I have a Rav4 hybrid giving me 39 MPG. It has a white finish and light interior (at least 99F here today) and self driving in that it can stay within the lanes on long trips on the interstates. Fully optioned. Fancy NAV and audio, Lots of safety nannies. 23k miles. Will need $930 in tires this winter to meet my standards. Would easily meet state inspection standards without them. I just went to the Tesla web site and configured the closest thing to it. $72k plus!!! add $3k in wiring to add home charging. Model Y. White paint, white interior, No fancy red paint. Not performance, just long range (half my current range). Standard wheels. Autopilot but not self driving. Both home and away cables. No tax rebates. $33k more than my current vehicle would bring. Elon is right, Tesla prices have gotten crazy.
Yet people are lining up for them. That won't change until other manufacturers get their EV production up, but that will likely just bring more buyers to the segment.
desire is a strong justifier. price, value, green, so many variables go into car purchases. you phrase the the question as if to say 'how does anyone justify'. but expensive cars have been sold and bought for many, many decades. your personal view doesn't affect (many) others. i would buy a tesla, but i'm still in love with my pip.
Unfortunately, with mark up, people are paying $60k maybe even $70k? for a Rav4 Prime? All car prices have gone crazy. The difference is that the increased cost in the Tesla goes to Tesla. Mark up does not go to Toyota but to the dealership network and their boat payments. I'd much prefer to pay the manufacturer than the middle men. But the question is moot as I can't afford either. I'll just have to wait for normal if we ever get back to it.
Basically if you want an EV or if you any a Tesla, nothing will sway your opinion. Well, for sure the latter, maybe the former (but I think Tesla has the shortest wait time compared to others).
When it comes to moving the consumer markets to more earth- or climate-friendly choices, different people have much different willingness and ability to put their money where their mouth is. If everyone chooses only for the currently most cost effective choices, we'll never get there in time, if ever.
If people think any single manufacturer or dealership has cornered the market in the price gouging category, consider what one Ford dealership is trying to get for their long range F-150 electric pickup truck; (LOL) https://electrek.co/2022/06/07/ford-dealer-doubles-price-f-150-lightning-electric-pickup-truck/ People could buy a lot of gasoline for the extra money that the Steelerships mark up ev's over MSRP. You could buy over 25,000 gallons of diesel for that kind of cash. .
Batteries are expensive. I'll stop saying that when they aren't. When I spec'ed the same thing (only viable Tesla for us) about 14 months ago, it was around $62k and that was a "hard pass" back then. There's been even more cost cutting thru de-contenting so one is getting even less now. FTFY.
I swear I recall configuring a version of the same car two years ago for around $50k and thinking that was high. My jaw dropped when I did it this time. Base now $65k and then even adding a few things to make it equal (each has pluses and minuses) to my 3 year old $38k car. Delivery estimated January to April next year doesn't excite me either. Still I see more and more on the roads around me.
Internet car buying and car brokers can be good resources in these times. Here is what Ford CEO recently told Dealers: Buyer Beware: How to Avoid Dealer Markups in 2022 - Kelley Blue Book (kbb.com) Ford’s CEO Jim Farley recently warned dealers to “cut” the markups. Speaking to investors on Ford’s earnings call in January, Farley said, “We have very good knowledge of who they are, and their future allocation of product will be directly impacted.”
I'm sure people here remember Cabbage Patch Kids. They were the must have toy for the Christmas they came out. Huge lines for limited supply. Might have the cause for the first Black Friday stampedes. The maker could have chosen to increase the price, which would have lessen the demands and lines, but didn't over publicity concerns. Tesla has taken the other approach with increasing the price. They could have kept the prices near what they started at. More people could afford them, but then the wait would have extended out years.
does the cost of wire go up? Is the cost of Steel & aluminum going up? The cost of upholstery goes up? Tires? Paint? Etc.? or is it an ever deflating dollar. U.S. National Debt Clock : Real Time .
That is actually a very insightful comment. Many think the Government can just print more money. What really happens when you print more money is inflation and currency devaluation which is another tax by the Government where your savings and assets are devalued, the Government then uses this as a way to transfer wealth and monetary power from one group to another. It is a subtle way of passing money involuntarily from one group to another that most would never realize. There is another thread going where people are debating a bill for EV credits which is just another way to take wealth and transfer it to another group of people - with no one realizing they are the ones paying for the transfer of wealth.
Um, I said near where they started. Inflation is why the Model 3 starting price was higher than what was stated years before. Tesla's current price increases aren't about inflation though. They started them before the price hikes happened. These are purely because of high demand for their cars. If a person wouldn't buy from a dealer adding on market adjustments, they shouldn't buy from Tesla now.
If you're looking at a Tesla solely to save on gas, the math will never work, unless you're comparing it at a luxury car with a comparable price range. Prices have increased largely due to inflation, and supply chain disruptions, leading to delays in getting stuff delivered to car factories. Yet if you ordered a Tesla today, you'd be looking at a 6-9 month waiting period, unless you get a Performance model, in which case it's more like 2-3 months. But overall I'm happy to see that more EVs are coming out, which gives consumers more choices as automakers try to outdo each other to make an EV with a lower price, longer range, and faster charging. This is a huge win for consumers. Wasn't too long ago many of them would've told us "Nobody wants electric cars". And had Tesla of failed early on, or never existed in the first place, they'd probably still be saying that. Ironically, the day after the Super Bowl on Feb 13th, 2022, Tesla received a huge amount of orders even though they didn't spend any money on ads like the legacy automakers did for their EVs. https://electrek.co/2022/04/20/tesla-confirms-order-rate-surged-after-super-bowl/
