Exactly. I think they had to re-imagine how the big companies doing car production and it resulted in the innovations you are talking about. The reaction Tesla triggered in the car industry in US is rather laughable, screaming for legislation to limit the impact of Tesla on their sales. There are promising changes though, it is good to see that some companies go this far: http://money.cnn.com/2013/03/27/autos/mercedes-tesla-b-class...

If Tesla is going to be a battery company, be it, but I think they have a bright future for most of their business (including selling electric cars).