Mercedes-Benz produced 1.49 million vehicles in 2013 and BMW produced 1.8 million in 2012 worldwide.
If you look at global auto sales[0] Tesla will be one of the largest, read top 5, auto manufacturers in the USA depending on how you slice the pie between domestic and international sales.
That would be far more impressive if there weren't only 3 major US car manufacturers (Chrysler, Ford & GM). In fact, Tesla must be the #4 largest US automaker right now.
For global auto sales from US manufacturers, I'm guessing that companies like Paccar and Oshkosh are keeping Tesla out of the top five currently. They make trucks and commercial vehicles so people tend to overlook them when it comes to comparing auto manufacturers.
Still, I do agree with the underlying message of your post. It's not like there are a ton of US auto companies left.
I would hope that they think they will put this towards a sub 40k car, or better yet below 30k which is where many of the smaller electrics are now.
Still a large factor like opens the possibility of packs not certified for cars being given other uses. Put in Texas and reap the power of the wind to power the factory too!
And I'm sure we'll continue to bulk up non-CO2 methods of power generation. Hydro power is commonplace, solar panels are a growth area, and likewise wind turbines...
(Lastly, since I live in BC, my power is 86% hydroelectric already, but I'm speaking generally. :) http://www.energybc.ca/map/bcenergymap.html)
That is 12x growth in 72 months.
The Gigafactory is named after the gigawatt or 1,000,000 kW because it will be producing multiple GWs of cells and battery packs.
An annual production of 500,000 automobiles will put Tesla squarely in the #1 spot for luxury production 3x more than Mercedes.
If you look at global auto sales[0] Tesla will be one of the largest, read top 5, auto manufacturers in the USA depending on how you slice the pie between domestic and international sales.
[0] http://wap.wsj.com/mdc/public/page/2_3022-autosales.html#aut...