Tesla Model X Advance Orders Exceed $40 Million
Luxury electric crossover won't be ready until at least early 2014.
Seasoned auto-industry observers and pundits have questioned whether Tesla will ever be a successful carmaker and not just an Internet entrepreneur’s pipe dream. But people who want to purchase Tesla vehicles are voting with their dollars, doubters be damned.
After unveiling its new Model X last week in Los Angeles, the company says advance orders for the luxury all-electric crossover exceeded $40 million by the following day. This means that more than 500 people put down $5,000 to reserve the regular production version or $40,000 for the Signature package -- for a vehicle they won’t be able to drive until at least 2014, and without any advertising behind it.
The Tesla Model S sedan also received an advance-order bump from the Model X feeding frenzy: Reservations for the all-electric sedan were up 30 percent, according to the company. Citing the “massive media attention” focused on the Model X unveiling, Tesla says the vehicle’s name was the third-most-searched term on Google. And the company noted that on the night of the unveiling last Thursday, traffic to its website increased 2,800 percent, and that two-thirds of all visitors were new to the website.
The Model X will be built on the same platform as Model S, but with a longer wheelbase. Tesla must sense that a lot of its customers will be former Audi owners, since the company says that the Model X has approximately the same external dimensions as the Q7, but with 40 percent more interior room. Tesla also says the Model X Performance version will accelerate from zero to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, making it faster than many sports cars, including the Porsche 911 Carrera.
Or maybe it’s the "falcon wing" doors of the Model X that has captivated Tesla fans and some of their cash.
[Source: Autoblog]
Can't edit my posts but a Mercedes S350 diesel is a 5,000 lbs car with 4 wheel drive and uses a 240hp & 455tq 3.0L diesel and gets a rate EPA mpg of 21 city 31 hwy. Testing shows city is more like 24 mpg city.
A F-150 supercab 4x4 is the same 5,000 lbs curb weight as the S350 but instead of putting a 21/31 mpg diesel engine, the F-150 has a gasoline 3.5L ecoboost which gets 15 City / 21 hwy.
USA needs to wake up and smell the bacon
trains use diesel electric for a reason no clue why the car market can't do the same.
They complain about costs but look at it this way.
Honda Accord 24 mpg
Chevy Impala 18 mpg
50 mpg (mild diesel hybrid) 200+ hp
75 mpg (pure diesel hybrid) 140 hp
15,000 miles a year
Chevy Impala = 833 gallons @ $3.20 =$2,666
Honda = 625 gallons @ $3.20 =$2,000
50mpg = 300 gallons @ $3.60 =$1,080
75mpg = 200 gallons @ $3.60 =$720
if say a good 100 million people who worked had 5 cent taken out in one year on their returns, then that would return 5 million dollars, and I don't know about you, but 5 cent... who really notices 5 cents these days?
I think the development of alternative fuel vehicles is a good thing. For one thing it gives us some leverage over the oil industry, who is buying our government and trying to run our country. Disagree? Then what have the Koch brothers done?
I would buy an electric vehicle in the future for short commutes, going to the store, etc. However, I would also hold onto my beloved gas vehicles too. I grew up during the muscle car era and by the early 70s I had my drivers license. That was when big V8 cars were cheap. I still have a couple of the muscle cars and I intend to keep at least one in the garage until I die!! However, that doesn't mean I wouldn't accept new technology like this Tesla car or a Chrysler variation of it. Hydrogen or natural gas--sure I would go for a vehicle powered by those fuel sources too.
Remember--Buy American made when possible and be an economic patriot. Support people in union jobs, because no matter what you do for a living, unions will be the ones to help you get your next raise or improve your benefits. Quit voting for politicians and their parties who want to destroy unions and the middle class. Those politicians are not working for the middle class. They work for people like Mitt Romney, Donald Trump and the Koch brothers. Be smart with your vote next November and not vindictive! Put it to work for middle class Americans. Turn off Fox--it's bad news for America!
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