Tesla was less than 20 months removed from its initial public offering and hadn\u2019t delivered its first Model S sedans when Musk unveiled a prototype of the Model X, which he said would go into production in late 2013.<\/p>\n
The crossover SUV arrived almost a full two years late, with the first customers getting them in September 2015. The first thing he called attention to at the Model X unveiling\u2014its double-hinged \u201cfalcon wing\u201d doors\u2014later slowed the SUV\u2019s rollout, and Musk would later blame disappointing deliveries on the \u201chubris\u201d of trying to do too much with the vehicle.<\/p>\n
Musk claimed during the unveiling that the doors didn\u2019t go any higher than a normal SUV\u2019s rear hatchback, but some customers opened them into the ceiling of their garage. The Model X has consistently scored poorly in Consumer Reports rankings while Tesla\u2019s other vehicles have scored well.<\/p>\n
Battery Swap \u2014 June 2013<\/strong><\/p>\n This was one of Musk\u2019s more problematic presentations because the product offering never really came to pass.<\/p>\n Model S drivers would have the choice of replenishing their batteries at Tesla superchargers that would always be free, Musk said, or drive to stations featuring the same sort of automated equipment used in the company\u2019s factory that would swap out one pack for another. He demonstrated this could take place in less time than it takes to fill a gas tank.<\/p>\n Tesla later started charging for supercharger use, and Musk said there ended up being little customer interest in battery-pack swaps. California\u2019s Air Resources Board for a time awarded Teslas extra zero-emission vehicle credits based on the company\u2019s plan to offer battery swaps, but tweaked its rules less than a year after Musk\u2019s demonstration.<\/p>\n Dual Motor, Autopilot \u2014 October 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n Musk sent out a cryptic tweet days before his appearance: \u201cAbout time to unveil the D and something else.\u201d The D stood for a dual motor version of the Model S, and the something else was Autopilot, which turned out to be anything but an afterthought for Tesla.<\/p>\n The CEO announced that all cars produced in the two weeks leading up to the event had been built with radar, image-recognition cameras and ultrasonic sonar installed. \u201cThe car can do almost anything,\u201d Musk said, listing features such as lane keeping, automatic cruise control and self-parking, and the ability for owners to summon their vehicle in a parking lot.<\/p>\n Claims that Autopilot would one day render Teslas fully capable of driving themselves didn\u2019t come until later.<\/p>\n Tesla ended up going through an ugly breakup with Mobileye, a key supplier of early Autopilot harware, in 2016. After debuting its Summon feature in 2019, some owners posted footage showing their cars getting into scrapes with other vehicles or narrowly avoiding accidents. Consumer Reports called it \u201cglitchy.\u201d<\/p>\n Tesla Energy \u2014 May 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n Musk laid out a vision for harnessing the sun\u2014or as he colorfully put it, \u201cthis handy fusion reactor in the sky\u201d\u2014by not only collecting energy from solar panels but also storing it in batteries for the home.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, the issue with existing batteries is that they suck,\u201d he said, calling them expensive, unreliable, stinky, ugly and \u201cbad in every way.\u201d The missing piece, Tesla\u2019s $3,500 Powerwall, \u201clooks like a beautiful sculpture on the wall,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Customers wouldn\u2019t have to worry about running out of power and could go off the grid. The product could scale globally and be of particular use in remote parts of the world where there\u2019s intermittent or expensive electricity.<\/p>\n In the five years since this event, cars have remained the dominant aspect of Tesla\u2019s business, with 86% of revenue coming from automotive last quarter. Musk has said the business is \u201ccell-starved,\u201d meaning Tesla lacks the supply of battery cells it needs to support both its cars and Powerwall.<\/p>\n Model 3 \u2014 March 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n Tesla managed to follow through on a lot of the specifications Musk promised for the Model 3, including at least 215 miles of range. He drew laughs from the crowd by alluding to his propensity for missing deadlines when announcing the timing of initial deliveries: \u201cI do feel fairly confident that it will be next year.\u201d<\/p>\n The event was a smash success, with Tesla taking hundreds of thousands of deposits for its first affordable, high-volume car.<\/p>\n But one key promise the company failed to follow through on was a $35,000 starting price. Three years later, Musk announced plans to close most of Tesla\u2019s stores as a cost-saving measure that would allow him to offer the car at that cost. He backtracked 10 days later. Today, the cheapest Model 3 is $37,990.<\/p>\n Solar Roof \u2014 October 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n Months after proposing what he referred to as a \u201cblindingly obvious\u201d and \u201cno-brainer\u201d acquisition, this event helped get Tesla shareholders behind Musk\u2019s plan to buy SolarCity Corp., the debt-saddled solar sales-and-installation business he co-founded with his cousins.<\/p>\n On stage, Musk held up different styles of roof tiles with solar cells that weren\u2019t actually functional. Shareholders approved the more than $2 billion acquisition a few weeks later.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the time I thought it made strategic sense for Tesla and SolarCity to combine. Hindsight is 20-20,\u201d Musk said in a deposition 2 \u00bd years later. \u201cIf I could wind back the clock, you know, I would say [I] probably would have let SolarCity execute by itself.\u201d<\/p>\n Semi, Roadster \u2014 December 2017<\/strong><\/p>\n Time will tell if the Semi truck truly offers \u201cquasi-infinite\u201d brake life and \u201cthermonuclear explosion-proof\u201d glass, as Musk claimed. The CEO said at the time the company would start production in 2019. It\u2019s now scheduled to begin next year.<\/p>\n Musk threw show-goers for a loop by unveiling surprise cargo in one of the trucks: a new Roadster prototype he said would be \u201cthe fastest production car ever made, period.\u201d<\/p>\n The CEO has walked back plans to make the car available this year. In May, he listed several other tasks Tesla will need to achieve first, suggesting it may not arrive until after next year.<\/p>\n Model Y \u2014 March 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n With Model 3 production finally in full swing after a bruising year in which Musk said Tesla came within weeks of running out of money, he thanked the crowd for supporting the company through a difficult period. He imitated his critics\u2014\u201cYou\u2019re a fraud!\u201d\u2014and offered a retort referring to the cars the company had delivered: \u201cYou can drive that fraud!\u201d<\/p>\n To Tesla\u2019s credit, the Model Y arrived much earlier than scheduled. Musk said at the time of this event that the crossover would start reaching customers in the fall of 2020. That timeline was accelerated to March.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Tesla-model-x.jpg\")
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