Tesla Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen | Season 7 Episode 1 | The InEVitable 

Thanks for doing such a great job on this interview with Franz. I didn't realize how passionate he is with Tesla's overall mission from the his start with Tesla. Also really like that Franz still delivers cars personally to customers. His humility and desire to keep learning to improve his craft showed through.

Franz will go down as one of the all time greats. Minimalists beautiful, efficient design.

I tried to listen to this while I did housework due to its length. I was so blown away that I found myself returning to my screen just so that could add the body/facial responses to the dialogue. All you guys did an awesome job - I don't know how I could have been more impressed - great questions and great answers. Yes. [Please] do this again and cover the things left out due to time. I will be here for that.

I respect that Franz is still doing customer deliveries to see the excitement and possibly learn how to make the product better.

Loved this interview. Here in Vancouver BC Canada 🇨🇦 where we have very high gas prices and very low electrical costs, Tesla’s are everywhere here too. As well there are a ton of super chargers and non Tesla chargers, its crazy. My wife has model 3 and it has been great and exceeded our expectations.

Humble, talented guy - impressive ✊

Thank you for this. Best interview of von Holzhausen I have seen thus far, inspiring, and conveys so much hope for a future of purposeful beauty.

How can you not hire someone named Franz von Holzhausen? Doesn’t matter what the job is. Just hire him.

Love Franz. What a guy! Thank you for this interview.

Long time Tesla fan here. First time watching this channel. Franz has so many good stories and lessons to share. Next time, I hope the guest gets more space to share without interruptions. Not a lot of new information but a fun listen.

I remember the first video/images I saw of the Whitestar and it was exciting. When I placed a reservation in 2012 and took delivery in early 2013, I was so proud to own that vehicle. It is, by far, the best purchase I have ever made.

0:00-2:30: Introduction to Franz von Holzhausen, Chief Designer at Tesla. 2:30-7:40: Discussion on Tesla's design philosophy, which prioritizes sustainability, performance, and aesthetics. 7:40-12:15: Holzhausen talks about the challenges of designing EVs, including battery placement and weight distribution. 12:15-18:10: Holzhausen discusses the unique features of Tesla vehicles, such as the Autopilot system and the minimalist interior design. 18:10-23:45: Discussion on the importance of innovation in EV technology, including battery advancements and charging infrastructure. 23:45-29:25: Holzhausen shares insights on the future of transportation, including the potential for autonomous driving and shared mobility. 29:25-33:30: Discussion on the environmental impact of EVs and Tesla's efforts to promote sustainability. 33:30-36:45: Holzhausen talks about the challenges and opportunities of designing for mass production in the automotive industry. 36:45-40:50: Discussion on the role of design in shaping consumer preferences and driving adoption of EVs. 40:50-42:30: Holzhausen shares his passion for creating compelling designs that inspire people to embrace sustainable transportation. 42:30-45:10: Conclusion and closing remarks.

Franz is exceptional. His name is officially among the stars in the universe

Awesome interview! I loved it, you guys hit his whole career, such exciting times in the automotive industry, I know it’s scary for some but the world is changing.

As a train driver I think it is interesting that people can talk about the design of the semi without saying the obvious. It looks very much like a train from both the outside but also from the inside with the center seat, double screens etc.

Best episode yet! You need to bring him in for at least 2 more 2 hour episodes and keep working on wearing him down to divulge something...

Watching this interview from Aruba. Great way to enjoy the beach. Watching the ocean while listening to Franz. Love my model y performance

Excellent interview, guys. I appreciate the depth you were able to reach.

Frantz is funny, off the cuff “A Tesla that’s normally aspirated.”

Thanks guys for the interview I’ve always been wanting to hear about the man and team that designed the future

The statement Fran’s made you have to experience a Tesla car,is so spot on.I’m 67 just bought model Y LW.Ordered sight unseen and net drove till after I signed for car.The car is incredible,I’m trying figure out the stretch to a x plaid.

What is with so many Podcast hosts that keep interrupting their guest. So annoying!

Glad to hear the Roadster 2 is coming on. Particularly given it no longer appears on any of the slides presented recently showing the Tesla lineup.

Genius, great interview.

Franz is such a brilliant designer, the Model S, although it is now 13 years old, sill looks great on the road. It takes great skill to design something that is iconic AND timeless at the same time.

Now, in retrospect, I think it would not be exaggeration to suggest that the folks at Tesla taking on the likes of (especially the German) automotive giants is comparable to David vs Goliath. A quest of truly by mythical proportions. Thank you, gentlemen, for a great seat at this Incredible drama.

Great Job. Greetings from 🇩🇪

1:55:29 Having Franz deliver my Tesla would be justification enough to order a Tesla.

This could be world class if you edited in clips of all the cars under discussion. Just stills would make the world of difference.

Great interview with an awesome person.

What a great interview! Just one thought - Ed brought up that a lot of EVs have more power than really needed and that its not good for sustainability issues. But then he talks about the design getting long in the tooth. I think for sustainability's sake you want to keep a design as long as possible. Why change it as long as its functional. The most common reason for car companies to change the design is that they want to sell more cars and get people out of their old cars. That is so wasteful. Also - much better for resale values if you keep the design mostly unchanged. Mercedes used to be that way and now they and all others in the legacy car industry treat their design sort of like fast fashion. totally wasteful. I commend Tesla for hanging on to the designs. Like them or not - they still look fresh - that's a huge achievement by Franz!

Powered Frunk for Model X & S is one way to improve the product. Why has this not been done yet, great interview guys.

The car as an app is quite possibly the second greatest innovation created by Tesla.

The Solstice was gorgeous car. Too bad GM wasted it to poor marketing and execution. It could’ve been a classic lasting for decades just like the Miata…

thank you all!

Frank is STILL PASSIONATE after 15 years of employment at Tesla and with a great deal of original successful designs that destroy the competition with the safest cars available on the planet ! He is not resting on his laurels after so much success, he is driven and happy designing the coolest products available !

Great get. Franz is a legend.

What a history! Didn't know he had worked on the Furai - probably the most stunning car ever (IMHO). Great interview.

Thanks for uploading

Brilliant... Can't wait for round 2!

WOW, what a fantastic interview, Thanks so much guys!

THANKS FOR SHARING THIS 🤗👍🧐 VERY INTERESTING…LOOKING FORWARD TO PART 2💚💚💚

No cars have ever amazed me the way Tesla's do. Was never a car enthusiast until researching model 3 & Y. Never would have plunked down 53k on a car, but I got the Y and am still amazed by it after a year. Still learning all of the features and hidden tricks. I'll never not own a Tesla.

Brilliant interview, such a gifted legend of the industry . So rare!

Great interview! I’ve wondered why Tesla doesn’t purchase someone like Unplugged Performance and then have them be a company that tunes your car from the factory with special add-on? Although I guess it would bottleneck deliveries and add a lot of complexity? I just think it would be cool to order your car and get it with cool add-ons already installed.

it would be awesome if you showed pictures of the cars when you mention them especially when talking about their design. Not too hard to edit them in after the fact, just my two cents. loved this interview though

its 2023... timeline notes, topics. Please

Best interview ever !

You never asked about robots. I bet his design team is involved

Man some of these questions were beyond awful. Interviewers were extremely annoying. He was way more respectful than I could have been in that situation...

The front of the Model 3, Y and the X to some extent reminds me of Robot Gort in the 1951 movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still" . And I realy liked the no grill effect.

good interview

Great intervju, Franz is amazing :-)

Very interesting interview. I'm glad I took the time to listen to it. I'm pretty sure it won't happen, but it would be awesome to see Tesla shock the world again and make a minivan. I think they would do well here in the US, and almost certainly do well in China given their popularity over there.

Franz has his finger squarely on the pulse of the future, and correctly, the current and upcoming generation's perception shift of transportation. There was a time when entering a vehicle was actually a choice, a choice defined by your taste in vehicles. That nostalgia, although many legacy mindsets are unnaturally forcing the concept to remain relevant, have lost the fight already, and don't even know it. Uber was the paradigm that made the shift of knowing the vehicle you were being seen in, as an associated status symbol -whether your friends, family, or someone taking you out- is now just a vehicle that takes me from A to B. You only are made aware of the type, because you need to recognise if that's the specific Uber ordered. Yes, it's still a thrill to hop in a lambo or Bentley, if you hop in a uber of that vehicle brand, but, there was a time that you would only dream of even actually driving in one of those, if a) you actually brought one, or b) you knew someone close enough willing to transport in one. Point being, a person really doesn't factor in what vehicle they're specifically riding in, when ubering. They hop in, get to where they're going, then get out. This is what Franz was emphasizing. Robotaxi, Autonomous driving with Tesla's FSD, in all of Tesla"s vehicle line up, will begin to be utilised much in the very same way, as are in the minds of current uber users -its just something that will get me from A to B in the most expedient and comfortable manner without too much of my own attention from being distracted or diverted away from what I wish to focus on whilst being transported. Simply, we will all become fed-exed packages. Why worry about having an operator mindset, when what's transporting you isn't yours and you only care about getting to your next appointment? So why worry about superficial design when being transported? How many of us who actually fly frequently, know the brand of Airbus or commercial plane that's transporting us, or care about its exterior design features? We have grown up in a generational acceptance that flying is not for basic users going from a to b, and so, this will become the very same reality to the generation who will be fully immersed in that paradigm and operating a vehicle will become as synonymous as any of us wanting to fly our own jet to transport ourselves. It'll be reserved only for those who hold to this era's idea of transportation ownership. In the future, they won't care. I'll be working two 4-hour shifts remotely with one break at a Tesla diner in a fsd vehicle, which will be so safe, with no abrupt stops or fear of accidents, as virtual shadow mode will predict all other fsd vehicles on the road and plot ahead to ensure a seamless travel experience, and finish my day on the West Coast, just coz I wanted to see the sunset the next morning with a date!

To Franz: When you bring in a great TSLA Espressomachine into the car? Don’t forget serve an additional cup of cold (very good) water (implement grander system or better) in a 2nd cup (Vienna style). I put down on cyber truck Europa at first demo. Would be nice find it there when delivery in Switzerland starts. Best, Harry, Bern - Montreux Suisse.

This was great. Only thing that little bit bothered me was the hosts talking too much, and not lettting Franz really verbalize his ideas fully in some topics.

10/10

Where are the time stamps?

Halfway through the video and wonder when we will learn more about Holzhausen, how he thinks and creates etc vs. the interviewers name checking a bunch of unknown people, and bragging about the people who they have previously interviewed. Pretty light weight so far - I hope it improves.

Great that Franz says, they created the blank canvas to be modified by the customer but Tesla refuses to do any work on warranty if the car has an aftermarket tire valve cap.

Decimate means to reduce by 10%. It comes from the Romans when the Legions were disobedient one in ten soldiers would be randomly selected and killed in front of the others as a punishment

Dont on one hand say "911" such that a timeless icon shall be discounted from the argument "Theres a business case for saying there should be substantial change" when at the same time miss the fact Tesla is right now creating an icon with the Model S. Tesla cant pull a 40 years of history rabbit out the hat but time will tell were as likely living in a time when that Model S icon is clearly in the process of being born.

when it come to design. Could this be like we used to have 30 different kind of cell phones but now day, there is the iPhone and everything else. Maybe cars will be just like how the phone have evolved.

Thanks, great content. Personally, I'd love to get his thoughts on Raymond Loewy

no time blocks on the video :(

Are you going to change the model S? He can't tell you guys!! You didn't get the point...

that man is most definitely the richest car designer ever walk on earth. 15 years with Tesla, imagine how many TSLA stock he has.

I like that Franz isn’t planning on changing the different Tesla models in major ways. Classics withstand the test of time. Think the Porsche 911. It’s really unfortunate when car companies change their cars for the sake of change and end up with sadly ugly ducklings. Excited to see new segment products like the Cybertruck, the smaller ‘Model 2’ and more.

A great interview. Thanks! Very interesting getting Franz’s viewpoint on how the designs evolved

10:01 Franz that’s because highschools weren’t built like *design & architecture senior high* when you were college bond. So you’re probably right, _you’re work wasnt there yet,_ …Art Center was like the navy seals for high school designers that knew about them. And you needed those 4years of art/design with as many AP design classes as you could fit, +plus their summer program, is what gets you accepted, let alone scholarships. …went to CCS instead. 😅

As a European, most US cars look like they were designed by someone who spent too much time watching Transformers on TV. Never mind the busy interiors... But then, there's always the BMW i series. Please never change Franz.

Any mention of cybertruck in this episode?

Good interview....jonny interupts too much

great

Decimated, surprising to me when I first found out, is only a 10% reduction in numbers. You don't divide by 10, so only a 50% reduction is 5 times worse than being decimated. No decimal point is involved, which is what I always thought.

Yeah dad!

The Model S broke the mold for EV styling, it was a beautiful car that just happened to be electric. Prior to this EVs looked like science experiments which limited their market appeal.

Is Franz from originally from South Africa as well just like Elon

They totally missed the coolest aspect of working at Tesla when he said sometimes does deliveries. everyone at Tesla gets to choose what they want to work on that day every day, it's the ethos that can't be understood by other car companies.

Why doesn't Porsche come out with a "911 du-jour?" THAT's what the Model S is...a classic.

The problem with trucking that will be solved is that when you get in a truck your first priority is not to injure others, your mind changed from protecting your self to protecting others. So the trucker has to know it's bullet proof.

Ringing that bell is an unnecessary distraction .

Tesla needs to make an entry level roadster like the Miata/Solstice for the masses. Not everyone can afford a hypercard like the proposed Tesla roadster.

My first time driving a Tesla (Model S) spoiled me forever as to what a car can be. There is simply no way I will go back to an ICE vehicle. I own a Chevy Volt PHEV, and resent the ICE engine in it every time I drive it. I have a Cybertruck on order as my next vehicle.

Same thing will happen in Mexico mega factory... most talent will migrate to Tesla. I wish I could work there, but I didn't finish my mechanical engineering degree, but I would take ANY job they would be willing to give me just to be THEREEEE during this transition.

He didn't say anything we didn't hear before

Ed and Jonny bickering and being passive aggressive (hand waving, eye-rolls, etc.) about questions was uncool...I am actually embarrassed for you both.

Funny thing is that they call it minimalism with AI support, yet they removed the gear shifter and put its functionality on the monitor. But then they added separate gear control buttons just in case the monitor doesn't work? If that's the case, why not just keep it simple with just one column gear shifter with no extra buttons? It would be much more intuitive and less confusing. It’s just cost-saving..

😁🥰🤑🤑How are you on this sunny morning? BRILLIANT🥰🥰!

Jonhhy and Ed are asking some dumb questions here. Tesla literally just announced a massive giga factory in Mexico that will build the smaller affordable next generation platform...

I've long held most Tesla buyers are buying autonomy, tech, performance, design, simplicity, not because battery.

Franz is great, host, not so much

Deliver my car. I got notes !😝

S is a good looking car but it's starting to look neglected and a bit stuffy. I really hope Cybertruck is the start of more daring design after competent but "safe" 3 & Y.

Porsche started first the spellout name trend in 2012 (again- they had it on ‘60s Porsche as well)

I can hear one of the interviewers breathing. It’s weird and annoying

1:39:00. Really bad take by the hosts. Talking about the people who go buy a new Porsche just because they want to keep up with their neighbors status. Ahhh!? Haha. Tesla is the smartest company in the world because they aren't changing the Model S just for the sake of change. I've watched the other car companies make a beautiful timeless body style for 2 years, then change it and make it significantly uglier. The Camry in 2008-2011 was stunningly beautiful and has never been beautiful again. There should be a law against manufacturers changing body panels and car designs for absolutely no reason, because it's just a waste of energy and resources and makes it more difficult to stock parts for repairs. The Ducati 916 was the most beautiful motorcycle ever created. Then they changed it and made the 999 which was uncomfortably terrible. Or the 1998 Yamaha R1. Change for the sake of change is what makes modern cars so ugly.

CHIP IS 59 FRANZ IS 55, JUST FOR THE RECORD..

Wow... for a media that's heavily into vehicles, the degree of ignorance and doubt from the interviewers is shocking. Some of the questions and comments are excruciating to hear. It's almost like they desperately want the failing ICE industry to be the future, and simply cannot believe that this won't be the case.