Toyota and Tesla Announce Electric Rav4 Models
Toyota has continued its rapid turn around on electric cars by announcing that it and Tesla will launch electric Rav4 Models by the end of 2010.
The Toyota-Tesla match up has been one of the stranger ones we’ve seen in some time. The companies were pushed together in a political deal and seemed an ill fit at best. Then something changed. Toyota realized that its negative view towards electric cars might be unwise and changed its tune. With a ready made drive train, Tesla was a natural resource and could certainly use the business.
How quickly has all this come around? Toyota bought into Tesla two months ago, yet the companies joint announcement sites that an electric version of the Rav4 is already on the road and being tested. Nobody builds a new car that quick, so we can draw some fairly accurate conclusions from the announcement. The electric Rav4 is basically going to be the Toyota chassis with the Tesla Roadster power plant and drive train in it.
Is this a good move for Toyota? It is hard to say. The move reeks of panic on the part of the car giant. To say Toyota has had a bad few years would be a mild understatement. The brand once known for reliability is a complete disaster. It needs some good news and this move, for all the world, seems to be an effort to generate some. Shotgun marriages of this type, however, rarely produce good products and I have doubts about this one working out well.
What about Tesla Motors? This is a great move for Tesla. The company has just gone public and needs to start showing strong, consistent revenues. Licensing its technology to Toyota creates goodwill with investors and a steady stream of hard, cold cash. It also buys time for Tesla to get additional models out into the market, a move that can stabilize its finances over time.
The Rav4 has been a highly rated vehicle for years. That being said, I would hold off on being one of the first owners of the electric version. The speed with which this car is being slammed together and brought to market portends a lot of problems. It is enough to make you really wonder what they are thinking at Toyota.