Since Tesla doesn't release the names of most of the people who purchase one of its electric Roadsters, we can only speculate about the financial wherewithal of most of them. However, it's probably reasonably safe to assume that most of them have considerable means and are mostly paying in cash. After all, the average working stiff can't afford a $100,000+ sports car no matter how low the operating costs might be. For those that can't quite swing an upfront cash payment, Tesla is now teaming up with Bank of America to offer financing on the Roadster.

Of course, being able to get a monthly payment plan on the Roadster still doesn't make it inexpensive. Assuming an absolutely baseline Roadster at $109K, the $7,500 federal tax credit, a substantial $20,000 down payment and 7.7 percent financing, the payments on a 60-month loan would amount to $1,650 every month. Bank of America isn't specifying any terms, but you can apply online or at a Tesla store.


[Source: Tesla]

While things have been quiet on the official legal front in the battle for recognition between Martin Eberhard and Elon Musk, some of the bystanders in the saga are continuing to come forward with their takes of the story. Earlier this week we heard from Tesla's former SVP for marketing Darryl Siry in a piece that ran on Wired. Now, former communications director David Vespremi is responding with a counterpoint to Siry's article.

The heart of the legal argument revolves around who did what in the very earliest days of Tesla's existence in 2003-4 and then what happened in 2006-7 as Tesla approached Job 1 for the Roadster. The two men have their own versions of those events and how that relates to what has been said by and about Musk over the past 18 months.

Keep in mind that neither Vespremi or Siry were there in the earliest days of Tesla. Instead Siry's piece looks at the Roadster's evolution from the AC Propulsion tZero. Vespremi's response goes way beyond that and places Tesla in some historical context in the progression from the EVs of a century ago as they "cross the chasm" to mainstream acceptability. You can find Vespremi's entire response after the jump and it's a worthwhile read.


[Source: David Vespremi]

Following the announcement that Tesla had been approved for $465 million in loans from the Department of Energy, CEO Elon Musk held a conference call. Most of what was said wasn't especially newsworthy and he didn't discuss the legal proceedings that have been going on around him and the company recently. He did however, discuss some issues relating to batteries and the Roadster.

On the battery front, Musk was pretty adamant about sticking with the current arrangement of several thousand laptop cells for the Model S. While larger format cells hold promise and Tesla is investigating them, Musk doesn't believe they have the economies of scale or energy density to make them worthwhile for the Model S. Of course with every other automaker and battery supplier going that direction, large packs will have the economies of scale before long. Musk expects to make the change for the third, higher volume, lower price car that's coming after the Model S.

The other, more worrying news was about Roadster sales, or rather the lack of them. For about a year, now Roadster sales have been stuck at about 1,300. Musk was asked what the current backlog of Roadsters was and he responded with "about 700-800." Added to the 500 delivered so far, that implies that even with new sales from Europe and Canada, cancellations are keeping pace with orders. That's going to make it awfully difficult to hit the 1,000 Roadsters-a-year target Musk talked about. Hopefully, revenues from powertrain sales like the Smart batteries will pick up the slack until the Model S arrives.


[Source: Green Fuels Forecast]
Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

Shortly after Tesla Motors co-founder Martin Eberhard filed a lawsuit against Tesla Motors and its Chairman, Product Architect and CEO Elon Musk, the Silicon Valley automaker had this to say:

This lawsuit is a fictionalized, inaccurate account of Tesla's early years -- it's twisted and wrong, and we welcome the opportunity to set the record straight. Incidentally, Tesla will also be filing counterclaims and in the process present an accurate account of the company's history.

The first bit of record resetting has shown up on the official Tesla blog. Not surprisingly, Elon Musk has lots to say in regards to the early years of the Roadster's development, and he seeks to offer his side of the story, along with a number of emails to back up his claims.

What does Musk say? Well, his initial response is a long, informative and extremely interesting read. Here are some choice lines:

• The facts are that when I requested through AC Propulsion to meet Eberhard, he had no technology of his own, he did not have a prototype car and he owned no intellectual property relating to electric cars.
• At the time [early 2004], "Tesla Motors, Inc." consisted of Eberhard, Tarpenning and Wright, plus an unfunded business plan and they were looking for an initial round of funding to create a more advanced prototype than the AC Propulsion Tzero. While there was a basic corporation in place, Tesla hadn't even registered or obtained the trademark to its name and had no formal offices or assets.

There's more after the jump.


[Source: Elon Musk / Tesla Motors]

Finally. It's been a few years since we made the case that Hawai'i is one of world's best places to introduce electric cars. Since then, we've seen the state begin to make moves in an EV direction through a partnership with Better Place and got to learn about the first ever electric car in Hawai'i. But Henk Rogers is living the dream.

Rogers owns the fourth Tesla Roadster in Hawai'i, and the Honolulu Weekly recently learned about how the car came to Honolulu. Hint, it's about the ocean. See, Rogers is concerned about the increasing acidification of the ocean (apparently, 100 million tons of CO₂ sink into the ocean every hour, rapidly increasing the acid level there) and the damage this is doing to shellfish and coral. He started up the Blue Planet Foundation that's trying to get Hawai'i to get off of carbon-producing energy. That's a big goal, and, in the meantime, Rogers cruises around O'ahu in the Roadster, an electric scooter and a Prius. Fun.

[Source: Honolulu Weekly]
Full disclosure: I used to write for the Honolulu Weekly.

This isn't the first time we've seen a toy representation of the Tesla Roadster, but it is the strangest. First, the good news: it's all-electric (mega points for authenticity) and it's quite cheap, at least comparatively, at just $229. It's fully remote controlled and even has an ipod/MP3 player connection. Interested? Check it out over on Scootercatalog. Of course, the URL for the order page says that the car is "Corvette Style," and there is a major problem with this "Tesla Style" kid car": four exhaust pipes!

Our friend Chelsea Sexton thought that little mistake was worth emailing the company about, saying that "I'm thinking you might have a fundamental misunderstanding of what a Tesla is...Given that it's fully electric, there is no exhaust, and therefore no tailpipe - let alone dual exhaust on each side!" She got an unusual response: "Thank You for the opinion, others have a different one though." Right. Because none of us can possibly agree on the number of exhaust pipes an EV should have. Fail.


[Source: Chelsea Sexton, Scootercatalog]

Martin Eberhard has obviously been busy these last few weeks. With a lawsuit currently pending in court against Tesla Motors and its CEO Elon Musk, Eberhard has apparently still had enough time to write an interesting article on the effects of blogging and how it helped build the Tesla Roadster. Specifically, Martin is referring to Tesla's official blog, the first post of which Eberhard wrote shortly after the Roadster's official launch back in the summer of 2006.

According to Eberhard, blogging promotes transparency and builds credibility, is the ultimate real-time focus group, supports team building and is the single most efficient tool for reaching mainstream media. Those points, along with the importance of a blogger having "a voice," make up the subheadings of Martin's article. It's an interesting read, and if you're so inclined, click here for the entire posting.

[Source: Tendo Communications]

UPDATE: Added Speed and Motion HD Video after the jump

Just what do you call a gathering of 30 or so Tesla Roadsters all in one place? A gaggle? A flock? After taking a look at the photos of such an event from our friends at Speed and Motion, we'll go with convoy. This crowd was brought together to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Tesla's first retail store and the delivery of the 500th Tesla Roadster, meaning that the cars you see in the pictures below represent less than a tenth of total Roadster production so far. Elliot from Speed and Motion describes the experience this way:

What a treat it was to experience 60 miles along the streets and freeways of LA including a run through the scenic Malibu canyons. What surprised me was how quick (0-to-60 mph acceleration of 3.9 seconds) and agile in the corners this electric vehicle really is on the road. We made a pit stop at the Rock Store before heading over for a wonderful barbecue at Greener Pasture Ranch, a Tesla customer's private home.

Riding in these cars is so peaceful and tranquil. It sure was a change from the loud and wild exotic cars that we are used to experiencing here at speedandmotion! One thing I can say for sure is the owners are such a spirited and lively group, not to mention car aficionados at heart.

We've got 20 pictures in the gallery below that are almost too much if you're a Roadster fan. See the rest of the photos here and be sure to click past the break for a couple of videos that were taken during the event, along with the official press release.


[Source: Speed and Motion]

It'll be that much easier to test drive a Tesla Roadster in seven cities - New York, Seattle, Chicago, Miami, London, Monaco and Munich - very soon. These cities are where Tesla plans to open its next batch of stores (officially, "Sales & Service Centers") and the first of the batch, New York, Seattle, London and Chicago, should open later this month. As much as possible, Tesla has picked store locations that "quick access to nearby highways and suburbs, giving prospective owners an opportunity to experience Tesla's best-in-class performance under a range of driving conditions." Seems smart.

In related news, a Roadster owner living near San Francisco decided it would be a fun thing to drive to Yosemite National Park. It took some planning to make sure the electric car wouldn't run out of juice during the 400+ mile round trip. The pictures and write-up of the drive are enough to make just about anyone jealous.


[Source: Tesla]

From the first to the 100th and now to the 500th, the story of Tesla Motors and their initial offering - the Roadster - has been pretty heavily documented. The trend is unlikely to stop any time soon and, in that vein, Tesla is making sure to note the latest milestone, the delivery of the 500th Roadster. The lucky recipient is New Jersey's Martin Tuchman, who Tesla describes as chairman of The Tuchman Foundation and a board member of The Parkinson's Alliance and Parkinson's Disease Foundation of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York. Tuchman is apparently a car fan, with a 1967 Mercedes 250 and a 1993 Jaguar convertible in his stable. Those cars will get even less of a workout now that the Roadster is around and is scheduled to become Tuchman's main commuter car. It's especially nice that Tuchman will be using solar power to charge his new toy whenever possible.


[Source: Tesla]