Tesla – Page 2484 – I wish I had more to offer

Curt Brubaker Tells Us If His 78 Concept Is Tesla Cybertruck’s Father

It was one of the stars of the October 1978 edition of Penthouse. In October 1978, the Penthouse magazine had a different star. It was not on the cover, and it was not a naked lady but rather an innovative pickup truck. Penthouse contacted some of the most celebrated car designers of the time: Giorgetto… Continue reading Curt Brubaker Tells Us If His 78 Concept Is Tesla Cybertruck’s Father

Tesla Getting Into The Mining Business Makes Sense

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Published on December 9th, 2019 |

by Johnna Crider

Tesla Getting Into The Mining Business Makes Sense

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December 9th, 2019 by Johnna Crider

Sean Mitchell has published his thoughts on YouTube as to why Tesla getting into the mining business makes sense. When Elon Musk first talked about Tesla going into the mining business, I got really excited, but my mind went off in another direction. I immediately envisioned a Tesla booth at a gem show with minerals in every color shaped like little Teslas. I am sure that’s not what Elon had in mind.

For Tesla as a company to make money, it needs to make sure it’s not spending too much, and one way of doing this is scaling up battery production and managing parts of the supply chain that need its leadership.

How are batteries made? What minerals are needed to make Tesla batteries, and would taking some of the elements of the batteries’ creation into Tesla’s own hands be cost-effective? This could make a lot of sense. Sean explains what Tesla already has down in this regard.

Sean believes that Tesla acquired Maxwell and Hibar so that it could control two-thirds of the production process. The last part it doesn’t have control over is the sourcing of raw materials such as copper, lithium, etc. Sean tells us that in his opinion, this is fundamental to Tesla reducing its cost in creating the battery packs. I agree.

In 2017, Kurt Kelty, former Tesla Senior Director of Battery Tech, gave a presentation in which he talked about how important it was to reduce the cost of making the batteries. How far into the battery supplies Tesla goes to make that happen is the question. Another thing we learn from Sean’s video is that nickel, not lithium, is the largest single raw material cost in high-energy-density Li-ion batteries. Nickel, cobalt, and lithium are all minerals that the cathode materials are made with.

His thought is that if Tesla is going to move toward becoming its own mining company, it will most likely do so around nickel, not cobalt or lithium. Also, when it comes to sourcing these minerals, Tesla is sourcing them ethically. It’s committed to sourcing responsibly produced materials, and it makes sure its suppliers provide a certification of origin as well as a description of risk mitigation practices. Tesla also performs onsite visits to try to ensure that no illegally mined or artisanal material enters Tesla’s supply chain. For more on the concerns in that regard, see this article.

My Thoughts On Sean’s Video
I fully agree with Sean and I wanted to provide some insight as well. I am a gem and mineral collector — I have a small collection (I even have a rare opal with trace amounts of uranium in it!) and got into this from my wire art. In fact, I tweeted some random minerals to Elon Musk before I seriously got back into writing. It was fun. He even told me once that his favorite mineral is iron pyrite, which is fool’s gold and oddly an actual ore of gold.

From my perspective, I can see other ways Tesla could bring in profits from the mines. It depends on what the mines actually produce, but there are cases where mines produce more than one mineral. This isn’t an idea just for Tesla, but also The Boring Company, which could make bricks of all the dirt from the tunnels to help with housing. Our planet is rich with minerals, and minerals are all popular collectors’ items.

People buy crystals, minerals, and gems for various reasons. If Tesla gets into the mining industry and ends up with minerals besides what it needs, it could sell them to wholesalers across the world that specialize in the sale of minerals or need them for other purposes.

When I had my store in 2016, I met a representative of a mine in Nigeria who brought me a variety of emeralds and tourmalines. He explained to me that many mines produce many minerals and that even though the owner of that mine solely wanted to focus on emeralds, he realized that the profits from other minerals were vast and started selling those as well.

All in all, if Tesla gets into the mining industry, it could not only save the company some money, but when you consider that Elon Musk is well known for revolutionizing industries he gets into, it would be interesting to see how Tesla influenced this one.
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About the Author

Johnna Crider Johnna Crider is a Baton Rouge artist, gem and mineral collector, and Tesla shareholder who believes in Elon Musk and Tesla. Elon Musk advised her in 2018 to “Believe in Good.”

Tesla is one of many good things to believe in. You can find Johnna on Twitter

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Tesla Dials Up VW Challenge With German Service Expansion

Tesla Dials Up VW Challenge With German Service Expansion Bloomberg | Dec 9, 2019 at 12:16 PM Tesla Inc.’s expansion on the home turf of Volkswagen AG, Daimler AG and BMW AG is gathering pace.

Video of Cybertruck driving on California highway reveals more questions

A video just surfaced showing the Tesla Cybertruck driving around LA. Elon Musk is purportedly driving, but it’s not confirmed that he was behind the wheel while this video was filmed. However, the video reveals several things. Who’s driving @ElonMusk or the Auto-Pilot?$TSLA pic.twitter.com/xvmyHPG8Ol — GuruLeaks (@Guruleaks1) December 8, 2019 One, there are no mirrors… Continue reading Video of Cybertruck driving on California highway reveals more questions

Tesla gets kudos from VW for car of the year award in ad, challenges them with ID.3

Tesla won the car of the year award in Switzerland and VW surprisingly paid for an ad to congratulate Tesla and challenges them with the ID.3 for next year. A twelve-member jury awarded the coveted title of “Swiss Car of the Year 2020” to the Tesla Model 3 earlier this month. Tesla’s electric sedan beat… Continue reading Tesla gets kudos from VW for car of the year award in ad, challenges them with ID.3

Tesla Cybertruck will launch a disruption in the camper/trailer industry

Tesla has hinted at making its own trailer for the Cybertruck, and it’s likely to launch a disruption in the camper and trailer industry as some aftermarket products are already in the works. When unveiling the Cybertruck, Tesla announced some impressive specs, including a range of up to 500 miles and a towing capacity of… Continue reading Tesla Cybertruck will launch a disruption in the camper/trailer industry

Tesla adds stop sign and traffic light 3D renders in move to city driving visualization

Tesla is adding new stop sign and traffic light 3D renders to its Autopilot visualization as it moves to enable more capabilities for city driving and intersections. Over the last few months, Tesla has been spending more time on its driving visualizations. Powered by Autopilot’s suite of sensors and the automaker’s computer vision system, Tesla… Continue reading Tesla adds stop sign and traffic light 3D renders in move to city driving visualization

Grab Some Cardboard And Make Your Own Tesla Cybertruck

If you follow this tutorial, yours will have four motors instead of only three. A lot of people bashed the Tesla Cybertruck by saying it looked like a cardboard box. Instead of taking that in a bad way, the guys from the DIY Ocean YouTube channel decided to make it real in a nice fashion.… Continue reading Grab Some Cardboard And Make Your Own Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla CEO Musk, Grimes & Friends Spotted Out Driving Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla Cybertruck is Musk’s favorite vehicle, so it makes sense he takes it on this rendezvous. How would you like to head to dinner at one of the nation’s finest and most expensive restaurants? Even better, get a ride there in the Tesla Cybertruck! How about having Tesla CEO Elon Musk as your chauffeur? Well,… Continue reading Tesla CEO Musk, Grimes & Friends Spotted Out Driving Tesla Cybertruck

The #1 Thing I Love About Our Tesla Model 3 That No One Talks About

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Published on December 8th, 2019 |

by Zachary Shahan

The #1 Thing I Love About Our Tesla Model 3 That No One Talks About

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December 8th, 2019 by Zachary Shahan

We spend a lot of time in our Tesla Model 3. Aside from driving approximately the US average, we generally spend about an hour a day sitting in a student pickup line (45 minutes some days, up to an hour and a half others). And then there are various times when I might be working in the car for a while — for example, while the girls enjoy the beach and I have to get articles published on CleanTechnica. 😛

The point is: we spend a lot of time in the car, and a lot of that time involves actually doing stuff, not just driving. That leads into the thing I love about our Tesla Model 3 that gets very little attention — and when it does get attention, often gets negative attention!

The Model 3 has a supremely minimalist — yet premium-feeling — design. With out white & black interior, it feels like what a car interior designed by Apple would look and feel like. The open, clutter-free space is the perfect balance to a life with two young monsters and hectic traffic. Sitting on the comfy white seat, resting my arm on the smooth, black center armrest, and gazing across the empty dash in front of me feels almost like coming home and plopping myself down on the couch to watch tennis. (If I had free time, I think that’s what I’d enjoy doing.)

Everything I need for the car is on the touchscreen, which I can let slip out of my direct view but then can easily check or use as needed. Aside from my phone sitting under the touchscreen and a bottle of water or coffee, my vicinity is clean, clear, and ideal for a peaceful ride. I couldn’t ask for more.

Some people criticize the interior of the Model 3 as basic, simple, or bare. I honestly can’t imagine wanting it to be different, as anything more would be adding clutter. The vegan leather is so smooth and premium. I recall renting a Mercedes a couple of times that had a somewhat similar center console. It was an enjoyable “little thing” that I appreciated at the time. The Model 3’s smooth black center console fits into its surroundings much better (and it feels slightly better as well). The space in front and to the other sides of me fit the elegant and thick right armrest. I don’t have all the clutter the Mercedes swarmed me with.

The car is even more minimalist when it’s driving itself.

This all may seem like a little aspect of the Model 3, and perhaps I’m overdoing it. To the contrary, though, I think this is one of the biggest daily benefits of a truly magical car. Minimalism is often, ironically, under-appreciated. Minimalism done well is difficult, but then so complete and fulfilling.

The drive quality, the interior feel of the car, and the look of the model from the outside as you walk up to it — these are three aspects of a car that an owner regularly notices. Each of them is critical in its own right to a fully enjoyable ownership experience. Everyone should know by now that Tesla nails #1 and is highly regarded for #3, but the superb implementation of #2 is equally if not more important. It is one reason it’d be so hard to switch to any other vehicle.

I will bring up one issue I have on this topic, though. If I sit in the passenger seat, it’s comfortable to move the seat back a bit and work on my laptop. If I have to sit in the driver’s seat and do this, I have to put the seat much further back due to the steering wheel, and I then lose a comfortable position for my elbows. I don’t have anywhere to rest them and I’m too squeezed in to have them hang in space. Now, I don’t expect Tesla to design a solution for such an edge case! However, this review wouldn’t be complete without noting that that’s the one place in which I could see the interior design being much better for my personal use case.

Oh yeah, there’s also the glossy black console between the armrest and touchscreen. I don’t know if it’s Franz, Elon, or both of them who love that glossy black plastic, but I’m yet to meet an owner who loves it and I’ve met several who hate it. I don’t understand the rationale for putting it in a Tesla. I imagine I’ll get mine turned into a matte trim eventually. (Aftermarket suppliers and detailers must appreciate it, since they must make a lot of money hiding the gloss for Tesla owners.)

Have any other thoughts on the wonderful, smooth, elegant Tesla Model 3 interior? Think I’m fully off my rocker? Your comments are welcome … but I’ll spam them if you don’t agree with me! (jk, ofc)

If you’d like to buy a Tesla Model 3, Model S, or Model X and get some free Supercharging miles, feel free to use my special, magical, unicorn-blessed referral code: https://ts.la/zachary63404. You can also get a $100 discount on Tesla solar with that code. There is currently no use for a referral code when putting down a reservation for a Cybertruck or Model Y.
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It will make you happy & help you live in peace for the rest of your life.

About the Author

Zachary Shahan is tryin' to help society help itself one word at a time. He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director and chief editor. He's also the CEO of Important Media. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, Canada, and Curaçao.

Zach has long-term investments in Tesla [TSLA] — after years of covering solar and EVs, he simply has a lot of faith in this company and feels like it is a good cleantech company to invest in. But he offers no investment advice and does not recommend investing in Tesla or any other company.

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