Tesla admits huge losses on Tesla Roadster, increases prices on options

Posted: Jan 21, 2009
Filed under: Hybrids, Green News, Industry News

Some 400 Tesla Roadster customers are really mad. In an e-mail to Tesla Roadster customers, Tesla Motors’ CEO Elon Musk said that the electric-car company is losing substantial profit on each vehicle it makes and to makeup for the loss it will start charging additional dollars for some features.

Musk said that when Tesla first set the price on the Roadster at $92,000 – it had no idea that the actual production model would run close to $140,000. He said that Tesla expected each production model to cost about $65,000 per unit. While suppliers have helped Tesla cut some cost, each Tesla Roadster still costs “between $90,000 and $100,000 to build. Even after a price hike last year to $98,000 and then to $109,000, Tesla is still losing quite a bit of money on its electric-car.

So why are the 400 Tesla customers angry? Well, Musk said that those who placed a $50,000 deposit will still get their cars for $92,000 – but will have to cash out extra for custom alloy wheels and a high-speed charging cable that they would have originally gotten when they first placed their deposit.

Musk said that Tesla will charge an additional $3,000 for the turbine-blade wheels and another $3,000 for the high-speed charging cord that helps the Tesla reach full charge in 3-hours. Without the high-speed charging cable,  the Tesla Roadster will take about 37 hours to recharge.

Tesla’s CEO said that the company expects to get its production down to about $80,000 by this summer.

Tesla Roadster:

 

Source: Green Car Advisor

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  • tomsax
    "Some 400 Tesla Roadster customers are really mad."

    That's completely made up. Some of the 400 affected customers are mad, some are not. I doubt even Tesla knows what the mix is as many customers are still absorbing the news and weighing their support for the company's goals and the surprise price increase to their locked-in orders.

    Report the facts, but don't presume to speak for 400 people you know nothing about.
  • zermatt
    The reason that GM couldn't sell the Impact (remember that electric car?) was that the cost was significantly higher than what people would pay. GM, in effect, was subsidizing the cost of the car to please the California Greens at the time. The 3 year lease made those Greens that wanted to own their Impacts really angry.

    So now Tesla is saying that the car currently costs between $90 and $100 K to construct. How could they not know what it would cost to construct before committing to pricing?

    Either Tesla is being dishonest about their plans to subsidize the cost of the car or they are poor businessmen.

    I hope that Frisker has their pricing under control.
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