Drove A Tesla Today

[OCL]

I don't get the Elon hate. Yes he's weird and eccentric but aren't they all? This man is responsible for driving his companies and his people to take sectors of our industry to new heights. Tesla is forcing companies like Ford to change the way they build cars and be more efficient AND keep their prices affordable for the common man and woman. They're so efficient they can build their electric cars, price them low, and make a profit while Ford and GM are charging us $60k-$150k for theirs. That goes for Rivian too. Thanks to Tesla, which is not all about Elon, we can afford these new electric cars, change the purchasing process and eliminate the middleman, without compromising on performance. And they're made in the USA! Batteries included. Look up who makes batteries from the "domestic" automakers. I don't own a Tesla. But I respect what they've done and understand why so many people own them. Drop the politics and the hate. Instead, appreciate!

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[AzScorpion]

I don't get the Elon hate. Yes he's weird and eccentric but aren't they all? This man is responsible for driving his companies and his people to take sectors of our industry to new heights. Tesla is forcing companies like Ford to change the way they build cars and be more efficient AND keep their prices affordable for the common man and woman. They're so efficient they can build their electric cars, price them low, and make a profit while Ford and GM are charging us $60k-$150k for theirs. That goes for Rivian too. Thanks to Tesla, which is not all about Elon, we can afford these new electric cars, change the purchasing process and eliminate the middleman, without compromising on performance. And they're made in the USA! Batteries included. Look up who makes batteries from the "domestic" automakers. I don't own a Tesla. But I respect what they've done and understand why so many people own them. Drop the politics and the hate. Instead, appreciate!

Well Said!

 

[got3fords]

Well Said!

Ditto.

 

[got3fords]

I don't get the Elon hate. Yes he's weird and eccentric but aren't they all? This man is responsible for driving his companies and his people to take sectors of our industry to new heights. Tesla is forcing companies like Ford to change the way they build cars and be more efficient AND keep their prices affordable for the common man and woman. They're so efficient they can build their electric cars, price them low, and make a profit while Ford and GM are charging us $60k-$150k for theirs. That goes for Rivian too. Thanks to Tesla, which is not all about Elon, we can afford these new electric cars, change the purchasing process and eliminate the middleman, without compromising on performance. And they're made in the USA! Batteries included. Look up who makes batteries from the "domestic" automakers. I don't own a Tesla. But I respect what they've done and understand why so many people own them. Drop the politics and the hate. Instead, appreciate!

One of the PhD's I work with is extreme like that. He was so proud to be saving the planet with his Tesla. Then came DOGE. Before you could bat an eye he got rid of the Tesla and replaced it with Mustang Mac E.

 

[veedubtuner]

Yeah we rarely go there but the one near us isn't as bad as most of the others I've been too. Mostly because the area I'm in is 55+ and the other city nearby is my family oriented but there's a lot of Hispanics there and I've yet to see a purple/green haired one wearing ear stretches, piercings and inked from head to toe.

Looks like his BB gun jammed and blew up in his face lol.

 

[veedubtuner]

If you're worried about long trips and charging @AzScorpion you could always opt for the portable charger .

 

[awd.nv]

They are really good about just throwing you the keys (so to speak as there are no keys) and letting you take it alone. The salesman said Tesla doesn't want their salesman out on the road for long and to let the customer drive what they want. They had a Cybertruck out front but I had no interest in even driving that tank. lol

Battery replacement is always a concern and I read somewhere it's around $15K depending on size, capacity etc. I'm sure that'll get cheaper as time goes on but a new engine & transmission is going to be close to that.

Yeah, I think they figure the cars can drive themselves back, I bet there is some dealer mode they can do if someone tried to be dumb enough to steal it. I guess they also figure the battery last only so long lol

Ya know, one thing I would like to know, as now in the summer I am seeing this more and more, Tesla pulled off to the side of the road. I am guessing they just ran out of battery due to not charging them but curious.

 

[AzScorpion]

Yeah, I think they figure the cars can drive themselves back, I bet there is some dealer mode they can do if someone tried to be dumb enough to steal it. I guess they also figure the battery last only so long lol

Ya know, one thing I would like to know, as now in the summer I am seeing this more and more, Tesla pulled off to the side of the road. I am guessing they just ran out of battery due to not charging them but curious.

There's a lot of them where I am and I haven't seen any pulled off the road, ever. Every day I see ICE vehicles all over the I-19 pulled off with issues though. My guess would be poor planning on the charging but you'd really have to be stupid (Ok we know that's common now ) with of that large 16" screen right on front of your face. Also I'm sure there's some warnings like we have when you're getting low.

As far as someone trying to steal it the dealer can see the vehicle from their phone, it's almost like looking at a satellite view on google maps. They can see your whole route and I'm sure they can disable it from there. Also when you're out driving it alone it doesn't have the keycard so you can drive it but once you stop and get out it automatically disables the vehicle. It's called "sharing" mode or something like that.

 

[got3fords]

As far as someone trying to steal it the dealer can see the vehicle from their phone, it's almost like looking at a satellite view on google maps. They can see your whole route and I'm sure they can disable it from there. Also when you're out driving it alone it doesn't have the keycard so you can drive it but once you stop and get out it automatically disables the vehicle. It's called "sharing" mode or something like that.

If you can summons the Tesla to come where you are, why will it force you to drive manually in certain cases, like when you are distracted with your Big Mac?

 

[OCL]

I live in Southern Cali and Teslas are a dime a dozen. Sometimes I'd pull up to an intersection and there would be 3-4 white Teslas sitting at the light. At first I thought there's a lot of rich folks where I live. I had to look it up and was surprised how affordable they are new and used, especially when compared to pick up trucks and SUV's. Under $30k is very real. When a loaded Honda Civic is pushing $30k or sometimes over, that's something. A week ago an electric car caught fire at the local Target store. Everyone assumed online that it was a Tesla. Turned out to be a Kia electric car. Remember when the Chevy Bolts where catching fire and Chevy had to do a recall?

One of my co-workers is an Engineer. Very anti-Elon. Well he just bought a Tesla two weeks ago. I asked him why? He said they're just really good cars and he loves its capabilities and features, and he doesn't care Elon owns the company. He cares about the car's performance and value. Value...never thought I'd hear that word associated with Tesla.

 

[Jason B]

The new EVs being made in China can charge in the same time period as it takes to fill a vehicle with gas. They're building enormous amounts of nuclear power plants to handle the tremendous loads and make charging much cheaper then fossil fuel. Something going green here in the US will never support.

In the US, it takes 10 to 15 years to build ab NPP. Most of that is just getting thru planning and regulatory requirements.
WE, meaning the US NEED more NPP, not just for EVs, but data centers coming online.
I'm no longer opposed to an EV, there's been considerable improvements in the last decade.
Unfortunately, I don't have a place to install a home charger, (no garage).

 

[dtech]

I live in Southern Cali and Teslas are a dime a dozen. Sometimes I'd pull up to an intersection and there would be 3-4 white Teslas sitting at the light. At first I thought there's a lot of rich folks where I live. I had to look it up and was surprised how affordable they are new and used, especially when compared to pick up trucks and SUV's. Under $30k is very real. When a loaded Honda Civic is pushing $30k or sometimes over, that's something. A week ago an electric car caught fire at the local Target store. Everyone assumed online that it was a Tesla. Turned out to be a Kia electric car. Remember when the Chevy Volts where catching fire and Chevy had to do a recall?

One of my co-workers is an Engineer. Very anti-Elon. Well he just bought a Tesla two weeks ago. I asked him why? He said they're just really good cars and he loves its capabilities and features, and he doesn't care Elon owns the company. He cares about the car's performance and value. Value...never thought I'd hear that word associated with Tesla.

You bring up some good points regards cost and somewhere in the thread someone mentioned they were opposed to EVs because of gov subsidies that favored the wealthy ( who would think the wealthy ever get preferential treatment) but IIRC correctly the subsidies were largely in the form of credits applied to tax obligations - a one time event and high income earners were excluded. the reality is whether you agree or disagree the US gov subsidizes a lot of things - most recently Trump's child savings accounts, agriculture, most all forms of energy ncluding oil , mortgage guarantees, milk, space expeditions, rural electrification and so on. But I think the concept of outlawing the sale of ICE vehicles reeked of gov overreach and turned a lot of people against EVs.
But when you have a former EV antagonist considering buying one - my goodness Mark Twain couldn't have stated it better - rumors of EVs demise have been exaggerated - perhaps greatly.

 

[Dr_Strangelove]

We are going through the "heat dome" here in Vegas and both vehicles are running great. But it's only in the EV that my son will complain about being cold. The climate control in that vehicle is the most powerful in any I've ever owned.

 

[AzScorpion]

You bring up some good points regards cost and somewhere in the thread someone mentioned they were opposed to EVs because of gov subsidies that favored the wealthy ( who would think the wealthy ever get preferential treatment) but IIRC correctly the subsidies were largely in the form of credits applied to tax obligations - a one time event and high income earners were excluded. the reality is whether you agree or disagree the US gov subsidizes a lot of things - most recently Trump's child savings accounts, agriculture, most all forms of energy ncluding oil , mortgage guarantees, milk, space expeditions, rural electrification and so on. But I think the concept of outlawing the sale of ICE vehicles reeked of gov overreach and turned a lot of people against EVs.
But when you have a former EV antagonist considering buying one - my goodness Mark Twain couldn't have stated it better - rumors of EVs demise have been exaggerated - perhaps greatly.

Well, admitting you were wrong (me) is half the battle. I mean if you read it online it must be true, right? lol

It's kind of why I wanted to share my experience of finally driving one and seeing the pros & cons for myself. They are different (some good and some bad) but now I can see why some like them and it's not just for the power alone. If you're into tech these will blow you away!

Yes the subsidies are in the form of tax credits so you need to be able to utilize them or they're of no benefit. When I bought my solar I still had my business and it was easy from because I could just skip a couple of quarterly payments and fulfill it right there in one year. It does favor the middle class and wealthy because anyone below that will never be able to take advantage of them. But then again anyone below that wouldn't be able to afford one and most of them don't pay any taxes at all.

The future is coming whether we like it or not and touch screens and no controls are going to be part of it. I still don't see EVs taking over 100% for many years mostly because of our archaic power grid across the country. Like what was said above we really need to start investing in NPP. We have one here (Palo Verde) which covers 3-4 states and keeps our grid up with ease during these brutal summers.

 

[veedubtuner]

But then again anyone below that wouldn't be able to afford one and most of them don't pay any taxes at all.

Sure they can. Just get on TikTokyfacespace and make a post about such and such company shutting of your vehicle for missing one payment, rack up millions of views/retweets/hashgrams and boom, your ride is paid for. #easymoney

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