It has been three years since Car Shipping Carriers and the rest of the world, heard Elon Musk talk about an all electric SUV.  That was 2012.  Then in 2013 a jacked up sized Model S shows up with gullwing doors claiming to be the mock Model X.  Now as many setbacks caused delays for this to be released, the first Model X was in an owners hands late on Tuesday September 29th.

We have transported many Tesla Model S vehicles, but now it is time for CSC to transport a Model X.  Anyone who calls in and needs to have a Model X transported please speak with Nicholas Dutko (owner of Car Shipping Carriers) and we will have it transported FREE of charge.  We will even ship it using our enclosed car shipping services for an optimum Tesla Model X delivery.

Back to the story.

Elon Musk was on hand during the release of the new Tesla Model X.  He said that Tesla got a little carried away when creating the X.  He also said that there is far more there than really necessary to sell the car, but all of these things together make the car amazing.  It;s next level.  We couldn’t agree more with you Mr. Musk.

When you look at this vehicle, it is more than just a bigger Model S.  It is a completely new car, which is great to start with.  The Model X has gullwing doors which are totally awesome, it has the largest piece of glass to give the windshield and panoramic roof that covers the entire passenger compartment, the doors have a seniors that can auto open when a person approaches with the key fob, and the shape of the vehicle itself sets itself apart from the rest of the pack.

Lets build a little bit more about the gullwing doors.  Each door has four sensors in them to measure the distance to objects around them.  The doors only need 11.8 inches of clearance to open properly without hitting anything.  The doors open vertically until the sensors can tell the door has past the roof line of the car next to it.  The doors are hinged in the top center of the vehicle to make sure they open gracefully.  Elon Musk actually made the designers study ballet dancers to make sure these doors open gracefully.

This is a company that takes so into building and creating their vehicles that other auto makers wouldn’t even think of doing.  That is one thing that sets Tesla apart from their competition.  In the next few years when other create electric vehicle to battle Tesla head on they will not put as much detail and precision into their vehicles as Tesla does.

Inside the Model X there are advancements from the Model S.  The first thing is the HEPA air filtration system.  Elon says that the air quality is so clean it is like a hospital.  The vehicle still contains the 17 inch touchscreen that so many love in the Model S.  Inside the storage is a class leader.  By the third row of seats folding down, the extra space because of it being an electric vehicle and the regular cargo space it is the most hauling space that any of the competitors.

Right now there are approximately 20,000 – 25,000 preorders for the Model X.  That will take Tesla until Mid-2016 just to get through those preorders.  Then all the preorders that will come in between now and then will start being produced.  All that we are saying is that if you want a Tesla Model X, you need to preorder one now before it is too late.

I’m sure everyone has heard about the Pope coming to America.  It has been on the news for weeks now building up for this grand occasion.  Many people give this Pope an applause because he is not a showy type.  He is not walking around in his Gucci shoes or Prada clothing like other Pope’s in the past.  He is more of a conservative person.

Car Shipping Carriers has a scoop that the Pope was riding in a Fiat 500L while in America.  He lived modest while being here.  Nothing against Fiat by any means, but most people would have had a Limo or a nice sports car to show off in.  Not this Pope.  He wanted to remain true to his word and stay contrastive.  The company, Fiat, should be very pleased by this action of the Pope and should use this to its advantage to capitalize on this occasion.  What do we know, we are only a car moving company, right?  Wrong!  We know about marketing and creating a buzz about something.  How do you think we showed up on your Google search with this article?

Pope Francis is the type of guy that wants the world to take notice of particular things.  Being nicer to each other, helping the poor, conserving energy, etc.. He doesn’t just say these things and live a different way.  He lives by his words and he is truly a person who is inspirational.  You have had a boss that tells his or her employees to do something a certain way and then you see them going against what they just told you.  It is obnoxious.  Pope Francis sets and makes example of himself.  If he says that green shoes are better than any other shoe, you better believe he will wear green shoes from now on.  That is just the type of person he is.

Hopefully everyone enjoyed Pope Francis while he was in America.  He sure did.  We also know Jeep and Fiat did with their free marketing because the Pope choose those types of vehicles to ride in.  Good luck on keeping that buzz going!

Volkswagen has been a name in the automotive world that is respected for using Diesel engines in many of its vehicles it creates.  They claim that Diesel is better and gets better mileage.  Well, now they are under fire from the U.S. Environmental Agency and with California officials because they are claiming that 482,000 VW diesel cars and Audi diesel vehicles were engineered to falsify their emissions for Federal testing.  If this is true the Volkswagen lawsuit fine can go as high as $18 Billion dollars.

Car Shipping Carriers has been a fan of Volkswagen vehicles because of their attention to making the world a “greener” place by using diesel engines in their vehicles.  Diesel engines usually last longer, they can be cleaner than a gasoline car and they have pretty decent styling with their cars.  They are certainly not “cheap” by any means, but they are not usually an expensive vehicle.  When we do get these types of vehicles for transporting to another state we usually use auto haulers that are open.

Back to the story.  What is being claimed is that the Volkswagen models had a software in the computers that could control and sense when a vehicle is being tested for emissions quality.  When it was tested in would run in a different mode (dyno calibration) to preserve diesel and help emissions.  When the vehicle was not being tested it would run in another mode (road calibration) and the pollution levels would in reaching illegal levels.  The claim is stating that VW vehicles could release up to 40 times more nitrogen oxide allowed by a vehicle.

While this is a HUGE issue, this isn’t the first time an auto maker has tried to get away with violating the Clean Air Act.  However, this is the first time a company went out of its way to create a software to be deceitful and change the way emissions are released.  What is being affected are the Jetta, Beetle, Golf, and the Audi A3 vehicles that have a diesel engine and were created between 2009 and 2015.  Along with that group is also the Passat that was created between 2014 and 2015.  All of these vehicles will most likely have to be recalled.  Basically any of those models listed above and during those time frames that carry a 2 liter turbodiesel engine will end up being recalled and VW will have to fix the issue.  The vehicles are still “safe” to drive, but just know that these cars are throwing out smog like it is its job.

So, many of you might be wondering how this came about.  The EOA and CARB have been doing an investigation because of a West Virginia University lab tested the 2013 Passat and 2014 Jetta and found higher than allowable levels of emissions coming from the vehicles.  They let the agencies know of this and now follow up tests occurred.  What made Volkswagen finally admit to the software was that EOA and CARB were not going to allow the sale of any 2016 models because it wasn’t going to give the certification for the vehicles.  That would be a big blow to the company so it finally admitted to the software switch.

Car Shipping Carriers has the scoop on the Porsche electric car rumors.  The rumors of an all electric Porsche that is set to compete with Tesla is finally unveiled as the Porsche Mission E.  This new Porsche Mission E concept car is a extremely stylish four door sedan that is going to make companies think more about the car than the features it may have.  Porsche is taking a different approach with this vehicle.  They want to differentiate themselves by focusing on the engine and handling than the internet and self-driving features that other auto makers are working on.

What they have come up with is stunning.  By looking at the picture above this Mission E is taking cues from he 911 and 918 plug-in.  The two doors for the back seat passengers are suicide doors which make the vehicle look even cooler.  Powering this beauty is happening by two permanently excited synchronous motors (PSM).  These two motors together will push out 600 horsepower.  With that power the Mission E is looking to hit 62 mph in just 3,5 seconds.  It is not as fast as the Ludicious Mode for Tesla, but the battery is better.  Porsche is opting for an 800-volt drive system.  Most companies are using a 400-volt system.  Because Porsche will use the 800-volt system they will be able to achieve a faster charge time and it uses smaller wires which will help reduce the weight of the vehicle.  Porsche has claimed that the Mission E will be able to have a near full charge is as little as 15 minutes.  Also, the charge port will be behind the right front fender which is different than most vehicles.  All of these features Porsche has opted for are helping them achieve their differentiation they are looking for.

Inside of the vehicle the look is a minimalist approach which is sleek and looks fantastic.  All of the gauges are LED screens and a touchscreen in the center console.  Another cool feature that they will have is having the ability of configuring the vehicle externally through a tablet.

As of right now the Mission E is just a concept car, but it seems as if the look and many of the feature should be present on the actual car when it is produced.  The electric supercar world is getting competitive.  We are looking forward to seeing more and more vehicles take the electric approach and make the world a faster, yet green planet.

 

Car Shipping Carriers has two favorite companies; Apple and Tesla Motors.  We use Apple products for work such as an Apple MacBook Pro, Apple iPad, Apple iPhone, Apple Airport Extreme for wireless capabilities and various software Apple creates.  Apple has been on the top of the computing world for almost a decade now with the simplistic approach to its products and software.  For Apple to have an ecosystem that all their devices can use and each device will have the same stored data is excellent for people who need to use the products at any instant.  In the Car Shipping world that is crucial.  Brokers and truckers need to get online in an instant to help customers, quote customers and even have customers sign receipts.  It can all be done online and needs to occur at a fast pace.

The other company that is a favorite of CSC is Tesla Motors.  We have had the privilege of transporting many Tesla Model S vehicles, we even transported one using enclosed car shipping services for Doc Rivers who is the coach of the NBA team Los Angeles Clippers.  Tesla came into the automotive industry with a different approach than any other company.  They wanted to make all electric vehicles and make the best product in the market.  Their approach has succeeded where many thought they would fail.  Each year Tesla sells and produces more cars.  There next vehicle, the Tesla Model X, will be hitting the streets at the end of the month.

These two companies are now fighting for employees.  Many Tesla Motors employees have quit Tesla and moved over to Apple to work on their “Project Titan” automotive project. This Apple Project Titan has been rumored to be all about Apple creating a self-driving automobile. As Apple always does, it wanted to make the best and most sophisticated in the industry.  Apple has reached out to BMW to potentially collaborate in creating a car and one that will have self driving capabilities.  BMW reps have confirmed that Apple has reached out, but most of the reps claim they are scared to work with Apple because they feel Apple might take the knowledge and run with it and cut out BMW all together.  Apple has done that to suppliers in the past, so having that fear is always an option.

Tesla is in fear of Apple because each time an employees quits Tesla and moves to Apple they are going to run behind on their schedule for future projects and auto releases.  Not only that, but Apple having Tesla type knowledge could hurt Tesla in the future because Apple might make a better product and steal customers away from Tesla.  In the immediate future Apple is not going to release a car.  It takes years to develop a car and have it brought onto public roads.  Google has been doing self-driving auto testing for years now and they still don’t have a vehicle that can be sold to the public yet. Apple is still a long ways away.  Their partnership with BMW will help expedite things, but it is not looking like we will have an Apple car before 2020.  By then Tesla will have the Model S, Model X and Model 3 released and potentially a fourth model possibly called the Model R.

Tesla does need to worry about Apple, but we feel it will not have a major impact any time soon.  Tesla will have to start taking a different approach with its top level employees to ensure that they do not leave and give secrets away to a possible competitor.  We do not know who will come ahead in the end, but it will be a fun time seeing all the stops come out when these two do go head to head.