Tesla who is the manufacturer. History of Tesla Motors

I want it, but it's expensive! I think these are the first emotions that this novelty causes in the car market. Seeing once, you immediately understand - this is the car that you immediately want to buy. You look, peer into it and constantly look for some kind of flaw, but there is nothing for the eye to catch on - everything is perfect. It is about the sensational not so long ago Tesla electric car that we will talk about today.

History of appearance

Initially a fully ambitious project, created by the “Tony Stark” of our time, whose name is Elon Musk, was launched in 2006, after the appearance of their “firstborn” Tesla Roadster electric car. Things were going slow, and the model itself did not have super-outstanding characteristics. He really gained fame in 2009 with the advent of the Tesla model S concept. It was she who became the starting point in the rapidly developing career of Tesla Motors (Tesla Motors) and a real breakthrough in the field of electric vehicles. Elon's idea is to completely abandon the engines we are used to internal combustion and transition to a modern, sustainable electric vehicle of the future, produced by Tesla.

Well, frankly, the manners are lordly, but as time has shown, they are quite justified. The constant increase in gasoline prices, due to the slow but sure depletion of oil resources on the planet, is forcing millions of motorists to look for cars that run on alternative fuels. Such cars were made before, but most of them have a small power reserve, instability, frequent breakdowns and relatively low speed and power. And these cars themselves look like batteries on wheels, because they don’t have enough relics to carry a full-fledged body on duty. =)

Before the release, the company took a very smart step by creating the entire infrastructure, a network of electric filling stations and services. Only after that, the tesla model s, which meets all the requirements and does not differ from best models world by characteristics.

The lineup

Tesla Model S

What is special about tesla s? At first glance I want to say WOW! Indeed, thanks to the special painting and polishing, the car shines like a mirror. The very appearance resembles a mixture of Lotus and Aston Martin. Perfectly matching 19" alloy wheels betray even more elegance and representativeness. In general, the car really looks like a car of the future.

In the cabin, the first thing that is impossible not to pay attention to is the 17-inch touch screen instead of all the knobs, knobs and buttons on the center panel. This spectacle looks bewitching, as if caught in spaceship. At the same time, all elements are intuitive, very conveniently grouped and perfectly visualized. In addition to controlling all the functions of the car, this is a miracle that has its roots in Silicon Valley, has access to the Internet via 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, its own browser, webcam, built-in navigation system, media functions, telephone and a bunch of various modern goodies. An interesting feature is the regulation of the current strength during charging, which protects the battery from excessive violence by high current. There are no familiar analog arrows and counters on the dashboard. Instead there is another multifunction display, which shows speed, battery level, and other vehicle statuses and active events. Well, you should definitely mention the excellent regular audio system. I will not describe it, I will only say that it is magnificent!

Salon is very comfortable and spacious, because. many elements of a conventional car are missing, such as transmission, engine and other small things. =) Big glass roof, able to move back, controlled from the central
display and provides excellent visibility. Going to the trunk you immediately plunge into its huge space. Under the carpet there is another niche used for additional luggage or, depending on the equipment, for cleaning an additional two child seats installed with their backs to the passenger compartment. Children up to 10 years old can comfortably accommodate there, hanging their legs in the same compartment under the rug. The rear seats fold forward for even more trunk space! On the trunk lid is a huge safety glass, which will give your children a great view of the outside. Another feature is that this door is able to open and close from the inside button. In general, in general, the car is fully electrified and computerized. Indeed, the Tesla car is truly a smart car. Until complete happiness, it remains to teach him to talk and bring slippers to the bed. =)

Nicely made door handles. They are also electric, like the locks in them.
Approaching is worth a little press on it and it moves out, after which you can open the door. The built-in backlight will not let you miss at night. After 60 seconds they automatically slide back. This was done to further improve aerodynamics.

And finally, let's look under the hood. We open and lo and behold! There is nothing there =) The truth is not quite so, because there is another big luggage compartment. Together with the main trunk, you will definitely not have problems with transporting things.

Inside view

Suspension is 4 pneumatic struts and that's a plus! A small motor the size of a watermelon sits at the back of the base, under the trunk, and to the right of it is exactly the same size inverter. All this wealth creates a freaky power of 416 horsepower and torque from 0-100 km / h to 600 Nm! When accelerating, you feel that you are flying on a rocket!

Paul Tesla consists of thousands of rechargeable batteries, the same as in ordinary laptops, but packed in a special way. Thanks to this, the frame weighs under half a ton and creates reliable protection for the driver and passengers. Tesla in general, according to the results of crash tests, is one of the most safe cars in the world! And this is surprising, because the structure itself is made of aluminum sheets! Air conditioning is installed in the front the electronic unit controls and cooling radiators and other elements, of which there are not many.

Charger

Yes, you will not find gas tank caps there. The charging port is hidden quite interestingly in optics rear light.

Charging is done from a simple outlet or at a specialized “filling station”, which, of course, is not available in Russia. But the kit comes with a huge bunch of adapters for different connectors, and therefore, if there is a euro socket at hand, then it will not be difficult to charge. Well, if the necessary adapter is not found, then I think the “crazy” Russian pens will save the situation. On average, the model S takes about 4 hours to charge, and at Tesla Motors gas stations it takes only 20 minutes.

Specifications:

Tesla S has 3 configurations, mostly differing in battery capacity and the presence of children's places in the trunk. As for the technical characteristics, then everything looks like this:

Equipment	Standard		Sports (performance)
Battery capacity	60 kWh	85 kWh	85 kWh
Power reserve
Acceleration 0-100 km/h
Max. speed
Battery life	8 years (200.000 km battery warranty)	8 years (unlimited)	8 years (unlimited)
Engine power

According to Tesla Motors, the decrease in charge, at a frost of -40C, is no more than 20%

Selling Tesla in Russia

Alas and Ah, but officially sales are in full swing only in the United States and have recently begun in Europe. Russia is still left out. In future
the company plans to open production in Europe with a budget Tesla Model E. So these benefits of civilization will not reach Russia soon, although one S-ka is already available in Barnaul and is on sale. Of course, you can order from the factory through the official website from the USA, but due to the large number of orders from the company, shipping across the ocean, customs clearance, etc., you will have to wait a long time and will cost significantly more. Do not forget that the guarantee upon export from the country where you bought it is immediately canceled.

Tesla prices

This is where a little disappointment awaits you, because the price of this “wonder car” really bites.
For a model with a 60 kW battery and standard equipment, you will have to fork out $ 60,000
The model with 85 kW will already shake your wallet for $70,000, and performance for all $80,000!

Agree, not a little, and even considering that these are prices for standard equipment and for all the additional benefits they will demand even more from you, then all that remains is to whistle enthusiastically!

Considering all the costs, in Russia the price will be on average 4-5 million and more. Perhaps the situation will change dramatically after the start of production of the budget model E and the development of sales in Europe, but for now the Tesla car will remain available only to wealthy Russians.

Summarize

In general, Tesla, despite the price, leaves the most pleasant impressions, attracting you like a magnet. Indeed, there are a myriad of advantages and innovations in it. This is probably the first electric car that attracted me so much and that's why I decided to talk about it on our machinetop. In general, we are saving money and continue to monitor the development of this project, which has every chance to change the world. =)

What kind of car is this Tesla? On the one hand, the automaker at one time made a splash in the car market in the USA, releasing a full-fledged and, one might say, ideal electric car, on the other hand, the last and one of the most popular models Tesla - Model S - is a huge clumsy machine, which is quite difficult to manage in urban traffic. What can we say about the absence of the industry of charging stations for electric vehicles in our country today. But one thing is clear for sure: if the future looks like the Tesla Model S looks like, then such a future is great, because the Tesla Model S is the safest car in the world!

Meanwhile, this is what the Tesla Model S looks like

Details about Tesla

When you sink into the seat of a high-end car for which you are willing to pay seven figures in rubles (the price of a Tesla Model S, including imports to Russia, will be at least 5 million rubles), you expect certain things: acceleration that presses you into the seat, top stereo equipment, soft-touch leather wherever possible, the guttural roar of a powerful engine and, of course, a large budget for high-octane gasoline to power such a machine. We can say that almost all of these aspects are covered in the case of the Tesla car. It's extremely dynamic (though not as fast), has all sorts of fantasies inside of it, and it's as fast as a rocket, but it's practically silent, and it will never burn. The first production car, the Tesla Roadster, was also the world's first high-performance electric car.

Unlike a traditional gasoline car engine, Tesla does not contain hundreds of moving parts. Its power flows through only four main systems:

• Energy Storage System (ESS)
• Power Electronics Module (PEM)
• electric motor
• Sequential gearbox

But let's talk about the technical stuffing of Tesla later, and now some interesting and general information about what kind of Tesla car!

Tesla Motors is an American automotive company based in the famous Silicon Valley that designs, manufactures and markets electric vehicles and electric powertrain components and chargers. Tesla first gained wide recognition with the Tesla Roadster - the world's first all-electric sports car, but in Russia the company became famous when they started talking about the Model S - this is Tesla's second model - an all-electric luxury sedan.

Model Tesla Roadster - the first car of the company

Tesla is also bringing electric powertrain components to markets around the world, including lithium-ion batteries for automakers including Daimler and Toyota. Tesla's CEO is Elon Musk.

Tesla Motors is named after the famous physicist Nikola Tesla. The Tesla Roadster uses an AC motor modified directly from Scientist's original 1882 motor. The Tesla Roadster, the company's first car, had a range of over 200 miles (320 km) on a single battery charge. Between 2008 and March 2012, more than 2,250 Tesla Roadsters were sold in 31 countries. However, Tesla stopped taking orders for the roadster in the US market in August 2011, and Tesla later introduced a new model - the Tesla Model S - an all-electric sedan (March 26, 2009).

Tesla's strategy has always been to imitate consumer electronics and introduce expensive, high-quality end products to the automotive market, targeting wealthy buyers. As the company and its products mature today for consumer acceptance, it will move into larger, more competitive markets over low prices, and one day it will enter the Russian market. While the Roadster's base price was $109,000, the Model S's base price is already $57,400 in the US, and the company plans to launch production of the car for up to $30,000 later, codenamed BlueStar.

Tesla Model X car

As for Tesla's stated goals, they are banal - increasing the number and variety of electric vehicles available to the mass consumer for:

• purchases of own vehicles in salons and online stores;
• purchase of transmission components.

But the most interesting thing is that customers cannot purchase cars at dealerships. Customers must order a Tesla vehicle from the official website of Tesla Motors. However, there are plenty of gallery stores in the US that act like car dealerships, allowing people to learn more about Tesla Motors and its cars. The galleries are in a state restricted by dealer network protection laws that prevent discussing prices, test drives and other nuances of Tesla vehicles.

The strategy of direct selling to customers and owning their own stores and service centers is a significant departure from the traditional dealer business model in many markets around the planet. Tesla Motors is the only automaker that sells cars directly to consumers, and even though Tesla Motors does not have independent dealers, dealer associations in several countries have already filed numerous lawsuits against Tesla Motors in an attempt to block the company from selling cars in their countries.

Tesla cars in different countries

Tesla opened its first overseas store in Canada on November 16, 2012 at the Yorkdale Mall in Toronto, Ontario. The store has interactive displays and design studios allowing customers to customize the Model S and view the results on an 85-inch wall. As of March 2014, there are already four Tesla gallery stores in Canada: in Montreal, two in Toronto and one more in Vancouver.

Tesla opened its first store in Europe in June 2009 in the London Borough of Knightbridge, followed by an expansion in Munich in September. And in October 2013, the London dealer moved to the Westfield London shopping centre. By the beginning of 2014, Tesla has 24 galleries in Europe, but in Russia, unfortunately, there are no galleries of the manufacturer yet (as of the date of writing), although the company's engineer had already visited our country in early 2014.

Tesla opened its first Japanese showroom in Aoyama in November 2010. Another hall was subsequently opened in Osaka in the same Japan. Tesla Motors also established a branch in Hong Kong and a showroom there in 2011, and since July 2010, a Tesla branch has been operating in Singapore, but the company later ceased operations in the country due to the lack of tax benefits.

Tesla's Chinese website was launched on December 16, 2013 to sell the Model S and Model X. This was followed by the opening of the Tesla showroom in Beijing in November 2013.

Australia

Tesla Motors opened a showroom in Sydney in 2010. By the way, in Australia, the Roadster drove along the entire east coast of the continent, covering a distance of more than 2,500 miles (4,000 km) - the longest distance traveled by an electric car in Australia.

Now let's take a look at what the two most famous models are Tesla cars.

What is a Tesla Roadster?

The heart of the Tesla Roadster is a 3-phase, 4-pole electric induction motor that weighs just 32kg. Tesla tests and independent testing show that the Roadster can reach 100 kilometers per hour for about four seconds, and its speed exceeds about 210 kilometers per hour. But the performance of the roadster surprises not only with speed and acceleration. The unique properties of an electric motor give it a huge advantage over an internal combustion engine in terms of torque - the force that tends to use the power band - operating speeds at which the engine runs efficiently. A roadster can generate a lot of torque even at very low revs, and the engine can always put out a lot of horsepower with it. By the way, the revolutions of such an engine can reach more than 13,000 per minute, which very few internal combustion engines can repeat.

This kind of propulsion response eliminates the need for complex gears so that the roadster has only three gears—two forward gears and one reverse gear. The shift is done by hand, but there is no clutch in the car. This also means there is no stall when you change gears.

Tesla Roadster can go much more distance than previous electric cars. The estimated range of one trip of the Roadster is about 400 kilometers on a single charge.

Most of the hype around the Roadster was due to its looks - while earlier electric cars tended to be cramped and ugly, the Tesla Roadster looks and feels like a sports car. In addition to basics such as heated seats, stereo with CD player, ABS brakes and dual airbags, the Roadster has several unique features:

• A unique code that allows you to start the car.
• A special transceiver that can be programmed to control RF controlled devices such as your gate or garage door.
• Dock connector for iPod.
• Electric door handles.

Technical Tesla specifications roadster:

• Acceleration: from zero to 100 - about 4 seconds.
• Dimensions: 3947.16 mm long, 1871.98 mm wide, 1127.76 mm high.
• Weight: 1134 kg (subject to change depending on safety regulations).
• Maximum speed: 210 km/h.
• Mileage per charge: 400 km.
• Battery life: term beneficial use batteries over 160,000 km.

What is a Tesla Model S

The Model S is Tesla's all-electric sedan, freshly designed and hand-built piece by piece - just two of the reasons why it's worth so much attention - a lot of people didn't think that Elon Musk - the company's charismatic co-founder - could pull it off.

As of August 2013, Tesla has surpassed Porsche, Volvo, Lincoln, Land Rover and Jaguar in the California market for sales. California is a milestone due to its relatively high median income, and this is where the Tesla Model S made a splash.

Some journalists believe that the Model S may be one of the best cars ever built. More objective indicators show that this is one of the safest cars. Tesla claims to have reached the most high rating the safety of any car in history with the Model S. Or, in other words, the driver and passengers in a Tesla Model S are more likely to survive a crash than the passengers and driver of any other vehicle on the road. Even buying a Model S is an unusual procedure, and not the usual “cultivation” of a network of franchised dealers. Tesla controls the entire process of selling and delivering the vehicle.

The Tesla Model S is the only all-electric vehicle on the market that has been designed from the ground up. One of Nissan's models, by comparison, was widely recognized as a groundbreaking all-electric vehicle idea, but it was designed and built using most of Nissan's existing components. And, although the Model S is based on Nikola Tesla's innovations that are over a hundred years old, it is still a shining light on the future of the automotive industry, especially when paired with proprietary high-tech Tesla batteries. Speaking of batteries, buyers can choose from 60kWh and 85kWh batteries, as well as 85kWh with additional performance features. The first battery is designed to run up to 334.7 kilometers on a single charge and has a top speed of 193 kilometers per hour. A more upgraded battery provides 458.7 kilometers and can reach speeds of 209 kilometers per hour. Oh yeah, and both packages are completely out of production harmful emissions.

What is the secret of the Model S that made it so, and why other car manufacturers can not repeat it? Well, that's what makes this model so exclusive and it should be noted first. Since the Model S does not have a traditional gasoline engine Under the hood, the safety benefits are twofold. The front is used for luggage storage like the back of a conventional gas sedan, which means basically that it's a large crumple zone that absorbs most of the impact in a frontal crash. And since there is absolutely no fuel on board, there seems to be nothing to catch fire. Tesla's electric motor is relatively small and mounted close to the rear axle, meaning it's unlikely to be in the way of damage during an impact. The Model S also has a very low rollover risk, thanks to its very low center of gravity. The aluminum construction of the car means that the bodywork is very light and very strong, since the aluminum is also reinforced with steel.

The Model S can be charged at home or at work using dedicated charging stations. The hardware station is included with some standard models and is available as an optional $2,000 package on lower-priced models.

However, Tesla cars are not flawless and one of the biggest problems seems to be battery retention. Owners report a severe loss of charge in the battery while the car is parked. The problem also consists in fixing similar problems when updating software while downloading updates operating system happens over Wi-Fi.

Tesla Model C prototype

Also, a known issue Tesla cars- this is their operation at low temperatures, that's what stops a buyer from Russia in the first place when buying a Tesla, and the rapid discharge of the battery in Russian conditions is the main problem.

Exactly ten years ago, in February 2004, the threshold of the little-known American Tesla Elon Musk, a financial magnate and computer genius, the founder of the PayPal payment system, stepped over. He came with very serious intentions. In a Silicon Valley start-up project barely six months old, Musk has invested $7.5 million and chaired the board of directors of a fledgling electric car manufacturer. However, then many considered this to be the usual whim of a rich man: in his student years, Musk was fond of electric cars, so, they say, he decided to play cars with the same eccentrics. Which, by the way, had a very distant relation to the automotive world ...

But 2014 has come. And today, Tesla is called nothing more than a market phenomenon. Sometimes even compared with the "apple" empire of Steve Jobs, only in automotive format. Indeed, Tesla's list of achievements for its short history is very impressive: many awards and innovations, leadership in the development of electrical engineering, cooperation with giants like Daimler and Toyota, the title of the most successful public company 2013 according to The Wall Street Journal... Yes, and frankly, Tesla's cars turned out to be out of the ordinary. A small private firm has made a revolution - that's a fact. The question is, will the upstart hold on to the crest of the wave?

Let's face it. Without outside help, electric vehicles in the market battle with conventional cars are now doomed to defeat. The forces are too unequal. Another thing is that the support from the outside is still very solid. In a number of countries, it comes from the authorities, which provide owners of electric cars with tax incentives, allow entry into urban areas prohibited for traditional cars, provide free parking... Yes, and the active promotion of a "green" lifestyle should not be forgotten either.

On the other hand, many states strongly encourage automakers to reduce toxicity. For example, in Europe, by 2021, the average level of CO2 emissions by model range should not exceed 95 grams/km. Otherwise, a big fine. Approximately the same direction is moving in the United States.

In general, if you want to sell a voracious SUV or an executive sedan, be kind, compensate for the environmental damage caused by the release of an economical subcompact. This is how projects like the Aston Martin Cygnet or the BMW i3 are born. And an electric car for such purposes is generally an ideal option. The car seems to be there, but formally there are zero harmful emissions. And no matter how many buyers such a model finds, the main thing is that it is listed in the price lists.

Therefore, automakers continue to work on electric cars, but they are very cautious about their prospects, and they criticize such equipment mercilessly.

“We believe that even by 2020, nine out of ten vehicles will use an internal combustion engine as their main source of energy,” says Hidetoshi Kudo, general manager of product development at Mazda.

“We are pragmatic people, we will sell hybrids, as there is a demand for them,” the head of Renault-Nissan Alliance Carlos Gon.

"Electric motors are not a competitive replacement for traditional cars, we need something completely new," Toyota Prius developer Takeshi Uchiyamada told Reuters.

“All discussions about zero emissions are nonsense. No one remembers the efficiency of how batteries are charged. This varies from region to region, depending on how electricity is produced. But even the best source is far from “cleaner” than an internal combustion engine,” Alfa Romeo and Maserati CEO Harald Vester told British AutoCar.

All of these are open statements. If you dig around on the Internet, you can type such quotes for a whole collection. Even the US Department of Energy in the forecast for the development of the vehicle fleet until 2040 assigns only one percent to electric vehicles.

There are really enough problems with them: from methods of generating electricity to purely consumer ones: high price, short power reserve, long charging, lack of infrastructure ... You don’t have to look far for an example: from February 1, 2014, import duties on electric cars. As a result, Mitsubishi i-MiEV, the only battery-powered car on our market, has fallen in price by as much as twice and now costs 999,000 rubles. Progress, no doubt. But for the price of a midsize sedan like Volkswagen Passat or Mazda6, the buyer gets a box on wheels with minimal comfort and a maximum range of 150 km. The choice of the majority is obvious, isn't it?

The secret of Tesla is that this brand has approached typical problems electric vehicles on the other hand. Actually, there were no problems for the American company as such. Its founders really had no experience in the auto industry, and therefore looked at many things from their belfry. They just liked the idea of ​​an electric car and wanted to make money from it. Once my acquaintance, a successful top manager, said the following phrase: “I, according to by and large, is the same as selling and promoting. From a business standpoint, the difference between cars, pasta and mobile phones Hardly ever. It’s just that you need to pick up your own keys for each market.” In a simplified form, this is how Tesla's ideology can be represented.

Experienced computer scientists from "Silicon Valley" from the very beginning considered their machines more like fashionable and advanced gadgets. The same Elon Musk likes to compare the development of Tesla electric cars with the development of cell phones, flat-panel TVs and laptops. At first, all these devices were terribly expensive, but insanely interesting and desirable for people, so over time they moved from the category of premium products to the mass segment, giving their creators fantastic profits. The main thing in such a strategy is not to lower the bar too quickly, to stimulate the constant attention of the public, to keep it to the end, turning it into apologists for its "sect". Doesn't it remind you of the situation with "apple" devices?

Therefore, Tesla did not even think about trying to enter “budget” niches. Obviously, the price of a "people's" electric car would be sky-high, but in the eyes of the buyer, such a car would never become a dream. After all, a typical dream car is, for example, a fast and powerful sports car. No one will condemn him for the high cost, rather the opposite. The main thing is to be more exclusive (I don’t want the same as my millionaire neighbor), more dynamic and show off.

And now, just three years after its founding, on July 19, 2006, at a closed presentation, Tesla revealed its first model with the unpretentious name Roadster. Its characteristics, meanwhile, were impressive - the rear-wheel drive electric sports car had a 248-horsepower engine, could accelerate to 97 km / h in 3.9 seconds, and at the same time drive almost 400 km on a single charge (according to the US EPA method)!

True, the first production car went to the buyer (who, by the way, became Elon Musk himself) only two years later, but the specialists were still struck by how extremely short the development time of the machine was with clean slate, and the achieved indicator of "range". Moreover, in the course of subsequent upgrades, the characteristics have steadily improved.

Pay attention to how seriously the interior of the Tesla Roadster has changed by the time it ended its marketing career. From the artisanal alteration of the Lotus salon, the company moved on to a rather elegant style. But the appearance of the electric car has remained almost unchanged over the years.

However, there was no magic here. It’s just that not pure adventurers gathered at Tesla, but pragmatists who clearly understood that they definitely wouldn’t be able to create a sports car on their own in such a limited period, and even more so correctly configure its chassis. So - you need to find a partner on the side. It was the dying British company Lotus, which agreed to supply Tesla with 2,500 Elise chassis without power plants. I remember that some of my colleagues then called this alliance "a conspiracy of losers." But if you think about it, you couldn't think of a better solution. After all, Lotus has also made a name for itself as a powerful engineering company. In addition, it had free production facilities, while Tesla did not have its own factory at that moment. And financial difficulties probably spurred the British to make concessions to the new partner.

In other words, the Americans had to develop only the electrical stuffing. There were no questions with the motor - they took the classic version as a basis, dating back to the invention of Nikola Tesla (hence the name of the brand) of the late 19th century. But with the batteries had to tinker. Already at that time it became clear that current technologies can significantly increase the power reserve of an electric car, mainly due to an increase in the number of batteries. And these are bulky dimensions, extra weight, long charging ... In general, automakers inevitably compromised in this matter, resulting in a certain average version with a power reserve of about 100-150 km, which in real life was easily reduced once more in two.

Tesla has chosen a different path. The range of an autonomous run was put at the forefront. All others were subordinated to this task. True, as a result, the battery for the Roadster was literally recruited from what computer scientists had at hand - lithium-ion 18650 cells, which are usually used in laptops. It was possible to cram almost 7,000 of these elements into a sports car. To be absolutely precise - 6,831 pieces. Thus, Tesla received a battery with a solid capacity of 53 kWh, which weighed ... 450 kg.

It is clear that for sports car such an increase is akin to obesity, so further at Tesla they began to think about how to put the Roadster on a diet. The French company Sotira came to the rescue - it volunteered to supply original composite body panels. With their help, the mass of the electric car was reduced to quite acceptable 1,235 kg. Although Elise weighed another 30% less. Yes, and it cost about the same cheaper, while the Tesla Roadster was asked for about $ 100,000.

But the wow effect worked. Wealthy audience interested unusual car, which turned out to be the first mass-produced sports electric car, the first model with lithium-ion batteries, and also the record holder for driving range without recharging. In addition, Tesla never tired of reminding that the Roadster is not a Lotus clone at all, only 6 percent of the parts are related to the Elise. At the same time, leaving aside the fact that the assembly of the American model was almost entirely carried out in England, and in California the car was only retrofitted for the needs of American customers. Europeans, in general, received their cars directly from Foggy Albion.

Nevertheless, Tesla's popularity grew and multiplied. Largely due to various high-profile records. For example, in 2009, the Roadster during the eco-rally in Australia covered 501 km without recharging at an average speed of 40 km/h. By the end of 2011, the supply of 2,500 Lotus chassis was exhausted. They didn’t buy new ones - by that time, Musk and his team felt confident in their abilities (even Daimler and Toyota volunteered to cooperate with the newly formed brand) and were preparing at full speed to launch the completely original Model S, the prototype of which was presented back in 2009.

The Whitestar project, under which this car was developed, represented the next step in Musk's strategy. Model S was supposed to be in the premium segment again, but to become more practical, more affordable, and most importantly, even more mobile! Perhaps, it was at that moment that the fate of Tesla was decided, because in fact the company had to switch from handicraft to mass production, and even with the development of absolutely new car. Third-party investments helped, including a solid loan from the state (which, by the way, Tesla managed to fully repay over time, unlike some industry giants). With this money, Tesla purchased from Toyota plant NUMMI in Fremont, California and called it the Tesla Factory.

In parallel, there was a search for suppliers. Since Tesla had developed close ties with component manufacturers, this was not much of a problem. Model S was helped to create such eminent companies as, for example, Siemens, Magna, Continental, Brembo, ZF ...

But the engineers from Silicon Valley again made a knight's move, revising the canons of civil model design. The five-meter luxury hatchback was originally built around the battery. It was made very thin and flat, located almost at the very ground to lower the center of gravity. And only then, independent air suspensions, power electronics, an electric motor and other components, up to the body and interior, began to be attached to this peculiar frame.

Battery cells are gone, but Panasonic helped Tesla seriously increase their energy density. As a result, the battery capacity has grown significantly - up to 85 kWh. This was enough to provide a two-ton comfortable car with a 416-horsepower engine with the dynamics of a sports car with a range of about 500 km! Do not want to overpay for record performance? For you there is a “derated” version with 65 kWh batteries and a less powerful motor. It costs less, but at the same time it covers almost 400 km on a single charge. And again, analogies with "apple" products come to mind, the price of which varies depending on the amount of memory.

Unlike the Spartan Roadster, the Model S hatchback is practical and comfortable. For example, in addition to the five main places in the trunk, you can install two more folding chairs for children. And the main feature of the interior was certainly a huge tablet computer that controls all the basic settings.

Actually, Tesla does not hide the fact that it has spied a lot from its colleagues in the electronic workshop. For example, the Americans also started the development of the dealer network in the image of Apple, initially relying on Internet sales with the most convenient interface to use and branded boutiques around the world, which at the same time are “knowledge centers” about the brand's products. By the way, such dealers, in fact, do not have typical service zones. After all, the complexity of servicing an electric car is incomparably lower than that of ordinary car, which needs to change the oil in the engine, candles, filters ... Therefore, the owner of Tesla does not have to go to MOT - the mobile team will visit the garage itself. You can sit down to drink coffee and watch your favorite movie, while the masters will put the car in order.

But at the same time, Tesla is actively cultivating brand loyalty with tougher measures. For example, with the help of Tesla Supercharger high-voltage fast charging stations.

They are designed so that only Model S owners can use them. The connector will not work with other cars, including the outdated Roadster overnight. Why such greed? Yes, just unlike other companies, Tesla decided not to cry about the lack of infrastructure for electric vehicles, but to create it itself. For their money.

Moreover, the emphasis is not just on dispensers with sockets, but on powerful terminals, which in half an hour provide energy sufficient for a run of 320 km (for comparison, the Roadster had to be connected to the outlet for at least 3.5-4 hours). What's important - absolutely free! After all, electricity for recharging is taken literally from the air - more precisely from the sun's rays, which are heated by photocells built into the roof of the pavilion.

Just the other day, 62-year-old Tesla Model S owner John Glennie and his daughter Jill crossed the whole of America from New York to Los Angeles without spending a cent on gas! Although for the entire 5,823-kilometer journey they had to recharge 28 times. The secret is that the company has charging stations on the main transport corridors, thereby increasing the mobility of its customers.

Of course, Tesla found a way to make money on this project as well. Those who are in a hurry or think that 30 minutes to connect to the network is an unaffordable luxury will be able to use the quick battery replacement service. Just 1.5 minutes and you're on your way with a fully charged battery. It will take longer to fill a tank of gasoline, and the cost will be about the same.

Already, Tesla's "supercharger" network, according to the company's calculations, covers 80% of the US population. And the development of such stations will continue. Next up is Europe.

Now in the Old World there are only 14 express charges. And they are located, at first glance, illogically. Tell me, do names like Eichstetten, Wilnsdorf, Bad Rappenau, Gol and Jöttingen mean anything to you? This settlements, in which Tesla stations. Of course, it is no coincidence - these are some kind of intermediate points located on routes between major cities. Tesla expects that, for example, by the end of March 2014, half of the German population will live no further than 320 km from Tesla chargers, and by the end of the year, the network will cover almost all of Western Europe.

Deliveries of the Tesla Model X electric crossover to customers will begin towards the end of 2014. Already now the car can be reserved on the official website of the brand. The prepayment, for example, in the USA will be 5,000 dollars, and in Germany - 4,000 euros. Technically, the Model X is very close to the Model S, but has all-wheel drive transmission and the original body with lifting doors for access to the second row of seats.

And next in line is the Model X crossover, which is expected to provide another powerful spurt in sales. That it will take place can no longer be doubted. Tesla has proven that it can keep promises and successfully lead even seemingly paradoxical projects. So far, the guys from Silicon Valley are really doing everything according to the business plan. But will it continue to be so? Moving into the ranks of a major automaker, Tesla will face unprecedented challenges. Imagine an actor from a provincial theater who, thanks to one successful role, woke up famous in the morning. On the one hand - honor, fame, money, recognition. On the other - intrigue, rivalry, envy, the destruction of personal life. The world giants will not tolerate a strong competitor in their patrimony ...

Tesla, despite the undeniable genius of its creators, is now in precisely such a difficult situation, from which it is necessary to come out with honor. And yet, there are other problems that come with it.

The alarm bell rang for Tesla on October 1, 2013, when the Model S caught fire on one of the American highways after a minor accident. The owner claims that it was spontaneous, while the company's experts are sure that the fire was caused by an external influence that seriously damaged the battery. Later there was another similar case, now in Mexico. The investigation is underway, the exact causes of the fires have not yet been officially established, but Tesla shares instantly collapsed on the stock market. The young company is too unstable for such events. But the annual circulation of Tesla has not yet gone even beyond the 100,000th mark, a drop in the ocean on a global scale. Further problems will multiply exponentially. And as a result, the brand is likely to come to the same dilemmas that worry automakers with centuries of history and huge production.

Nikola Tesla July 10, 1856 - January 7, 1943 Tesla was founded 60 years after the death of the great scientist and inventor Nikola Tesla. Formally, apart from a common name, they have little in common. Modern Americans only took advantage of some of the achievements of the famous electrical physicist, which, however, is being done today by almost all people related to this area. Another thing is interesting - Tesla made so many discoveries during his practice that even during his lifetime he could compete in popularity with actors or writers. He has more than a hundred patents to his credit, development of the fundamentals of radio communication, the theory of magnetic fields and alternating current, an assessment of the phenomenon of resonance ... It was not in vain that Nikola was considered one of the creators of the second industrial revolution and was even credited with a mystical gift. So paradoxical and surprising at times was his thinking. For example, a scientist performed many experiments on himself. So, if you look at it, today the Tesla brand is on the way of becoming, very similar in scenario to the life of the famous namesake. Let's take this as a sign of good luck.

Cars powered by electricity existed as early as the middle of the 19th century, and if not for the difficulty of recharging, they could compete with their gasoline counterparts. At the beginning of the 21st century, many companies began to promote their electric vehicles, and almost no model could compete with conventional cars in terms of driving performance. But the advent of Tesla Motors to some extent corrected the situation, and many believe that the future belongs to Tesla-made electric vehicles. Is it so? - Time will tell! But let's see what Tesla cars can boast of today.

A little about Tesla Motors

It all started in 2003, when two enthusiasts Martin Eberhard and Mark Tarpenning founded a company that symbolically was named after Nikola Tesla. This scientist designed the electric motor 100 years ago.

From the very beginning, the goal of the company's activity was the commercialization of electric vehicles. First priority was the creation of a premium sports car to show that electric vehicles can compete even on high level. Over time, it was planned to mass-produce such cars in various bodies to be made available to the average consumer. True, while Tesla-mobiles in the normal configuration cost approximately $ 100,000 ...

The guys needed good investments, and they soon turned to Elon Musk. He became very interested in the project, because electric vehicles can make the world a better place, at least partially removing it from the oil needle. "Okay, I'm in!" Musk said, becoming the main shareholder of the company's president. His enthusiasm and, of course, financial means gave the future of Tesla Motors.

Today, Elon Musk is the face of the company. He not only made huge investments in the whole enterprise, but also initiated the implementation of some technological and design solutions for Tesla cars.

In a word, Tesla Motors received proper support and funding, especially after the presentation of the first electric sports car.

They continue to move on a given course and are preparing for the release of the fourth electric car. Although it is worth noting the unpleasant fact that the company has been operating at a specific loss in recent years.

What makes Tesla mobile special

In each model of an electric car from Tesla, new chips appeared, which we will talk about later, but the main technological solutions can be traced throughout the entire model range.

Design

Everyone knows that liquid-fuel cars have hundreds of moving parts, but in the case of our electric friends, everything is a little simpler - they are provided only four major systems:

• Energy storage system (ESS);
• Power Electronics Module (PEM);
• Electric motor;
• Sequential gearbox.

Thus, electric vehicles have less weight, more usable space inside (two trunks), and less chance of breakage due to relatively few parts.

Autopilot

Tesla's advanced autopilot also deserves attention. So far, the presence of a driver behind the wheel is still not excluded, but Elon Musk promises that the car will soon will be able to drive from one American coast to another without the participation of the driver, who does not even have to deal with recharging - everything will be done by artificial intelligence.

Autopilot Tesla

The autopilot can move along the road, sticking to its lane, steer and slow down so as not to collide with other cars, control speed based on traffic, and perform many other useful things.

Current models can independently (without a driver) overcome up to 12 meters, for example, in order to park or drive into a garage.

Autopilot action:

Minimalism in the cabin

The center console is represented by a huge touch screen (the size depends on the model), with the help of which the main control takes place. You will not find any toggle switches and buttons. In place of the usual dashboard, there is also a display with all the necessary information.

The interior itself corresponds to the price of the car, but we will not paint it much, because there are no comrades for the taste and color.

Batteries

The power source is something without which the electric car will not go. Prior to this, large galvanic cells were used, but Tesla Motors went the other way. Their cars are battery powered from several thousand lithium-ion batteries manufactured by Panasonic, similar to those used in household appliances.

In the Tesla Roadster, the battery was located behind the seats, and in the Model S it was placed in the floor of the car. This solution allowed us to save usable space and improve handling.

"Supercharge" network

Tesla car owners have to look forward to long trips, which is why Superchargers, charging stations for electric vehicles, were developed. In the future, they should be as accessible and widespread as conventional gas stations.

To date, the Supercharge network is well developed in the United States: you can drive from one coast to another without fear that your battery will run out on the road and there will be nowhere to charge. Slowly, the Supercharger appears in Europe, Asia, and even in Russia, such a miracle can be seen in some places.

The battery can be charged in less than an hour.

Initially, recharging was free for Tesla car owners, but the manufacturer recently announced that, under the new rules, fees will still be charged. More precisely, each owner of such a car will be given an annual coupon for 400 kWh of free charging, and when the limit is exhausted, you will have to pay out of your own pocket. Rates are not yet known.

Tesla lineup

Since 2006, only 4 Tesla vehicles have been presented and put into production:

• Tesla Roadster sports car;
• Tesla Model S sedan;
• Crossover Tesla Model X;
• Tesla Model 3 sedan.

It's interesting that to buy a Tesla car, you must leave an application on the official website of the company. This is not typical for automotive market, because usually sales occur through dealers.

The debut work of Tesla Motors - the Roadster electric sports car was produced from 2008 to 2012. During this period, about 2,600 cars rolled off the assembly line.

The body and chassis were borrowed from the Lotus Elise. It was a kind of breaking the stereotype that all electric cars do not have an elegant appearance. Tesla Roadster looks like a real sports car.

Electric induction motor weighs only 32 kg, while the Tesla Roadster can accelerate up to 100 km/h in just 4 seconds, and the maximum speed is 201.1 km / h. On a single charge, you can drive up to 400 km. In the basic configuration, it cost $109,000.

Due to the peculiarities of the motor reaction, there was no need for complex gears. There are only three of them in the Roadster: two forward and one reverse.

In addition to such goodies as heated seats, a stereo system, ABS, the following innovations appeared in this car, which are also in subsequent models:

• A unique code that allows you to start the car.
• A special transceiver with which you can control, for example, the opening of the garage door.
• Docking station for iPad.
• Electric door handles.

Interestingly, the first Tesla Roadster at the presentation in 2006 could drive no more than 5 minutes due to overheating of the batteries.

In a word, by releasing the Roadster, manufacturers were able to really express themselves and demonstrate new technological solutions in terms of the production of electric vehicles.

Tesla Model S

This sedan was presented in 2009 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and already in 2012 its mass production began.

Model S can pass on one charge 458 km– it became a record among other electric cars. True, for this you need to order a car with a modernized battery.

The price varies from 75 thousand to 105 thousand dollars.

It was on this vehicle that automatic battery replacement was first demonstrated as an alternative to recharging. Such a service has become available at Supercharger gas stations and costs about $80.

Some journalists have already dubbed the Model S the best car. Of course, the statement is controversial, but, for example, in terms of safety, it really surpasses many other cars on the market. All this thanks to design features electric car:

• Lack of combustible fuel - there is nothing to catch fire!
• Under the hood, the empty storage space is a sort of crumple zone, and it will absorb most of the impact in a frontal collision.
• The center of gravity is much lower than on other cars, therefore, the likelihood of a rollover is reduced.

A distinctive feature of the Model S is the fact that it the first electric car built from scratch. For other similar cars, ready-made bases of gasoline models were used.

Just like that, charging the car from the outlet will not learn. To do this, you will have to additionally buy a charging station or constantly visit Supercharger.

The Model S even went on a "Big Test Drive":

This electric car has become very popular and has overtaken in sales even such cars as Mercedes-Benz S-class and BMW 7 Series. In the same Norway, Tesla Model S in September 2013 became the best-selling. This was largely facilitated by government support for electric vehicles in the form of tax breaks, as well as high gasoline prices.

Sales of this electric crossover began in 2015. The Model X is built on the Model S platform and is available in three trim levels: 75D, 90D, P90D, which mainly differ in battery power. Already in the basic version, the car is equipped with two electric motors at once.

The power reserve, depending on the battery, is up to 411 km, and the maximum speed limit is 250 km/h.

The main feature of the Model X is gullwing automatic doors. This decision not only facilitated access to the car interior, but also reduced the required parking space.

The Model X 70D costs $81,000, while the top-of-the-line P90D costs $142,000.

The electric crossover from Tesla was conceived as the best car for family and travel. In general, the car has come in, given that the demand for the class has increased greatly in recent years. However, it was not without negativity - many owners complained about low quality Model X, both hardware problems and mechanical failures were mentioned.

Tesla Model 3 sedan

And this electric car at the time of writing the article has not yet been released, but has already been presented.

For Model 3 again developed new platform, and this time the Tesla mobile should be aimed at the mass market. Basic version will only cost $35,000.

In terms of driving performance, Model 3, of course, will be inferior to its older brothers: acceleration to 100 km / h in 6 seconds, power reserve - 346 km.

Tesla Semi Truck

In November 2017, Elon Musk presented an electric truck.

Problems

Tesla vehicles are no doubt superior to the competition in the field of electric transport, but some typical disadvantages they still have. In particular, this applies to a strong loss of charge during even a little downtime car and fast discharge at low temperatures.

Conclusion

It is likely that liquid-fuel cars will be slowly replaced by electric cars in a few decades. Tesla was able to show that such competition is real, and successfully continue to please us innovative solutions in the automotive industry.

There is nothing unique about Tesla electric vehicles, and the environmental damage they cause is higher than that of gasoline cars.

By the end of 2015, 107,228 Tesla Model S cars were sold. These cars are not in garages, they are actively driving on the roads - already in mid-2015, the total mileage of Tesla Model S exceeded 1.6 billion km. The car is not cheap - in the maximum configuration, its price exceeds €125,000. But in this category, it was able to get ahead of the Mercedes S-class in Western Europe in terms of the number of cars sold in 2015. This was Elon Musk's main breakthrough in solving the problem of transferring earthlings to environmentally friendly transport - the fact that electric cars became super popular for the first time. An analysis of materials about Tesla Motors allows us to identify five groups of unique technological solutions: 1) constantly updated, fully software and integrated control of the engine, suspension and all vehicle systems; 2) an autopilot that allows the driver not to participate in driving for most of the route; 3) battery box ignition prevention system, combining programming code, temperature control and chemicals; 4) the Model S "trolley", which integrates the battery pack, thereby providing excellent vehicle stability; 5) rear doors car model X, which are a sophisticated version of the "dovewing" - a design that, due to its complexity, is not used in any of the mass-produced cars now.

The "environmental damage" caused by electric vehicles to the environment, Musk's critics evaluate as follows: a) suppose that the electricity used to Tesla charging, obtained from a coal-fired thermal power plant; b) compare the emissions of this thermal power plant with the exhaust of the best, most environmentally friendly hybrid cars, such as Toyota Prius, and get a surprising result: Prius is “cleaner” than Tesla. Of course, this is nonsense. Coal-fired stations have long ceased to be the only source of electricity. In Germany, for example, up to 70% of electricity comes from non-carbon sources. Yes, and Toyota Prius is difficult to consider as a full-fledged analogue of the Tesla Model S 90D. Here it is necessary, rather, to compare with the Porsche Panamera TurboS, and this car has a very high level of CO 2 in the exhaust, to put it mildly.

Tesla Motors is a chronically unprofitable "investor's nightmare", "budget parasite"

And this statement is wrong. Tesla Motors is a public company, so its financial statements are publicly available. The company's operating income (revenue minus expenses that had to be incurred to generate this revenue) amounted to $456 million in 2013, $881 million in 2014 and $923 million in 2015. Of course, the company conducts a large amount of research work (for $232 million in 2013, $495 million in 2014 and $776 million in 2015), and incurs other expenses, but still the company's EBITDA in 2013-2014 was positive: $44 million and $11 million, respectively. However, Musk's plans to build the Gigafactory, a uniquely sized battery plant, require large capital expenditures. We see them in 2015 - for a total of $1.6 billion. And the company's EBITDA in 2015 really amounted to a large negative value.

But the company's investors are happy: Today, Tesla Motors shares are worth $220, which is 11 times more than at the IPO ($20). Getting Tesla Motors government support is not surprising, because subsidies and tax breaks are a typical tool for government incentives for projects aimed at reducing carbon emissions and switching to renewable energy sources. Tesla Motors is among the recipients of both subsidies and benefits. The subsidy was provided in 2009 in the form of a soft loan for $465 million, and the company received tax benefits in both 2014 and 2015. However, it is important to know that the company fully repaid the loan received in 2009 already in 2013, and the amount of tax benefits received for two years, although large in absolute terms - $ 93 million, is insignificant relative to the company's turnover (total turnover for 2014-2015 years amounted to $ 7 billion).

PowerWall - cheating customers, a useless thing

There is no official information about the PowerWall home battery in Russian (Tesla Motors does not operate on the Russian market). This is probably why you can come up with “fraudulent promises to users” yourself, and then convincingly and with pleasure refute them. So what is actually promised to PowerWall users? Three simple things: 1) if your house is equipped with solar panels, then you can store the solar energy produced during the day for consumption at night; 2) if you live in remote areas without a stable electricity connection, you can save electricity; 3) you can store electricity at low night rates and use it during the day instead of buying at high day rates. And PowerWall implements all three promises 100%. And the fact that generating and storing solar energy so far costs almost twice as much as buying energy generated by the traditional method cannot be attributed to the malicious Musk. Moreover, the ratio of the price of a "solar" kilowatt and the price of a "hydrocarbon" kilowatt in some countries is not so dramatic: in Hawaii, Australia and Germany, it is already more profitable today to provide yourself with solar energy than to buy electricity in the network.

SpaceX reusable flights are fiction and nobody needs them

It's ridiculous to credit Musk with the idea of ​​reusable space rockets. The American "shuttle" began to be developed in the late 1960s and made 135 flights. However, there is still no effective, economical solution to the problem of reusable flights into space. Each flight of the shuttle cost $1 billion, and the task of restoring it for the next launch required the work of 10,000 people for nine months. The task of adapting the main SpaceX rocket - Falcon 9 - for reusable use was set by Musk from the very beginning. The purpose of this solution is to radically reduce the cost of launching cargo into low Earth orbit.

The space launch market is opaque and non-public, but widely discussed by professionals and fans. From these discussions, it is known that a typical launch of a “regular” Falcon 9 costs $70 million, a Long March 3B launch costs $85 million, a Proton takes off for $100 million, a Delta 4 from United Launch Alliance ( joint venture Boeing and Lockheed Martin) - $ 120 million, Ariane 5 from Arianespace - € 180 million. Elon Musk aims to reduce the cost of launches by an order of magnitude, up to $ 7-8 million per Falcon 9 Reusable flight. Neither Musk nor his engineering team declares this problem solved and even achievable in the most soon. It is extremely difficult to find a balance between the effectiveness of a rocket and the speed / cost of its recovery after returning to Earth.

The sole reason for the existence and success of the space company SpaceX is its opaque connection and "non-random" support from NASA and DARPA.

Private space companies have existed in the US long before SpaceX. Plus, SpaceX is far from the only private space company with a celebrity investor. Even a “club” of companies has been formed, where famous billionaires have invested: Stratolaunch Systems (Paul Allen), Planetary Resources (Larry Page, Eric Schmidt), Blue Origin (Jeff Bezos), Virgin Galactic (Richard Branson), SpaceX and Bigelow Aerospace (Robert Bigelow ).

Against the backdrop of the overall US space budget, the amounts that SpaceX receives by participating in launches for NASA do not look so huge. But these amounts never go to a single company. In 2008, a $3.6 billion transport contract for the delivery of cargo to the ISS was divided by NASA between two companies: SpaceX and Orbital ATK Inc. The transport contract was signed for seven years, and at the end of 2015, NASA began selecting candidates for a new seven-year contract, again for $ 3.6 billion. Four companies were on the list of applicants for the contract: Boeing, Orbital ATK Inc., Sierra Nevada Corp. . and SpaceX. The contract was eventually signed with the last three, between which launches will be distributed (six launches in total, two for each of the companies).

In the absence of serious solvent demand for space launches from the business side, the only "buyer" from SpaceX is the government. All private space companies are in the same situation. At the same time, SpaceX has perhaps the largest research budget in the industry, which again is not surprising, given the number of tasks being solved in parallel: commissioning a returnable rocket and a super-heavy rocket, finalizing the passenger module. In 2013, Musk estimated SpaceX's annual spending budget at $800-900 million a year. Against the backdrop of figures of this magnitude and with the company's categorical unwillingness to raise funding on the stock market, the strategy of actively involving NASA in projects looks like the only possible one.

The Hyperloop rapid transit project does not contain new ideas and will enrich Musk without benefiting people

Like many, Elon Musk works two jobs at the same time. And the offices of the companies in which he works are far from each other. This situation is uncomfortable even when the offices are at opposite ends of the same subway line, and it is completely unbearable when one office (Tesla Motors) is in Palo Alto, and the second (SpaceX) is in Los Angeles and separates them by an hour of flight or eight hours by car. Flying a plane is not cheap, driving is not fast, which is why Musk is extremely interested in having Los Angeles and San Francisco connected by high-speed transport line. The California State Government is also interested in this and has prepared a project to build a high-speed train California High-Speed ​​​​Rail (codenamed Bullet Train) for $68 billion and 15 years. Musk thought that the problem could be solved much faster and cheaper, and instructed his engineers to prepare the concept of an ultra-fast maglev train moving in a vacuum. Engineers completed this task, and in August 2013, a concept was born that immediately became public. Neither Elon Musk nor any of his companies are involved in the implementation of the concept.