TESLA UPDATE 12.15.2020
Output from this column has been infrequent lately largely because there hasn’t been much substantial Tesla news recently. Indeed, Tesla has its head down in an all-out end-of-the-quarter/end-of-the-year push to produce and as important deliver to buyers new Teslas, particularly Model 3s and Ys. Meanwhile traditional ICE vehicle manufacturers have been busy pushing out a […]
TROUBLING FORD TIDBITS ….. 12.03.2020
Readers may remember from my previous blogs several concerns about Ford Motor Company’s management and future. Significant among them were the articles on Ford’s refusal earlier this year to get into its own EV battery manufacturing (either on their own or by acquiring a leading battery manufacturing company), and mention of Ford’s heavy debt load, […]
EV OBSERVATIONS 11.08.2020
Tesla pricing versus Big 3’s ….. $2.8B VW dividend ….. Audi e-tron sales ….. Lordstown Motors’ wheel hub motors **** When it comes to pricing, Tesla continues to provide a sharp contrast versus other US and global automakers. Just in this year alone Tesla has cut the price of its Model 3 by $2,000, the […]
THE AUTO OEMs’ HYBRID EV CON
There are two general types of hybrid ICE/electric vehicles, with many sub-categories, namely: Non plug-in, where the vehicle’s drive (or “traction”) battery is charged by the vehicle’s gasoline or diesel engine. The engine can be a small one not designed to drive the vehicle but only meant to charge the drive battery, or it can […]
ENERGY OBSERVATIONS 10.28.2020
New Tony Seba material ….. Evidence of disruption acceleration ….. Tesla’s growing energy business The disruption of the traditional transportation, oil and gas, and energy industries is in full swing and gaining velocity. Here are some great examples. **** Tony Seba’s 2014 book Clean Disruption first pointed out that a solar farm 30 miles square […]
TESLA UPDATE 10.22.2020
Finally! Tesla’s 3rd quarter financial results are in and as predicted by many, the results are a blowout! Tesla crushed almost every line item’s results. Here are a few noteworthy examples. Automotive gross margin up from 25.5% and less the previous four quarters to 27.7%, up 72% year on year (YoY) Total revenues $8.771 B, […]
EV OBSERVATIONS 10.15.2020
Ford’s publishing breakthrough ….. Tesla’s push for parts count reduction ….. Corn growers bemoan sinking ethanol sales ….. Battery fires plague four EV manufacturers ….. Vermont taxpayers reap huge savings from Green Mountain Power’s energy storage grid ….. More wisdom from Sandy Munro **** After decades, another hint that Ford might be creeping into the […]
EV OBSERVATIONS 10.07.2020
New EVs for US ….. Polestar 2 – Great But Problems ….. Another Steal for Elon ….. New Toyota and Panasonic Battery Plant ….. Taxpayer Cost for Europe’s Company Cars ….. Consumer Reports Discovers EV Owners Save Money! **** Automotive News had a long article recently detailing the many electric vehicles that are coming to […]
TESLA UPDATE 09.30.2020
Tesla’s Battery Day and More………… Great balls of fire!! Following Tesla’s September 22nd Battery Day and the blizzard of innovative technical material from that, other important Tesla news has been flooding in for the past week. This posting will highlight some of these matters. Tesla followers were disappointed that Tesla’s stock price didn’t rise dramatically […]
EV OBSERVATIONS 09.20.2020
Nikola/GM Update ….. Liquid Cooled Charging Cables ….. Wisconsin’s EV Encouragement ….. Amazon’s EU Electric Delivery Van Purchase **** Here’s a brief update on the Nikola/GM fiasco I wrote about recently. The effect on the investment world of Hindenburg Research’s (HR) scathing report alleging Nikola’s fraud and misrepresentations has been polarizing. Electric vehicle cognoscenti and […]