I have driven the future and it is Tesla

[bigdrick323]

let me know when they can be fully charged in 5 mins and you can do so anywhere in the world at anytime.

Untill then its just a novelity

this!

[agent]

There's a white one in the town where I work. It really is a nice looking car. Styling wise I think it's quite comparable to a Panamera.

[Threehz]

You ICE boys are missing the big picture, but a few people in this thread have caught on.

When EVs phase out ICE on the roads and become the norm, gas prices can only plummet. This means running an ICE vehicle will be cheap, CHEAP track days, CHEAP smile miles.

And you can still DD an EV that makes your ICE track-monster feel like a slug off the line. Win, win.

My 318es should be a reality in two to three years, I'm shooting for a 0-60 of no more than 3 seconds.

[Fusion]

If people only cared about price and gas savings rationalizing the purchase, we'd all be driving Fiestas (or used cars) and then Ferraris wouldn't exist.

Not sure if serious. If you tried rationalizing the purchase of a private trip to outer space, we'd all be commenting on r3v instead, right?

Ferarri sales figures: 2012: 7,318 units

A new study by R.L. Polk & Co. reveals that the best-selling car in the world for 2012 was the Ford Focus. With more than 1 million registered last year, the Focus outsold the runner-up Toyota Corolla by about 200,000.

But you make a good point that the Tesla is pretty awesome, but just a toy.
Their strategy is good. Luxury car buyers want 1] automatic service reminders, 2] voice act. controlls, 3] hybrid tech 4] HUD, 5] parking assist, etc.
So in that price range, it basically comes down to tech junkies and petrol heads, not fuel consumption. Tesla's filling in an open niche and concentrating on it, just like Königsegg has a (very) specific niche.
That isn't true in the 30K price range.

[Threehz]

I think when Tesla releases their consumer-level vehicle(s) it's going to make a pretty great impact in the segment. Tesla as well as EVs will have gained much wider and stronger acceptance over the next two years; there will be no better time to release the world's best consumer-level EV.

[coldweatherblue]

heard a colleague at work yesterday talking about his investments in tesla and the company's future, etc. he has done well but i'm still a bit skeptical.

good thread though

[Fusion]

IMO they could make a nice profit on the luxury cars and may be able to invest in new tech and making good consumer cars. We'll see.
I like their approach though. GM should've done this with a Cadillac based high-end car in the beginning, not the other way around.

[Schnitzer318is]

I was pointing out exactly what you said, people are looking at the Model S because it looks cool, handles, is quick, is luxurious. The competing Panamera has the same qualities which creates demand. No one ever rationalizes the purchase of a Panamera on the payback period, mostly because there isn't one. The gas savings is an added bonus to an already top notch car, but for some reason people try to make the argument that it has to pay for itself to be logical, whereas the vast majority of new cars don't "pay for themselves", and certainly not luxury cars. If people only cared about price and gas savings rationalizing the purchase, we'd all be driving Fiestas (or used cars) and then Ferraris wouldn't exist.

Ok, I see what you meant now. Sorry, I wasn't able to infer all that from your first post. I blame being sick and not getting more than 3 hours of sleep a night for a week.

And I agree that the gas savings is an added bonus. People harp on the batteries being a 6 - 10 hour charge from dead, whereas an empty tank can be refilled as soon as you can get to and from a gas station. This is a pretty short sighted view, but it is a valid one. If you absolutely can not manage having a range and time limit imposed on your driving, then ya it's not the right car for you at the moment.

[TYBG]

I feel like gas prices would only go up.

[Threehz]

It's possible, but I don't see how dwindling demand and excess reserves would cause an increase in prices.

[rwh11385]

Not sure if serious. If you tried rationalizing the purchase of a private trip to outer space, we'd all be commenting on r3v instead, right?

But you make a good point that the Tesla is pretty awesome, but just a toy.
Their strategy is good. Luxury car buyers want 1] automatic service reminders, 2] voice act. controlls, 3] hybrid tech 4] HUD, 5] parking assist, etc.
So in that price range, it basically comes down to tech junkies and petrol heads, not fuel consumption. Tesla's filling in an open niche and concentrating on it, just like Königsegg has a (very) specific niche.
That isn't true in the 30K price range.

Serious - the point is that people buy different cars for different reasons, as no one buys a 13 mpg combined F430 for the fuel economy or it being a reasonable financial decision. They like them for exclusivity (why Ferrari targets low volumes), luxury, performance obviously, and coolness. If every single person could only see cars as a break-even investment analysis, who the hell would ever buy a Ferrari? Or any new car outside of a 40 mpg one that was cheap and monthly payment was lower than the gas saved from driving a gas guzzler? We all don't drive Fiestas or used 3cyl Metros, 1g Insights, etc. The market demands nice luxury cars that might not get brilliant mpg and cost more than average to fuel up and are also expensive. Why did people buy E30s in the first place? For the fuel economy? No, for the experience.

That's pretty much the point of the development process Musk has been on. The Roadster was a very expensive toy that was a proof of concept and people liked it performance and cool factor and exclusivity, regardless of it being a bunch of laptop batteries shoved in a chassis and made compromises and not wholly practical. It fit a niche and most importantly it funded the next development stage.

The Model S is cheaper, more practical, more refined, more techie, better catered in its design since it was from the ground-up instead of based on a pre-existing chassis. It's nicely placed in with the cars that it can compete with which suit people who want a nice luxury car with decent amount of performance and coolness for its price tag. There's plenty of room for margin and BMW and Porsche enjoy it here, but at a greater volume than the high-end niche products like Roadster, Ferrari or the supercars. It does what people want from it, and the focus is on that, with electric running cost benefit being a plus. (Because if you buy a $70K car, you might not be the type to care if you are spending more for premium and could save if you switched your 5 series for a Fiesta)

Ultimately, the third stage is when break-even or cost comparison of gas would be crucial. But not as a luxury car which scores 99/100 with Consumer Reports and gets Car of the Year from Motor Trend. People buy it for its qualities and being pretty awesome, not economics.

IMO they could make a nice profit on the luxury cars and may be able to invest in new tech and making good consumer cars. We'll see.
I like their approach though. GM should've done this with a Cadillac based high-end car in the beginning, not the other way around.

That's Elon's plan. Having these profits fund his goal of a $30K consumer car (that royally kicks Leaf's ass). It's not like this is rocket science... like one of his other companies.

Chevy is the stronger global brand so that was the rationale but the ELR should sell a lot better with its luxury and brand. (I actually liked the CTS-V look and interior, but couldn't get behind 9 mpg so if the ELR is like that but PHEV I think it would be great) Bob Lutz now says he thinks it should have been a SUV since compact cars already get good mpg, but he also works on selling plug-in trucks and SUVs now. Regardless, the tech will be useful in the future, leverageable, and on the right path for improvement and remaining relevant.

The competition is exciting and help push acceptance instead of being car vs. car I think. And having a visionary like Musk is awesome.

[GillesBigCowboy]

Don't bring motor trend car of year into this.
In 1980, they picked the Chevy Citation, and in 81, it was the K-car.
I wonder how the Tesla be perceived in 2046?

[3BEEPS]

I have test driven one and it's a game changer. I have a 346whp evo x and the model s' instant smooth and quiet acceleration made my evo feel ancient in comparison. You don't buy this car because it's electric. You buy it because it's the best luxury performance sedan period. I'm also a very happy stock holder having invested at $35 a share after realizing that Tesla and electric is the future.

[george graves]

They went full retard on that screen size...

[JinormusJ]

I saw one in person. All the people around me were in awe at the bells and whistles...
Except me..



Needless to say, I was the only car-enthusiast there.