Links for discussion: Robotaxis Leaf Blowers I didn't think Tesla was in a position to build an extra million cars by next year. Have I misunderstood this claim? Are they counting participation by every current owner plus every car they could hope to build by next year... and then some? As for leaf blowers... Huh? What's going on with that??
Two words, BUSINESS INSIDER. End of discussion. Shirley, there must be something you can link on Seeking Alpha too.
Here I thought it is just a catchy title for Tesla blowing (Nissan) Leaf off the market or something...
Yeah, I'm just not sure what to think of it. There's already a pretty broad selection of electric leafblowers out there, and they're all quieter than the gas-fired ones. But really, the fleet of robotaxis? I mean a million is quite a lot of cars. If the wikipedia is to be believed, that's about 4x as many cars as Tesla has built to date. I understand that they've added a lot of production capacity, but the claim just seems crazy to me.
are they legal in cali? some towns around here ban them due to noise. not sure if gas, electric or both.
You need to get the CARB-compliant versions, and not all models have a CARB cousin. But that's the only limitation I know of.
I just might buy a Tesla leaf blower especially if Musk tells us "It is a terrible idea. Don't buy one. Please don't buy one. It is dangerous and you shouldn't buy one." EDIT: Found a case where you might want a Tesla Leaf Blower In at 6:10
Gasoline powered leaf blowers (as well as other gasoline powered tools) have not been banned by State regulations yet, but I expect that to happen in the future. However, many municipalities have banned them. Unfortunately, my community is not one of them. Electric powered yard tools (mowers, leaf blowers, weed trimmers, etc.) are not silent, but they are significantly quieter than their gasoline powered counterparts. I have an electric lawn mower but there is ancillary noise generated as the blade cuts the grass, just as there is road noise in an electric car generated by the the tires.
You are making the mistake of taking Elon Musk literally. He is a visionary with a dream. Remember just 5 years ago, Business Insider said that electric cars are not a viable alternative and doomed to failure. They said that Elon and Tesla would be bankrupt in a year. Self driving cars are not approved anywhere at this time. When that will happen is anyone's guess, doubtful it will be next year. When it does happen (and it will happen) Tesla is currently in the driver's seat.
A quick skim of two other articles on the robotaxis didn't have the 1 million quote. Dyson is expanding out from vacuums and fans into lights and EV cars, so Tesla applying the expertise to other products isn't a stretch. Dyson feels the vacuum is already here, and has stopped development of their corded models.
After moving out of the city I've needed to adopt a lot of yard tools, and I mostly picked electric ones. Many of them cordless. I'm convinced- they are good enough to replace most gas-fired outdoor power tools. Maybe not all of them yet, but it's close. With regard to a Tesla-branded leaf blower- I already have a battery powered electric leaf blower, it's much quieter than a gas-powered rig, and most importantly the batteries interchange with 3 other tools I use and 2 others I'm looking to add. If Tesla wants to compete in the outdoor power tool space they would do well to recognize that a compatibility family would go much, much further than a single tool.
I am kinda hoping a swappable battery system Honda is working on makes it to market here. Each battery is about 1kWh and weighs under 20 pounds. Right now, they are focused on motorcycles and such using them, but ATV to lawn mower or snow blower is a short leap. They also have a rolling charger base prototype for use the batteries as a portable power supply that could handle corded handheld tools. Better yet would be to make it a back pack for them. Honda unveils a new swappable battery pack ecosystem powering an ATV, UTV, mobile power pack, and more - Electrek I think Honda is actually planning on a scooter using this system in some test markets in Asia.
