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Tesla Motors

Tesla Motors, Inc, dubbed “the Silicon Valley start-up”, enjoys the enviable position of rivaling Porsche and Ferrari sports cars with one major difference. Tesla Roadsters are alternative energy vehicles, powered by electricity and this fact was most probably the reason the company was so appealing to its computer genre investors.

Founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, the project raised forty million dollars in capital and the first Tesla Roadster was unveiled in 2006 in California. Intrigued by fast cars that were fuel efficient, Eberhard found that nothing existed in the marketplace. So he and Tarpenning set out to create a prototype that would meet Eberhard's expectations.

Now until recently, this was the published history that the official website printed and the same history about which newspapers wrote. But earlier this month, Martin Eberhard filed a lawsuit against both Tesla Motors, Inc and Elon Musk, the current CEO. Musk has printed his own version of the history on the company's blog, although the official version still remains on the website.

Basically, Musk maintains that the initial start-up was financed by himself with six and a half million dollars representing ninety-eight percent of the start-up capital. He feels that because Eberhard had no trademark registrations nor any assets to speak of, that Eberhard may not be the true founder of the company. Of course, Eberhard disagrees and since the company appears to be a success, does not wish to be diminished for the original risk he undertook. Indeed, the history has become a “he said, she said” type battle.

Moving back to the original history, many wonder how the name Tesla was derived and apparently the company is named after Nikola Tesla, holder of more than seven-hundred patents, and the inventor of the induction motor and alternating-current power transmission.

As the project progressed, however, problems with suppliers and serious cost overruns caused the board of Tesla Motors to ask Eberhard to leave the company and his position as CEO, in 2007. Ze'ev Drori assumed the position and then Musk became CEO when an infusion of cash was needed.

Another development in the funding and ownership of the company occurred a few months ago when Daimler AG invested in the company giving them about ten percent ownership of Tesla Motors.

Interesting facts about Tesla Motors, Inc:
• June 25, 2009 saw the opening of the first showroom outside the US in Knightsbridge, London, England. The Tesla Roadster will be sold for one-hundred thousand pounds.
• June 2009 was a very busy and significant month for Tesla, as they also received approval from the US Department of Energy to receive four-hundred and sixty-five million dollars in low-interest loans to advance development and completion of their all-electric family sedan (Model S), capable of carrying seven people.
• According to a company press release, Tesla's “Roadster is the first production battery electric vehicle to travel more than 200 miles per charge and the first US- and EU-certified Lithium-Ion battery electric vehicle”.
• Tesla vehicles, because of their eco-friendly nature allow their owners many benefits such as no oil change expense, no exhaust system repairs, federal tax credits when purchasing, free parking in some locations, computer lane passes, and a low per-mile- cost to drive.
• Expects to open showrooms in New York, Chicago, Seattle and Miami the summer of 2009 and then later in Munich, Monaco, Washington DC and Toronto.
• Roadster meets or exceeds all North American and European safety, environmental and durability standards.
• Five-hundredth Roadster was delivered at the beginning of June 2009. The Twilight Blue Roadster was ordered by New Jersey philanthropist Martin Tuchman.
• Greater New York is the largest market outside of California.
• So responsive are consumers that over five-hundred reservations came in earlier this year when the new family sedan was shown.
• Body of Roadster made from carbon fiber.

Four models of Tesla vehicles are now available for reservations:
• Roadster
• Roadster Sport – delivery scheduled for July 2009
• Model S – delivery scheduled for 2012
• Model S Signature – delivery scheduled for 2011

While the company started with roughly seventy employees, there is no indication how big it is now. Tesla did however, say that when they begin using the monies approved by the US government, they will add over one thousand new jobs.