Seriously, though, I don’t wish Tesla ill. And I’m not bitter about what they have done, or are doing. If they can succeed at it, great for them.

But when people like Jason Calacanis tout Tesla as a great success, I beg to differ. In my eyes, they have failed as a ompany. Burning money like a GM with no hope of a profit. That’s all.

Is there a contradiction there Tesla Deathwatcher? I think that sounds bitter and is an unbalanced reaction to Tesla, their car, their perceived place in electric automotive history etc.

I’m sure Messrs Eberhard and Musk have their flaws, I imagine ego and bloody-mindedness help sustain people who are pushing boundaries.

This thread is strangely negative.

Isn’t the Tesla car important in itself; it appeals to the emotions we fight against when we think of the planet/climate change. The Tesla is a piece green indulgence in a sea of green sacrifice. In this way it is totemic.

Except they weren’t leading us anywhere. They burned through a lot of cash and have a business plan that does not work. Tesla’s electric propulsion technology may be of its own design, but it is, technology-wise, a dead knock-off of the AC Propulsion tzero. The body and chassis is a knock-off of the Lotus Elise. What has Tesla really accomplished? Not a whole lot.

Had we seen more humility from Elon Musk and Martin Eberhard and less hubris, they might get a more sympathetic reception now. I listened closely for any acknowledgement from Tesla of the contributions to the Tesla Roadster of AC Propulsion and Lotus. Not a word of acknowledgement, let alone praise, was spoken. According to Martin Eberhard, the Tesla Roadster is all of Tesla’s own design.

To top it off, Tesla has the gall to sue Henrik Fisker over trade secret infringement. The arbitrator finds in favor of Fisker, and chews Tesla out for bringing the case in bad faith. What does Elon Musk say about it? He says the arbitrator made the wrong decision. Oh, right.

Entrepreneurs and companies that labor long and hard through difficult times to bring something new to market deserve their reward. I am sometimes envious of those people, but do not begrudge them their success. They earned it.

But I do feel it only fair when a company like Tesla that basked in glory it did not earn has to taste the bitter fruit of adversity. They had money to burn, and they sure burned it. If they still find some way to make it, great for them. They already took their victory lap. Now win the race. I will hold my applause until then.

The spin continues to boggle the mind. I can’t wait for Jason to check his range in 1 year then in 2 years etc. The battery capacity and range degradation issues are not yet fully known and solved for the 18650 cells other than the known horrible decay associated with our everyday laptops.

Elon’s interview citing that a quick re-charge station can exist 220 miles out from LA may work on week number 1, but what about week 52 and week 104, etc when the range decays to 60% of original state? Remind me what a battery replacement costs?

Also, hill climb in the summer will be a thrill when you drive to Vegas from LA and you can’t pass a Ford Taurus pulling a trailer uphill as your powertrain is overheating and the car diverted to “safe mode” to protect the superhot motor.

The car is a blast to drive initially, but this toy will not pass the test of practicality or real scrutiny when premium sedan buyers who look at the Model S compare it to real cars for the same price.

As a toy with short quick trips around town it is groovy, but it is not yet ready for prime time.

Applaud Martin and Marc for their vision, but fault Elon for Tesla’s demise. Comforting note though, Elon fired a quality manager to save $60K in the UK last week, but decided to replace the high cubicle walls in San Carlos with new Ikea furnishings this week for $100K. At least his priorities are in the right place: window dressing. Perception is reality…

Even though I think Tesla made a mistake in throwing Martin off the bus, I still want them to succeed, and so does Martin. (I am not speaking for him; simply read his blog and he says so explicitly).

I hope none of this gives Jason second thoughts about letting Robert’s team borrow his Tesla. I would really love to see the results of the subsequent testing.

D

“Tesla’s powertrain is being sold to other auto companies and producing a good revenue stream.”

That’s news to me. What carmaker buys Tesla’s powertrain? I’ve never heard that, and doubt it very much. In my opinion, Tesla has contributed little if any to the state of the electric car art.

I don’t understand all of the negativity. Who would think it’s a great thing if Tesla is a failure? Nobody with any sense, that’s for sure. Electric cars are the future, and my congratulations to Tesla, the first company with the guts to go for it. Now Chrysler and GM are trying to copy them since it appears that they are being successful.

Can’t wait for my roadster.

How does it compare to a Lotus Elise or Exige, though? I don’t see how it could have them beat in the handling department. Also have you ever driven an Ariel Atom or its Brambo (I think that was the name of the American supplier in Ashland) counterpart?

I know that Signature #52 was being delivered yesterday. (Which would make 77 cars total)

10 days ago when I stopped in, they had cars through sig #64 in the Menlo Park store (going through final testing).

I am sig #76. Once I get mine in ~2 weeks, they will have delivered over 100 cars to paying customers.

What number do they need to hit to stop being called vaporware?!? Feel free to be cynical about longer term plans (like I could stop you) but the Roadster is real….

Walk around downtown Palo Alto on a random day and you’ll see how vaporous it is. I saw two of them parked on the street yesterday!

-Jon

Reminds me a lot of the Bond Bug:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bond_bug

that came in tangerine only.

I think, for cars, the “vaporware” level should be set to the number of Tuckers built (51). Looks like the Tesla has surpassed that. Good for them.

From my point of view: they must survive on car sales alone.

Did you buy this because it is “green” or for novelty? Just curious of the mindset of someone that can actually afford it.

Thanks for the response. I’m only cynical because Tesla didn’t hire me…well and because I believe they were on an already outrageously ambitious but correct path, ie. build a sexy niche product at low volume and high price, and then deviated from it. Clearly, if they had focused more energy on the Roadster and gotten it to market closer to the initial cost/timing targets, Tesla would be in outstanding shape right now.

Instead they got way ahead of themselves. First, they tried to increase the performance of the roadster before they even had the initial design perfected. Then, they started working on the Model S/Whitestar before they got the Roadster to market.

Now, they have a limited number of products on the road and questionable ability to fill the orders they’ve taken deposits on, never mind money to fund the Model S program. And that doesn’t take into account the great job they have done in paving the way for their competition. I can’t fault Tesla for their extreme ambition, but I believe their naiveté and lack of patience will do them in.

TFFL!