Driver Distraction Casts Doubt on Autopilot as the Culprit →

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Sam Levin and Nicki Wolf writing for The Guardian:

“The truck driver, Frank Baressi, 62, told the Associated Press that the Tesla driver Joshua Brown, 40, was “playing Harry Potter on the TV screen” during the collision and was driving so fast that “he went so fast through my trailer I didn’t see him”.”

If this is the case, then the details of this matter become both disturbing and absurd, while moving away from mechanical failure, and into an indictment of our screen-addicted and screen-distracted society.

"Baressi, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment, said the Harry Potter movie “was still playing when he died and snapped a telephone pole a quarter mile down the road”. He told the AP, however, that he heard the movie but didn’t see it."

Aside from the social implications, if this account is true, we can expect that the victim's loved one will have an exceedingly difficult time processing their loss. 

NPR regarding the Tesla AutoPilot Crash →

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Sonari Glinton, reporting for NPR's Morning Edition:

"Well, the company put out a statement saying that Brown, who was an advocate of Tesla's, that, saying, quote, that "he was a friend to Tesla and the broader EV community." And earlier in the statement, though, the company points out that this was the first accident. And then when drivers - and also they say that when drivers activate autopilot, they have to acknowledge that, among other things, it's an assist feature and it requires you to keep your hands on the wheel and steering at all times.
You have to remain in control. And before you engage, it pops up and says that. And but - and also, in a way, this accident seems inevitable because, you know, I have watched many, many videos on YouTube of Tesla drivers engaging the autopilot feature and, you know, not behaving responsibly."

A note on the media-- the announcer, Steve Inskeep, stated that the vehicle in question was a self-driving car. It's not, and while Glinton clears this up in his quote, it's important to realise that by setting the stage with his opening comments, and that makes the story harder to understand for people not in the know about Tesla, autopilot, and the other key bits of this situation.

Tesla Autopilot Implicated in Death of Model S Driver →

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Autopilot, the series of technologies used in conjunction that allow a Tesla Model S drive semi-autonomously, was in use when one 2015 Model S crashed, killing the driver. 

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration ("NHTSA") is looking into the crash and thus, looking into Autopilot.

Tesla remarked on the situation on their blog:

We learned yesterday evening that NHTSA is opening a preliminary evaluation into the performance of Autopilot during a recent fatal crash that occurred in a Model S. This is the first known fatality in just over 130 million miles where Autopilot was activated. Among all vehicles in the US, there is a fatality every 94 million miles. Worldwide, there is a fatality approximately every 60 million miles. It is important to emphasize that the NHTSA action is simply a preliminary evaluation to determine whether the system worked according to expectations.

It's heartbreaking to think that someone thought their car was taking care of the driving and then, presumably all of a sudden, they end up in a crash that takes their life. Autopilot thought it may be called, Tesla expects people keep their eyes open and their hands on the wheel when using the feature. Still, there's no way to tell right now exactly what happened. 

Regardless of fault, we can expect some for some draft regulations around autonomous vehicles to come out of this inquiry.

The Drill Down 431: At Least I (Still) Have Chicken →

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This week, the guys and I discuss how Microsoft goes green (sort of), BitTorrent's legitimate attempt at a news channel, why Tesla decided to invest in solar, and how big-name musicians are attempting to rally against YouTube. Also--  Star Wars hits VR...or is it AR?

Find the episode on iTunes, Stitcher, or on Geeks of Doom.

Tesla shares crater as Wall Street reacts to bid for SolarCity →

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This one's simple: the headline IS the story. 

Summary? Tesla shares lost 10% in today's trading as shareholders felt unconvinced that the $2.9 billion bid to purchase SolarCity, a leaser and developer of solar power generation and power generation devices, was a good idea.

Musk is going to have to come out from behind the desk and sell this one hard. Also-- it looks like it's an all-stock deal** that some thing undervalues SolarCity's potential. 

 

**In an 8-K filing, Tesla proposed exchange from 0.122 to 0.131 shares for each share of SolarCity stock. 

The Tesla Model X - A Lifestyle Take

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Whereupon Bloomberg's Hannah Elliott takes a road trip in a $150,000.00 Model X through super-charger rich California and produces a video assessment of the vehicle with a duration of less than three and a half minutes.

Elliott's video review is posted below from YouTube. The conclusions are that the car feels virtuous but it's cost isn't the money, but the time-sucking lifestyle of an electric auto's charging requirements and the lack of "mechanical" nature of the drive.

I genuinely appreciate the lifestyle discussion from Elliott due to her funky personal fashion taste and the casual but caring but also matter-of-fact tone she uses, but when you put it all together it doesn't ring with sincerity. She scratches the surface of lifestyle, states that doors open unexpectedly without any real visual evidence, and forgets that a single-gear dual motor drive train is about as direct as once gets when it comes to the mechanics of a car-- especially when one compares that to the Triptronics and paddle shiftiness of modern, conventionally powered sport luxury vehicles. 

When it comes to complaints about range, the crossover segment, perhaps more than any other auto segment, is designed for the daily errands and the weekend warrior-- both well within the battery range of the top-end model Elliott evaluated-- and that's in Colorado, where mountain climbs are steeper (I-70) than CA and Superchargers are bit more rare.

Then there's the ample time that the (very short) evaluation spends on waiting for the Model X to charge up at the super charging station. The editing makes the charging seem disproportionately long compared to the balance of her five day trip along the CA coast. Time that could be spent discussing the intimate details of any connection she has with the vehicle are spend bouncing a ball in a corner or talking on the phone...which she does on the handset while sitting in the car rather than showing us how well the bluetooth hands-free works.

I'm disappointed. Elliott could have done a lot more in the time she had.

The (Unofficial) Tesla Commercial

"Tesla 'Not a Dream'" is an independently created commercial, using the words of inventor Nikola Tesla to extol the virtues of Tesla Motors's vehicles and their presumed ability to lead the US to a future that's free of the pollution and destruction of fossil fuels. It's visuals are a little extreme, but I'm sure that those passionate about the problem and/or the car will find the video moving.

It's worth noting that Tesla Motors doesn't advertise very much. The fact that fans are willing to create content like this for them is impressive to say the least.

And for any geeks out there it's like 1984, all over again. 

So what does Tesla Motors CEO think of the video? He digs it.

 

The Best-Selling Luxury Sedan in America →

Speaking of Tesla, here's David Z. Morris, writing for Fortune:

"...a huge shift in the auto industry: The Model S is now the top-selling luxury sedan in the U.S, beating out cars from established rivals like Audi, Mercedes, and Lexus. Moreover, the car, according to Tesla, is still gaining market share."

According to the article, Model S sales went from 16,689 units in 2014 to 25,202 sales in 2015-- an up-tick of +51.01% , Every other competing vehicle in the class, regardless of how its propelled, has a negative % change year over year from 2014 to 2015. 

If Tesla can get production right and satisfy demand, the US can really have a chance at hitting emissions targets well before targets. 

Let's remember that the patents for this technology were released in 2014 for all to implement in their automobiles. GM's Bolt and Volt, alongside with the new Nissan Leaf will make use of them in their next generation vehicles. Audi, BMW and Mercedes can use this tech too. But thus far, Audi has their e-Tron A3, BMW has the i3 and the incredibly (even by Tesla's standards) i8, and Mercedes has an upcoming plug in GLE.

At the end of the day, none of these are vehicles are as practical as the Tesla Model S, a saloon that can seat 5-7 people with up to two trunk storage compartments while maintaining a 200+ mile range. The aforementioned GLE and Volvo's new XC 90 are the closest thing to a Tesla offering, with their generous passenger accommodations and storage facilities, but the ride-height takes it to Model X territory, and neither of those two vehicles can begin to touch the acceleration and handling capabilities of Tesla's young SUV.

Electric Automobile Fantasy →

"A $25,000 Tesla would upend the U.S. auto market. Incentives vary widely state by state, but the base incentive is a $7,500 federal income tax credit available to everyone in the country. Bringing the $35,000 sticker price of the Model 3 down by that amount would expand the potential market by roughly 50 percent, according to Morsy. Additional incentives would further knock down the price in more than a dozen states, including an additional $6,000 in Colorado and $2,500 in California, Massachusetts, and Tennessee. The only limiting factor for sales of a Tesla in this price range would be the company's ability to crank out cars."

 

$35,000.00 base price - $7,500.00 Federal tax credit - $6,000.00 Colorado State credit = $21,500.00 for a brand new base Tesla Model 3. 

Supposing one adds $10,000.00 in options, the car is still incredibly cheap for a vehicle that's about the size of the Nissan Leaf and yet has 2x the range. Taxi companies and municipalities are going to snap base trims of the Model 3 up in droves. 

DROVES.

Mercedes Aanounces Performance Plug-in Hybrid SUV →

 

"The GLE550e has the first plug-in hybrid powertrain ever offered in a Mercedes-Benz SUV. Its 3.0-liter V6 gasoline engine and electric motor together produce 436 horsepower. Using only electric power, Mercedes says the GLE550e can travel up to 18.6 miles and reach a speed of 81 mph."

Wow. In other words, plug it in for the commute or grocery shopping and never waste time at the gas station unless you need to go far.
Mercedes is doing exactly what I thought Lexus would do in the mid-sized hybrid crossover space two years ago. With their new XC90, Volvo and Merc are beginning to lead.  

I wonder if this the Tesla e-motor hardware they've been discussing? Or something else entirely?