Obama could have killed the Senate Launch System, but I guess he decided not to do so because it’s so embedded in so many congressional districts, R and D both.
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It’s probably not wise to pin your hopes for the future on a person who is not you or one of your loved ones.
(Apologies if your comment was intended as sarcasm)
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You know what I wish? I wish I could figure out how to short teslas convertible bond.
“Senate Launch System” so true! Very funny, stealing that one.
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You do know that Tesla isn’t the only one making them, right?
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Oh, I can’t claim credit for “Senate Launch System” - it’s been around a long time.
I do claim credit for “The big advantage of the SLS is its range. It’s built across more than 110 congressional districts.”
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Bobsyeruncle! That funny too.
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Yes. I’ve not made a hard study of who is offering electric cars, but I’m ready to not have an ICE car any longer, and anxious for the price to come down.
I think BMW’s I3 was a compelling offering. GM’s Chevy Bolt is also interesting to me. Nissan not so much, although they’re offering a gen2 which I’ve not looked closely at. Honda has limited their sales to Calf.
Tesla has made the biggest commitment to this - there is not another mainstream manufacturer doing only electric. If they fail spectacularly it will only discourage mainstream brands who are entrenched in combustion that its not worth it.
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If Telsa is the only game in town, that won’t happen.
Unless of course people keep buying them despite Tesla’s success or failure. Honestly, just in my small corner of the world, I see far more Leafs than Teslas on the road, and there is a Tesla dealership not far from me. Probably more Bolts and those BMW electrics as well. At this point, I think Tesla in general is still a luxury brand (like BMW), so companies that can sell to a larger number of consumers (and maybe take a loss at first) need to be part of the market. I see more Prius than any of the full electrics.
I suppose that California is going to lead the way here, as they tend to do n issues like this.
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Unless you are a lease-for-3-years-and-trade-in driver, you should consider whether the manufacturer will still be around with parts and service for the full term of ownership.
“Nearly every” is an exaggeration. For a typical family of 4, most of the EVs on the market won’t work, simply because they are two-seaters. Might as well say that nearly every American family could replace one of their cars with an motorcycle. The other factor is climate. In colder climates, every EV but a Tesla is arguably unsafe in winter. They are FWD or RWD only, while Tesla has AWD models for the S, X, and eventually in the 3.
That’s your call. Fair is fair. I do think your comment about build quality is way off base, though. Every Tesla review, and my personal experience while checking them out (not an owner, myself) says their build quality is as good as the best of the EVs out there (BMW i3) and far superior to most (the Leaf in particular does not inspire confidence).
Yeah, I’m really worried that Apple won’t last and I won’t be able to get service for my Apple 2e. Tesla’s made enough in-roads that, worst-case scenario they will be bought out, and the service and support for their existing vehicles will continue ad infinitum.
Meeting production goals isn’t cool, either, apparently.
Which ones are you talking about, though? Again, I think most people buying electric cars are buying leafs (4 door compact) and bolts (subcompact hatchback), and those are the ones people are buying. Just so you know, I drive a subcompact (not an electric), which works for my family. The backseat has plenty of room and I regularly haul all sorts of stuff in it.
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I have some expertise in this area.
We own a Leaf. I had to very carefully choose the model, because the majority of the Leafs sold in that year had a 15amp 120VAC onboard charger, meaning fifteen hour recharge time for eighty mile range.* By choosing one of the models with a 240VAC 30amp charger** and installing a 50amp charging infrastructure on my property, I was able to cut the charge time by more than half, making the car a workable niche product.
Note that in the winter, if you run the heater, you can expect significantly compromised range; but again if you get the right model you can set it to heat on a timer while it’s plugged into the wall.
Leafs and Bolts are playing catch-up to Teslas. The reason the Leaf is selling well is that people want to make a difference in their world, and the Leaf is affordable. It’s not because it’s in the same league as a Tesla… they most certainly are not.
* real world, not vendor claims.
** two out of five models had this.
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Of course we can talk about something else now. So I ask what you think of Bitcoin.
Nooooo!!! 
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That was good, wasn’t it?
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I get what you’re saying. However, the Leaf isn’t an option if you regularly travel outside a city center. The functional highway range is 25 - 30 miles. That’s really pushing it if your destination doesn’t have a charging station. The reason there are so many out on the road is that Nissan is practically giving them away. A Leaf lease is less per month than a family’s wireless bill. It’s obvious that Nissan is subsidizing the Leaf as a (clever) gambit to inflate their CAFE numbers.
You know what? I started looking into the available EVs, and I’m changing my mind about size. In the last 6 months, there are a lot of new EVs with more reasonable, practical size. I still think Tesla has been the major driving factor in the development and introduction of EVs, but I am convinced practicality is no longer a barrier in the rest of the market.
Thank you.
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Hey, I still have a //e in a back closet!
Apple is renowned for its compelled obsolescence strategies in iOS devices, would hate to see that kind of thinking applied to my 4 year old car.
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I think the Tesla will turn out to be like the Betamax, or the deHavilland Comet. First viable product on the market, pushed the rest of the industry hard to compete, but fated to be superseded by those later competitors. (And no, I do not expect Teslas to tear themselves apart in midair)
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