Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights:#1 The Model 3 was supposed to be the first affordable electric car, but it has taken $4. 5 billion in fresh capital to reach production volume of more than five thousand units per week. By the first quarter of 2019, demand for all but the cheapest versions had been exhausted in North America.#2 When I started writing about the auto industry in 2008, I was shocked by the amount of new ideas and companies entering the industry. It was still firmly rooted in the privately owned car paradigm, with the exception of car-sharing pioneers like Zipcar.#3 The electric car was seen as a cure-all for America’s car-crazy culture, and was even promoted as such by the California Air Resources Board. However, the EV1 program was cut due to financial woes at GM in 2003.#4 The dream of a new environmentally friendly auto industry turned out to be a mirage. Electric cars were no more appealing when gas was cheap than Detroit’s gas-guzzlers had been when gas prices were high.