Tesla's NOx Problem: Model X Delay Explained? (dailykanban.com)

An anonymous reader writes: It may not have come as a surprise that the NOx emissions violations discovered in some of Volkswagen's diesel engines have led to similar findings in cars from several other manufacturers. However, Daily Kanban's Edward Niedermeyer has discovered that a seemingly unlikely car maker has also received a Notice of Violation for NOx emissions: a thermal oxidizer used in Tesla's Fremont, CA plant produces far more of the reactive gases than the permit allows. According to Niedermeyer, the device is located at the paint shop destined for the Model X production and this environmental problem could well be the leading cause for the delay.

Comments

Self-reported

[Big_Oh]

FTA: "In fact, Daily Kanban has discovered that Tesla has self-reported an NOx noncompliance at its Fremont, CA factory that may be contributing to delays in the production of the firm’s new Model X SUV."

Re:Self-reported

[ShanghaiBill]

Why is NOx a problem at a static location anyway? I understand that they are hard to deal with in a vehicle because of weight and maintenance issues. But in this case they can just run the exhaust through an akaline mister or bubbler that could strip out nearly all the NOx. It shouldn't be that hard.

Does anyone have Elon's cell number? Maybe I can give him a call and offer some suggestions.

Re:Self-reported

[ShanghaiBill]

Any chance that will increase alkali or other emissions?

They don't vaporize, and any that were emitted as a mist would quickly settle out of the air. Ocean spray is alkaline. So is calcium rich spring water sold in grocery stores.

Or noise emissions?

There is no reason that a bubbler or mister would be noisy. Certainly less than the 100 ton stamping machines. The Tesla plant is located in Fremont next to I-880 in an industrial area, and it is a HUGE building surrounded by large parking lots. They are far away from anyone who would care about noise.

Re:Everyone is cheating

[jklovanc]

Because the cheating the OP is referring to is emissions from the car and what the article is talking about is emissions from the manufacturing process. They are different issues. It is impossible to do a tear down on another company's manufacturing plant.

Re:Bullshit

[jklovanc]

The painting is not the issue. It is the disposal of all the VOCs from the painting process and it looks like the oxidizer is running at too low a temperature and producing too much NOx.

California

[daninaustin]

It just serves as another reminder of why you don't build a manufacturing plant in California.

Re:California

[nnull]

The problem is that California has all the logistical capacity and ports in the state that drops costs down dramatically, especially when a lot of final production manufacturing is still in California. So you're still going to have a very hard time competing against a business who deals with the bullshit regulations in California when their business is next to your huge potential client and next to every other supplier or have easy access to the port for shipping, bringing their costs down dramatically despite the bullshit. Most places in California have an advantage where a lot of manufacturers are very nearby. Try that in Idaho, where your delivery times will be 1-2 weeks from suppliers or clients, because they're all in California still.

You might have better luck in Las Vegas or Reno, but when the I15 gets screwed up (Which it does quite often), you're pretty much screwed. Or Mexico, in Tijuana (Huge manufacturing base booming there), if border issues don't screw you up.

Despite what people say, businesses are still coming to California, more so than they are moving out of the state. I'm not advocating that California is right in doing what it does, because I do think it's stupid, but it's not having this huge impact as some people think because of what I stated above. People for now are still willing to deal with the bullshit as the total costs balance out compared to other places. Most of the businesses you hear about leaving are usually the ones without permits and some of the crappiest equipment you could possibly imagine.

Re:California

[RubberDogBone]

They didn't "build it" as such. The Tesla plant is the old GM/Toyota NUMMI plant which built collaborative Toyota and GM cars and pickups for years, which was in turn a GM-exclusive plant for years before that.

It's an OLD car plant, modernized and updated no doubt by Tesla. But Tesla certainly didn't build all of it. They simply grabbed the otherwise disused NUMMI plant for cheap. There were a LOT of good reasons for doing that, ranging from existing infrastructure dedicated to building cars, to workers from what was one of the world's best car factories, to local suppliers, machines, room to expand, etc. Reusing NUMMI was a great idea for Tesla and everyone else too.

This paint booth problem can and will be solved. It won't be enough to stop Tesla or any other auto maker. It's merely something they need to fix.

Re:A pound a day?

[Coren22]

The non compliance level is 1 lb per hour, as far as I can find there is no indication of how much NOx is being produced in the article beyond speculation.