Tag: cars

Categories
Business

Tilman Fertitta says his dealership has offered 17 vehicles for bitcoin

Tilman Fertitta says his dealership has sold 17 cars for bitcoin

Billionaire businessman Tilman Fertitta told CNBC on Tuesday that his luxury car dealership has sold more than a dozen vehicles for Bitcoin since it began transactions in digital currency almost three years ago.

Fertitta’s comments on “Power Lunch” came a day after Tesla announced plans to accept Bitcoin as a means of payment for its products. The electric vehicle maker also said it bought $ 1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin with cash on its balance sheet.

“Tesla takes it a lot more than I do, but believe it or not, we’ve sold 17 cars – Bentleys and [Rolls-Royces] – with Bitcoin, “said Fertitta, who also leads a huge hospitality empire as chairman and CEO of Landry’s Inc., based in Houston.

According to The Houston Chronicle, Fertitta’s Post Oak Motor Cars first accepted Bitcoin in 2018. He told CNBC that the idea of ​​accepting bitcoin transactions came from his team. “We always talked about being innovative and being ahead of everyone else and not being a dinosaur here or you won’t last,” he said.

In its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, Tesla said that Bitcoin will be accepted as payment in the near future, “subject to applicable law and on a limited basis initially, which we may or may not liquidate upon receipt”. In that case, Tesla would be the first major automaker to accept the digital coin.

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market value, saw higher price spikes after the Tesla News was released. It was trading above $ 47,000 per coin on Tuesday afternoon.

At the time Fertitta’s merchant introduced Bitcoin for transactions, the volatile digital coin was trading between $ 6,000 and $ 7,000 apiece. It was in the middle of about a year-long relapse, falling below $ 4,000 by December 2018. Bitcoin’s price had peaked at just under $ 20,000 in December 2017.

Bitcoin started a robust rally last year and topped the 2017 high in late November. A number of factors have been attributed to the great success of the digital coin, including its acceptance by high profile investors who have touted its potential as a hedge against inflation. Established companies like PayPal have also stepped into the crypto space, and some suggest that institutional adoption helped fuel Bitcoin’s upward trend.

Tesla’s adoption offers “strong endorsements” for Bitcoin as a store of value and as a means of payment, Allianz chief economic advisor Mohamed El-Erian told CNBC on Monday.

Fertitta has spoken positively about Bitcoin for years, telling CNBC in December 2017 that it was “staying here”.

Categories
Business

Chinese language regulators reprimand Tesla over rising complaints about its vehicles.

Chinese regulators reprimand Tesla over growing complaints about its cars.

Chinese regulators recently met with Tesla executives after several government agencies reported an “unusual acceleration” in complaints from consumers about battery fires and other quality issues with the company’s electric cars.

In a post on Chinese social media platform WeChat, the state administration for market regulation said officials from five government agencies interviewed Tesla executives and “asked them to strictly comply with Chinese laws and regulations, strengthen internal management and improve quality and implement company safety regulations. ”

Tesla recognized its “flaws in the business process” and agreed to improve the quality and safety of its vehicles, the regulator said in the release.

The electric car maker has struggled with quality issues as it increased its production from tens of thousands of cars a year to 500,000 in 2020. On social media, customers have documented numerous problems with the new Tesla, including large gaps between body panels, poor paintwork and broken glass. These complaints were confirmed in surveys and reviews of the company’s cars by JD Power and Consumer Reports.

Some of the issues cited by Chinese regulators aren’t unique to Tesla. The potential for fires in the large batteries that power electric cars has forced other automakers to recall cars. General Motors recalled Chevrolet Bolt electric cars from the 2017-2019 model years in the U.S. in November because they could catch fire under certain conditions. Tesla has previously said that its models are less likely to catch fire than other cars.

Tesla didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday, but the company’s executive director Elon Musk recently admitted quality issues with its popular Model 3 sedan in an interview with Sandy Munro, an auto industry consultant.

Last week, Tesla recalled 135,000 vehicles in the U.S. to address a touchscreen issue on its S and Y models. It was found that the screens had a high error rate. Tesla had initially refused to recall the cars but was pressured by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.

In a letter to the US security agency last month, a Tesla executive said the screens that drivers use to control many functions of their cars shouldn’t last more than five or six years.

Categories
Business

G.M. Announcement Shakes Up U.S. Automakers’ Transition to Electrical Automobiles

G.M. Announcement Shakes Up U.S. Automakers’ Transition to Electric Cars

China’s decision late last year to require that most of the vehicles sold there be electric by 2035 is also crucial, as GM sells more cars in that country than in the US through its joint ventures. Great Britain, Ireland and the Netherlands have announced that they will ban the sale of new gasoline and diesel vehicles from 2030.

GM has been talking about moving to zero-emission vehicles for about two years. In March last year, the modular battery technology was introduced, with which costs are to be reduced. A few months later, GM said it could reach a point where electric vehicles won’t cost more than gasoline-powered vehicles faster than previously expected.

Ms. Barra received support and input from an unexpected source – the Environmental Defense Fund, which had criticized GM in the past. The CEO shared a barbecue dinner with the group’s president, Fred Krupp, at a conference in 2015. Until last fall, they were in regular contact by phone and email.

“We were both optimistic that we could achieve common ground,” said Krupp.

In October, GM unveiled an electric Hummer pickup truck that had enough orders in one day to accommodate all of the trucks GM wanted to manufacture in the first year of the truck.

“That was another turning point,” said Parker, the chief sustainability officer. “It showed that consumers are really excited about owning electric vehicles.”

Just a few weeks later, Mr Biden was elected President-elect. And in December, GM met with its transition team, Parker said. “Our vision of an emission-free future fits very well with your vision and goals.”

At the same time, GM signed a pledge known as the Business Ambition for 1.5 Degrees to fight global warming. In early January, the company set the expected date for the electrical transition to be 2035, Parker said. On January 12th, Ms. Barra appeared at the Consumer Electronics Show explaining GM’s vision for a zero-exhaust future, but did not provide an exact date.

Categories
Business

Tesla Says It Hit Aim of Delivering 500,000 Automobiles in 2020

Tesla Says It Hit Goal of Delivering 500,000 Cars in 2020

Electric car maker Tesla reported on Saturday that it produced more than half a million cars in 2020, a milestone that seemed unattainable just three years ago.

In a press release posted on its website, the company said it had shipped 180,570 cars in the fourth quarter. The total number for 2020 rose to 499,550, a new milestone for the electric car manufacturer.

The sales figures for 2020 correspond to an increase of 36 percent compared to 2019. Tesla’s production of 509,737 vehicles in 2020 increased compared to 2019 by 40 percent.

It’s the latest achievement for a company that excelled in 2020 despite the pandemic. While some automakers saw sales increases in the pandemic, none saw a surge like Tesla.

Even without the sales record, Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk had a lot to offer – a buoyant stock, new factories, and a number of profitable quarters.

Analysts had become bullish on Tesla sales for the past few weeks amid signs of strong overseas demand.

“We believe that given the strength we are building in China, as well as a late push in Europe and the US, 190,000 to 200,000 are within reach,” Dan Ives, a Wedbush analyst, wrote a fourth quarter release to the Investors.

The aspiring automaker is likely to face tougher competition in 2021. Ford Motor recently started shipping the Mustang Mach E electric sport utility vehicle to customers. And Rivian, a well-respected auto launch company, will begin selling an electric pickup and an SUV next summer. Several other automakers will join the fight as well.

And Tesla still faces its own challenges. Sales of its most profitable vehicles, the Model S luxury sedan and the Model X SUV, have stalled and remain low. The federal safety supervisory authorities are also investigating chassis defects in these vehicles. The company also faces questions about the quality of its vehicles. And Tesla seemed to be making little headway toward Mr Musk’s ambitious promise to have a million self-driving Teslas by the end of 2020. The company has yet to show the world a car that can drive without a driver.

Still, the company reported profits for the past four quarters. The stock was added to the S&P 500 index, and the stock price ended last year at more than $ 700 after less than $ 100 in late 2019. Investors value Tesla by more than the combined market cap of several major automakers , including Toyota Motor, Volkswagen, General Motors and Ford.

Tesla ramped up production at a factory in China, fueling sales growth in that country, the world’s largest market for conventional and electric cars. The company also began building factories near Berlin and Austin, Texas. Mr Musk plans to manufacture Tesla’s pickup truck and a battery-powered tractor-trailer in Texas and recently said he moved to the state.

Categories
Business

Individuals keep ‘residence for the vacations’ — or follow automobiles if touring

Americans stay 'home for the holidays' — or stick to cars if traveling

For many Americans, the classic Christmas carol “I’ll be home for Christmas” will literally describe their plans for this holiday weekend as most choose to celebrate on the spot amid the ongoing pandemic.

Only about a quarter of people across the country will travel for Christmas and New Years, compared with about a third last year, and most of them will be more likely to drive than fly or take the train, industry sources say.

AAA predicts that by January 3, at least 29% fewer trips will be made than in the same period last year. While up to 84.5 million Americans are choosing to travel despite the current surge in Covid, that is at least 34 million fewer than in 2019, the organization said. By comparison, AAA estimates Thanksgiving trips have decreased by up to 15% in the last month.

“During the year-end vacation, Americans often venture into longer, more lavish vacations,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president at AAA Travel, in a statement. “That won’t be the case this year.”

More from Personal Finance:
Vacation trips are delayed, but last minute bookings might help
The promise of a vaccine can encourage travel, but some changes will last
According to the survey, men take more risks than women when traveling

Twidale cited public health concerns, official government guidelines against travel and a general decline in consumer sentiment as factors driving many to stay home. (The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn that travel could increase your chances of getting and spreading Covid-19 on their website.)

Consumer finance website ValuePenguin found that only 23% of 1,000 Americans polled planned to travel this coming weekend, compared to 32% who said they were traveling for Thanksgiving.

Vacation property management software company Guesty reported in mid-December that bookings for accommodations for both Christmas and New Year’s Eve were still 15% down on 2019. (However, Guesty officials were optimistic that reservation rates could potentially close the gap by the end of the year, or at least land close.)

Americans who choose to travel in the next two weeks will likely do so by car. Road travel will account for 96% of vacation travel, according to the AAA, with 81 million Americans reaching the country’s highways. That would represent a year-over-year decrease of at least 25% – despite a shift towards cars and away from buses, planes and trains.

According to the AAA, car journeys will replace other travel modes thanks to “the flexibility, safety and convenience that car travel offers”. However, ValuePenguin found in its survey that 7% of those who travel during the December vacation will actually fly, up from the 3% who planned to do so for Thanksgiving. This may be due to cheaper airfares: AAA reports double-digit drops in average airfares.

Drivers will also save money on refilling their tanks this year. Gasoline prices are 33 cents per gallon cheaper than in 2019. However, some of these savings will burn off in traffic. AAA warns road drivers of around 20% more congestion on the country’s highways and secondary roads.

Where intrepid travelers go

Imgorthand | E + | Getty Images

Traveling but not staying with friends or family? You may find some savings in housing in your stocking. Guesty found that the average nightly rate for New Year’s reservations had gone down that month and was the same as in 2019. This is likely because hosts are lowering prices to encourage bookings as they are generally reluctant to travel.

And where are die-hard vacationers for Christmas and New Years? Amadeus Global Reservation System has determined that the top five US travel destinations with hotel occupancy rates of 50% or more are:

  1. Vail, Colorado
  2. Key West, Florida
  3. Sedona, Arizona
  4. Aspen, Colorado
  5. Fort Myers, Florida