I can't put E85 into my Yukon XL because it has the big 6.2L engine and it really is only happy on 93 octane. It'll run on 87 octane, but it has less power and doesn't feel as smooth, but that might just be me.:)
As for two vehicles, I have two vehicles. From a practical point of view, there is no reason why the second couldn't be an EV, other than price.
Sell me a nice full size EV car with all the nice options for $25,000 and you've got a customer.
The real problem is that the Model 3 is "35K", but not really, that is the base. The Model S was about $70K base, except few were sold that way. A whole lot of them were $100K+.
The Model 3 is likely to be closer to $50K once optioned up.
Even if the median is a decent bit lower, you still end up with plenty of Americans that can pay 35k for a new car- especially an electric one.
Yes, they CAN, but people who spend $35K+ on a car want more than a Ford Fusion or Toyota Camry.
BTW, I got an e-mail from my Ford dealer yesterday... offering a Ford Fusion for $15,998. There is a Toyota dealer here who has a billboard up for a base Camry for $17K.
$35k buyers expect more. For all the flash and pomp, the Model 3 is clearly not "more", at least for the base model.
Here in Europe fuel-prices are 3x the prices in North America. (Lots of environment taxes, taxes because the local government needs to fill their deficit and to put insult to injury they charge VAT on top of the taxes.)
Yep, gotta pay for all those "free" services somehow.:)
(I kid, I kid... ok, not really)
So with my daily commute being between 120 miles and 200 miles per day (multiple locations) and currently spending around $500 in fuel per month this is starting to look very interesting.
At those gas prices and that millage, it may very well make sense for you. If it does, by all means, go for it.
Most people drive less than 50 miles a day, millions drive less than 25 miles a day.
EVs right now seem to only make sense if:
1. You pay a crap ton for fuel because of taxes 2. You drive well above the average number of miles
Which is fine, if you're that person, then go ahead and get one.
I'm all about the money, so do what makes the most sense to your own pocketbook!
I've said it before, I'll say it again. My primary objection to EVs is the price. Cut the price in half and they'll sell like hotcakes.
(and I don't mean down to the $35K base price of the Model 3, I mean down to $17,500 base price, which is where it'll need to be to really move millions of units).
A Toyota Camry or a Ford Fusion is two thirds of the price
Even less than that...
I got an e-mail from my Ford dealer offering a 2016 Ford Fusion for $15,998.
There is a billboard in town from a local Toyota dealer offering a base Camry for $17K.
The Model 3, for all the pomp and flash, is really similar to the Fusion or Camry. It is a 5 seat car that holds 4 people comfortably (real the linked article, even they said it was really 4) and the size and interior are very similar to those cars.
Perhaps the top end model will be fitted out to be more luxury like, but it won't be $35K either.
Well, Texas is big, for one thing... Not that many people, so we have lots of open land...
We also tend to have big everything here... big houses, big trucks, etc.
But putting that aside... the Model X is similar in size to a Ford Explorer. A loaded Explorer Platinum is about $50k, or half the cost of a Model X.
Both vehicles have similar levels of features, performance, safety, etc.
The Explorer gets 18 mpg mixed, the Model X gets... something much better, whatever it is...
But it doesn't save SO much as to make up the price difference.
If they could sell the Model X, fully loaded, for $50k, I imagine they would sell like crazy.
The Model 3 is likewise overpriced... The base model needs to be about $20k, with the fully loaded top end model at $35k, then they'll sell well.
The Model 3, for all the pomp and flash, is really a Ford Fusion, minus the gas engine. You can buy a base Ford Fusion for $16K or a fully loaded one for $30K.
29 mpg combined city/highway in the Fusion too... You're paying about $1 per 20 miles you drive at current gas rates, $1 per 10 miles if gas prices double. But power for the Tesla isn't free, just cheaper.
You'll never make up the difference in price in saved gas, unless you drive 50,000 miles a year.
n particular, commercial vehicles damn well better cost more than average given the amount of tax writeoffs we're throwing at them.
A whole bunch of pickup trucks sold today no longer are "commercial vehicles". Almost ALL the "expensive versions" are private vehicles.
Come to Texas, you could easily be sitting at a stop light with a F-150 on either side of you and one behind you.
They sell so many of them here, Ford makes a "Texas Edition" of the truck, just sold here. Even comes with a "Texas Edition" badge on the truck.
While ignoring the SUV Tesla just released last year.
What, that little toy car they call a SUV? The one that costs over $100K?
Call me when they release one that actually carries people AND stuff... AND can tow something...
We know, it's too expensive for y'all.
My SUV was $73k, I can quite well afford a Tesla Model X. But they are not remotely in the same league. My Yukon XL Denali can carry 7 people in comfort, carry a thousand pounds of stuff behind the third row seat, and tow 4 tons behind it. Remind me what the seating and cargo space in a Model X is? What does it tow again?
Right...
And by the way, you're dangerously close to "obviously troll" territory when you tout gas prices that have been in effect for, like, a month or two, and are far from a historical or recent average.
Hey, you finally have a reasonable point! Good for you...
All kidding aside, when gas was $3 a gallon, it still didn't matter that much. This is the third Yukon XL we have owned, in fact they have all been the exact same color, white. My wife likes them like that and when we're ready, she wants a fourth, exactly the same.
I used to drive a SUV, but frankly I don't drive that far or that often, so I bought a Ford Taurus Limited. I got a screaming killer deal on it and just couldn't say no. I didn't put a dime down, just signed and drove away, I pay $347 a month for a fully loaded full size car that looks darn close inside to a luxury car. It costs me $50 a month in gas to drive it. If gas goes back to $3 a gallon, it'll cost me $100 a month to drive it.
A Model 3, the BASE model, will cost over $600 a month to finance, likely closer to $700 a month.
The model 3 makes a lot of sense everywhere in Europe. The price and size are comparable to a VW Passat, which is the mainstay of office fleet cars. Fuel is ludicrously expensive compared to the US, so it'll be trivial to save $200 a month by switching to electricity. We don't tend to do thousand mile road trips, so a 200 mile range is fine.
Well sure, if you use selective taxes to move the market around, you can make anything make sense.
Doesn't mean it actually works on its own of course.:)
I just filled up our second car, it took about 16 gallons of fuel and cost $24. That'll last me for 2 weeks.
When my wife fills up our SUV, it does cost more, closer to $50 since it takes premium (93 octane), but even doing that an average of 3 times a month, meh... That is only $150.
Now you may say, "hey, the Model 3 could save you that". No, it couldn't. Our SUV is a 19.5 foot long Yukon XL that carries 7 people, plus cargo, plus it can tow a 4 ton trailer (and yes, I have towed behind it).
So not remotely the same vehicle.
Call me when I can get a full size three row SUV that weighs 3 tons, does zero to 60 in 6 seconds, can carry a ton internally and tow 4 tons. Oh, and let me know when I can drive 400 miles, recharge in 15 min, and drive another 400 miles.:)
Ahh, one more thing... It needs to cost less than $75,000 and have every feature in the book. Then I'll buy one. Seriously, I really will. Price is the primary reason I don't see EVs taking off. Get the cost down and that'll change.
---
Side note: Could I replace our second car with an EV? Sure, but why? It costs me $50 a month in gas, my payment is $347 a month, and it is a full size Ford Taurus Limited with all the trimmings (and no, I didn't put a dime down when I bought it, and it isn't a lease, I simply got a killer deal because no one wants a Taurus). Why would I trade it in on a smaller car for almost twice the monthly payment?
All these comments comparing the cost to other cars just make me wonder why Tesla are even bothering with the US.
The US is a huge car market, there is no reason to ignore it.
I'm sure Tesla will sell a reasonable number of them here. If they really hit their price, performance, and range targets, they might well sell 50,000 of them in the US.
For a plug in EV, that would be an impressive number.
The only problem with that number is that 50,000 gas powered cars are sold each day in the US...
So it still only works out to about 1/3 of 1%. Still, not bad at all, but there is no assurance it will scale beyond those early adopters.
Sure, but if you're using it to commute and you have a decent commute, that $624 a month will be more like $424 a month with all the gas you're no longer buying. Lots of people have cars with payments in that range.
Maybe... But to save $200 per month, you need two things to happen...
1. Electricity has to be free... It isn't... it is cheaper than gas to be sure, but it isn't free...
But lets pretend it somehow is...
2. You'd have to drive more than 3,800 miles... a MONTH... to save $200 in gas...
Buy a Ford Fusion, spend half the price ($17,500 buys, after rebates, a nice Ford Fusion that carries 5 people), so end up with a payment of $310 a month.
Combined city/highway is 29 MPG. At $1.50 a gallon for gas, you're spending $1 for every 19.3 miles you drive.
If you average 12,000 miles a year (a reasonable number), that is 33 miles per day. So you're spending about $1.60 per day, or $48 per month in gas.
But keep in mind, if you don't drive at all for a week, go on vacation, get laid off, or change your driving, the payment remains.
Stop driving the Ford and the gas cost goes away.
Also, keep in mind that we assumed that wall power was free. The above numbers are worse in real life for the Tesla because:
1. Electricity isn't free 2. A home charger isn't free
---
It is also worth noting that there are many lease programs on the Ford Fusion, I regularly see $199 a month lease deals with nothing due at signing. Just sign and drive.
Now you might say... "but, but, the Tesla isn't a Ford, it is fancy!" Maybe... but is it twice the money fancy? It is a box with 4 wheels that takes 5 people someplace.
They'll sell, but don't kid yourself, it is still expensive.
No, 115,000 have put down a $1K refundable deposit worldwide...
Many of those people will not end up buying, and while I have no doubt he'll sell a bunch of these cars, assuming he hits the price, performance and range targets, 115,000 cars worldwide is a drop in the bucket.
"In all, auto makers sold 17.5 million cars and light trucks in the U.S. last year, a 5.7% increase."
The increase from 2014 to 2015 was 1 million cars.
And that is JUST the US autosales, the 115K is worldwide.
It's already been stated many times - but $35k is the average selling price of a car in the US. If that isn't the mark of "affordability"... then what is?
Ahh yes, but that doesn't mean any cars were actually sold at that price.
50% of the cars could have been sold for $1 and 50% sold for $70K and that would remain true.
Extreme example, but it shows the danger of seeing "average" and assuming most people are near that.
A lot of $15-20K cars are sold and a lot of $50K cars are sold.
but MANY people will be able to "afford" this car.
I have no doubt, I'm one of them. I could pay cash for it.
I won't, because it is still overpriced, but that is a side issue.
Why is it overpriced? Because a Ford Fusion offers, more or less, the same function, for half the price. A really nice Ford Fusion is $17,500. (I just got an e-mail today for one for $15,988)
Yea, yea, it isn't EV, so what. You get combined city/highway of 29 MPG.
Thanks. Yeah Elon Musk called me up and said he'd write me a check for ONE MILLION dollars to run this story, because he said he really wanted the Slashdot AC's to hear about his new car, and because he said it wouldn't be covered anywhere else.
Slashdot Mirror
No, it really isn't that bad, so in fairness, you're correct, Tesla probably deserves some credit there.
Others have tried in the past 20 years, really none have succeeded. The car business is harder than it looks. :)
In fairness to the $1.50, that is E85.
I can't put E85 into my Yukon XL because it has the big 6.2L engine and it really is only happy on 93 octane. It'll run on 87 octane, but it has less power and doesn't feel as smooth, but that might just be me. :)
As for two vehicles, I have two vehicles. From a practical point of view, there is no reason why the second couldn't be an EV, other than price.
Sell me a nice full size EV car with all the nice options for $25,000 and you've got a customer.
The real problem is that the Model 3 is "35K", but not really, that is the base. The Model S was about $70K base, except few were sold that way. A whole lot of them were $100K+.
The Model 3 is likely to be closer to $50K once optioned up.
Yep... that is true...
However, I'm not at all convinced that EVs somehow don't follow the rule of cars, rather than the rule of computers.
Time will tell, I wish Tesla all the success in the world, I just think a whole lot of people are counting the chickens before they have hatched.
do you get loans for 100% of the price of a vehicle in the US?
Some people do, others put down 10-20%.
My Taurus is financed at 0.9% and my Yukon XL is financed at 1.9%.
At those interest rates, I can do better with my money elsewhere, paying cash for a vehicle at those rates is just leaving money on the table.
Right now, AT&T stock is paying 4.9% dividend yield, and that doesn't count that it is up 20% over 5 years ago in share price.
Don't forget the -$7500 in federal tax rebates,
which gives a net price of $27,500
and state rebates. In my state that adds up to
-$14,500 grand total rebate
Those won't hold... They didn't make much of an impact when they only applied to a few cars sold, but as the numbers go up, those will go away.
http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/...
Side note, if you're for Electric Vehicles, don't listen to Clinton and don't vote for her.
She has already gotten $4.5 million from oil and gas companies, and that is the "known" amounts that had to be reported.
---
Note: This doesn't mean anyone on the Republican side would be better, you should probably vote for Bernie Sanders.
Even if the median is a decent bit lower, you still end up with plenty of Americans that can pay 35k for a new car- especially an electric one.
Yes, they CAN, but people who spend $35K+ on a car want more than a Ford Fusion or Toyota Camry.
BTW, I got an e-mail from my Ford dealer yesterday... offering a Ford Fusion for $15,998. There is a Toyota dealer here who has a billboard up for a base Camry for $17K.
$35k buyers expect more. For all the flash and pomp, the Model 3 is clearly not "more", at least for the base model.
I put gas into my Taurus for $1.50 a gallon this week.
Granted, it was E85, but it still gets me from A to B as well as the dead dino version.
The fact you bought a Taurus says exactly how much of a clue with cars you have.
Don't knock it till you've tried it..
Nice car actually, roomy, powerful, MASSIVE trunk space, the rear seat actually DOES hold 3 adults comfortably.
Nice air-conditioned leather seats, sat radio, real wood trim inside, soft touch surfaces everywhere, and 290 horsepower under the hood.
Yes, it is a Ford, not a Lexus, and yes, I know there is a difference (my Mom owns a Lexus RX, nice car, nicer dealer service by far than Ford).
But for $347 a month with nothing due at signing (not even tax), it really is a killer deal (and I'll own it at that price, not a lease).
If you haven't driven one, try it, you might be surprised. It is a lot for the money.
You're in the USA aren't you ?
Yep, in Texas no less! :)
Here in Europe fuel-prices are 3x the prices in North America.
(Lots of environment taxes, taxes because the local government needs to fill their deficit and to put insult to injury they charge VAT on top of the taxes.)
Yep, gotta pay for all those "free" services somehow. :)
(I kid, I kid... ok, not really)
So with my daily commute being between 120 miles and 200 miles per day (multiple locations) and currently spending around $500 in fuel per month this is starting to look very interesting.
At those gas prices and that millage, it may very well make sense for you. If it does, by all means, go for it.
Most people drive less than 50 miles a day, millions drive less than 25 miles a day.
EVs right now seem to only make sense if:
1. You pay a crap ton for fuel because of taxes
2. You drive well above the average number of miles
Which is fine, if you're that person, then go ahead and get one.
I'm all about the money, so do what makes the most sense to your own pocketbook!
I've said it before, I'll say it again. My primary objection to EVs is the price. Cut the price in half and they'll sell like hotcakes.
(and I don't mean down to the $35K base price of the Model 3, I mean down to $17,500 base price, which is where it'll need to be to really move millions of units).
A Toyota Camry or a Ford Fusion is two thirds of the price
Even less than that...
I got an e-mail from my Ford dealer offering a 2016 Ford Fusion for $15,998.
There is a billboard in town from a local Toyota dealer offering a base Camry for $17K.
The Model 3, for all the pomp and flash, is really similar to the Fusion or Camry. It is a 5 seat car that holds 4 people comfortably (real the linked article, even they said it was really 4) and the size and interior are very similar to those cars.
Perhaps the top end model will be fitted out to be more luxury like, but it won't be $35K either.
Here in Singapore you can't even get a really cheap car for that price. A new Toyota Camry costs the equivalent of 103000 USD here.
Yea, but that is a special market, so you can blame your location, situation, and government for that.
The Model 3 won't be $35k there either.
A new Toyota Camry can be had here for under $20k.
What is different with Texas?
Well, Texas is big, for one thing... Not that many people, so we have lots of open land...
We also tend to have big everything here... big houses, big trucks, etc.
But putting that aside... the Model X is similar in size to a Ford Explorer. A loaded Explorer Platinum is about $50k, or half the cost of a Model X.
Both vehicles have similar levels of features, performance, safety, etc.
The Explorer gets 18 mpg mixed, the Model X gets... something much better, whatever it is...
But it doesn't save SO much as to make up the price difference.
If they could sell the Model X, fully loaded, for $50k, I imagine they would sell like crazy.
The Model 3 is likewise overpriced... The base model needs to be about $20k, with the fully loaded top end model at $35k, then they'll sell well.
The Model 3, for all the pomp and flash, is really a Ford Fusion, minus the gas engine. You can buy a base Ford Fusion for $16K or a fully loaded one for $30K.
29 mpg combined city/highway in the Fusion too... You're paying about $1 per 20 miles you drive at current gas rates, $1 per 10 miles if gas prices double. But power for the Tesla isn't free, just cheaper.
You'll never make up the difference in price in saved gas, unless you drive 50,000 miles a year.
n particular, commercial vehicles damn well better cost more than average given the amount of tax writeoffs we're throwing at them.
A whole bunch of pickup trucks sold today no longer are "commercial vehicles". Almost ALL the "expensive versions" are private vehicles.
Come to Texas, you could easily be sitting at a stop light with a F-150 on either side of you and one behind you.
They sell so many of them here, Ford makes a "Texas Edition" of the truck, just sold here. Even comes with a "Texas Edition" badge on the truck.
While ignoring the SUV Tesla just released last year.
What, that little toy car they call a SUV? The one that costs over $100K?
Call me when they release one that actually carries people AND stuff... AND can tow something...
We know, it's too expensive for y'all.
My SUV was $73k, I can quite well afford a Tesla Model X. But they are not remotely in the same league. My Yukon XL Denali can carry 7 people in comfort, carry a thousand pounds of stuff behind the third row seat, and tow 4 tons behind it. Remind me what the seating and cargo space in a Model X is? What does it tow again?
Right...
And by the way, you're dangerously close to "obviously troll" territory when you tout gas prices that have been in effect for, like, a month or two, and are far from a historical or recent average.
Hey, you finally have a reasonable point! Good for you...
All kidding aside, when gas was $3 a gallon, it still didn't matter that much. This is the third Yukon XL we have owned, in fact they have all been the exact same color, white. My wife likes them like that and when we're ready, she wants a fourth, exactly the same.
I used to drive a SUV, but frankly I don't drive that far or that often, so I bought a Ford Taurus Limited. I got a screaming killer deal on it and just couldn't say no. I didn't put a dime down, just signed and drove away, I pay $347 a month for a fully loaded full size car that looks darn close inside to a luxury car. It costs me $50 a month in gas to drive it. If gas goes back to $3 a gallon, it'll cost me $100 a month to drive it.
A Model 3, the BASE model, will cost over $600 a month to finance, likely closer to $700 a month.
It just makes no sense.
The model 3 makes a lot of sense everywhere in Europe. The price and size are comparable to a VW Passat, which is the mainstay of office fleet cars. Fuel is ludicrously expensive compared to the US, so it'll be trivial to save $200 a month by switching to electricity. We don't tend to do thousand mile road trips, so a 200 mile range is fine.
Well sure, if you use selective taxes to move the market around, you can make anything make sense.
Doesn't mean it actually works on its own of course. :)
I just filled up our second car, it took about 16 gallons of fuel and cost $24. That'll last me for 2 weeks.
When my wife fills up our SUV, it does cost more, closer to $50 since it takes premium (93 octane), but even doing that an average of 3 times a month, meh... That is only $150.
Now you may say, "hey, the Model 3 could save you that". No, it couldn't. Our SUV is a 19.5 foot long Yukon XL that carries 7 people, plus cargo, plus it can tow a 4 ton trailer (and yes, I have towed behind it).
So not remotely the same vehicle.
Call me when I can get a full size three row SUV that weighs 3 tons, does zero to 60 in 6 seconds, can carry a ton internally and tow 4 tons. Oh, and let me know when I can drive 400 miles, recharge in 15 min, and drive another 400 miles. :)
Ahh, one more thing... It needs to cost less than $75,000 and have every feature in the book. Then I'll buy one. Seriously, I really will. Price is the primary reason I don't see EVs taking off. Get the cost down and that'll change.
---
Side note: Could I replace our second car with an EV? Sure, but why? It costs me $50 a month in gas, my payment is $347 a month, and it is a full size Ford Taurus Limited with all the trimmings (and no, I didn't put a dime down when I bought it, and it isn't a lease, I simply got a killer deal because no one wants a Taurus). Why would I trade it in on a smaller car for almost twice the monthly payment?
All these comments comparing the cost to other cars just make me wonder why Tesla are even bothering with the US.
The US is a huge car market, there is no reason to ignore it.
I'm sure Tesla will sell a reasonable number of them here. If they really hit their price, performance, and range targets, they might well sell 50,000 of them in the US.
For a plug in EV, that would be an impressive number.
The only problem with that number is that 50,000 gas powered cars are sold each day in the US...
So it still only works out to about 1/3 of 1%. Still, not bad at all, but there is no assurance it will scale beyond those early adopters.
No way. From my quick math, counting in the $7,500 rebate, in order to afford a $27,500 car one would need income of about $70k a year.
The $7,500 rebate isn't going to be there.
It is one thing to offer it to a few thousand, or even a few tens of thousands of people per year.
Half a million? A million?
No.
The real payment is a whole lot higher...
Even the base model, at $35K, is really $37,500 or so once sales tax and paperwork fees are added in ($300 of paperwork and 6.25% tax)
For 60 months, even at 0% interest, that is $625 a month.
My bank is always offering credit at 3.4% for unsecured loans of up to ã25k so this could be affordable without a huge stretch.
$37,500 USD (taxes and fees added to the $35K base price)
At 3.4% for 60 months, your payment would be $681 per month.
I don't know if that is "a lot" in your country, but in the US, that is well north of what the "average" is.
Sure, but if you're using it to commute and you have a decent commute, that $624 a month will be more like $424 a month with all the gas you're no longer buying. Lots of people have cars with payments in that range.
Maybe... But to save $200 per month, you need two things to happen...
1. Electricity has to be free... It isn't... it is cheaper than gas to be sure, but it isn't free...
But lets pretend it somehow is...
2. You'd have to drive more than 3,800 miles... a MONTH... to save $200 in gas...
Buy a Ford Fusion, spend half the price ($17,500 buys, after rebates, a nice Ford Fusion that carries 5 people), so end up with a payment of $310 a month.
Combined city/highway is 29 MPG. At $1.50 a gallon for gas, you're spending $1 for every 19.3 miles you drive.
If you average 12,000 miles a year (a reasonable number), that is 33 miles per day. So you're spending about $1.60 per day, or $48 per month in gas.
But keep in mind, if you don't drive at all for a week, go on vacation, get laid off, or change your driving, the payment remains.
Stop driving the Ford and the gas cost goes away.
Also, keep in mind that we assumed that wall power was free. The above numbers are worse in real life for the Tesla because:
1. Electricity isn't free
2. A home charger isn't free
---
It is also worth noting that there are many lease programs on the Ford Fusion, I regularly see $199 a month lease deals with nothing due at signing. Just sign and drive.
Now you might say... "but, but, the Tesla isn't a Ford, it is fancy!" Maybe... but is it twice the money fancy? It is a box with 4 wheels that takes 5 people someplace.
They'll sell, but don't kid yourself, it is still expensive.
Don't know, but the average new price of a car is $33560 so with inflation to 2017 it's well... average?
Yes, but that "average" includes a million pickup trucks, most of which are sold well over that average.
The "average" price of a F-150 these days is in the mid $40's, with higher end models near $60K.
Of course it comes with the range limitations, but from the prices I've looked at tanking up a Tesla is cheaper than a gas guzzler
Yes, but I'm paying $1.50 a gallon, so who cares?
The real problem is the lack of a SUV, that thing is WAY too small to be useful, at least in Texas.
but just to give you an idea, with our tax incentives the EV market share is about 15%
Pay people enough tax dollars and they'll sing anything you want.
In the US, the EV market is less than 1%, counting plug-ins. It is a bit higher counting hybrids, but those are almost all small cars.
The love it in the Nordic countries. Seriously, it's huge over there.
Yep, tax gas cars enough and provide large enough EV incentives, and people will do that sort of thing...
Doesn't make it a rational market nor mean it will work elsewhere. :)
115,000 already have
No, 115,000 have put down a $1K refundable deposit worldwide...
Many of those people will not end up buying, and while I have no doubt he'll sell a bunch of these cars, assuming he hits the price, performance and range targets, 115,000 cars worldwide is a drop in the bucket.
"In all, auto makers sold 17.5 million cars and light trucks in the U.S. last year, a 5.7% increase."
The increase from 2014 to 2015 was 1 million cars.
And that is JUST the US autosales, the 115K is worldwide.
It sounds nice, but it is a rounding error.
The target market isn't average Americans. The cars are for people who use sites like this and likely make in excess of 100k
I'm exactly the target market. Someone who is totally comfortable with technology and I make well north of 100k.
I'm still not going to buy one, it is too expensive for what it really is, a fancy Ford Fusion with a battery pack and electric motor.
It's already been stated many times - but $35k is the average selling price of a car in the US. If that isn't the mark of "affordability"... then what is?
Ahh yes, but that doesn't mean any cars were actually sold at that price.
50% of the cars could have been sold for $1 and 50% sold for $70K and that would remain true.
Extreme example, but it shows the danger of seeing "average" and assuming most people are near that.
A lot of $15-20K cars are sold and a lot of $50K cars are sold.
but MANY people will be able to "afford" this car.
I have no doubt, I'm one of them. I could pay cash for it.
I won't, because it is still overpriced, but that is a side issue.
Why is it overpriced? Because a Ford Fusion offers, more or less, the same function, for half the price. A really nice Ford Fusion is $17,500. (I just got an e-mail today for one for $15,988)
Yea, yea, it isn't EV, so what. You get combined city/highway of 29 MPG.
Thanks. Yeah Elon Musk called me up and said he'd write me a check for ONE MILLION dollars to run this story, because he said he really wanted the Slashdot AC's to hear about his new car, and because he said it wouldn't be covered anywhere else.
I laughed... would read again +8 :)