We’re really trying to put together a world-class manufacturing team. We’re trying to create a Spartan army of expertise.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk give Automotive News [sub] his most inspirational metaphor for Tesla’s effort to ready production of its $50k Model S sedan. And though Musk is quick to call outsourced production “wishful thinking,” the vehicle’s transmission and battery cells as well as “wiring harnesses, skeletal mechanisms for the seats, and glass for the windows” will be supplied by outside firms. Musk says that sourcing for 80 percent of the Model S’s components has been narrowed down to one or two companies, and a plant location in Southern California will be announced shortly. But, he notes, the factory deal isn’t done yet. Or, as Musk puts it:
It hasn’t yet been finalized. We’ve almost fully negotiated the deal, but it has not been signed yet
Note to all potential Tesla suppliers and subcontractors: get all orders and contracts pre-paid.
Twotone
I am eager to see the Model S, whose Maserati good looks will make the $40k Volt appear pedestrian.
I work in manufacturing. While in-sourcing everything is romantic and somewhat defendable, outsourcing components and labor that are not your core compentency is what helps companies move forward. We can’t all be frontiersmen anymore.
Tesla is hiring a heck of a lot of engineers out of the recent-graduate crowd right now. Maybe they should say “We’re trying to create a Spartan army of expertise from scratch.”
tesla should build the volt before it becomes obsolete.
+1, but Tesla knows better than to do that.
amen buddy!
Vaporware – their finances are a train wreck. I’ll be surprised if the S ever ends up in the hands of customers. By the time they come to market Ford, Toyota, GM, Nissan, and Fiat will all have ICEs or pure electrics on the market, all at a lower price point. Agree with twotone – get payment up front.
No doubt the Model S is significantly more difficult to finish as compared to the Roadster.
I think Tesla’s finances could always receive a special shot in the arm from Mr. Musk – if he wanted to.
Remember that Tesla has already had the distinction of selling the Roadster years before any other EVs of any meaningful volume. They’ve already moved more Roadsters than GM’s EV1.
And the Model S is not intended to compete in the same space as any products from other mfrs – it’s a high-performance car.
If I had several millions to invest I would open a Tesla/ Chrysler dealership.
Can’t we just put it in a big pile in the driveway, squirt gas on it, then set it alight?
This guy and Fisker should car pool. I keep thinking of North Haverbrook whenever I see an article about either. Ironically, I think it is actually easier to build and launch a vehicle to space than it is to start a car company from scratch. Cars are so heavily regulated, this will only equalize when everyone has a vehicle that can go to space, right? Tucker MkII