Tesla Burns Through Record Cash to Bring the Model 3 to Market

Post by ghostbrainalpha » Thu, Aug 03, 2017, 7:11 PM UTC

tbabb wrote: post #72

simonsarris wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with my whole heart. I think we have a moral imperative to develop electronic transportation, sooner rather than later. We think about the future much too little. Ever since we decide to concentrate farming and transport most food to mouths, we've relied on oil as a life-support system for 7.5+ billion people. There is no going back to pre-oil without a lot of those people dying, and oil will eventually be to…

> "It’s as if there’s a worldwide commitment to helping this company succeed" This statement makes me so happy, (a) because I feel I've noticed the same thing, (b) because it gives me faith that people actually care about putting money in good/important places, and (c) it implies that the economy understands that sustainable transport is actually an important cause, to the tune of $50B. This is what investment should…

Post by am1988 » Thu, Aug 03, 2017, 7:17 PM UTC

this_user wrote: post #70

meddlepal wrote: post #25

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I really doubt the other car companies will let that happen. Either they'll work out the battery and motor tech themselves OR they'll push for hydrogen. The automotive industry isn't going to let a company like Tesla bully them around.

Audi already had to scrap one of their EV models, because its technology was so far behind Tesla's by the time it was ready to hit the market. Traditional car makers are just extremely slow to adjust, because they have never faced any real disruption. They've effectively been selling the same product for decades with only some marginal and incremental improvements. Tesla, on the other hand, is using the SV model of d…

Post by tokipin » Thu, Aug 03, 2017, 7:20 PM UTC

dkrich wrote: post #149

tokipin wrote: post #123

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> I think there's a huge risk for Tesla that most people don't factor in- that it's very possible that most car buyers simply don't want one. This is a legit worry, but well-designed electric cars are better than gas cars by a large margin, without question. Ultimately this is the only requirement, and it's one of the reasons Tesla is so extreme in its design aspirations. So this risk is not a risk at all in the case…

Why is it not a risk for Tesla but a risk for Chevrolet?

Post by pvg » Thu, Aug 03, 2017, 7:25 PM UTC

j7ake wrote: post #80

flexie wrote: post #61

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Whether Tesla survives or not, these billions are some of the best spent money on the planet in the last 50 years. What are the accumulated losses so far? $5-10B? Even if Tesla were to spend another $50B and go bankrupt, I would still maintain it's great. What Tesla has achieved is so important in the long run for the environment, for ending the strategic dependence on oil dictatorships, and for renewing the belief i…

So what has been the net reduction of CO2 usage because of tesla to date?

Post by reallydontask » Thu, Aug 03, 2017, 7:36 PM UTC

amaranth wrote: post #133

reallydontask wrote: post #106

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I'm going to venture that it's not even a rounding error. In fact, in places it will likely have increased the CO2 emissions, again rounding error figures, due to the electricity generation mix and associated losses with generating that electricity (30-60% efficiency), plus transport losses (0.5 - 10%), plus charging loses, plus the efficiency of the motor itself.

The internal combustion engine in a car is around 20% efficiency while a coal power plant is around 55%. Gasoline powered drivetrains are also fairly inefficient leading to around 16% "tank to wheel" efficiency. Electric motors are about 90% efficient. An electric car is making more efficient use of the energy. It's also centralizing the source of the pollution rather than having to try to deal with it in every car o…