AMIRZA786

That was part of my point, thanks for elaborating. You can advertise all you want, but if you can't charge or travel to areas like SW does, all the advertising in the world is pointless

Bob04

And that will change over time. But it won't be quick.

LeX2K

Crazy concept but hear me out. If many more people are aware of Tesla and EV benefits in general it won't be necessary to drastically drop prices. TAM potential will see greater realization. We are in a bubble, the vast majority out there could (and I believe do) have major misconceptions about what electric vehicles are all about.

AMIRZA786

That's true, but also for people who don't have access to fast charging infrastructure, the problem is real. Imagine you lived where SW's brother lives. The wiring of your house is questionable, and the nearest Fast charger is 150 miles away. That's a problem even the best EV can't solve. If Tesla or EA decides to build fast chargers in that area, that would help solve the issue. As far as lowering prices, I want them to continually lower prices. It benefits the consumer.

GM actually has a good idea here. If you buy a Bolt, you can choose $500 in fast charging at EVgo or they will pay to install a Level 2 charger in your home

Bob04

I am a little surprised by Elon's business model when it comes to marketing. Most companies have traditionally increased marketing when sales drop to get new customers. Elon just drops the price. I'd love to see the math on that. Almost similar to the store brand vs name brand scenario. A lot of those store brand products are the same thing you get with the name brand. The only difference is packaging and price, and they don't spend money on marketing. Price is sometimes 25% to 40% cheaper. That seems to be his thought process. I've read that GM spent $3.25 billion on advertising last year. (seems high when cars are selling themselves due to low supply) And they sold 2.27 million cars last year. Quick math that I hope is correctly lol is about $1437 per car. But Elon has discounted a lot more than that. I'd love to know this thought process and calculations behind it.

AMIRZA786

From what I've read, Tesla has been continually been able to drop the cost of manufacturing, so their cars are getting cheaper to build, giving Tesla more margin. Also the cost of batteries...the most expensive component has dropped significantly. Elon has always said that he wants to go high volume, which means they need to drop prices

LeX2K

Are you saying Tesla lowered prices 8 times this year because charging infrastructure is lacking?
Tesla should keep lowering prices? To what end? Until they have zero margin?
Margins and revenue in Q3 will be way down. Sure it's possible not but very unlikely IMO.

AMIRZA786

No, not at all. They lowered prices to push sales higher, move inventory and put pressure on their competitors. The most likely reason Tesla hasn't built out infrastructure in certain areas of the country is that there is likely not much demand. It makes perfect sense to expand and pour money in superchargers in Los Angeles where they sell hundreds of thousands of units, but probably makes little business sense to build them out in a place like Idaho where there is no interest.

They should make whatever profit they feel is reasonable keeping in mind what the market will bare. Had they not done the price cuts, I probably would not have bought my Model Y, and I suspect the many I know who purchased over the last year would not have either. There is no way I was going to pay $70 or $80K. One of the reasons I bought the Polestar last year was the Polestar was under $50K, while the Model 3 rwd was nearly $60K. Now that has flipped, so there is no way I would buy the Polestar today

LeX2K

Fair points. I'm still trying to understand what you mean by "continually lower prices". I definitely don't want Tesla doing this I want them to maximize profits even if it costs me more to buy one. This is strictly selfish I will come out way ahead financially in my estimation.

I still believe Tesla is leaving a pile of money on the table, they are not creating the must have vibe that advertising can accomplish. Early adopters are not an unlimited group.

AMIRZA786

BTW, just to add to the above, go back to early 2022 when the Model X was over $100k....hell no would I even consider one at that price. Fast forward to today, Oct 2023 and the Model X is now $79K...I would actually consider buying one. So price cuts are important because today I don't believe they would move at yesterday's prices. You have to price what the market can bare

AMIRZA786

I think it's now gone beyond early adopters. Cybertruck is for early adopters. Tesla is a full on auto company competing with the likes of Toyota, Lexus GM and Ford. I see everyday soccer moms driving them. If you don't know who Tesla is and what a Model 3 or Y is by now, you are basically living under a rock.

LeX2K

I know people like this. They have a vague idea of what a Tesla is and have major misconceptions.

quick comparison.
Model Y long range: $53,130
Rav4 Prime: $48,310

With dealer BS Prime will probably end up costing more than the Y which is a vastly superior car. I'm confident many people will buy the Toyota simply because they buy Toyota. The argument is advertising wouldn't change this dynamic at all. I don't accept this.

Didn't compare the bZ4X because frankly the car is a joke.

AMIRZA786

I have an idea of the type of person you are talking about. There are not that many of them left. Just move on, you will never change their minds

LeX2K

Maybe in Cali, here it is most people.

The look of total confusion on their face when they take a ride in my Y is priceless. Their brain can't process it, like an animal realizing their reflection is them for the first time.

AMIRZA786

Well there you go. You are best advertisement and you just saved Tesla some money they didn't have to spend on marketing