@EVNow - those numbers might make sense if they mean that 2,600 will be build the first year, and then a lot more rav4evs after that with no additional payment to Tesla. Or - yeah - maybe the numbers are just plain wrong.

EVNow if green is not profitable it will not prevail. That’s simply a reality of the world there is whether we like it or not. I find it encouraging that Toyota pursues EV technology as vigorously as they do by cooperating with Tesla. I am sure they do it only to shorten the time before they are able to launch an in-house produced EV that is good enough to compete with EVs from the Nissan/Renault alliance. It is the same reason why Benz is involved with Tesla.

Also don’t count on that Tesla will be able to launch the 160 mile range version of their Model S for 57,500 USD. Industry insiders almost unanimously agree that this price is too low for Tesla to make a profit. I have deep admiration for what Tesla has achieved so far but I tend to agree with the industry that Tesla will not be able to launch at that price. When Fisker got closer to launch they upped their price for the Karma and very recently we have seen Nissan hike the price of the Leaf. In my opinion they should take whatever they can because they all need the money for further development and scale up of production capacity. There is no reason to distress people with a long waiting list because the launch price has been set to low.

The $100 Million may include initial costs (further development, building production facilities and other initial investments), not only cost per vehicle.

@Henrik2
According to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the costs of producing the Model S have already been determined to a very high degree, including supplier prices, and allow for a good profit margin. Tesla's team includes many who have a lot of experience in the car industry. What do these "industry insiders" know that Tesla doesn't? Who are they? Do you have a link?

@Henrik2

Thanks for the link, an interesting article. "Very difficult" and "really hard" is not the same as 'impossible'. Tesla was certainly very careful about being as cost-effective as possible, when designing the Model S (and the RAV4 power train) from the ground up, and negotiating supplier agreements (we do know they were able to buy a factory and a large stamp press for very good prices, from other car manufacturers). I see no specific reason to doubt their own cost estimates, even if the complete price appears exceptional.

The article mentions several factors helping Tesla to be cost-effective, such as the co-operations with Toyota and Daimler, however, the article claims that Tesla has repeatedly compared the Model S to the BMW M5 and the Audi A8. Not sure about M5, but I don't remember a comparison to the "A8" specifically, and I'd think I would.

That Toyota uses Tesla's power train in a production vehicle is surely a sign that very good cost ratios have been achieved, even if the RAV4 will perhaps be expensive.