Electric-car specialist Tesla Motors (TSLA 1.63%) has hired Chris Porritt from Aston Martin. Porritt will serve as vice president of vehicle engineering, similar to his role at Aston Martin, where he served as chief engineer of vehicle engineering. Porritt led Aston Martin's vehicle engineering team and has 25 years of automotive engineering experience. Tesla commends Porritt's work on the Aston Martin One-77, which is renowned for its structural design and aerodynamics.
The news comes more than a year after Tesla's previous chief engineer, Peter Rawlinson stepped down, sparking some fears among investors at the time.
"I look forward to driving new standards for vehicle engineering innovation in the Model S, Model X, and future vehicle lines," Porritt said. "This is an incredible opportunity to bring technologies normally reserved for supercars to the high-volume market."
Shares tapped new all-time highs today approaching $60, and Tesla reports earnings on May 8.
