REPORT: Tesla to get funding from an unnamed automaker?

Now that we've all gotten a good look at the Tesla Model S (click here if you've been in a coma the last 24 hours), the next big question is whether it will ever get built. To be sure, the Silicon Valley automaker has some investors with deep pockets, including company head Elon Musk, but Tesla's future clearly depends on its ability to get enough funding to pull off the nearly impossible task of a.) getting a factory built and b.) putting its fully electric sedan into thousands of garages all across the country. Where could that investment money come from?

The biggest question is how much (if any) money Tesla will get from the U.S. Department of Energy. Last month, Tesla revealed that it was expecting to get approved for up to $350 million in low interest loans from the DOE, but that application has not yet been approved. Interestingly, Financial Times is saying that Tesla is "already weighing offers of big investments from unnamed auto companies and two sovereign investors."

We're not certain what auto companies this might refer to, but we imagine it could possibly come from an automaker with a vested interest in seeing Tesla continue to produce the Roadster, make the Model S a reality or even keep its lithium ion battery units available for purchase. Any thoughts?

[Source: Financial Times]