Elon says he wants to make 100,000 Tesla Semi electric trucks a year
That's a very big goal. Let's see if he can deliver.
Any time we write about the (Tesla Semi electric truck and its much-better-than-expected specs - https://www.treehugger.com/cars/tesla-unveils-electric-500-mile-range-semi-truck.html ), commenters rightly point out that Elon has a history of making big, bold claims and not necessarily delivering on schedule or on budget.
Given the fact that he's now ( busy sending cars off into space - https://www.treehugger.com/aviation/tesla-space-juvenile-prank-or-inspiration-new-generation.html ), and just posted record losses for Q4 (although record revenues too), I'm not going to take a position on whether the naysayers or the optimists have the better take. (The dude did just manage to recover two booster rockets...)
But I will say this: Tesla's stated ambitions continue to be mindbogglingly big. Take this one little detail from the latest earnings call, reported over at Electrek: Elon thinks he could be ( producing 100,000 Tesla Semi electric trucks within the next four years - https://electrek.co/2018/02/08/tesla-semi-electric-semi-truck-production/ ).
That's an awful lot of trucks, and an awful lot of oil demand displaced. Given that anywhere near that magnitude of production would also mean—by necessity—that other competitors would also have to step up their electric truck game, we could be looking at a major shift in how ( the many unnecessary heavy things -https://www.treehugger.com/cars/we-dont-need-electric-transport-trucks-we-need-get-rid-trucks.html ), that move our ( many, unnecessary heavy things - https://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/emstory-of-stuffem-pinpoints-the-problems-with-possessions-book-review.html ) about are powered.
Of course, that change will only happen if Elon can deliver on his promises. Or somewhere close to them. He's now building 2,500 Model 3s a week, apparently—that's a far sight short of the 5,000 he was projecting not long ago—but its also a hell of a lot of electric cars.
Glass-half-full people and glass-half-empty people, do your thing in the comments.
