From Bloomberg:
Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA), the maker of electric cars run by entrepreneur Elon Musk, said a blog post asserting Roadster batteries are at risk of failing if owners don’t keep the cars plugged in stoked an “irrational” fear.
“A single blogger is spreading a rumor about electric vehicles becoming inoperable,” a condition referred to as “bricking,” the Palo Alto, California-based company said today on its website. “‘Bricking’ is an irrational fear based on limited information and a misunderstanding of Tesla’s battery system.”
Tesla was responding to a Feb. 21 post on a blog called the Understatement, which said if the battery in the Roadster electric car “is ever totally discharged, the owner is left with what Tesla describes as a ‘brick’: a completely immobile vehicle that cannot be started or even pushed down the street.” At that point, a $40,000 battery pack replacement may be required, according to the Understatement, which cited no one.
Scrutiny of Tesla’s technology comes as the carmaker prepares to sell its first wholly U.S.-built vehicle, the electric Model S sedan, starting in July. The company, named for inventor Nikola Tesla, this month also showed a prototype of the Model X, an electric crossover vehicle that arrives in 2013.Here's Tesla's Enthusiasts blog:
Tesla fell 2.3 percent to $33.75 at the close in New York. The shares gained 18 percent this year.
Instructions to Owners
“You’d really have to not use the vehicle for an extended period for this to be an issue.” said David Friedman, a senior engineer for the Union of Concerned Scientists, an environmental advocacy group. In such cases, “it raises the question: Why did you buy an electric vehicle if you aren’t going to use it?” he said....MORE
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