Elon Musk To Launch Self-Driving Buses With Tesla Mobility Service? Affordable All-Electric Vehicles May Make Way For Public Transportation

Elon Musk hinted Tesla could be developing self-driving buses. While addressing a transportation conference in Norway, the man behind all-electric cars and private space exploration company SpaceX casually referred to a new direction the company is exploring, one that will ease the "high-density urban transport problem."

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, who routinely involves himself and his numerous cutting-edge technology companies into projects that appear like science fiction but are perfectly in the realm of reality, let it (deliberately?) slip the news about a project his engineers are working on.

Musk clearly indicated he is working on a self-driving vehicle that would soon address traffic woes in congested cities.

Speaking at the conference, Musk said, "We have an idea for something which is not exactly a bus but would solve the density problem for inner city situations. I very much agree with solving the high-density urban transport problem. Autonomous vehicles are key."

Despite the shroud of secrecy, Musk added that the vehicle would offer better service than the city buses because his creations wouldn't just drop people off at designated bus stops but instead would take them all the way to their destinations,

"There's a new type of car or vehicle that would be great for that and that'll actually take people to their final destination and not just the bus stop I don't want to talk too much about it. I have to be careful what I say."

While he did not specifically mention it, he clearly hinted Tesla is working on a platform that could soon replace buses and other modes of public transportation. Given the fact that Tesla is already deeply involved with autonomous driving cars, which are increasingly getting better at intelligently navigating through urban traffic, it only makes sense the company is now planning to ferry a lot of urban commuters in a platform with a large chassis that doesn't rely on human drivers.

Perhaps Elon Musk is envisioning a hybrid autonomous bus service that also assimilates the features inherent to radio-taxi services like Uber. If Musk is referring to a fleet of buses that drop people off to their destination, the public transportation industry could be in for a major overhaul, but for Musk, it could simply be the next step of evolution for his technologies.

Musk and Tesla are already deep into personal transportation. While the earlier all-electric Tesla models were perceptually expensive, the Tesla Model 3 has proved that a clean mode of transportation could be a common feature on the road and not just meant for the rich. Musk's Tesla Motors Inc. has disrupted the transport industry with smarter software-packed electric cars and this month received 400,000 pre-orders for its latest product, a less costly model dubbed Model 3 aimed at the mass market, reported Bloomberg.

Besides the cars, Musk also proposed cities take a good, hard look at "Hyperloop," a series of long cylindrical tubes that can ferry humans at mind-boggling speeds, reported the Daily Mail. The technology, though very much in its infancy and conceptualization stage, could transport people at 745 mph (1,200 km/h), sending people across the length and breadth of the country in half the time a commercial jetliner takes. Astonishingly, a ticket for travelling between LA a San Francisco, which incidentally would take only 30 minutes, could be as low as $20. Passengers would sit in vacuum sealed tubes (to minimize drag) and be hurdled across vast distances using magnets.

Musk has previously talked about building car tunnels as a way to solve traffic congestion.

"I think this is really a very simple and obvious idea, and I wish more people would do it, which is build more tunnels. Tunnels are great; it's just a hole in the ground. It's not that hard, but if you had tunnels in cities, you'd massively alleviate congestion and you could have tunnels of all differently levels. ou could probably have 30 layers of tunnels and completely fix the congestion problem in high density cities. So I strongly recommend tunnels."

Self-driving buses aren't a new concept, reported the Huffington Post. Several developed countries have begun experimenting with autonomous vehicles, many of which even run on electricity. In fact, the Dutch city of Wageningen recently demonstrated its first all-electric driverless shuttle bus, which confidently navigated a public road.

If Elon Musk is developing all-electric self-driving buses, he has a lot of references to draw inspiration.

[Photo by Eric Piermont/Getty Images]

Source: Elon Musk To Launch Self-Driving Buses With Tesla Mobility Service? Affordable All-Electric Vehicles May Make Way For Public Transportation

Electric revolution is just around the corner and Tesla is in driving seat

Published 24/04/2016 | 02:30

You have to love Elon Musk, the billionaire co-founder of PayPal and CEO of Tesla - the brash upstart Californian company that is shaking the car business to its very core. From an initial investment of $6.3m (€5.58m) in 2004, Musk has managed not only to produce the fastest and most desirable electric car in the world but is on the way to transforming the electric car to something both cool and commercially viable.

The driving force behind Musk is the belief that the fossil-fuel era is over; the combustion engine represents 19th-century technology that has outlived its usefulness. However, the motor industry, he argues, has too much invested in survival at this stage to admit its limits and imminent demise so the role of Tesla is not only as a pioneer but also to enlighten and to pave the way for other carmakers to embrace electric cars, a commitment he clearly demonstrated in 2014 by making Tesla's technology open source, so other car companies can use it to build their own electric vehicles.

By 2020, Tesla plans to deliver 500,000 cars - it's an ambitious one, given only seven years ago the company launched its first production car, the Tesla Roadster. The 2-door sports car didn't change the world - at the time the company could only produce a mere 500 units a year and less than 2,500 units were sold worldwide but it captured the very essence of what Tesla was about; making electric cars that were fast, desirable and with game-changing range capacities. Production of the roadster though wasn't without its problems - costs escalated as the Roadster proved more expensive and took longer to produce than originally planned; in addition, the early shipments often had quality issues.

But Musk was on the way to mass production, or what he dubbed his 'four-part trilogy', the blue print for how Tesla could hope to compete in a billion dollar industry.

The Roadster was followed in 2012 by the Model S, a full-sized, five-door saloon that would be Tesla's first flagship product. Musk has always maintained the Model S is a car you will buy for its driving dynamics, the green credentials are just a bonus. I recently had the opportunity to find out if this was actually true, and yes, the Model S is an incredibly impressive car. It is comfortable, practical and insanely fast. The top of the range Model S P90D goes from zero to 100km/h in 2.8 seconds, so it will keep pace with a Lamborghini Huracan and a Koenigsegg Agera R, and only a handful of cars including the Ferrari LaFerrari and the Bugatti Veyron are faster.

Behind the wheel it feels even quicker than the figures suggest as it is pure, straight-line acceleration.

Next up was the hotly anticipated SUV, the Tesla Model X and it did not disappoint. With "falcon-wing" doors that open up and a windshield that stretches from the front of the car almost to the very back it was simply stunning.

With a range of 400km, a top speed of 250km/h and a 0-100 km/h time of 3.8 seconds, it could also carry seven people. But from the beginning the Model X made headlines for all the wrong reasons. It was billed as the safest, fastest and most capable SUV in history but a faulty hinge - that could cause the third row of seats to collapse in the event of a crash forced Tesla to issue a voluntary recall of 2,700 cars. On March 31 this year, Elon Musk unveiled the Model 3 to the world as the most affordable Tesla. With a promise of a 350 km range and a $35,000 price tag there was an astonishing response to the launch of the new car.

Close to 400,000 customers have ordered the Model 3. Technical details are yet to be confirmed but the car will seat five people and, like the Model S, will have a boot in the front and at the back.

Buyers will also get free access to Tesla's supercharger network of charging stations. There are even plans to make it available here, as Ireland has been added to the order page for those who want to buy it.

So the reality of an affordable electric car with real range capacity is almost here. Well not quite, the Model 3 doesn't exist yet.

Musk is confident that deliveries could start by the end of 2017 but meeting deadlines isn't Tesla's forte, particularly when there is currently no final production version of the Model 3. There are other challenges in the meantime that Musk must deal with, the Model X is still suffering quality problems, and before an affordable mass-produced car can be rolled out Tesla must first complete its Gigafactory, a giant battery manufacturing centre in Nevada that is key to lowering the overall cost of the battery pack.

It is Elon Musk's moment of truth. The loyal, affluent, green-minded fans of Tesla are not the target market for the Model 3. Musk needs to convince the average American that buying an electric car is the future.

Musk is betting everything on the Model 3, if the schedule falls too far behind or the product fails to excite it could well spell the end for Tesla. It remains to be seen whether the Model 3 will deliver and usher in a new, EV-dominated car era or if the electric car dream is finally consigned to history.

Sunday Independent

Source: Electric revolution is just around the corner and Tesla is in driving seat

Tesla is Not Afraid of New Apple Car; What about Mercedes?

Forget the iPhone 8, is Apple's next product going to be an electric car? Rumors certainly suggest so after the company has hired an ex-Tesla engineer to handle the task. Despite the possible competition, Elon Musk has his eyes set on something bigger. Meanwhile, Mercedes is just getting into the game.

LET'S HOPE APPLE CAR BATTERY LASTS LONGER THAN IPHONE

Apple isn't the best at keeping a secret, and their electric car project is no exception. According to leaked media reports, the company has acquired  ex-engineer Chris Porritt from Tesla and also opened an R&D office in Germany. Germany, as you may know, is home to some of the world's most luxurious car manufacturers like Mercedes. The reports also suggest that Apple is aiming for a street date of 2019 or 2020, however, the electric car will not be self-driving contrary to popular belief. Elon Musk is hardly concerned that his former employees are going to Apple. In fact, he refers to the company as a 'Tesla-graveyard'. Besides, Musk has some bigger goals to focus on.

TESLA GOING MASS TRANSIT

After helping a sliver of the world go green, Elon Musk is turning his attention towards the issue of overpopulation. No, he won't be killing babies but he does have an idea for a new type of mobility system. Vehicle density is a major issue for cities. Even with all the Tesla's in the world, it won't change the fact that they are there, and taking up space. Musk says he has an idea that's not exactly a bus or a train, but will somehow solve the problem of density in crowded cities. He was rather vague on what kind of vehicle it would be, but he hinted that it would be autonomous. This technology would be a big help in places like Europe, where Mercedes seeks to get in the market for electric cars.

MERCEDES PLAYING CATCH UP

Mercedes doesn't often play catch up, but when they do, expect them to take it seriously. In lieu of all the electric car hype these days, Mercedes announced four electric car models of their own to come out in the near future. Rumors suggest that the design will target Tesla's design and functionality directly, albeit a bit more luxurious and German. With Apple making a move in the region, it's not too unlikely to  see the two team up in order to take down Musk's empire.

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Source: Tesla is Not Afraid of New Apple Car; What about Mercedes?

Eakay Electric Auto seeks expansion for its rental business

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Source: Eakay Electric Auto seeks expansion for its rental business

Tesla's Electric Car 'Model 3' Breaks Sales Records

Telsa has received a lot of praise after it unveiled the Model 3 sedan but many of its customers who are still waiting to receive their Model X are making their disappointment public. The company, however, claims that it is still on track to meet its target of 80,000 to 90,000 units delivered within 2016.

Including the Model S, Tesla delivered a total of 14,820 cars during the period, almost 50% more than the first quarter of 2015.

"There's a 15-inch landscape touchscreen inside - an interesting change from the 17-inch portrait touchscreen in the Model S and X", The Verge reported of Tesla Model 3's specs.

Tesla took more than 276,000 orders for the Model 3 since it started accepting deposits of $1,000 from interested buyers.

The electric carmaker's latest sedan is the auto that it hopes will make a mark on the mainstream market, and if sales figures at all reflect the amount of interest in pre-orders then Tesla could be onto a victor.

Deutsche Bank said it would not be surprised if Tesla's backlog reached 500,000 by the time the Model 3 entered production in 2017.

Tesla blames its own "hubris" in "adding far too much new technology to the Model X in version 1", as a main reason for the delays, as well as insufficient supplier validation, and lack of ability to manufacture the parts in question itself.

Tesla noted that the shortages from its suppliers had a negative impact on its first quarter deliveries, with the issues lasting much longer than anticipated over the months of January and February. CEO Elon Musk tweeted Saturday that the company would need to build a plant in Europe to keep up with demand.

The basic model will sell for $35,000 (£24,423) - less than half the cost of Tesla's previous models - and has a range of at least 215 miles per charge. Despite being just a prototype model at present moment, Tesla is already taking in pre-orders for the vehicle and they have bagged more than 230,000 signatures. These are the only sales results analysts have to go on, as Tesla doesn't release monthly results as other auto companies do.

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Source: Tesla's Electric Car 'Model 3' Breaks Sales Records

Electric-car startup Faraday Future could introduce its first production concept cars very soon

Screenshot via Faraday Future

Since the company made its public debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Faraday Future has made a point of building its profile quickly.

So far, the California-based startup has bought 900 acres of land in the Nevada desert for its billion-dollar factory, hired executives from Tesla, BMW, GM, SpaceX and others, and obtained its first of more than 100 pending US patents.

To date, one of the remaining unknowns is Faraday's future cars.

Up until now, the company revealed little about the vehicles being developed, only saying that test mules — automotive mock-ups that house its proprietary technology — are undergoing a broad range of testing.

The company recently teased an image of a potential concept.

Faraday FutureA teaser image of what may be Faraday Future's forthcoming production vehicle.

The cars are coming. At the ceremonial groundbreaking for its factory last week, Nick Sampson, Faraday Future's SVP of research and development and engineering, told Business Insider "We're testing both mechanical and software systems, and before the end of this year, we'll have full prototypes that represent our production cars."

Faraday followed up on its blog Thursday with a status update.

"Some people call a mule a 'hacked-up car,'" Matt Lubbers, Faraday's Brakes and Chassis Control engineer said. "They may not look like a production vehicle, but they certainly run like one."

Lubbers touts Faraday's strategy of testing multiple Faraday technologies in one mule.

"The powertrain, the suspension, the electrical architecture, the battery, the control system, they're all here ... this car is FF to its core."

You can watch the teaser here: SEE ALSO: 'We plan to succeed': Electric-car startup Faraday Future officially breaks ground on its $1 billion factory NOW WATCH: This factory is the key to Tesla's future Loading video...
Source: Electric-car startup Faraday Future could introduce its first production concept cars very soon

LeEco LeSEE electric car unveiled in Beijing

LeEco has decided it wants a piece of the proverbial pie by unveiling its own all-electric car at an event in Beijing. Previously, the company tied up with Aston Martin to help develop their all-electric RapidE, as well as funding Faraday Future with their 320kmph concept electric supercar, the FFZERO1. Formerly known by the name LeTV, the Chinese manufacturer is famous for its recent booming success in the smartphone territory. Founded in 2004, the technology company now has ventures in multiple areas like internet TV, video production,... Read More
Source: LeEco LeSEE electric car unveiled in Beijing