American electric car manufacturer Tesla plans to launch a small executive car globally from mid-2012.

The company has recruited Ravi Simhambhatla as vice president of information technology and business applications, Greg Reichow as vice president of powertrain operations, Peter Carlsson as vice president of supply chain and John Hillegass as vice president of design and retail development, as it prepares for the new Model S car.

Hillegass, a former Intel and Apple executive, will be responsible for developing Tesla's global retail network.

It hopes that the saloon will widen its scope from being a niche brand that sells only the expensive Roadster sports car.

The base model of the Model S will cost about $57,400 (£35,200) in the USA.

It will have three battery offerings that will be designed to have a range of 160 miles, 230 miles or 300 miles on a full charge.

Tesla will phase out the Tesla Roadster in January 2012 to focus on the Model S. The Tesla Roadster sports car has a base price of $109,000. Most are selling at $140,000 or more.

The company plans to unveil its Model X SUV prototype in December, ahead of launching a production version in late 2013.