It's been a busy week or so for electric-vehicle maker Tesla. First the, Tesla Model S was voted World Green Car for 2013. The award was announced and presented at the World Car Awards press conference at the New York International Auto Show.
The Renault Zoe and Volvo V60 Plug-in Diesel Hybrid were runners-up in the voting.
That award follows several others the Model S has received, including Motor Trend Car of the Year and Automobile Magazine's Automobile of the Year.
Earlier, Tesla announced that actual sales of 4,750 Model S vehicles had exceeded the target provided in their mid-February shareholder letter.
Finally, Tesla announced that it has established its own leasing package for the Model S, with what appear to be favourable terms and high residual values. In effect, it's a lease-to- buy – or not – arrangement, that combines a low down-payment andinterest rate, the ability to return the car after three years and receive a guaranteed residual, pegged to that of a Mercedes-Benz S-Class, or to keep it and pay off the rest of the loan.
Not a bad week for the upstart automaker!