bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

understand, not saying you wrote the clickbait headline.

the tesla model designs still look great and current overall and they have made refresh changes to lights, front/rear, etc., but obviously not whole new body designs.

and i think tesla can definitely do significant new things without new body designs, in particular lighting and interior. and getting rid of the god awful yoke.

and manufacturers do entirely new models to 'obsolete themselves' to stay ahead of any competition. but so far, tesla doesn't have any significant competition in u.s. at least.

and i think they have a secret weapon they've not unleashed (because they haven't had to) - price. they're making good margins to fund the growth/scaling, but if necessary, i bet they could undercut their competition.

AMIRZA786

Got it 👍. Too your other point, refreshes have been enough to distinguish newer models from older ones. I can tell my brother in law's Model 3 is newer than his neighbors 2020, both being in new condition. Personally, other than incremental updates, I think the design is fine. I'm with you on the Yoke for the Model S/X/plaid

swajames

To the Australia point, the better example is closer to home. The two best selling vehicles in California, the largest market in the US, are the Model 3 and Y. The likes of the Camry, RAV4 and Civic sell fewer units despite being more affordable and traditionally very popular vehicles in their own right. It’s unusual for higher priced vehicles to be the volume leaders.

AMIRZA786

I think there is another way to look at this, my brother in law tells me that he believes that the money he will save over the next 5 years over buying a Camry Hybrid (or compared to his Avalon hybrid) is substantial. Since he took delivery of his Model 3 in November, he's spent roughly $30 a month to charge it. It's maint free for the next 100K, tires are going to be his biggest expense

jwong77

I'm really curious to see if this is true for our situation. When we had our RX350, spent very little on maintenance but spent roughly 400 a month on fuel. The fact that we have solar at home, has brought that number down alot, but we haven't been able to do the math yet as we are on a net metering plan and don't get our electric bill for a few more months. Fingers crossed that this works out positively for us.

AMIRZA786

In my case owning a Polestar, I've saved a substantial amount over the last year. My lease payment is $520 a month, but my expenditure on electricity has been roughly between $30 a month and $60 at the peak. My IS350 on the other hand (which was paid off) easily costed me $70 a week on fillup's....$80 to $100 at the height of summer when gas prices were up. This doesn't include maint, which was probably another $200 a year (oil and filter).

In my brother in laws case, his wife drives their Avalon Hybrid, which he tells me they spend nearly $300 a month on gas and another about $200 a year on maint. I'm only including fluid changes, I believe his Avalon is good on brakes due to regen braking prolonging the life of the brakes and rotors

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

I’d like to see that math, including vehicle (and charger install costs assuming that was needed). In my head I think no way with tesla sticker at $50,690 and a Camry hybrid at about $30k. 20k buys a whole lot of gas & most maintenance also included for first 3 years. Insurance should be cheaper on a less expensive car as well

AMIRZA786

I was comparing it to his Avalon Hybrid XLE, which I believe at the time he paid around $40K for. Realistically a Camry hybrid is going to be cheaper at half the price, and I don't think they are an apple to apples comparison. I was just quoting my brother in law. One thing I do want to mention is that my brother in law told me that he will be getting a $10K tax write off over the next 5 years, I don't know how that works, so you can realistically deduct that from the price of his Model 3. As far as chargers, here is the cost breakdown:

Tesla Charger: $400
Installation of 240v circuit and charger: $600

I can tell you that my Polestar at $520 a month lease (Charger: $450, 240v Circuit and charger installation: $400) comes out costing me around $300 a month, while my paid off 2013 Sienna comes out to $280 a month gas, and another $200 a year in maint, while my IS350 was $320 a month on gas, and $200 a year maint. My wife's 2020 Hyundai Ioniq EV is even cheaper, at $190 a month lease, and $30 a month in electricity costs

JDR76

Man, some people on here spend a lot of money on gas! I guess we don't drive that much. I don't spend $200 a month in gas for all three cars combined (unless we're taking a road trip)! I fill up the Tundra about every 3-4 weeks, the Highlander Hybrid once a month, and the GS about every 2-3 months.

AMIRZA786

Yeah, we still spend a ton on gas although we have two EV's. Neither my wife, my daughter or I work from home and a combined commute of over 30K a year. My son goes to college which is a combined 35 miles, and is right now driving the Ioniq EV, my wife is driving the Sienna, my daughter a 2006 Camry SE (3.3L V6) and I'm driving the Polestar. The only money we are saving right now is on driving the Polestar and Ioniq, a combined $60 to $70 a month

jwong77

You don't live in CA where gas was beyond 7 a gallon for a while. But even at the current 4-5 dollar levels, it still would have cost us more than 300 a month. Due to my wife's lead foot, our RX didn't average more than 17 MPG, so there is that too.

JDR76

You guys definitely do a lot of driving!

True, we topped over $6 a gallon, but even then it wasn't bad. We're at about $4 a gallon now. In my house, I'm the lead foot. My wife coasts...

AMIRZA786

That's the thing about both my brother in laws Tesla (M3 RWD, 271 HP) and my P2 (476 hp), we are both lead foots and yet the cost of electricity has not exceeded $60 in a month for both of us. My wife is not a lead foot at all, and her commute costs us nearly $400 a month. Thankfully my daughter pays for her own gas...although she borrows our Costco Visa so she can save money, and I get the points

AMIRZA786

Damn....

Tesla Passes BMW for US Luxury Sales Lead

January 12, 2023 • by ADT Staff

Tesla has climbed to the top of U.S. luxury vehicle sales for the first time, surging past BMW, according to Automotive News.

The Texas-based electric vehicle maker, the EV market leader, sold 158, 612 more units than its German rival last year, the publication estimated. Mercedes ranked third in the analysis, followed by Lexus, Audi, Cadillac, Acura and Volvo.

Tesla sold an estimated 491,000 vehicles here, up 44%, becoming the first American carmaker to top U.S. luxury sales in almost 25 years, Automotive News said.

The carmaker only launched in 2003, named after Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla. Elon Musk became its biggest shareholder the following year.

https://www.autodealertodaymagazine....ury-sales-lead

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news...22/ar-AA16eLNo

AMIRZA786