Elon Musk: Tesla compact car, battery energy density, Elon time & improvements in the Model S

At the Q&A following the Tesla Shareholders’ Meeting on Tuesday, some interesting questions were raised & some even more interesting answers were forthcoming. See the video below, or more briefly:

Will Tesla build a compact car – around the 00:30 mark – “... compact car in less than 5 years …”

Autopilot remains a work in progress, with no promise of a major improvement any time soon – 00:45

Steering wheel – 13:16 – “Model Y ... will not have any leather in it … in the steering wheel, even if it does have a steering wheel.”

Battery energy density – 13:45 – “Twice as much is tricky, but we can certainly see a path to about a 30% improvement, maybe a 40% improvement in energy in the same size battery pack, that’s technology we are confident does work & needs to be scaled up & made very reliable … 2-3 years to get to about a 30% improvement in volumetric energy density … 6 to 8 years to get to a doubling … highly dependant on … lithium anode …”

Tesla time estimates – “Elon time” – 23:37 – “I think I do have like an issue with time [laughter & clapping] … my brother used to, like when we were catching a bus to school, he would lie to me about the time … & then we’d actually be able to catch the bus.”

Will Tesla make a motorcycle – 25:30 – “… used to ride motorcycles when I was a kid … dirt biking … had a road bike until I was 17 & was almost killed by a truck, so we’re not gonna do motorcycles.”

Improvements in Model S¹ – 29:45 – “One thing we haven’t been good at educating people on is that the Model S ... has improved very dramatically from 2012 … arguably on version 3 or 4 of the Model S right now ... really a gigantic improvement … I really encourage anyone who’s got an early Model S to test drive the current version. I think you’ll be blown away by how much it has improved.”


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¹ It’s easy to forget that the Model S has been in production since 2012 – partly because the original aesthetics were so good (after 6 years, it still looks as fresh as tomorrow). To the casual observer, the only change has been the revised nose in 2016.

Credit: fau4u2.wordpress.com

For anyone following the Tesla story, there have been many improvements, including:

● Supercharger network – wasn't even promised when the first owner took delivery – not a change to the car per se, but as important to the long-range driving experience as petrol stations (gas stations, service stations – what ever they are called where you live) are to a fossil car

● Greatest available battery capacity has jumped from 85 kWh to 90 & most recently, 100 kWh

● 4 wheel drive

● Software, including Autopilot has seen many upgrades,² which has necessitated;

● Computer upgrades – more than 40 times increase in computing power in October 2016³ & a further upgrade in February 2018⁴

● Autopilot hardware upgrade – increase in the number of cameras (8 cameras provide 360° vision) & other sensors³

● Redesigned seats

● Adjustable air suspension

² Tesla: “Software Updates”, version 8.1 as of this writing – https://www.tesla.com/en_AU/software

³ hhg2Tech: “As of 19 October 2016, all Teslas produced will have the hardware necessary for fully autonomous driving”, https://hhg2tech.blogspot.com/2016/10/as-of-19-october-2016-all-teslas.html

⁴ Electrek: “Tesla confirms recently updating Model S/X media computer, results in faster and smoother experience”, 14 March 2018, https://electrek.co/2018/03/14/tesla-updates-model-s-x-onboard-computer/

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