Two Hundred and Seventy-Seven, Cost Control

"Daren, now that the technical problem of the battery has been resolved, it's time to put the other details of the vehicle on the agenda."

Standing in Tesla's factory, Eberhard preached to Xia Jingxing who was standing beside him.

Xia Jingxing was watching the employees refit the car with various tools. He was watching with great interest. Hearing Eberhard talking, he immediately retracted his gaze, looked at the latter, and asked, "What details?"

"Come with me!"

Eberhard called Xia Jingxing, and another partner, Tarpenning, and came to a brand-new Lotus together.

After Tesla completed the B round of financing, a total of ten Lotuses were purchased.

Except for one that caught fire and burned down, the other eight were all dismantled by employees who were familiar with the body structure.

Only this one is still in good condition, but it is estimated that it will be disassembled into a pile of parts before long.

Xia Jingxing looked at the low and handsome Lotus, thought for a while, and asked, "Are you saying that the exterior needs to be redesigned to distinguish Tesla from Lotus?"

Eberhard smiled and nodded, "The exterior of the car must be redesigned.

Otherwise, Tesla does not have its own appearance and shape at all, and others will only regard us as Lotus, electric Lotus.

So, isn't everything we've done advertised for Lotus? "

Xia Jingxing nodded slightly, "Yes, our exterior design must also be a little cool to show the difference between us and other fuel vehicles.

The more recognizable the better, which is conducive to brand communication.

If we can achieve that as soon as the car hits the road, others can immediately recognize that it is a Tesla, and it is an electric car, and we will succeed. "

Eberhard smiled, "If passersby can easily recognize Tesla, then I wonder how famous Tesla will be?"

Xia Jingxing said with a smile, "Maybe three or five years,

Maybe ten years or more.

It all depends on our efforts, the harder we work, the sooner this moment will come. "

"Should be very soon."

Tarpenning scratched his forehead with thinning hair, and said with a smile: "It took decades, or even hundreds of years, for fuel vehicles to become a world-famous brand.

At that time, there was no Internet and no media in the world. Information was underdeveloped and dissemination was extremely slow.

Tesla itself is a technology company, and its ongoing electric vehicle business is also very gimmicky.

If we can achieve certain results, the spread of the brand may be beyond everyone's imagination. "

Tarpenning seemed very confident and extremely optimistic about Tesla's future.

Xia Jingxing noticed the other person scratching his head, saw the lonely hair on the other side's head, and said with a smile, "But before that, maybe your hair has to be sacrificed a little."

Knowing that it was a joke, Tarpenning was not angry, patted his head again, and shrugged: "If you want to succeed, someone has to sacrifice, either you or me.

How many hairs count?

I heard that Musk used to be balder than me. After selling PayPal, he became rich and immediately had the best hair transplant surgery. Now, doesn't he look handsome? A lot of girls are looking for him to date.

If Tesla is successful, I'm going to have an operation to have more hair than Musk. "

"What a great idea!"

Xia Jingxing spread out his hands and said solemnly.

"Don't talk about hair here, you two, come and see the car."

Eberhard squatted on the ground, not knowing when he had an extra ruler in his hand, and was intently measuring the height of the car door.

"Look, the door is too low, only a foot high, it's inconvenient to get in and out, and needs to be adjusted."

Aberharda opened the door, got in and out, and showed the two of them several times.

Xia Jingxing nodded, "You are a professional, if you think it is inappropriate, then change it."

Eberhard smiled and asked Tarpenning to help, and the two measured the length of the car together.

"This body also needs to be lengthened to accommodate the battery pack and storage compartment."

Eberhard made another suggestion, and Xia Jingxing nodded in agreement.

Eberhard patted the body and continued to ask: "Tzero uses glass fiber, Darren, do you think Tesla also uses this material, or carbon fiber is better?"

"Nature is carbon fiber."

Xia Jingxing said with a smile, "I don't know much about materials, but I also know that carbon fiber is lighter and has greater tensile strength under the same volume."

Tarpenning nodded, "Yes, in general, the weight of the vehicle is reduced by 10%, the fuel consumption is reduced by 6% to 8%, the emission is reduced by 5% to 6%, the zero-hundred acceleration is improved by 8-10%, and the braking distance is shortened by 2 to 20%. 7 meters.

In addition, the lightweight body can make the center of gravity of the vehicle move down, which improves the handling stability of the vehicle.

Carbon fiber composite materials also have higher vibration damping, and when used in automobiles, they contribute greatly to the improvement of vehicle noise, vibration and harshness, and can greatly enhance the comfort of automobile driving.

This kind of material also has many advantages, such as high fatigue strength, easier platform development, modularization, integration and so on. "

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Tarpennington paused and said with a smile, "Of course, there are disadvantages, and that is expensive!"

Xia Jingxing shook his head, "It doesn't matter how expensive it is, Tesla's first car must be famous and give people a sense of value for money.

Even if the carbon fiber body is not used, it is too unforced and not attractive enough. "

"If that's the case, the car could be very expensive to manufacture, and even if it were sold at cost, it could cost upwards of $100,000."

Eberhard had been in contact with this industry for a long time, and after a little calculation in his heart, he reported a number to Xia Jingxing.

"One hundred thousand dollars, that's not high, and our first car was not for ordinary people, but for the rich.

What do these target groups want?

Nice looking body? Top-notch acceleration? Is it different from the driving experience of a gasoline car? Contribute to the cause of environmental protection and brush your favorability in front of the public?

These, they will consider.

But the only thing that won't be considered is money. "

Eberhard and Tarpenning looked at each other and both thought it was reasonable.

"But what if the sales are very bleak because the price is too high?"

Eberhard asked aloud, he was still a little worried about this issue, and spread his hands, "After all, there are always a few people who are curious. In the long run, we all need to be at the same price as the price, performance, driving experience and other factors. of sports cars.

I believe that most people will take these factors into the decision-making options before buying a car.

If you just want to sell dozens or hundreds of cars, you don't have this concern.

We are different and should think more long-term. "

Xia Jingxing nodded, "You are right to consider this aspect, so we need to do everything possible to save costs.

For example, your control of labor costs is very good. You have recruited many fresh graduates and let them work and study at the same time. "

Eberhard laughed, "We feel this is a new industry, except for some essential positions that require some experienced people.

For other positions, recruiting a newcomer with an annual salary of only $40,000 to $50,000 is even better than recruiting engineers who have been working for a few years and require an annual salary of more than $100,000.

Because the old people in the workplace have more complex thoughts and consider more issues, and their so-called mature experience can't help Tesla at all.

The newcomers who have just stepped out of the school are different, their thoughts are more simple, and they also feel that Tesla is carrying out a great cause.

They are willing to take low wages, endure poor working conditions, and continue to learn on the job for this cause.

These young people do not think it is a chore, but feel extremely grateful for the move to join Tesla. "

Looking at Eberhard with a bright smile, Xia Jingxing knew that he was also a master of cake painting.

However, being able to rely on this ability to save costs for the company is also one of its major advantages.

"Human cost, let's not talk about it for the time being. Employees are willing to follow the company so stubbornly. If the company succeeds in the future, we will not treat them badly."

Xia Jingxing looked at the two and said such words.