published in Medium.
Apparently the current debate was sparked by an article in TechCrunch in which Chandrasekar Iyer of the Clayton Christensen Institute argued that Tesla’s entry into China represents a “sustaining innovation” (as opposed to a “disruptive innovation”), and that Tesla “will enter an established market to compete along existing measures of performance, like acceleration, style and luxury.”
Elon Musk argues that Christensen has it backwards when it comes to disruption in the tech sector. (Twitter: Elon Musk)As Gerhart points out, many have written about the phenomenon of high-end disruption, citing Uber, Tesla, Apple, Garmin, and Dyson as examples of transformative technologies and business models that started at the high end of the market and worked their way down. However, Shaye Roseman of the Harvard Business School recently argued that high-end disruption is “unlikely to occur,” because struggles for the high ground favor deep-pocketed incumbents, and it’s difficult to move down-market once you start at the top.
Much of the disagreement among these theologians may have more to do with terminology than with real-world results. As Gerhart puts it, “I find many debates these days to be framed a bit too black and white. Dr. Christensen’s theory has certainly sparked decades of debate since its introduction more than twenty years ago [and] the digital era has introduced new, complex dynamics.” In a 2015 article, Dr. Christensen argued that Tesla should be classified as a “sustaining innovation” rather than a “high-end disruption.” But could it be that the distinction is not so clear-cut? “Is it possible that under specific circumstances, a sustaining innovation could have characteristics that have a transformative impact on incumbents?” Gerhart asks.
Gerhart believes that the uniqueness of Tesla’s business model (and of its CEO) may enable it to have a transformative effect on the automotive industry while still fitting the definition of a sustaining innovation. He points out that Tesla’s highly integrated approach, which has many similarities to that of Apple, gives it a significant near-term advantage over incumbents that are struggling to manage the transition to electrification.
Will the legacy automakers rise to the challenge? Ford, VW and others are currently making the right noises, but it remains to be seen whether the promises in their press releases will lead to volume production of compelling electric vehicles. Gerhart suggests that automakers may need to set up separate divisions to compete effectively with Tesla.

Touching on an experience at BMW, Christensen discusses some of the disruption dilemmas facing companies (YouTube: Implement Consulting Group)
Regardless of which side you take in the sectarian schism in the religion of disruption, there’s one thing everyone can agree on: “This will be a fascinating market to watch over the next few years.”

About the AuthorGuest Contributor is many, many people. We publish a number of guest posts from experts in a large variety of fields. This is our contributor account for those special people. 😀

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Tesla Model Y To Share 76% Of Parts With Model 3, Be Built At Gigafactories

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Autonomous Vehicles Published on January 31st, 2019 | by Kyle Field
Tesla Model Y To Share 76% Of Parts With Model 3, Be Built At GigafactoriesTwitterLinkedInFacebookJanuary 31st, 2019 by Kyle Field
On its Q4 2018 earnings call last night, Tesla confirmed that the Model Y will be the first vehicle it will build at its Gigafactory 1 in Sparks, Nevada. In parallel, it plans to build the crossover (CUV) at its new Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai, China. The latter was shared previously and the former was long suspected. We actually got intel recently that the Model Y would be built at Gigafactory 1, but for some reason decided to not break the news. We do have other exclusive info coming about Gigafactory 1, though.
The Tesla automotive family. Image credit: Tesla
Shared DNAThe Model Y is expected to be received warmly and will have more demand than any of Tesla’s other vehicles, since customers across the world continue to move away from cars to crossovers. Tesla plans to build the Model Y off of the Model 3 platform, with the two sharing 76% of the same parts, according to Tesla CEO Elon Musk. This shared DNA between Model 3 and Model Y will allow Tesla to leverage even greater economies of scale in its supply chain and demand even lower prices from its suppliers, in addition to improving its downstream efficiencies with the supply of parts to its service centers and approved body shops.
Parts sharing was the premise for the design of Tesla’s full-sized Model S and Model X, but that promise did not play out as planned. Instead, Tesla pushed to include an ever-increasing list of new features in the Model X as it evolved into the “faberge egg” of cars, according to CEO Elon Musk. When all was said and done, the two vehicles only ended up sharing about 30% common parts. Elon shared on the Q4 2018 earnings call that the Model X is a work of art and that nothing like it will probably ever be made again.
The production design of the Model Y has been completed and parts orders are already going out to suppliers in advance of the official unveiling of the vehicle, which could be as early as March, if vague tweets from Elon are taken literally.
Cars From The GigafactoriesThe Model Y will be the first of Tesla’s vehicles that will be produced at Tesla’s Gigafactories, as Musk announced that the company plans to build the Model Y completely at its Gigafactory 1 in Sparks, Nevada. (The Model S, Model X, and Model 3 are produced at its factory in Fremont, California, with some parts coming from the Gigafactory.)
In parallel, the company will ramp up production at Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai, China, where Tesla plans to go from a muddy lot to cars rolling out the door in less than a year. Model 3 will be the first vehicle produced there, with Model Y following not long after in high volume in 2020, if all goes well.
The Tesla Fremont Factory. Image credit: Tesla
“Tesla has the first wholly owned manufacturing facility in China of any automotive company. This is profound,” Musk said. Tesla pulled the trigger on the location of the Shanghai Gigafactory within a few days of China removing the requirement to have local partners for manufacturing plants in the country. That gives Tesla full control over the factory and a leg up on its foreign automotive competition in the Chinese market.

Tesla shared on the earnings call that, thanks to government support and “extremely compelling interest rates,” Tesla expected to bring the new factory online in record time, and at a significantly lower cost. “As a ballpark figure, it’s probably about a half a billion dollars capex” to get Gigafactory 3 up and running at a 3,000 vehicle per week rate by the end of 2019.
Building batteries and cars from a single factory is not a new vision for Tesla, which makes the prospect of building cars effectively from raw material up through the finished product at a single factory that much more exciting. Clearly tons of materials and parts still need to be shipped in, but minimizing non-value add transportation and logistics expenses helps Tesla to optimize its cost picture and, ultimately, keep the price of its products as low as possible for as many customers as possible.
Have a read of our live blog summary of the Tesla Q4 2018 call (and letter) or head over to Tesla’s Investor Relations site to read Tesla’s Q4 2018 earnings letter and listen to the webcast recording for more juicy details from an exciting quarter for Tesla.

About the AuthorKyle Field I'm a tech geek passionately in search of actionable ways to reduce the negative impact my life has on the planet, save money and reduce stress. Live intentionally, make conscious decisions, love more, act responsibly, play. The more you know, the less you need. TSLA investor. Tesla referral code: http://ts.la/kyle623

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Tesla & Elon Musk’s #1 Priority For 1st Quarter Is Improving Service

Tesla is refocusing on service as its top priority now that it has stabilized production and delivery for Model 3, CEO Elon Musk said yesterday on the company's Q4 2018 earnings call. Elon said on the call, “One of our major priorities for this quarter is improving service operations,” with a specific focus on North America, which is home to the majority of Tesla's vehicles

Nikola Motors Targets Laid Off Tesla Workers

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Clean Transport Published on January 29th, 2019 | by Steve Hanley
Nikola Motors Targets Laid Off Tesla WorkersTwitterLinkedInFacebookJanuary 29th, 2019 by Steve Hanley
Trevor Milton, CEO of Nikola Motors, is using LinkedIn to invite workers laid off recently by Tesla to apply for work at his company. “Forward this on to all Tesla workers,” the message says. “Anyone who was affected by the #tesla layoffs, please let me know and I’ll try to get you in front of our HR to be reviewed. We have hired as many as fit our positions from the #faraday and #gm layoffs so this is not a bash on Tesla. We are hiring hundreds of positions and have large cash reserves with a great company culture.” (h/t The Drive)

Tesla and Nikola have not had the most cordial of relationships in the past. As we’ve reported before, Nikola has sued Tesla, claiming Tesla’s all-electric Semi is a thinly disguised knockoff of its own proposed vehicle, which will be powered by electricity from hydrogen fuel cells. Nikola says Tesla has copied its idea for a central opening and wraparound windshield, among other things.
If Nikola’s claims are accurate, it has taken reservations worth $8 billion for its truck — enough to cover the cost of 7,000 vehicles. By contrast, Tesla is believed to have received about 650 pre-orders for its Semi. Neither company has announced when production is expected to begin.
Milton is at pains to make it clear this latest move is not a knock on Tesla but simply an attempt to help talented people who suddenly find themselves out of a job. “I feel for everyone that goes through that especially with financial obligations. If #tesla could they would keep everyone but it’s the result in growing in a competitive market. I hope I can help all those affected.”

To be clear, Milton is not saying his company will hire all former Tesla employees who apply. His offer is only to expedite the application process if they choose to come work at Nikola. One clear advantage is that Nikola Motors is based near Salt Lake City, Utah, where the cost of housing is considerably less than in the superheated real estate market of Silicon Valley.
One unanswered question about Nikola’s business plan is where its customers will be able to refuel their trucks once they are produced and on the road. Hydrogen refueling stations can cost $2 million or more while EV charging equipment runs a few hundred thousand at most, even for the Megachargers Tesla will need to recharge its own electric trucks.
Then there is the question of where to obtain a supply of hydrogen. In the United States, most hydrogen comes from natural gas and most natural gas comes from fracking — one of the dirtiest energy technologies of all. Between the harm caused to the environment by injecting water loaded with chemicals deep underground and the damage caused by methane emissions from fracking operations, the natural gas that results has a carbon footprint equivalent to coal.
It’s hard to see how Nikola’s fuel cell powered trucks can claim to have the same environmental benefits of the Tesla Semi. Which is important, since the whole point of electric trucks is to reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector. Nikola Motors may have 7,000 reservations for its truck, but if so, the companies who placed those orders are being very quiet about their commitments.

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