I was also a bit perplexed and disappointed about the Bolt news. We own one and really like it. I read they will retool that plant to make SUVs or pickups as I recall. Along with Ford they seem to be killing the sedan. We just traded our Volt in and that model was axed last year. I really liked that car.
The reason they gave for killing the bolt is the batteries are older chemistry and for some reason they can’t seem to figure out how to update that. Sounds tenuous to me. I imagine the real reason is profit margins. It’s so much easier to sell big cars with naturally high margins than figure out how to make smaller cars efficiently. I also do not like the personality of Musk, but I do admire the trajectory of Tesla. I guess need to separate the two entities in my mind. It may be the only way forward for EVs or even the sedan. -Steve > On Apr 30, 2023, at 11:13 PM, Tom Hudson via EV <ev@lists.evdl.org> wrote: > > We started our EV journey with our Solectria Force in 1997, and after > retiring our Force after 21 (!) years (due to rust; all the EV components > work like new and are in storage) we drive a Tesla Model 3. After all those > years of driving one of the few EVs in the state of Wisconsin, it's kind of > surreal to be driving through our little city of 11,000 and seeing multiple > Model Ys (and Model 3s) driving around or parked in driveways. Seeing the > recent sales numbers on Model Ys, it does look like Musk's prediction will be > spot-on. It's just awesome to see EVs becoming mainstream. > > Our Saturday morning ritual here is to watch the Electrek podcast on YouTube > while having breakfast. This week they mentioned that GM is killing the Bolt, > which is their most popular EV. We paused the video and talked a bit about > how GM totally screwed the pooch when they killed the EV-1 (which we rented > and drove in California back in 1999 or so) -- they could absolutely have > OWNED the EV market if they had kept going. Now an upstart like Tesla is > wiping up the floor with them because they didn't have any foresight or a > vision of a future beyond ICE. And Toyota has been fighting the inevitable > future, trying to kill EV incentives. And Ford is making an attempt to move > forward, but getting NEGATIVE 40 percent margins on their EVs. All the big > auto industry players should have seen the writing on the wall, but kept > their blinders on and now they're scrambling to catch up -- they never set up > the kind of vertical integration Tesla has, nor did they make any deals for > raw battery materials. And one reason Tesla is kicking ass with > never-before-seen auto industry margins on the Model Y is their relentless, > continuous manufacturing improvements like the single front and rear castings. > > The legacy ICE manufacturers are true dinosaurs and will be a textbook > example of how companies with no vision will be extinct. As for GM, makers of > the abomination of the Hummer EV, who in the name of crushing the CARB > mandates snatched all the EV-1s from the owners who were begging to be able > to keep them, and crushed them, I say "good riddance". I'm no big Elon Musk > fan, but it's just a dream to see that the Model Y is on its way to being the > most popular car of any kind in the world. > > -Tom > >> On 4/22/2023 1:33 PM, paul dove via EV wrote: >> Elon Musk May Have Been Right, His Tesla Model Y Guess Could Come True >> >> Tesla CEO Elon Musk often gets to prove to people that he was right all >> along, and another such opportunity may come soon enough. >> >> Tesla CEO Elon Musk said some time ago that the Model Y would outsell all of >> Tesla's other cars, and by a wide margin. This came as a surprise since it's >> much more expensive than the popular Model 3. The CEO went on to predict >> that the Model Y would eventually become the best-selling car in the world. >> Many people thought he was crazy, but there's a much better chance of it >> actually happening than you might think. >> >> When the Tesla Model Y first debuted, it was a bit of a disappointment to >> many people. The entire unveiling ceremony revolved around the history of >> Tesla, and the electric crossover was barely present. When it was finally >> shown, it wasn't shown in great detail, and there was no look at the third >> row. All you could really tell was that it wasn't much more than an inflated >> Model 3. >> >> That said, the Model Y has been selling exceedingly well across the globe. >> In fact, it already made some top sales lists in 2022, and Tesla's sales >> stand to be much stronger in 2023. While many people love to pick on Elon >> Musk for his wild ideas and terrible timelines, he often proves them wrong. >> Sure, there are some promises Musk has made that have come true very late or >> still not come to fruition, but many of his dreams people doubted years ago >> are already a reality. >> >> If all continues to move forward as it has thus far this year, Musk could >> have another "I told you so" moment. >> >> >> >> >> According to Electrek, Musk said in 2016 that the Model Y would create >> demand for 500,000 to 1,000,000 units per year and eventually become the >> world's best-selling passenger car of any kind. Keep in mind, it didn't even >> come to market until 2020. In 2022, Tesla noted that the Model Y would soon >> keep pace with the top-selling Toyota Corolla, which sees some ~1.2 million >> units sold per year. >> >> Tesla could inform us during its upcoming earnings meeting that the Model Y >> is already on track to become the best-selling car in the world as early as >> this year. It topped all rivals in China, the world's biggest automotive >> market, for Q1 2023. Meanwhile, in the world's second-largest car market, >> the US, early data points to the Model Y being the best-selling passenger >> car for the quarter. >> >> >> >> >> The Model Y is also breaking sales records in many European markets, and >> Tesla has ramped up its production at Giga Berlin to 5,000 copies per week. >> Tesla is also ramping up production at Giga Texas while constantly making >> tweaks and upgrades in Fremont and Shanghai. >> >> >> >> >> Tesla aims to produce some 1.8 million EVs globally in 2023, though Musk has >> said the company could possibly achieve 2 million. If everything falls into >> place as planned, the Model Y has a very good chance of being the >> best-selling car in the world. >> >> What do you think? Leave us your words of wisdom in the comment section >> below. >> >> >> On Saturday, April 22, 2023, 4:56 AM, EV List Lackey via EV >> <ev@lists.evdl.org> wrote: >> >> Chinese EV dominance hastens end of petrol engine era >> >> Issued on: 22/04/2023 - 09:14 >> >> https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230422-chinese-ev-dominance-hastens- >> end-of-petrol-engine-era >> >> or https://v.gd/YYqNoM >> >> "This year's Shanghai Auto Show signalled the end of the petrol engine era >> in China, as domestic electric vehicle brands drive change across the sector >> and leave foreign companies in the dust, analysts and industry insiders >> said. >> >> "Government support for EVs and growing interest from a vast consumer base >> has assured Chinese companies' dominance of their home market, the world's >> largest -- and they are now beginning to set their sights overseas. >> >> *** >> >> "According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, electric >> vehicles made up a quarter of car sales in the country in 2022, a year-on- >> year increase of 94 percent. >> >> *** >> >> "China has dedicated huge resources to the industry. >> >> "They skipped developing petrol engines because they can't compete with the >> rest of the world," said Richards. "So they thought: '(With EVs) we can get >> a head start in front of everyone else'." >> >> *** >> >> "The supporting infrastructure was built too -- the government says there >> are now more than 5.8 million charging piles in China. Guangdong province >> alone has around three times as many public chargers as the whole of the >> United States, according to Bloomberg data. >> >> *** >> >> Some are smashing the cash barrier that put EVs beyond the means of the >> average consumer. In Shanghai, China's Geely exhibited its boxy Panda Mini - >> - including a bright yellow one with the phrase "what the duck" emblazoned >> on its side. The cheaper versions cost around $5,800. >> >> "In the future, homegrown technology could drive prices down even further. >> Battery giant CATL has developed a cell that uses sodium instead of lithium >> ions, the former both more abundant and cheaper than the latter. Just >> before the show opened CATL announced those batteries would be incorporated >> into domestic brand Chery's cars. >> >> *** >> >> "And Chinese EV companies have already begun to make inroads abroad. The >> biggest of them, BYD, set up shop in Norway then expanded onwards, and >> others are following." >> >> https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230422-chinese-ev-dominance-hastens- >> end-of-petrol-engine-era >> >> or https://v.gd/YYqNoM >> >> David Roden, EVDL moderator & general lackey >> >> To reach me, don't reply to this message; I won't get it. Use my >> offlist address here : http://evdl.org/help/index.html#supt >> >> = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >> >> On two occasions I have been asked [by members of Parliament], >> "Pray, Mr Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, >> will the right answers come out?" I am not able rightly to >> apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke >> such a question. >> >> -- Charles Babbage >> = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org >> No other addresses in TO and CC fields >> HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/ >> >> >> >> >> -------------- next part -------------- >> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... >> URL: >> <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20230422/3b66ee01/attachment.htm> >> _______________________________________________ >> Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org >> No other addresses in TO and CC fields >> HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/ >> > _______________________________________________ > Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org > No other addresses in TO and CC fields > HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/ > _______________________________________________ Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org No other addresses in TO and CC fields HELP: http://www.evdl.org/help/
