Martin Eberhard takes a further step away from Tesla management
Tesla Motors has just announced that company co-founder Martin Eberhard has moved over to the company's advisory board. Last August Martin stepped down as CEO to take on the role of President of Technology and oversee getting the company's first product, the Tesla Roadster, into production. The car has been plagued by transmission problems which necessitated a supplier and significant re-engineering of even the replacement transmission design. Late this evening Tesla sent out a note that Martin Eberhard will be relinquishing that role as well to new CEO Ze'ev Drori. Martin Eberhard will no longer have any day-to-day involvement in running Tesla Motors or the Roadster program. Although things have obviously not turned out the way he might have hoped for his company and car, Martin and the rest of the team deserve a lot of credit for trying and getting this far. The reality of building a complete and well-integrated car that meets all modern safety and customer requirements is an enormously difficult challenge regardless of what kind of drive-train it has. In a remarkably short period of time, the team at Tesla have come a lot farther than most of the efforts to build a viable electric car. The car I rode in recently was remarkably good in so many ways. Hopefully Martin Eberhard's dream car will come to fruition sooner rather than later.
Related:
[Source: Tesla Motors]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
OhmExcited 12:04AM (12/01/2007)
As with all things in engineering, plan 90% of budget and schedule to complete the first 90%, and another 90% to finish the last 10.
Reply
Joseph 1:51AM (12/01/2007)
:(
I hope Martin still serves as the "Steve Jobs" for Tesla Motors.
Reply
jy 5:15PM (12/11/2007)
It's kind of sad, but still he's an engineer and I think he wants to focus more on the engineer side. Ze'ev Drori is a little worrisome as he has a track record of selling companies that he becomes CEO in; will we see Tesla sold to GM or Ford? The thought is horrifying. Even Martin had to admit he had made some bad decisions these few months, and one of the biggest was the transmission deal. Also I would hope more people with automotive sales experience would lead Tesla; as people mentioned, VP Gretchen Joyce seems to have mysteriously disappeared. It would be sad to see this company fail because of automotive inexperience when they have done so well on the engineering side. I really am rooting for Tesla because this really seems to be the first EV company with a chance to make a statement in this world.
Reply
Ev2G 7:45AM (12/01/2007)
Big mistake from the amateurish approach to pass on the Altairnano best of breed NANObattery and crazyglue thousands of potentially explosive rudimentary common batteries requiring cooling.
The LIGHTNING powered by Nanosafe and HIPA-Drive seems to have the winning combination. Watch out Tesla, the Lightning will strike very soon!
Altairnative.com
Reply
Sam Abuelsamid 8:50AM (12/01/2007)
The problem with Altairnano batteries is that they only have half the energy density of the battery chemistry used by Tesla. That means you would need more than twice the mass of batteries to get the same range. As it is the battery pack accounts for almost one third of the weight of a Tesla Roadster. For the type of car Tesla is trying to build that would be totally unsuitable.
As for the Lightning GT http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/06/13/more-details-on-the-lightning-gt-not-here-and-not-cheap/
it's got a target price three times that of the Tesla roadster making it even more unattainable. There are no plans for it to be available in the US and last we checked they didn't even have an electric prototype yet only gas engined cars.
At the time the Tesla roadster program began they chose the best technology available to them. The batteries aren't the problem anyway, it's the integration of the transmission with the electric motor.
Reply
beavis1a03 11:05AM (12/01/2007)
Possible office politics. Well these guys are more able to build internet startups then a "real" product, I wish them good luck but they should start with a large dose of humble.
Reply
beavis1a03 11:08AM (12/01/2007)
As for the Altarinano battery, well that has a really crappy energy density. Not the right cell for Tesla, nor is the A123 cell in its current configuration. They need high energy density high specific energy cells.
Reply
Yanquetino 12:40PM (12/01/2007)
I find this second displacement truly sad. Tesla was Martin's idea to begin with, yet it looks like they have now "scullied" him (a la Apple). I'm not at all happy with Musk, et. al., at this point.
Reply
Dad 5:56PM (12/01/2007)
"Although things have obviously not turned out the way he might have hoped for his company and car, Martin and the rest of the team deserve a lot of credit for trying and getting this far."
Will the same kind comment from the author be forthcoming if the Chevy Volt "stumbles"?
My guess is "no way"!!! GM will not be given any kind comments like "deserve a lot of credit for trying and getting this far".
Reply
Sam Abuelsamid 6:17PM (12/01/2007)
Actually "Dad", if you've been paying any attention at all over the past 11 months, you might have noticed that I've often given GM the benefit of the doubt when it comes to the Volt. If they continue to make a sincere effort to meet the requirements they've laid out for the Volt and still encounter some delays due to technical difficulties (a very likely scenario by the way) I will cut them some slack as long as they keep working at it and don't walk away.
Reply
Yanquetino 6:56PM (12/01/2007)
After posting my reaction above, I took a look at Tesla's site. The only mention of this latest "transition" for Martin is a very short blurb in the "press room":
http://www.teslamotors.com/media/press_room.php?id=748
The fact that they didn't allow Martin to post the news, let alone explain the situation in their blogs (like with the first transition), says volumes to me. Now my initial sadness has given way to indignation. You would think that they would at least pay that small courtesy to the visionary who came up with the idea in the first place!
At the start of the 3rd quarter this year, these people were on the Tesla team:
* Martin Eberhard, CEO, Co-founder - "transitioned" first to Vice-President for Technology, now to a mere "advisory board." (Does anybody know who else serves on this so-called "board"?)
* Gretchen Joyce, Vice President, Sales & Distribution - disappeared without a word.
* Mike Harrigan, Vice President, Customer Service & Support - disappeared without a word.
* Tim Wenzel, Vice President of Human Resources - disappeared without a word.
Now, 5 months later, besides Ze'ev Drori as the new President & CEO, the team includes:
* Mike Taylor, Vice President of Finance
Ergo, a net loss of two people, and in crucial areas for the future. Can Darryl Siry really handle everything that he, Gretchen, and Mike were doing before? Sheesh. I hope they're paying him triple the wage!
I was actually about to put down a deposit for a Roadster. Now I'm going to hold off pending more input on the office politics at Tesla --preferably from Martin himself. Unless its forthcoming, I might just have to end up opting for a Miles XS500, or a Zap-X --or even an Aptera!
Reply
roz 7:01PM (12/01/2007)
I guess its good to clean house but in terms of Eberhard, I'd think you want to keep your visionaries, at the very least he was the public face on the company. From a marketing perspective, I'd think you want to show competence and keep consistency. I loved the Tesla story, and it was Martin who told it.
Reply
Dad 7:31PM (12/01/2007)
"Actually "Dad", if you've been paying any attention at all over the past 11 months, you might have noticed that I've often given GM the benefit of the doubt when it comes to the Volt."
So it might be a good idea if you keep score on the articles you write? How about a public count so that we don't have to assume you are correct? Rate each article as "nice" or "naughty" (sorry about the Santa Clause approach.
Your most recent "posts" show a decidedly anti-GM bias. And a "pro" anyone else (Telsa" bias.
Reply
Sam Abuelsamid 7:48PM (12/01/2007)
Would you care to be a little more specific about my anti-GM bias? I'm not about to start counting. I just try to be fair and honest. When I think a company (whoever it may be) has done something wrong, I take them to task. When they do right I give them credit.
Where GM is concerned I've given them a lot of credit for the work they've done on the Two-Mode hybrid, fuel cells and E-Flex. I've also been critical of their public statements on fuel economy legislation. I've also written articles here pointing out the realities of the task Tesla has set for themselves and the likelihood that they would face delays in getting to production.
Reply
Don A 9:08PM (12/01/2007)
Yanquetino
I would say it is very unlikely that you will see any word from Martin at the Tesla Motors web site. He is no longer with Tesla Motors and it is not by his choice.
Reply
conecarver 9:09PM (12/01/2007)
Add to the list of the displaced execs also Director of Marketing Communications David Vespremi. He has a very impressive automotive background to say the least and has garnered a ton of press for Tesla.
Reply
Yanquetino 10:39PM (12/01/2007)
Don A: If what you say is accurate, then Tesla is publishing pure torocaca to state that "Martin will continue to actively [?!} support the goals and efforts of the company."
Conecarver: That David Vespremi has likewise disappeared only sours my opinion of Tesla even further. Now I wonder how many others have been shown the exit.
If any of you are going to Public Day at EVS 23 in Anaheim this week, be sure to give those at the Tesla exhibit a good piece of your mind about the so-called "transition"! I wish I could be there to kick a few of their shins --especially Musk's. I guess my only recourse is to spend my money on someone else's EV. Sigh....
Reply
Don A 11:35PM (12/01/2007)
Yanquetino
There are some very informative threads on the Tesla Motor Club forum at http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/
Reply
BillO 12:10AM (12/02/2007)
I hate to say it but this is so typical of unsuccessful startups. First the founding CEO is replaced by a "professional". Next is the purge and hiring of new execs by the new CEO. Then a review of the development program (ie Whitestar) with a finding that there are major problems and there will be big delay. After a couple years of turmoil, the company folds. It is very very hard to reach a good ending after a start like this...
Reply
Throwback 8:56AM (12/02/2007)
None of this surprises me. How many people have started a successful car company in the last 50 years? The car business is brutal, especially when you have no automotive experience. Suppliers, testing, development, marketing, after sales service, where is Tesla's experience in these fields? A good idea does not automatically translate into a successful car company. Jut because some celebrities pony up a lot of money does not mean you know more than the professionals that work in the industry. Why would'nt you recruit some auto professionals to get the company going?
Reply