According to Reuters, “Electric carmaker Tesla Motors Corp’s initial public offering zoomed ahead on Tuesday with shares rallying more than 40 percent as investors bet that electric cars would define the future of transportation.

Tesla’s shining debut came despite weakness in the broad market and as other auto stocks were hit by concerns of a global slowdown. Tesla was the top gainer on the Nasdaq on Tuesday, offering hope to other companies mulling initial public offerings but which may have shied away given recent volatility.

Tesla’s closing share price of $23.89 boosted its market capitalization to $2.22 billion, compared with $1.6 billion on Monday night. It is the first initial public offering by an American automaker since Ford’s debut in 1956. The debut comes amid heightened interest in electric cars and as major automakers gear up to launch various types of battery-powered vehicles, including plug-in hybrids.

“They’re competing against both internal combustion engines and alternative fuels like fuel cells, compressed natural gas and things like that,” said Matt Therian, an analyst with Connecticut-based IPO research house Renaissance Capital. “It’s probably too early to say that electric vehicles are definitely going to be the next thing in cars, but if they are I think the potential is huge.”

Analysts say that the cars may be sleek, but the shares will be volatile in the near term. The Palo Alto, California-based company is losing money and does not expect to be profitable for at least two years.

“A lot of people were puzzled about why we were going public without profits,” CEO Elon Musk, dressed in jeans and wearing a plaid blazer and a shepherd’s checked shirt, told reporters outside the Nasdaq building in Times Square.

“The reason we are not profitable today is because we are in the midst of expanding with the Model S (sedan),” said Musk.

The IPO is also the first for the eccentric and charismatic Musk, who is the inspiration for Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark character in “Iron Man” and also has a cameo role in this summer’s sequel.”

Read more: Reuters

According to their press release, “Tesla Motors has hired former Fiat executive Cristiano Carlutti to lead the electric vehicle manufacturer’s fast-growing European operations.

Carlutti, who began this week as Tesla’s vice president of European sales and operations, has a unique background encompassing sales, marketing, branding and public relations. He has lead mission-critical divisions at Fiat, served as CEO of an Italian start-up and served on the organizing committee of the XX Winter Olympic Games.

“Cristiano has a solid track record of success at one of the world’s largest automakers and an affinity for leading dynamic, entrepreneurial organizations — a rare combination that makes him a great fit at Tesla as we expand,” said Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Carlutti first joined Fiat in 1995 as a marketing analyst and rose to the vice president level, most recently overseeing the strategy and operations of the rent-a-car and used car department for European markets. Carlutti was also in charge of a €150 million program which established a network of company-owned showrooms throughout Europe.

Additionally, Carlutti served on the Organizing Committee of the XX Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy. As managing director of media operations for the 2006 games, Carlutti helped to create and manage a €13 million media operation with 20 venues serving more than 3,000 journalists.

Previously, Carlutti was CEO of Autocontact Italia, where he was in charge of reselling and servicing more than 90,000 vehicles per year. He lead the organization’s marketing and branding initiatives for manufacturers including Fiat, Renault, Peugeot, Daimler and BMW.

“Europe has some of the world’s most discerning drivers as well as progressive programs for electric vehicles, making Tesla uniquely well positioned in this market,” Carlutti said. “I look forward to combining my automobile industry expertise with my passion for the environment, and it’s thrilling to be part of this innovative, fast-moving Silicon Valley company.”

San Carlos, Calif.-based Tesla has delivered about 1,000 cars to customers throughout Europe and the United States. Tesla’s European operations are headquartered in Windsor, UK. Tesla operates company-owned showrooms in London, Munich and Monaco.

Carlutti, who has a degree in business administration from the University Luigi Bocconi in Milan, is fluent in English, French and Italian, and he has lived in Germany, Russia, Ireland and the United States.”

Source: Tesla Press Release

According to Reuters, “U.S. electric sports car maker Tesla Motors plans to go public soon, two sources familiar with the matter said, amid growing interest in green technology and battery-powered vehicles.

An IPO filing from the six-year-old start-up, best known for its $109,000 all-electric Roadster, is expected any day, said one of the sources. The person did not give a specific time frame, although IPOs typically take several months.

Tesla spokesman Ricardo Reyes declined to comment on what he called “rumor or speculation.”

Tesla would mark the first public offering from a U.S. automaker since Henry Ford’s Ford Motor Co debuted its shares in 1956. The IPO represents a landmark in the resurgence of electric car technology that most carmakers had dismissed as impractical until recently.

The company’s chairman Elon Musk said early last year that an IPO was a possibility in either late 2008 or 2009.

But the financial market turmoil following the collapse of Lehman Bros. in the latter half of 2008 virtually shut down the IPO market. The appetite for IPOs has picked up since mid-September this year with a robust pace of new filings.

Tesla’s IPO would follow the successful debut of lithium-ion battery maker A123 Systems, whose shares rallied 50 percent on their first day of trading on Sept 25.

Analysts have said that the success of A123, the first green technology IPO this year, would encourage more venture capital-backed green companies to go public.

Tesla will compete with established automakers like Ford, General Motors and Nissan Motor Co, all of which are racing to launch electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. Tesla, by contrast, is a small player with a high-end market and limited production.

A combination of factors has driven the recent interest in developing electric, or partially electric vehicles, including the Obama administration’s push to have one million rechargeable vehicles on US roads by 2015 and low-cost Department of Energy loans for manufacturers.

VENTURE FUNDS BACK GREEN CARS

The carmaker is developing a second, lower-cost model, an electric sedan known as the Model S, which will have a base price of $49,900.

Tesla said in September it delivered 700 Roadsters since February 2008. The Roadster, which is built on a Lotus frame, can go from zero to sixty miles an hour in less than four seconds, making it faster than a Porsche 911 or a Ferrari Spider.

The electric car start-up was offered $465 million in low-cost loans by the U.S. Department of Energy to help build the new Model S. Tesla said it will build the new car in California.

Tesla’s investors include Google Inc founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

Other investors include Daimler AG; Abu Dhabi-based Aabar Investments, which owns a stake in Daimler; and venture capital funds Valor Equity Partners, Technology Partners, The Westly Group and Compass Venture Partners.

Tesla said it had achieved overall corporate profitability in July with about $1 million of earnings on revenue of $20 million. But like established automakers, survival in the hyper-competitive U.S. automotive market has not been easy for Tesla. The company had to face cost overruns and production delays for the Roadster.”

Source: Reuters

Enter the Tesla Roadster. As a part of the Global Green Challenge, a spin-off of the World Solar challenge used to showcase the latest electric and hybrid technology, the roadster shattered the single-charge record distance by going 501 km (313 miles). Ironically, the previous record was held by another Tesla roadster at 388 km (241 miles).

With 313 miles of range the roadster can now compete with the traditional ICE automobiles. Previously, electric vehicles merely resolved the issue of having a costly and polluted commute on a daily basis. However, on the whole it merely supplemented the primary car since any long-distances would require an ICE vehicle for convenience. Additionally, until recharging technology becomes more cost-effective one would be hard-pressed to find a super-charger to recharge their battery to full within 10 minutes. With the development of battery capacity and a more comprehensive charging infrastructure in progress the EV seems set to revolutionize the automobile industry.

The Ronn Motor Company from Austin, Texas has introduced the newest high-priced super-car to a world rife with economic problems and a growing concern for the environment. Going the way of the Tesla Motors, the Ronn Motor Company has devoted itself to the creation of environmentally friendly autos’. Their first offering in this category, is the Scorpion.

Scorpion

Far from looking what many consider to be an environmentally friendly car (Toyota/Honda inspired boxy design), the Scorpion is one of a kind. A glance at the design of the body alone proves that, as it has the outlandish styling down cold. Instead of relying on an electronic motor for propulsion like a traditional hybrid engine, the Maxwell Scorpion depends on a traditional gas engine. In this case, one built from Acura parts. What Maxwell was able to achieve was a powerful engine for his new super-car. But that wasn’t all. The difference between the Scorpion and other offerings in the exclusive automobile market is that the Scorpion get 40 miles per gallon. Ronn Maxwell was able to achieve this rating through the use H2GO, a real time injection system that puts hydrogen directly into cylinders of the Scorpions engine. This in turn creates more efficient fuel consumption, as well as increased power and lowers hydrocarbon emissions by up to 90%.

Ronn Maxwell Motors also offers the H2GO system found in the Scorpion as an after-market product. That is in addition to a line of green biodegradable performance products that include motor oils, hydraulic fluids and lubricants.

The standard model Scorpion, which has 400 horsepower is selling at $180,000, though there is a considerable waiting list as Maxwell is only building 200 Scorpions a year. Despite the poor economic climate, there is still hope that one day we all may see a Scorpion blazing by us in the fast lane.

For more information about the Ronn Motor Company, please visit: www.ronnmotors.com/cms/