Musk’s April Fool’s prank

Elon Musk made light of Tesla’s problems in an April Fool’s day joke on Twitter, saying it was bankrupt.

Under the heading “Tesla Goes Bankrupt Palo Alto, California, April 1, 2018”, the Tesla boss says; “Despite intense efforts to raise money, including a last-ditch mass sale of Easter Eggs, we are sad to report that Tesla has gone completely and totally bankrupt. So bankrupt, you can’t believe it.”

He showed a photo of himself with his head against a Tesla Model 3, holding a sign saying “Bankwupt!”

The prank followed reports of significant risks ahead for the EV maker, which is heavily indebted and has not made a profit since starting in 2003, Yahoo 7 News reports.

It has lost about a quarter of its share value since the end of February.

The company is also under investigation by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) following a fatal crash involving one of its cars in California on March 23.

The car hit a highway barrier and caught fire before two other cars struck it. The driver died in hospital.

US media reports the NTSB is unhappy that Tesla released information about the crash before a final investigation is completed.

Tesla is also voluntarily recalling 123,000 Model S cars built before April 2016 to retrofit a power-steering component.