Featured Mazda plans new dedicated electric car

But for a 15 mile commute, do I need a BMW 3 or Model 3? I'm positing the suburb to urban commute and high risk of accident traffic. I can get into that for $18k or $50k and maybe someday high $30s. If an accident, for the cheap car I have parts availability everywhere and dealers in any city. Do the competitors? I get maybe 35MPG in the cheap car so economics won't help in the current gas prices climate.

I just can't see that many people spending that kind of money for a car. For a truck, sure. And I don't see a robust economy over the next few years. Too much borrowing (consumers and govt), too much uncertainty.

 

pick up a prime for low 20's up here and drive it home for under 20k after tax credit

 

You aren't the target demographic for a BMW nor Tesla.

The Corolla L is stripped for today's cars, and will mostly be bought by fleets. Going by the specs page, it doesn't have keyless entry at all, though I'm guessing it has the old, separate fob remote. The majority made and bought will be the LE, that is over $19k, and still has a 3.5in monochrome screen.

The closest BEV is the Leaf for $29k that is slightly better equipped. For your scenario, a smart EQ that starts at $23k will work. Its ICE brethern was once slightly less than the Corolla.

But yes, most will opt for the cheaper car, which is why I expect the Corolla hybrid to do poorly here. Unlike the hybrid, BEVs have other positives, and their production costs are still dropping.

 

No. You should just get a 10 year old Honda for that use case and nothing more. 15 mile commutes don't qualify for a nicer car especially since you are worried about replacement part costs from being in an accident.

Mike