Electric car maker seeks U.S. aid

Tesla Motors says it will delay introducing $57K, four-door sedan if it doesn't get $350M loan.

Adam Satariano / Bloomberg News

Tesla Motors Inc., the maker of a luxury electric sports car, will delay the introduction of its less-expensive sedan if the company doesn't receive a $350 million U.S. government loan, CEO Elon Musk said.

The loan will help develop a four-door sedan to be priced at $57,499, Musk said Tuesday in an interview. The closely held company won't open a $250 million manufacturing facility in San Jose, Calif., without the aid, he said.

"We can't move forward with that without a major amount of capital," Musk said. "If we don't get any government funding, then what we need to do is we need to wait until the capital markets recover, which could be a year or two years from now."

Tesla, based in San Carlos, Calif., is applying for loans under a $25 billion Energy Department program created by the U.S. Congress to encourage the development of energy- efficient vehicles.

Musk on Tuesday handed over the keys to Tesla's 100th Roadster at its showroom in Menlo Park, Calif. The $109,000 car, which can travel about 240 miles on a single charge, was bought by Sam Perry, a Silicon Valley business consultant who was seen on television during President-elect Barack Obama's election night acceptance speech being leaned on by Oprah Winfrey.

Musk said Tesla expects to sell about 1,100 Roadsters next year. With the government aid and the new factory, the company could begin selling about 20,000 sedans annually by 2011, Musk said. A prototype of the new car will be unveiled as early as late February.

Musk said Tesla also is seeking $100 million to expand its drivetrain business in which it sells parts to other automakers and $200 million for a battery-cell production factory.