Toyota and Tesla Lend Each Other a Helping Hand
Last Thursday, Toyota and Tesla Motors announced that they have decided to scratch each others backs by teaming up and combining their strengths for a sweet deal.
Toyota is suffering from a tarnished reputation as a result of a massive recall that sought to address the problem of "sticky accelerators" in some of their automobiles, while Tesla has fallen prey to production problems, pushing back the anticipated shipping date of their Model S to 2012.
So how exactly do they plan to help each other? According to the agreement, Toyota will buy $50 million worth of Tesla stock when the electric-sports-car manufacturer goes public, as well as letting Tesla use a factory in Fremont, California that they closed last year. In addition, Toyota will lend the startup automaker the expertise of their own staff to help with any problems Tesla might run into while getting production going.
In return, Tesla will share with Toyota a closer look at the unique technology that powers their cars. Toyota will benefit by having a leg up on the competition in their EV endeavors, as well as getting a ton of good publicity for reopening a factory that once was the source of almost 5,000 jobs. The fact that the new jobs will be "green" only adds to the good karma Toyota is cooking up for itself.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that a Tesla-powered Toyota will be available before the Model S is released, and it is safe to assume that when it does hit the streets, there will probably be a Toyota part here and there under the hood.
Source: Wired
