[Music]
this man has a vision to create the best
electric cars ever seen and consign
gasoline to history this is something
truly revolutionary he wants to build
his unprecedented Tesla car in a
futuristic new factory
and trigger an electric transport
revolution it's been a long time since
something like that happened in the car
business but it's here it's a dream many
of her but none have realized
[Music]
aluminium bodywork
19-inch alloys under $50,000 price tag
at first glance this car is the latest
in a long line of high-end sedans but
that is where the similarities end
the MA glass is a totally different type
of car
Tesla believe it can lead a revolution
and change the face of motoring forever
[Applause]
it's the first-ever muss made premium
sedan powered purely by electricity
[Applause]
designed to have speed and range and not
a drop of gas our goal is to create an
electric car that is the best car in the
world and show that that's what electric
car can be
[Music]
Tesla's goal is to kill off the
combustion engine and prove the electric
car as finally come of age driving
gasoline car is gonna feel like
yesterday driving this car is driving
the future this is Elon Musk
Tesla's co-founder and CEO Elon is an
inventor and a maverick entrepreneur one
of America's youngest billionaires I
like exploring I like technology I like
creating things that have never been
seen before or even imagined before he
is a genuine Silicon Valley success
story in the mid-1990s Elon set up a
small Internet company by 2002 he'd sold
PayPal for one and a half billion
dollars next he founded private rocket
company SpaceX it's all part of Ellen's
life mission
when I was in college I try think about
well what are the areas that would most
affect the future of humanity so the
three things with the internet making
life multiplanetary and the third being
sustainable energy so that's what really
ties together my companies is that sort
of thought from 20 years ago
Tesla Motors is Elon sustainable energy
brainchild named after electric power
pioneer Nikola Tesla it's a car company
that only makes totally electric
vehicles no hybrid and no alternative
fuels absolutely no tailpipe the company
estimates their electric cars cost 50
percent less co2 even if much of the
electricity comes from a coal power
plant it's technology Elon and
co-founder JB Straubel believe we need
we're solving problems for our children
our grandchildren oil is a finite
resource and eventually we have to find
alternatives when you take that oil out
of the ground and you burn it's
extremely dangerous we should not play
Russian roulette with the atmosphere we
only got one
Tesla's founders have a vision of a
world without gasoline cars they are
convinced electric is not only cleaner
but better now
they want to prove it to the world
they believe their cars can trigger a
transport revolution and bring electric
motoring to the masses what we're doing
here at Tesla can have an amazing impact
and revolutionize the auto industry and
make every car on the road electric
that's our end goal the Model S is to
lead their revolution it's to be an
electric car unlike any other
a family sedan that can go from nought
to a hundred in under six seconds and
further on a single charge than any
other electric production car
[Music]
designed to match the top gasoline
competitors with Waddell s we're taking
things to the next level it's a
full-size sedan so it's competing the
premium segment along with say a BMW or
an Aston Martin but the car is only the
beginning
such a revolutionary vehicle demands a
revolutionary factory
Tesla needs to create an unprecedented
state-of-the-art facility from scratch
[Music]
ilan brings in Gilbert Poisson has heard
of manufacturing
jubair is an expert from one of Toyotas
award-winning plants in Canada his
description my job to me was very simple
you know you have got to create the best
factory in the world was the best people
in the world and make the best premium
car sedan and I said okay so where's the
fact you were yet to find one where's
the T what years to make one the company
purchased a former GM and Toyota site in
Fremont California on the edge of
Silicon Valley
the abundant facility is a traditional
car factory dark little natural light
bare concrete floors
when Tesla Motors move in its the birth
of a mega factory like no other
it's a totally fresh approach to come on
affect you
[Music]
the walls and floors are painted white
the machinery are striking red skylights
and Windows flood the factory with
sunlight if you make the factory
pristine and clean that sets the tone
for the vehicle we want that that same
sense of quality and precision in the
car itself as part of the whole company
ethos bikes are provided so the workers
can get around the factory I think it's
important to have an environment where
people look forward to coming to work so
it's worth putting some effort into
making the factory beautiful in true
Silicon Valley style they fill the space
with the most advanced technology
creating an automated production line
capable of building tens of thousands of
cars
[Music]
super-efficient multitasking robots
self-guided smart cards and computerized
production schedules
[Music]
the factory is designed to be up there
with the very best in the world
we love engineering we love beautiful
machines we love new technology we love
to innovate with high technology and
also in manufacturing we love to do that
[Music]
without training these sophisticated
robots are useless they all need to be
taught before they can run tasks
automatically
[Music]
every robot is programmed by hand the
tesla team has meticulously trained 130
sophisticated robots over a year in a
home one of the last robots still to be
programmed is a multi-point welding
robot it will be used to join the cars
underbody these are pretty busy robots
so we gotta make sure their attack time
is good a robot's work is only as good
as the man who trains it Brad Johnson is
a welder with over 25 years experience
at the highest level getting this done
today will harm the teachings all nice
and smooth and then we can start running
a hundred percent in full automatic the
space in which the robot operates is
treated as a three dimensional grid
the head can be manually guided to any
point using a teach pendant
[Music]
there's a start point in our well
position
Brad guides the robot millimeter by
millimeter and uploads the coordinates
the robot works out the most efficient
route and runs the program
[Music]
looks like the teaching is right on mark
and we have a really good quality weld
right here so we should be able to run
full auto with this well when full
production begins
Brad's handiwork will be exactly
replicated by the robot 100 times a day
[Music]
since their inception in 2003 Tesla
Motors have been pursuing their electric
car revolution with a step-by-step
strategy in an unconventional business
move
Elon decreed that Tesla must invest in
their reputation first and worry about
profit later stage 1 make a small number
of high value cars that prove electric
power can be desirable
the Tesla master plan is very simple we
start off creating an expensive low
volume car to help break the mold in
electric vehicles plan in place they set
to work on their first car basing it
around the British build Lotus Elise
five years later they release the Tesla
Roadster
quicker off the blocks than an Aston
Martin Vantage the electric sports car
astonishes the motoring world step one
complete in the Tesla strategy what we
showed was that an electric car could be
sexy it could be fast and it could be
long-range and that if you produce such
a car that people would buy it
but there's a $100,000 two-seat sports
car it's a luxury second vehicle to most
of its owners
[Applause]
time for the pivotal stage - in the
master plan a car that costs half as
much and sells in much bigger numbers a
very important step in the Tesla
strategy is really going to show that a
mainstream electric car can be better
than a gasoline car the Model S is the
second step in Elon Musk's vision of an
electric revolution a premium
mass-market sedan designed and built
from the ground up by Tesla
[Music]
at the studio in Los Angeles they are
working to craft that car the Model S is
really the foundation of Tesla it's the
first true product designed engineered
build manufactured by Tesla and it's
really the beginning of what our mission
is about
franz von Hausen is the chief designer
he believes Tesla's design needs to have
some conventional appeal it's really
easy to have a clean slate and go free
crazy without we had to start with
something that people could relate to
you if they even knew or cared that it
was electric vehicle they were attracted
to
we've stretched the sedan and made it a
little bit more modern but it's still a
sedan it still has this somewhat
traditional queue and so it's easy to
love because of that Association
although uniform in appearance the Model
S is a unique car it was conceived as
electric even the shape is designed to
maximize the battery's range in the body
and the waist here is all slim so
there's no excess fat or body mass on
this car and that's another one of those
elements that just translates into great
efficiency this cars one of the most
aerodynamic sedans on the market in an
electric car conserving the battery
power is so important the designers put
huge efforts into reducing the drag even
the door handles are aerodynamic
receding flush into the body but it's
the interior that is most heavily
influenced by the electric powertrain
the powertrain is incredibly small you
get the same performance out of a motor
that's the size of you know a watermelon
fits between the rear wheels and
everything else above that is what I
call the opportunity space
the design team started with the motor
and flat battery pack and worked upwards
with the motor next to the wheels
there's no need for a drive shaft so
there is no rise under the rear middle
seat there is no fuel tank or
transmission the Model S has free space
from the floor upwards what you'll see
is a vast amount of space in fact it's
actually so big that we decided that we
could actually fit 7 people and we do
that by putting 2 rear-facing child
seats in the back here and you can see
where they fit here and their legs go
right down in there
[Music]
so this is what we call the front and
it's really the trunk in the front of
the car and arguably you can put a whole
bunch of stuff in here even when the
back of the car is totally loaded up
with people and kids and stuff and who
doesn't need one of these
Tesla promote these unique features at
every opportunity as a numark they're
trying to make an impact in a
marketplace crowded with established big
hitters just looking at the United
States of the three other car companies
the youngest is 90 years old so clearly
this is not an industry that has been
supportive of newcomers
[Music]
the Geneva Motor Show 2012 another leg
in the company's relentless promotional
campaign we're done selling roadsters in
North America so this is our product
it's our product Tesla product and
therefore we need to get it out to start
salad
industry experts at judging Tesla on the
Model S it's seen as make-or-break maybe
Tesla has a bright future
I think the Model S is very decisive to
see if there will be a great future or
if there won't be a future at all the
company have taken the risk of
collecting prepaid orders on the car
they've amassed nearly 10,000 advance
sales the financial boost also creates
real pressure I get harassed quite a bit
actually by some people who are
reservation and that and you know it's a
lot of expectations very high
expectations that we're gonna have to
meet and exceed really some prepaid
customers have been waiting up to three
years for that car
in return they've been promised a
delivery deadline I do feel an
incredibly strong obligation to those
that have placed their faith in Tesla
and put down deposits I'll do anything
to make sure that their faith is not
misplaced
the delivery deadline for the first cars
is now only two months away but the
brand new factory hasn't built a
production car yet if the customers are
to get their Model S on time the
facility urgently needs to start
manufacturing the speed at which we have
to work here is extremely important to
the company's bottom line this is a kind
of timing that is really really
challenging on many many different
accounts
Tesla need to build twenty thousand cars
a year but before mass production can
begin
Jill bear and his team must prove the
factory is ready the company is relying
on them to get it right we have to make
sure that cars the car the quality is
there everything is perfect along the
way so we are really gearing up towards
a production ramped up over the next few
weeks the factory will test manufacture
a limited number of Model S if the line
doesn't perform with these cars the
company will be forced to miss their
deadline Tesla's electric revolution
would be over before it started the very
very important moment is the birth of
Model S in our Tesla factory and it's
where you know the rubber is gonna meet
the road so to speak the process begins
in stamping
to increase the battery's range the
company have decided to build 97% of the
Model S with lightweight aluminium it's
an extremely rare feature in a mass
production car due to the cost every
Model S starts as one of these
the role is loaded into the mechanical
cutting machine
once cut the panels are passed to the
stamping press we need to translate flat
pieces of aluminum into 3d forms and how
to do this with aluminum stamping with
the level of quality that we expect
which is really really challenging to
meet the challenge they buy the largest
available stamping press in North
America it's one of the first pieces of
equipment they install over three
stories high
it has to be transported from Detroit on
70 trains and then entirely rebuilt the
immense pressure from the stamp allows
them to press the complex body shapes
needed for the Model S it can be mounted
with different heads known as dyes that
mold the panel's into a wide variety of
shapes
[Music]
robotic arms feed the four stamps
[Music]
each stage forces a more detailed 3d
sharing producing stacks of floor plates
[Music]
these lightweight aluminium parts
improve the Model S's power-to-weight
ratio which helps increase the
performance and range the two things
that obsess co-founder and technical
chief JB Straubel any ideas on how we
can make it better performance and range
were the two big issues that needed to
be improved and that's where we've put
most of our focus on the technology and
powertrain powertrain manufacture second
floor this is where they build the heart
of the Model S the motors and battery
packs Tesla know the electric powertrain
will define their cars so they push to
advance the technology themselves this
is an extremely exciting field where
inventions continue to happen even
faster than they did you know in the
years previous Tesla's solution to
improving battery life appears
startlingly simple they used thousands
of small lithium-ion cells similar to
laptop batteries
thanks to these regular batteries the
companies say the Model S has achieved a
top range of 480 kilometers
once you have 250 to 300 miles of range
you know then you're in a different
usage mode you're in a range that is
equivalent to most gasoline cars the car
can be charged by 100 kilometres every
hour from a regular power outlets
[Applause]
[Music]
ultimately Tesla are hoping to install
super charges along major highways that
can charge the car to capacity in 45
minutes you can charge the car up every
night but you don't need to you can
actually charge it once a week the high
performance battery pack is formed with
over 7,000 small cells they're organized
into a flat layer with specific
groupings of positive and negative
[Music]
the final layout is the key to the prax
power and range and Tesla considers it
absolutely top-secret the motor unit is
also developed in-house it's essentially
an AC induction motor a concept invented
by 19th century scientist and Tesla
Motors namesake Nikola Tesla he
harnessed an electromagnetic field to
turn a basic motor modern-day Tesla has
developed their motor with a highly
conductive copper cylinder when the
electromagnetic casing is fed with
current the copper cylinder inside
starts to spin
it's nearly three times more efficient
than a combustion engine in fact there
are only three moving parts it connects
directly to the rear wheels and doesn't
need a transmission these are the three
moving parts in the whole Model S
powertrain one of the cool things also
with this very simple gearbox is that
when we want to go in Reverse in the car
and back up all we have to do is spin
the motor in the other direction and the
car backs up we don't need a clutch we
don't need a separate give for a reverse
the entire drive unit is under a meter
long smaller than a golf bag
but it propels the Model S a family-size
sedan into the class of performance cars
[Music]
in fact this power train creates a
totally different driving experience
Program Director Jaron GM works
constantly to refine it as with the
light switch electric power can be fully
applied instantly the first thing that
can I surprise people is a how much
torque you get so quickly that response
instant response you cannot really mess
with the throttle too much because if
you push on it then the car will go
even from a stop you have a very quick
takeoff because basically the torque is
instant so if I stop here and then I
start you will see that we have an
acceleration right from the beginning
any speed you have that same torque
available so it's very easy to pass a
car or to get out of harm's way if
needed
unlike gasoline cones which have to
change gears the Model S can accelerate
the top speed totally uninterrupted when
you go to electric because you can
regulate the torque that goes into
vehicle very smoothly and instantly we
don't need any transmission this is a
single gear powertrain the Model S
battery pack flow means the majority of
the weight is close to the road making
it more stable in the corners and
improving the handling they have a very
low center of gravity something similar
to a Ferrari but the real evolution in
the way you drive is down to one of the
central innovations in electric cars
regenerative braking although the Model
S has traditional brakes you don't have
to use them region braking can be
engaged by simply easing off on the
accelerator when you want to brake you
just take your foot off the pedal like
I'm doing now and the car brakes itself
so you don't need to use the mechanical
brakes when active the region system
magnetically resists the motors rotation
slowing the car and harvesting electric
current the energy recovered recharges
the battery and extends the range of the
car
when you put your foot down again the
electric power returns
Tesla : one pedal driving it's a little
bit different approach of driving but
once you realize that if you take your
foot off the pedal the car slows down
inside what this is great
I can drive using only one pedal
[Applause]
in the factory the delivery deadline is
now fast approaching the model s test
production cycle reaches the main
assembly area the car is based around a
partially steel underbody to make it
engineer's weld struts and casts into a
framework Brad's newly trained welding
robot is about to be tested in full
automation they have trained the robots
with prototype parts now with final
components coming through successfully
from stamping its automated production
for real
under observation it's a tense time for
the team
[Music]
the robots work in a tightly coordinated
chain the second phase hits an issue it
shuts the whole process now
[Music]
with the deadline looming Elon Musk is
determined to keep Tesla's waiting
customers happy
he's organized a Model S test-drive
event for the people who've placed
deposits
oh that doesn't actually do
many have prepaid years ago and it's
their first time inside a drivable Model
S customer and board member Steve
Jurvetson captures his experience on his
mobile phone the first ride has to be
documented here
the event seems to success now the
company need to make sure the customers
get their Model S's as promised with
only weeks to go Welding is hit a glitch
in automation one of the robotic clumps
is millimeters out of line it's a tiny
difference but enough to disrupt the
process how we have such a tight
tolerance of one millimeter the stay on
sometimes the new parts won't reach
aprox or at the clamp won't close all
the way a major delay will disrupt the
whole production schedule and threaten
the deadlines they adjust the settings
and set the robots in motion again
this time it goes off without a hitch
[Music]
to the team's relief the process can be
approved for mass production the run
through the automated line reaches the
Model S exterior the Model S body is
made up of fourteen different sections
to speed the workflow Tesla construct
each section at separate sub assemblies
door sub-assembly
[Music]
the internal frame is joined to the
exterior panel as the robot Spencer's
come together they fire a rivet and join
the aluminium sheets
[Music]
over to the right side body sub-assembly
one of the most advanced aspects of
Tesla's robots is that each arm can
perform a variety of different tasks we
have to use all the gamut of technology
to make the aluminum join between
stamping and welding and riveting and
bonding and all these things using
robots that are wanted tasking
[Music]
this flexibility is essential for a
compact and efficient workflow
a robot can spot-weld using a pencil
tool and then automatically detach the
pincer and pick up a clamp tool the same
arm that joined the panel's can now move
it to the next station it's clever but
tricky and needs constant refining when
you draw something yourself you take a
pencil
you take your racer with the same hand
right and then you change the tools so
to speak same thing here
once assembled the sections are brought
together at body assembly
here they're riveted around the welded
underbody to form the basic shell of the
car
all the sections are lined up alongside
the central framing line gradually the
automated line builds up the site
sections ready to house the doors
[Music]
a test batch of three cars is complete
body assembly has demonstrated it can
run successfully in full automation it's
a vital milestone in the countdown to
mass production completely assembled the
aluminium body is now known as body in
white it's ready for some color
the body in white is loaded onto an
overhead train that carries it to the
paint area
and this vast facility the paint Center
is in a totally separate building the
Freemont site covers nearly 95 football
fields of space it's so big
the Model S production line only fills
20% of it Virgil burr pasa the extra
space is the cornerstone of Tesla's
grand strategy for an electric
revolution the Tesla factory is huge
it's about 5 million square feet on two
levels right now we are only utilizing a
small fraction of the space but most of
it as you can see behind me is what we
call the dark side it's sort of dark and
not utilized yet even though we have a
lot of plans for the future and how to
fully utilize this entire building
[Music]
these expenses are an integral part of
the company stage-by-stage building plan
they want to fill the space with the
production line for a further range of
Tesla vehicles a very high volume
economy priced model the stage 3 car in
the future we intend to expand our range
of vehicles maybe of a smaller size and
also more affordable for the market and
this Factory is like ideal and we are
going to make this a super mega factory
long term Fremont is meant to produce
the low cost of stage 3 electric car in
the millions
it's the final step in a low Musk's
Tesla master plan to really have
widespread adoption of electric cars we
have our third generation vehicle which
will be a low price high volume vehicle
and that's really what's going to fill
out the rest of this humongous factory
I'd love to bring this to half a million
vehicles a year as soon as we can
the future of elon strategy first
depends on the success of the Model S in
production the time to the delivery
deadline is now running low the
aluminium body arrives on the overhead
train from body sensor paint Center this
is where they make the car look like a
premium sedan it's a state-of-the-art
process there's a lot of technology that
goes into the Tesla car but the very
first thing they'll tell you is what
color of Tesla car they bought that's
how important Venus first a
rollercoaster ride of treatment baths
detergent to clean the surface and then
electro coating the electro coat helps
attract the paint to the aluminium
[Music]
the primed car is ready for color
this vehicle will be sprayed with that
trademark tint what Tesla calls
signature red it's a color that we've
developed that's different than anybody
else's red it's been developed with
glass flake to get the specific type of
sparkle this mine has a vision to create
the best electric cars ever seen and
consign gasoline to history this is
something truly revolutionary he wants
to build his unprecedented Tesla car in
a futuristic new factory
and trigger an electric transport
revolution it's been a long time since
something like that happened in the car
business but it's here
it's a dream many of her but none have
realized
[Music]
aluminium bodywork
19-inch alloys under $50,000 price tag
at first glance this car is the latest
in a long line of high-end sedans but
that is where the similarities end
the MA glass is a totally different type
of car
Tesla believe it can lead a revolution
and change the face of motoring forever
[Applause]
it's the first ever must made premium
sedan powered purely by electricity
[Applause]
designed to have speed and range and not
a drop of gas our goal is to create an
electric car that is the best car in the
world and show that that's what electric
car could be Tesla's goal is to kill off
the combustion engine and prove the
electric car as finally come of age
driving gasoline car it's gonna feel
like yesterday driving this car is
driving the future this is Elon Musk
Tesla's co-founder and CEO Elon is an
inventor and a maverick entrepreneur one
of America's youngest billionaires I
like exploring I like technology I like
creating things that have never been
seen before or even imagined proof the
car is a product of the tech savvy u.s.
west coast
[Music]
the Model S carries a touchscreen tablet
inspired by Tesla's Silicon Valley
neighbors Tesla is very much a Silicon
Valley company that has a Silicon Valley
operating system which is similar to a
Google or Facebook or Apple adjoined
together with a trans mount of great
automotive expertise
it's about bringing the things that were
used to our phones our computers and the
interaction that we have with them into
the car
[Music]
the car has a mobile 3G internet
connection
the driver can download software
upgrades and customize the display the
cart always connected to the Internet so
we can understand your your day work and
we can know that you're going to work at
8 a.m. on Monday and the car can be
warmed up for that experience
the entire command center is housed on
the 17 inch tablet the interior is
virtually bottomless it does some really
amazing things not only does it make the
rest of the interior super clean and
really uncluttered it allows you to have
just amazing control of the car and it's
just you know push of a button
[Music]
like macho
[Music]
at the factory the start date for mass
production is now only two weeks away
the first batch of test vehicles reaches
the vital final stages powertrain and
body marriage
in gasoline cars installing the
drivetrain is a lengthy process with
electric it can happen in just two steps
step 1
the multi-unit complete with suspension
and brakes is bolted into the rear wheel
berths there is no driveshaft or
transmission to be attached in one
motion it's fitted for final assembly
the work is mainly manual like the
robots the line workers performance is
being monitored with every vehicle
they're ramping up to the full
production cycle time or tack time every
station here in the factory has to
achieve a certain operation in that tech
time in order to get it to our customer
on time here the target is 4 minutes and
40 seconds throughout the build every
single time you may hear me in the
background saying we're at 2 minutes
we're at 5 minutes where I so they can
know exactly where they are when we're
shooting that gets it at 4 minutes and
42 seconds step 2
bachchi pack installation
the packs Steelcase acts as the car
chassis bolted into place it gives the
Model S its rigidity
[Music]
a stage along the first complete cars
arrive at final inspection at eelain's
insistence inspection happens on a
bamboo platform he believes you can only
judge a car's beauty if it's framed by
beautiful surroundings
[Music]
the last Jack is the test-drive a Tesla
the track is very different because
electric cars produce no exhaust fumes
they can be driven indoors
[Music]
our people have done so well at putting
this car together you can see the
remarkable quality of the paint and
entire vehicle the body fit and
everything I'm so proud today
this is the first model s to pass
through the production test run and its
quality proves the new mega Factory is
ready for mass production it's a big
moment for the company just to see this
car going around the test track here it
really demonstrated the fact that the
Tesla factory is ready to go I just said
to make twenty thousand per year more of
this guy and it's sort of a you know a
done deal we just have to you know get
it done
the factory can now push towards the
delivery deadline allowing Tesla to
pursue their strategy for an electric
car revolution
can you imagine is all the cause in the
world were able to have zero mission
zero noise and we could do that in a
perfectly clean environment that would
be so cool
this is Tesla's vision of an
all-electric future
no fumes or heat no noise ordered no
expensive gasoline just clean and quiet
streets
it's truly impressive to see how we are
really day by day and person by person
changing people's thinking about what
electric vehicles are and versus what
we've all grown up and taken for granted
if we can do that through one product
that's unbelievable
[Music]
[Applause]
ten years from now Tesla will change the
perception of what mainstream cars can
be
and have become clear that electric cars
truly are future the tesla mega factory
may have just built its place in history
you