Seems a lot of people hate the cars. It could be because people love success but hate successful people. Or could be that people don't like electric vehicles? or could be some other reason... What do you think?
I think a lot of people are afraid of change. My BIL is one of those to the extreme, for him it's V8 or nothing. I personally don't care what will power my motorcycles as I get older. As long as they scoot when I twist the wrist, it's all good. The thought of being able to go back and forth for the commute and charge with a solar panel is kinda intriguing.
I think it could be many things. You still can't drive far without stopping for a too long charge compared to just filling up and going. I talked to a customer that was going to turn his in. He didn't like it because, he waited for the school bus with his kids in the car, and the battery would die quickly with the heater on. He couldn't make his long commute to work and back after. He also told me that you don't own the car. It has a software deal like Microsoft office. They can just cancel you under certain circumstances.
If I was in the market for an electric vehicle I'd consider one. The only thing that's kind of a turnoff for me is the Tesla owners themselves (the ones that I've met anyway). They've all gotten them as more of a status symbol than anything. There are other electric car options out there but Tesla has an edge in styling in my opinion. As far as Elon Musk goes, I have no animosity towards the man. Some people hate him for whatever reason, other people I would say have an almost cult-like obsession with him. I probably fall somewhere in the middle. I respect him for being the visionary he is and what he's contributed to society.
Electric cars are pretty cool for people that can use them, but Tesla has been making a pretty bad name for themselves ratings wise. Once you scrape off the shinies and "fun" features, you're left with a pretty crappy vehicle. I'm not sure where I read it, but up until this year several of their models didn't even make it into ratings, and when they did it was second from the bottom out of hundreds of vehicles. Musk is a very interesting person, but I always feel he's style over substance. Consumer reports:
Elon musk himself, the person behind Tesla for those that don't know, is one of those easy to not like people. He's smart, no doubt, but over promises and under delivers. He's said some really dumb things on social media. He's ambitious though. Can't fault him for that. His supporters though, the die hard Tesla fanboy's are ridiculous though. I mean everything has pros and cons. But these people are nonsensical. If you ever want to get a headache from reading something, find any criticism of a Tesla online and you'll see these people that clearly don't know how things work, trying to rationalize their illogical thoughts. Panel gaps that are all over the place, poor paint, roofs that fly off on brand new deliveries, rear bumper covers that fill up with gravel and also fall off the vehicle. Tesla's are expensive vehicles. Would you defend a company's poor QC/QA and just accept it as ok, or would you make sure that it's handled by warranty to fix these issues? Batteries for EV's are big bucks. Electric energy isn't typically free. EV's still require maintenance, and parts still wear out. You can't tell that to Tesla fanboy's without them blowing a gasket. Tesla's are still relatively new. 10 more years on the scene will do them wonders. There's a ton of other things too, especially when it comes to the cybertruck that they will supposedly be making, but won't show up until late this year. Then you get people that don't even know a single thing about pickup trucks discussing and defending what is essentially vapor ware since there has been none actually produced, and the final design has still yet to be released. Right now, infrastructure, mostly for charging, as well as battery tech are the things holding EV's back. There's some major pros of electric vehicles, but also some major cons...
I had crunched the numbers a few years back, and a 250cc moto was a cheaper commuter for me. Hell even a brand new toyota camry made more sense dollar wise. I realize it’s not apples to apples, but I agree with the posts above. It’s not a realistic vehicle for rural areas and my needs. Pair that with software updates and PG&E outages at home, might as well have a big paperweight. Not my cup o tea.
The shortest range, and least expensive, model 3 is rated to get 260 miles to a charge. I would think you could run the heater for an hour without loosing 1% of the battery. Also you do own the car. The only reason they would shut it down is if you called it in stolen. Obviously like with anything new there will be some misinformation out there.
I didn't hear of the rear bumpers filling with gravel until now. A quick search and I found the video. As far as the cyber truck who wouldn't want to drive around in the ugliest vehicle on the planet?
If you wanted to drive from Chicago to LA in an EV, you could, you'd just have to stop to charge along the way. Generally you'd drive 200 miles then stop for 25 min to charge. Go Anywhere | Tesla
Cold winters, short range (my commute was 100 mile/day if I only got to/from work without side trips), old house that doesn't even have a electical panel that would support an in-home charging station), Very few charging stations - 1 at work has two spots, for a building of 700 people so they limit time to like a half hour per vehicle. I couldn't afford one of those cars. I buy used vehicles and my most expensive was buying the 2014 Explorer XLT for 20k. I once looked at some hybird gas/electric used cars and you now why they were being sold? The battey pack needs replaced - those ain't cheap. Oh yeah, some of the highest electric rates in the country.
You can actually charge with a standard 110 outlet. Most people use a 20 or 30 amp 220v charger though. I just wanted to crunch some numbers you gave here. Driving 220 miles round trip. x5 days a week x 52 weeks. =57200/ 15mpg =3813.3 gal x 2.5 = $9533 cost of gas per year. x 2.5 years =$23,832 +20k of the price of the explorer=$43,832. That is less than the price of a Tesla model 3, including tax, title, everything, out the door. That would cost about $794 per month in gasoline. Charging in New Hampshire @$.20 per Kwh would cost about $238 per month. After 3.5 years that ford explorer and gasoline would cost, $53,348, where as the Model 3 and electricity would cost $51,568. That also doesn't account for oil changes, transmission fluid changes, spark plugs, water pump, etc, that only increase the price of gas vehicles. Say you drove 220 miles per day and got 20 mpg and only paid $2.10 per gallon in gas. $6006 per year $500 per month. it would take about 7 years to break even Gasoline $62,042. Electric $61,992. Your electricity cost is super high where you are. Have you thought about solar panels? I'm thinking the payback would only take 3-4 years for you.
No, I don't own any car, let alone an electric car. I do not live in a area that would be too handy for a car. They have and can shut them down for other reasons. A mechanic had put together a tesla from scrap Tesla(s). He even had a video out on how to do it. Once Tesla found out, they shut it down. No thanks pilgrim. No Tesla for me. I would enjoy the stock too, but it doesn't mean it would be a wise purchase for me. I'd be better off buying a Dolorean.
I couldn't even get monthly groceries with one of those things without having to stop TWICE for a charge somewhere. And that is after having to stay in the big city for hours of shopping. They are still kind of dorky, but I'm sure one day they will be usable. I see them as expensive electric chainsaws. Handy if you live in the city with a few little limbs to buck up, but not for plowing through two foot trees. They do have a fervent cult like calling.
