tesla

Tesla CEO responds to lawsuit from former CEO

The legal battle and war of words between two Tesla Motors CEOs are heating up.

Current Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk responded in a lengthy company blog on Monday to a lawsuit charging libel and breach of contract from former CEO Martin Eberhard. In his blog, Musk dismisses Eberhard's claim that Eberhard was responsible for many of Tesla's key achievements, one of the key points of the suit.

Among other comments, Musk writes: "The facts are that when I requested through AC Propulsion to meet Eberhard, he had no technology of his own, he did not have … Read more

Elon Musk: Gas should cost $10 per gallon

NEW YORK--"I'm anti-tax, but I'm pro-carbon tax," Tesla Motors founder Elon Musk said onstage at the Wired Business Conference here Monday--a remark that prompted interviewer and Wired editor-in-chief Chris Anderson to quip that he was a "true Silicon Valley libertarian."

Gasoline "should probably be $10" per gallon, said onetime PayPal co-founder Musk, who is also attempting to make sending satellites into space cheaper with a start-up called SpaceX. "I'm not paying for the true cost of gasoline at the pump...since nobody's explicitly paying for the CO2 capacity … Read more

Former Tesla CEO sues company, current CEO Musk

Updated at 8:30 a.m. PT with full statement from Tesla Motors.

The founder and former CEO of Tesla Motors, Martin Eberhard, is suing the company and current CEO Elon Musk for libel and breach of contract, opening up another lawsuit at the young electric carmaker.

The lawsuit (click for PDF) alleges that Musk sought to "rewrite history" by taking credit for the accomplishments and the very idea behind Tesla Motors, resulting in a damaged reputation for Eberhard. The suit was filed in the last week of May but become public on Wednesday night.

In addition, the … Read more

Tesla Motors recalls electric Roadster

Tesla Motors has launched a safety recall covering all 345 Tesla Roadsters manufactured before April 22.

Tesla says it will make house calls to inspect the rear, inner hub flange bolts on several Roadsters after one owner reported uncharacteristic handling. After a root-cause analysis, Tesla determined that the rear, inner hub flange bolts on a small percentage of Roadster vehicles were improperly torqued during assembly by Lotus, the contract manufacturer of the Roadster chassis. Lotus is conducting a similar recall on some Lotus Elise and Exige vehicles.

No accidents have been reported as a result of this manufacturing issue, which … Read more

Taking the Dodge Circuit prototype electric sports car for a spin

Autoblog Green takes the Dodge Circuit prototype electric sportscar for a spin through downtown Detroit. Chrysler's John Myers says the says the company is developing "several" electric vehicles, but didn't reveal any details.

119: Hydrogen is back. Can it catch up with Hybrids and EVs?

Obama talks GM, but leaves out the "B" word. Hydrogen is back this week; will it stay? And the new version of Microsoft SYNC is out; we'll tell you what it does and if your Ford can get it. Plus, a ride in a hotted-up Lexus.

Listen now: Download today's podcast SHOW NOTES

• CNET Video: Cooley drives the Lexus IS350

• Hydrogen Road Tour 2009

• Check here to upgrade SYNC in your FoMoCo vehicle

• Antuan gets a first look at the Lexus IS C ragtop

• HCCI engines explained

Buzz Out Loud 977: You can't point north on ecstasy

But you can point north if you wear a belt of a dozen or so magnets all the time. We'll explain. Also Palm Pre is coming for $200 and we have some rumored next-generation specs. Oh and about 300 car stories, 'cause you know. Cooley is on the show.

Listen now: Download today's podcast Subscribe now: iTunes (audio) | iTunes (video) | RSS (audio) | RSS (video) EPISODE 977

Palm Pre to arrive June 6 for $200 http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10244423-1.html

Next-gen iPhone specs, launch date revealed? http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/05/next-gen-iphone-specs-launch-date-revealed/

Biz Stone on Twitter: … Read more

Tech makeover for the Tesla Roadster

We just completed one of the most interesting installations that we've done in awhile. The owner of this brand-new Tesla roadster is a client of the Al & Ed's Autosound location in West Hollywood. The vehicle was in serious need of some mobile audio goodies, and also an update to the interior and some of the trim. The store has done a number of his vehicles over the years, and when he showed up in this all-electric roadster, nobody knew that there were some challenges ahead.

The Tesla is an all-electric roadster capable of 0-to-60 mph times in … Read more

Daimler grabs Tesla stake in electric-car push

German automotive giant Daimler has invested in electric-car company Tesla Motors and plans to use Tesla's battery packs in its Smart electric car due later this year.

At a Tuesday press conference held at the Daimler museum in Stuttgart, Germany, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Daimler management board member Thomas Weber said the contract between the two companies calls for joint collaboration on the Smart electric car and future models.

Daimler has invested a "double-digit million-dollar sum" to acquire about a 10 percent stake in California-based Tesla, Weber said.

"We are about to combine the best … Read more