Tesla Motors CEO takes to Twitter over journalist's 'fake' claims

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Published time: February 12, 2013 02:01
Edited time: February 12, 2013 06:01

The CEO of Tesla Motors has taken to Twitter to call a New York Times report "fake" after it alleged that a claim made by the American electric car manufacturer was only a theory, "trumped by reality."

­After The New York Times claimed a Tesla electric car broke down during a trip from Washington, DC, to Boston testing the company's assertion that the trip was possible if done with no more than two stops at charging stations, the company's CEO took to Twitter to call the report a "fake."

The California electric car manufacturer opened two charging stations for its Model S on the east coast in December 2012, giving green-minded motorists between Washington and Boston the opportunity to ditch their reliance on fuel. In theory, the two stations should be enough for the drive from one of the two cities to the other. But, New York Times writer John Broder claims, "theory can be trumped by reality, especially when Northeast temperatures plunge."

Broder is shown stading by the Model S as it's loaded onto a tow truck in the article.

In response to the piece, Tesla CEO Elon Musk called Broder and the Times out on Twitter, saying not only was the report fraudulent, but his company had the records to prove it.

"NYTimes article about Tesla range in cold is fake. Vehicle logs tell true story that he didn't actually charge to max & took a long detour," the South African-American inventor tweeted Monday evening.

"The article recounting a reporter's test drive in a Tesla Model S was completely factual," the newspaper responded in a statement.

It's not Tesla's first time snapping back at journalists and others making claims about their products. The company has tried to sue BBC program Top Gear on libel charges – twice, both times unsuccessfully.

But this time Tesla looks to be coming out on top.

"Tesla blog coming soon detailing what actually happened on Broder's NYTimes 'range test'. Also lining up other journalists to do same drive," Musk tweeted.