宝马与特斯拉电动汽车大战升级
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直到最近，艾伦•马斯科的特斯拉公司（Tesla）还一直完全垄断着高端电动汽车市场。这家公司的加州佛莱蒙特工厂每周生产大约400台Model S电动车，每辆车的单价高达9万多美元。最早购买这款车的消费者对它的造型和性能倾倒不已。同时特斯拉也成功转型为上市公司，股价一路高歌猛进。 不过现在，特斯拉独霸高端电动汽车市场的局面即将改变，因为一个曾在高端车市场取得巨大成功的汽车厂商现在也加入了这个市场的竞争，它就是宝马（BMW）。宝马已经在全球范围内发布了i3全电动汽车，将于2014年正式上市。对i3的早期评测结果令人非常兴奋，试驾员们称i3“开起来就像一辆真正的宝马”。 到目前为止，特斯拉和宝马还没有出现针锋相对的竞争。特斯拉Model S是一辆七座旅行车，而宝马i3只能容纳四人，而且只适合城市周边短途旅行。但是随着特斯拉将产品线扩展到价格较低的车型，同时宝马推出i8油电混合动力轿车以吸引高端客户，这两家厂商难免会日渐瞄准同一群目标客户。 为了了解未来这两家公司的目标市场可能出现的重叠情况，以及其他汽车厂商将受到怎样的影响，不妨先来看看这两家公司的成绩单。 1. 历史 特斯拉已经成为汽车业在二战后最成功的创业公司，看来它已经同时掌握了设计艺术和制造工艺。公司的联合创始人兼CEO马斯科作为一名企业家过去的创业史也是成绩斐然，他迄今已经创立了三家成功的公司。不过他创立特斯拉的历史仍然不长，而且目前公司也没有完全走出难关。 宝马公司直到二战结束后才真正进军汽车领域，它是全球最大的高性能豪华轿车制造商，而且一直有稳定的成功和增长的历史。虽然宝马刚刚涉足电动汽车领域，但是宝马一向不拒绝变革（比如宝马1系、MINI系列等），而且早在十年以前，宝马就开始测试内燃机引擎的替代产品了。 优势方：宝马 2. 产品 尽管Model S的尺寸和价格让大多数人望而却步，但是自从这个车型发布以来，它已经取得了相当可观的成功。特斯拉预计今年共销售21,000辆Model S，定价为税前72,000美元。如果这个目标达成，那么它将相当于捷豹（Jaguar）、宾利（Bentley）、玛莎拉蒂（Maserati）、兰博基尼（Lamborghini）和劳斯莱斯（Rolls-Royce）的销售总量。 宝马i3是一辆高坐姿的紧凑型掀背车，有两个前门和两个尺寸缩水的后门，因此它也成了继50年代的三轮汽车Isetta之后，宝马公司生产的外型最古怪的一款车型。宝马有能力年产4万辆i3，单价大概在4.3万元左右。不过在其最终投产之前，量产车型的外观仍然无法得到最终确认。 优势方：特斯拉 |
Until just recently, Elon Musk's Tesla had the market for electric luxury cars all to itself. It was building some 400 units a week of the Model S at its factory in Fremont, Calif. and selling them for upwards of $90,000 apiece. Early adopters raved about the sedan's style and performance, while Tesla went public and became a furious growth stock. That's all about to change. A new competitor has arrived on the scene that has had considerable past success in selling to upscale customers: BMW. It has begun the global launch of the all-electric i3 that will begin reaching U.S. customers in 2014. Initial reviews of the car have been close to rapturous, with test drivers declaring that the i3 "drives just like a true BMW." For now, Tesla (TSLA) and BMW aren't competing head-to-head. The Model S is a seven-passenger luxury touring car while the i3 carries just four passengers and is designed for quick trips around town. But as Tesla fills out its product line with less-expensive models and BMW rolls out the sporty i8 hybrid-electric coupe to go after high rollers, the automakers will increasingly be targeting the same customers. To get an early sense of how the two sides will stack up -- and how other automakers might be affected -- here's a report card on the two companies. 1. History Tesla has already become the most successful automotive startup since World War II, seeming to have simultaneously mastered the arts of design, engineering, and manufacturing. Musk, its co-founder and CEO, has forged a remarkable track record as an entrepreneur, having started three successful companies. His record at Tesla, however, is short, and he has not managed the company through a downturn. BMW, which didn't get seriously into the auto business until after World War II, is the world's largest producer of luxury performance cars, and has a consistent history of success and growth. Although it is new to the world of electric cars, it is open to change (1-series, MINI) and has been testing alternatives to the internal combustion engine for more than a decade. Advantage: BMW 2. Products While the size and price of the Model S make it impractical for most people, it has been successfully launched, and Tesla expects to sell 21,000 of them this year at prices starting at $72,000 before any federal tax credit. If it succeeds, it would equal the combined volume of Jaguar, Bentley, Maserati, Lamborghini, and Rolls-Royce. BMW's i3 is a tall compact hatchback that has two full front doors and two rear half doors, which makes it the strangest-looking car the company has sold since the three-wheeled Isetta of the 1950s. BMW will have the capacity to make 40,000 i3s at prices that start around $43,000, but until it actually starts production, the appeal of the car remains unproven. Advantage: Tesla |
