<![CDATA[Jalopnik: Whitestar]]> http://cache.jalopnik.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/jalopnik.com.png <![CDATA[Jalopnik: Whitestar]]> http://jalopnik.com/tag/whitestar http://jalopnik.com/tag/whitestar <![CDATA[Is The Tesla S A Prettied-Up Mercedes CLS?]]> The Dutch boys at Autoblog.nl think the Tesla Model S could be based on the Mercedes CLS. One of their commenters put together this overlay image of the two. What do you think? [Autoblog.nl] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5153129&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[A Peek Inside The Soon-To-Be-Dead Tesla Motors Detroit Office]]> Given the situation with Tesla Motors lately, you know, Ze'ev Drori getting the boot and Elon Musk taking the reins as CEO, word of firings of "25-30% of their total staff of 300 employees and contractors" and the closing of the Detroit location (more accurately, the Metro Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills, MI) via blog post, it's no wonder an anonymous reader decided to head out to their Rochester Hills office and take a look. The Rochester Hills facility was opened at the end of January 2007, and was to be the development facility for the Tesla Model S electric sedan, so the closing is a foreboding indicator of the future direction Tesla is heading on that project. Let's take a look inside this essentially doomed location... More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5065982&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Automaker Lays Off Detroit Office With Blog Post]]> UPDATE: Tesla notifies Detroit workers already-in-the-know they were laid off two days ago...today! In a sign of what this new Financiapocalypse might bring, employees in the Metro Detroit branch of electric car maker Tesla Motors were laid off via a blog post. Yesterday, we reported that Tesla would be cutting back and reorganizing, which included shutting down the office in Rochester Hills, near Detroit. Unfortunately, no one told the employees in Rochester Hills. Some of them logged on to find that they were now, according to their own website, obsolete. But it gets worse. We're hearing that approximately 90 Tesla employees, or 90% of the Detroit office, was simply let go, and the remaining employees have to make their way to the San Carlos headquarters with no moving costs covered, no increase in salary and no help getting rid of their old homes. Fortunately, the real estate market in Detroit is red-hot, and the cost of living is about the same in San Carlos.... right? The relevant section from the Tesla pink slip blog-post-of-death below:
There will also be some headcount reduction due to consolidation of operations. In anticipation of moving vehicle engineering to our new HQ in San Carlos, we are ramping down and will close our Rochester Hills office near Detroit. Good communication, tightly knit engineering and a common company culture are of paramount importance as Tesla grows.
That's right folks, "good communication" is key. [Photo: James Nielsen/Getty Images] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5064700&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla Motors Plans To Slow Down Production Plans For Model S Sedan]]> Tesla has announced the company will be slowing down production plans for the Tesla Model S sedan project until the government forks over some dough. This is just part of the news coming out of Tesla Motors, which also announced that they've demoted their CEO (and replaced him with main benefactor Elon Musk) and will be making serious cutbacks to their staff. In a blog post Musk said: More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5064073&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[What Car Would You Like To See Get Electrified?]]> GM thinks that buyers are going to want a small, economical electric/hybrid car, a la the Chevy Volt — and much like the EV1, actually. Tesla thinks we'd like what is basically a responsibly green Lotus, though they also acknowledge our desire for more room with the Whitestar. Nissan thinks we want an Electric Cube, and, you know, we sort of do. We certainly sing the praises of the Se7en Electric; that's a no-brainer. But what car, or what type of car, would we like to see electrified? Cheapo small cars aren't a bad start, given the lower weight and lower cost, but is that going to move the market? What do you want? What should they build? More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=398091&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla Whitestar Sedan Powertrain Mule Caught Lurking About, Wearing Dodge Magnum Skin]]> This seemingly normal-looking Dodge Magnum caught by the forum fan-boys at Tesla's future Menlo Park store hides something more electric under its skin. We're told it's a powertrain mule for the Tesla Whitestar (or Tesla Model S) sedan just announced this past week. The tell-tales are the different rear wheels and lack of any rear license plate, but look closely, and you'll see there's also no visible tailpipe. Also, Tesla PR claims it is, in fact, a Model S mule. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=397967&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Fisker Seeks Arbitration With Tesla In Ongoing Eco Slap Fight]]> It looks like Henrik Fisker and company are asking to have the Tesla suit arbitrated in Orange County. As you're all well aware, neither Fisker nor Tesla are actually making cars but are instead just suing the crap out of each other over various charges (here's an explanation of the Tesla and Fisker suit). Long story short, Tesla claims Fisker stole info when designing a sedan for Tesla. Oh, by the way, here's Fisker's Karma Hybrid sedan. Who is right and who is wrong? Who cares at this point? More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=390816&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla Seeking Hot $250 Million Cash Injection For Whitestar Sedan]]> The boys (and gal) over at our sister site obsessed with Silicon Valley let us know earlier Tesla's looking for a hot cash injection via IPO to help the purportedly struggling Whitestar sedan. According to Valleywag: More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=357781&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla Fixes Transmission Woes, Sets Production Date, Claims They're Not Dead Yet]]> Tesla is doing it's best to counter rumors of their impending failure and bad press from their former CEO. The company claims the first production Tesla will be delivered to HQ next week and work of the first run of Teslas will begin in mid March. More importantly, the company claims a solution to their transmission problems have been found. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=348436&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla WhiteStar RIP?]]> We pointed out earlier today that Tesla skepticism in the auto industry is running high, but now a regular Jalopnik commenter with deep Metro Detroit engineering ties is telling us that the company is laying off contractors and carving "WhiteStar" on a gravestone. Things also look grim for their Rochester Hills Technical Center. More details as we dig them up. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=346165&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tesla's Elon Musk Pledges to "Eat His Hat"]]> As skepticism about Tesla's sedan project builds, new Tesla top dog Elon Musk has resorted to playing defense with crotchety idioms. According to the Jan/Feb issue of the Stanford alumni magazine: More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=345661&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Martin Eberhard Is Out At Tesla Motors, And Whitestar Electric Sedan Dead on Arrival]]> So we may have been a little bit late to the table with the news that Martin Eberhard is out like a dead bulb as CEO of Tesla Motors, everyone's favorite electric car company that's not yet delivered any electric cars. We did report they'd installed Ze'ev Drori as the new CEO, so we guess we brought something to the game. But now we've got word from a couple of very reliable sources that the problems with the roadster's causing some serious problems elsewhere in the company. Full and very quick report from our tipster after the jump. More »
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