Bolt EV leads in August sales of all other plug ins

I agree with you, but there is another angle to consider. The laws that protect independent dealers from direct competition with manufacturer owned stores date back to the 1950's. That is a fair amount of time for dealer associations to amass their own bit of power and sway over politics and the manufacturers themselves. I admit to the possibility that I'm not completely informed, but I recall that the movements to keep Tesla out of a state were by the dealer associations, with no input from the car companies. GM, Toyota, and the rest would likely love to be able to cut ties with their dealer network. As it is they need to take actions to keep those dealers happy to some degree. I believe GM's lack of CCS and charging infrastructure is part of that appeasement.

I've seen and heard none for either, but admit to watching little TV.

 

This has been spearheaded by the dealer associations, but GM has started playing a more direct role in states such as Connecticut and Michigan.

 

I smiled reading this:

I remember not too long ago, Mary, the relatively new GM head, decided to take a jab at "Tesla" (without saying that name) when she said;

“We believe strongly in the dealer model and the tremendous value our customers derive from neighborhood dealerships,” she said. Unlike 'some' electric car customers, Bolt EV customers never have to worry about driving to another state to buy, service or support their vehicle.”​

Musk should answer back, "Unlike others, Tesla customers have a SuperCharger network to charge from."

Bob Wilson

 

Musk seems to be the type that enjoys any and all plugins coming to market, so I don't recall ever hearing him take cheap shots regardless of manufacturer. IIRC, the only vehicle he takes issue with seemingly - are fool cells, calling them "incredibly dumb".
Elon Musk: Hydrogen cars are 'incredibly dumb' - Business Insider
If he thinks they're incredibly dumb because they're not marketable, one might consider he does have a degree from Wharton School of Business. If he thinks they're incredibly dumb because of being impractical, that might be because he has a degree in physics. Plugins? not so much.
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☆ What degrees does Elon Musk have? - Quora

 

I meant no snark about Musk. Just GM claiming they would never put money in charging infrastructure, that is the problem.

Bob Wilson

 

hasn't musk dissed the prius?

 

i think you're spot on. as a retired wholesaler (middleman) with contractual obligations to and from manufacturers, it is an uneasy relationship at best. manufacturers are constantly looking for ways to cut out the middleman, and with politicians involved, it becomes even more complicated.

 

Depends what you mean by “dissed”.
AFAIK, he has never taken a ‘cheap shot’ at any specific car. Possible exception would be FC vehicles.
He has certainly been critical of cars that run on gasoline, which would include hybrids, which would include the Prius.
So if you want to stretch his words to mean something other than what he said, I suppose he has

 

eric loveday wrote an article about it in the june 29, 2009 green car reports: 'elon musk says prius not a true hybrid, calls it 2% electric'.

we can argue the terminology, but i think his intent is clear. you can shrink it to mean something else as well.

 

Ah, thanks, I didn’t recall that one.
Since the fuel source is still solely gasoline, I suppose that is where his qualification came from.
2% might be understating it, or it may not, I haven’t done the calculations.

 

loveday claims a 90% improvement over similar size vehicles of the era.

don't get me wrong, i'm with musk on many issues, but also grateful that gm and others are forging ahead with ev's, even if they have no charging infrastructure and are stuck with dealerships. that doesn't make them the bad guy.
i don't have the ev-1 hangover that many here do, but i understand how they feel.

 

Sure, a 100% improvement on a 25mpg car is a 50mpg car. That cuts the gas needed by 50% but says nothing about replacing the source of power, just lowering it.
That is a great improvement and should not be overlooked. But is still reliant on dirtier and dirtier oil instead of electricity which can be as clean as you want it to be. Even for those that don't care, electricity is getting cleaner and cleaner.
Musk is also grateful other manufacturers are moving towards EVs. He just wishes they would do it faster

 

They use less fuel, but at the end of the day, hybrids are still a 100% ICE powered car. A distinction can be made between reducing the use of a fuel source and switching away from it.

 

yes it can, but that was not musk's point. you have to read loveday's article.

and btw, criticizing vehicles you use less gasoline would be somewhat pointless.

 

I read the article, and Lovejay doesn't seem to know what Musk is saying. It doesn't even give the context of where Musk made the comment. Was it a tweet, or lifted from a longer comment? Was it a response to someone making an unflattering, possibly incorrect, comparison between the Prius and Model S. I don't think Musk will remember what he meant at this point. I'm reading it as a rebuff to someone claiming that hybrids reducing gas use alone is good enough.
Elon Musk Says Prius Not a True Hybrid: Calls it 2% Electric

It comes down to how you view what an electric car is. A FCEV is classified as an electric because it has an electric drive train, which is how the Prius is an electric hybrid. But if your idea of an electric vehicle is something that can plug into to the electric grid for fuel, then neither one is an electric car. Both are stuck to a single energy source while grid electricity can be made from multiple sources.

 

agreed, but we're getting away from the original intent of my post.

no one is immune from making negative comments about the competition. whether it's mary barra talking about dealerships, toyota talking about wasting time waiting for your car to charge, or elon musk talking about prius not being 'true hybrids' whatever they are.

i take it all with a grain of salt, and purchase the best car to fit my needs and desires. whether it's from a dealership, plug's in, or isn't a true hybrid. the rest is hyperbole.

 

If I had listened to the negative comments about battery powered cars, I wouldn't have purchased any. Now, I feel positive about driving them.