Audi e-tron GT VS. Tesla Model S: How Do They Compare?

Tesla is no longer the only game in town.

Tesla has had the all-electric luxury sedan and crossover market to itself for too many years now, at least that’s how automakers like Audi feel. At this year’s LA Auto Show, Audi unveiled its e-tron GT concept, which heavily previews the production version set to arrive for the 2021 model year. Assuming the production version will closely mirror the specs of the concept, then the Tesla Model S have something to worry about? Well, let’s compare some numbers. But first off, we’re using the Model S 75D version because there’s a greater chance e-tron GT buyers will cross shop with that variant. So let’s get started.

Range

The 2021 Audi e-tron GT will come with a 90 kWh battery good for a range of 248.5 miles under WLTP rules. The Model S has a 75 kWh battery with an EPA-rated 259 miles. Believe it or not, EPA range testing is said to be a bit more accurate than the European method. Therefore, the Model S has the advantage here, but remember: both Audi and Tesla will continue to improve their respective range-related technologies by the time the production-spec e-tron GT arrives.

Charging Times

The e-tron GT concept can reportedly charge to 80 percent in 20 minutes. Meanwhile, the Model S can recharge to a 170-mile range in 30 minutes with a DC fast charger, but using a Supercharger will likely better than time. It's also important to bear in mind that by the time the Audi goes on sale, Tesla will no almost surely improve its batteries and Supercharging network even more. As for home charging, the Model S comes with a 11.5 kW onboard AC charger that needs to be plugged in, while the e-tron GT has an 11 kW wireless charging system.

Performance

Without question, the Audi has the advantage. It will go from 0-60 mph in 3.5 seconds and tops off at 149 mph. The Model S 75D does the same deed in 4.2 seconds and 140 mph. Audi also notes its EV can continue to perform at its peak without the driver having to make driving concessions (meaning to take it easy). The Tesla, meanwhile, automatically begins to cut back power following hard usage.

Seating And Styling

There’s no question with this one. The Tesla Model S can seat five comfortably and also has those optional rear jump seats. The Audi e-tron GT, however, has seating for four. But remember, this is the concept version. The production e-tron GT may gain a fifth seat.

As far as everything else goes, namely styling inside and out, it’s purely one’s personal tastes. To us, the Audi is the better-looking vehicle, but we need to bear in mind it’s still a concept and styling is always toned down somewhat for production. Also, the Tesla Model S is six years old, so it’s okay to say the design might be somewhat dated, but we still think it looks great today.

Aston Martin's First EV Will Target Tesla Owners Tired Of Feeling Poor

Because sometimes the best still isn't good enough.

For the past few years the Tesla Model S was the so-called “it” car for what the industry calls “early adapters” with money. They love to have the latest and the best. And now Aston Martin wants their business with its upcoming RapidE. Speaking to Autocar, Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer openly acknowledged that his company is “looking to those guys looking for something above Tesla. That customer probably isn’t looking for ‘Ludicrous Mode’.

"Our offer will have very credible acceleration – equal to a petrol Aston Martin – but you’ll be able to drive the car rapidly all the way around the Nurburgring without it derating or conking out on you.” Aston Martin has already unveiled the prototype of its first EV, the RapidE, though customer deliveries won’t begin until 2019. Just 155 examples are planned, and it’s safe to assume the final production version won’t look 100 percent identical to the prototype. In fact, the prototype you see pictured here is merely a proof-of-concept. Developed in partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering, the prototype is currently powered by Williams’ Formula E battery, but the production battery will be smaller.

Unlike the Tesla Model S, the RapidE’s battery will be front-mounted as opposed to floor-mounted. Also unlike most Tesla’s today, the RapidE will be rear-wheel-drive only. Aston Martin hasn’t announced specific performance numbers, but a 155 mph top speed, at the very least, is guaranteed. Given everything, why is Aston Martin turning a V12 engine four-door coupe into an EV instead of developing something new from the ground up? “I’ve engineered cars for a long time,” Palmer said. “It’s very hard work when you try and change everything at once…I wanted to do this with a car we understand intrinsically.”

Audi Ranks As Top Dealer Experience While Tesla Fares Poorly

Dealership experience is a big part of buying a new car.

When it comes to buying a car, there are lots of annoyances that can make for a painful experience. The way a dealership treats you can sometimes make or break the car buying experience, either enticing you to purchase a vehicle you may otherwise not have, or turning customers off of a brand completely. For the 12th year in a row, a company called Pied Piper PSI has conducted its US Auto Industry Benchmarking Study "In-Person." The study aims to show how helpful dealerships are for customers by measuring real response times and information.

Pied Pier PSI sent out anonymous "mystery car-shoppers" to visit 3,466 dealerships throughout the country and score each of them on how helpful they were. For 2018, Audi finished at the top for several key reasons. Audi salespeople were most likely to ask customers questions about how their vehicle would be used, provide a walkaround demonstration comparing the cars to the competition, and ask followup questions to determine customer needs and explain why their specific dealership is deserving of their business.

Audi was followed by Lexus, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Infiniti, Ram, Buick, Jaguar, Land Rover, Nissan, Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Kia, Lincoln, Mini, Chevrolet, GMC, and Hyundai, who were all above the industry average. Tesla finished last in the survey for the second year in a row, mainly because the company doesn't use a traditional dealership model. Instead, Tesla has showrooms that are meant to show off a product without pushing hard to sell it. Some buyers may like Tesla's laid-back sales approach, but it clearly doesn't help the company score well in surveys like this one.

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Tesla: Back at square one on cash

Musk has told analysts and investors Tesla plans to pay its convertible debt with internally generated cash flow. Photo credit: BLOOMBERG

NEW YORK -- Elon Musk's take-private plans for Tesla Inc. have evaporated, but the company's looming debt needs remain.

With a debt load of about $10.5 billion and the possibility of an impending cash shortfall, Wall Street expects the luxury electric carmaker may need to raise funds before long.

Musk, Tesla's CEO, said late on Friday he would heed shareholder concerns and no longer pursue a $72 billion take-private deal, abandoning an idea that stunned investors and may draw regulatory scrutiny.

None of that has done anything to help it with a looming issue: cash.

Tesla, which has had just one quarter of positive free cash flow since the fourth quarter of 2013, has $1.3 billion in debt coming due in the next 12 months. Meanwhile it has just $1.3 billion of cash on hand after backing out $942 million of customer deposits on cars.

With analysts forecasting a slowed, but continued, cash burn in the second half of 2018, Tesla may need to borrow up to $2 billion by the end of the year to stay afloat.

In response to a request for comment, a Tesla representative referred to Musk's statement on the company's second-quarter earnings call when he said the company planned to pay its convertible debt with internally generated cash flow.

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Rising debt

The most likely option, according to analysts, is a convertible debt issue. Musk has historically favored convertible bonds to raise capital, and Tesla and its SolarCity unit each have three issues of convertible senior notes, worth a total of $4.2 billion.

Convertibles give owners the right to trade their debt for equity after shares rise over a certain price. They allow holders to benefit from a rising share price, while also offering bond-like protection if it falls.

The one challenge of using more convertible debt, however, is "that it drives more short sellers to your stock. And Musk does not want that," said Jeffrey Osborne, senior research analyst, Cowen Inc.

Frequently, convertible bond owners will hedge their positions by selling the underlying stock short. Moreover, the dilution caused by conversion could also pressure a stock, drawing the interest of short sellers.

Of the $1.3 billion Tesla has coming due in the next 12 months, $230 million is from a SolarCity convertible due on Nov. 1, and another $920 million from a Tesla convertible due on March 1, 2019. Tesla's shares, at $319.27, are a long way from the $560.64 needed to convert the SolarCity debt but have traded above the $359.87 March 2019 debt conversion price.

Musk could also choose to offer convertible bond investors the opportunity to exchange their debt for equity below either or both strike prices, although that could require some assurances on the company's fundamentals.

Straight debt

Tesla could issue straight debt similar to the 5.3 percent coupon junk bond coming due in 2025. That bond however, is trading well below par at 87.13 cents on the dollar, and so it would be unlikely that Tesla could get the sort of favorable terms they secured in their last offering.

Krishna Memani, chief investment officer of OppenheimerFunds, which is among Tesla's top 10 bondholders, said that the level of scrutiny Musk would have to go through "would be meaningfully higher in any new issuance."

Equity

Equity markets have historically been friendly to Tesla, however Musk said, on the company's second-quarter earnings call, that he would not tap them for cash. "We'll not be raising any equity at any point... I have no expectation of doing so; do not plan to do so."

The Securities and Exchange Commission has opened an investigation into Musk for potentially misleading investors when he tweeted that he had "funding secured" for a $420 a share take-private deal, according to media reports.

LEASE/ASSET-BACKED SECURITY DEAL

Tesla could securitize automotive leases backed by drivers' monthly payments as it did earlier this year when it sold $546 million of bonds backed by leases on Model S and Model X cars.

There are two problems with issuing new asset-backed securities.

The first is that old vehicles may not sell for as much as expected given the increasing competition Tesla is facing in the electric vehicle space. Second, leases as a percentage of vehicles sold have fallen dramatically as it is not possible to lease a Model 3 sedan. While roughly 20 percent to 30 percent of Model S and Model Xs were leased, the Model 3 must be paid for in cash.

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Tesla wins dismissal of shareholder lawsuit over Model 3 output

UPDATED: 8/27/18 6:03 pm ET - adds details

A federal judge in San Francisco dismissed a securities fraud lawsuit in which Tesla Inc. shareholders accused the electric car company and CEO Elon Musk of misleading them about the progress of production of the Model 3 vehicle.

In a decision made public on Monday, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said that while shareholders claimed that Tesla fell short of its production goals, "federal securities laws do not punish companies for failing to achieve their targets."

Breyer said the shareholders have until Sept. 28 to amend their complaint. Their lawyer, Laurence Rosen, did not respond to a request for comment.

The case is separate from lawsuits accusing Tesla and Musk of scheming to hurt short-sellers through Musk's Aug. 7 tweets about taking the company private, and that funding had been "secured."

Musk abandoned that proposal late Friday night.

Tesla formally launched the Model 3 in July 2017, touting it as a vehicle for the masses, and attracted deposits from more than 500,000 potential customers.

But shareholders said Musk knew Tesla was "woefully unprepared" to meet its production goal of 5,000 Model 3s per week, and that Tesla's share price was inflated until after the company finally cut its production target last November.

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Belief in the Model 3 had helped propel Tesla's share price 62 percent higher in the 1-1/2 years after the company unveiled it in March 2016.

But the judge said shareholders failed to show that Tesla needed to be clearer that Model 3 production could fall short.

The company eventually blamed its production shortfall on "bottlenecks" at its battery factory outside Reno, Nevada and its assembly plant in Fremont, Calif.

"Plaintiffs are correct that defendants' qualifications would not have been meaningful if defendants had known that it was impossible for Tesla to meet its stated production goals, not merely highly unlikely," Breyer wrote. "The facts plaintiffs have put forth do not tend to establish that this was the case."

Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Breyer's decision is dated Aug. 24.

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Could Tesla follow Ford's leverage strategy?

Now that Elon Musk’s quixotic bid to take Tesla Inc. private is dead, the hand-wringing over when he’ll raise fresh financing has begun anew.?

Musk may insist that he doesn’t need to raise more capital this year but to many on Wall Street, that sounds improbable. And even if it were true, they argue, it’s always best to lock in financing while you can. Who knows what markets will look like -- and, moreover, how they will view Tesla -- a year or two from now.

But how to best tap markets?

With demand for the electric-car maker’s bonds flagging, some have started pointing to the model that Ford Motor Co. deployed during the depths of its financial distress more than a decade ago. The centerpiece to this approach: Putting up assets, including the iconic Blue Oval logo, as collateral for cheap lines of credit. The Ford insignia was valued at $8 billion back then. Interbrand estimates that, given the passion that Tesla drivers have for their cars, the T emblem may already be worth half that just 15 years into its existence.

“Pledge those assets and have that in your back pocket,” said Hitin Anand, an analyst at CreditSights. “It’s prudent to build liquidity.”?

Tesla has no shortage of collateral it could use to back borrowings, analysts say, and would probably consider other assets before it considers mortgaging its brand or forms of intellectual property. Crown jewels include its manufacturing plant in Fremont, Calif., and its mammoth Nevada battery factory. But piling on a new layer of debt risks alienating the company’s existing bondholders, who would be pushed further down in the pecking order for repayment if the company defaults.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Joel Levington estimates that $3 billion of new secured debt may cause S&P Global Ratings to downgrade the junk bonds to the CCC range, following a cut by Moody’s Investors Service made earlier this year.

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A representative for Tesla declined to comment.

Ford’s loan?

Ford’s 2006 move to pledge its logo and other assets was something of a last resort as the then cash-strapped company faced record losses. The company ultimately secured almost everything it owned -- including inventory, factories, brands and a stake in its auto-finance business -- in exchange for a loan package of more than $23 billion.

The deal ultimately helped the company weather the financial crisis, and it was the only one of the Detroit Three automakers to avoid filing for bankruptcy. The last of the collateral Ford pledged was released in 2012 when a portion of the company’s debt returned to investment-grade ratings.

Tesla’s situation isn’t as dire, according to Levington. Still, it makes sense for the carmaker to raise money now, he said. An extra capital infusion would help quell investor concerns about the company’s cash balances, and give it additional runway at a time when auto sales are falling.

“Getting liquidity now makes a lot of sense," Levington said. “In a backdrop that’s starting to get a little bit weaker -- maybe on its way to being a lot weaker -- not being prepared puts them in a riskier position."

Ambitious plans?

Even if the company does hit its production goals, it still has to contend with more than $1.2 billion of convertible bonds due in November and March. As things stand, the company will have to repay those obligations because its stock is trading below the price at which the bonds can convert into equity. With about $2.2 billion of cash on hand, Tesla will likely need to refinance the debt, analysts say.

The company also has ambitious -- and potentially expensive -- plans for the future, including new factories in Europe and China and plans for a semi truck and a new crossover vehicle.

For now, Tesla has plenty of options. In addition to potentially securing debt, the company could likely issue more convertible bonds, according to CreditSights’s Anand. While the company’s junk bonds have slumped, its convertible notes still trade near or above par.

Even the unsecured junk-bond market is likely still open to Tesla, though the company probably would have to pony up more than the 5.3 percent it paid to issue $1.8 billion of bonds last year. The notes now trade at about 87 cents on the dollar to yield 7.7 percent, but companies including J.C. Penney Co. and BMC Software Inc. have successfully sold bonds with CCC range ratings this year.

“The high-yield market has financed some really dicey stuff,” said Vicki Bryan, founder of Bond Angle, an independent research firm. “There’s more value in Tesla’s existing assets and their promise.”

ATTENTION COMMENTERS: Automotive News has monitored a significant increase in the number of personal attacks and abusive comments on our site. We encourage our readers to voice their opinions and argue their points. We expect disagreement. We do not expect our readers to turn on each other. We will be aggressively deleting all comments that personally attack another poster, or an article author, even if the comment is otherwise a well-argued observation. If we see repeated behavior, we will ban the commenter. Please help us maintain a civil level of discourse.

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