Impressive, but they are going to need to dramatically increase that number to if they wish to compete when the big car companies wake up.
"UBS says Audi's new electric car shows industry has a long way to go to catch Tesla"
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/18/ubs-says-audis-disappointing...
I have a 3, it is a great car, but it is also proof of how far EVs have to go before they can be the only car for many families. I think an EV is a great second car for all families. If you don't make any long trips then an EV might suffice. I did a long trip recently but I had the luxury to stop for the thirty-fifty minutes needed to get sufficient charge for my next stop or destination travel.
It always seems like it should be easy for legacy companies to stamp out disrupters but it almost never works out like that. It is very hard to refocus giant companies.
This is a big disincentive for bmw, etc (ice makers), in kind of the way that the web was a challenge to windows dominance - if microsoft supported the web too well in a standards compliance way, it would hurt their future prospects. There wouldn't be a viable ev market with customer pressure without tesla.
Sure your existing car companies are better right now at physically building the conventional parts of a car, but the most expensive part of an electric car is the batteries. Tesla's partnership with Panasonic (Gigafactory) is their true advantage over all the other manufacturers, since they have a reliable source for large quantities of batteries. The rest of car companies are fighting for supply from LG Chem.
Meanwhile all other EVs are nothing more than commuter cars. Maybe suitable for day-trips if you're really lucky.
Tesla also acknowledges that you need these high-speed charging stations conveniently located along the highway. Not in the middle of town, and certainly not in the parking lot of a store you'd never spend more than 10 minutes at.
Part of the VW "Dieselgate" settlement requires VW to invest $2BB in charger infrastructure.
Installing chargers is not rocket science, nor a huge advantage.
I grab the appropriate card of the two (Blink and ChargePoint) in the console, tap it, sorted.
But you don't have the super charger network which might be a deal breaker.
In seven years of Nissan Leaf ownership, I’d bet i could count the number of times I’ve used a public charger on both hands. Electric’s aren’t like ICE where you’re always looking for a place to fill up. You fill up at home, like civilized people do. Super charger is nice, but I personally wouldn’t factor it in.
Until there is a widespread, standard high speed charging network available, Tesla is basically the only choice for an EV that can do road trips.
Really? Unless you do road trips every week, you'd be way better off buying the Bolt or Leaf and then renting an ICE for whenever you go on a road trip.
Maybe if I replace my minivan with an EV minivan I would care.
Also it is good to hear that it only takes about two cards for charging. It is something that you think about but can't really test how it would work with your driving until you do it.
Do drive through Canada, or is it too much hassle?
(I live in Europe; within most of the EU a national border is irrelevant to planning a route – there is no check, just a blue sign "Welcome to XYZ". When I visited Quebec, I couldn't drive with the rental car to the USA, so I never saw the border.)
Then you'll understand the value of a fast charging network like Tesla has.
I understand the value just fine. And for me, it's not very high; certainly not high enough to pay more than double for the car (had Model S's even existed when the Leaf was purchased).
No wonder Tesla-related threads on HN are such high value.
Next up: guy complaining that electric cars will never succeed because he lives in an apartment and can't currently charge at home.
I can’t begin to imagine the mental confusion necessary to lead you to that conclusion. To be clear, no, that’s not what I said at all.
The startup would install the charger and split the fee with the homeowner.
Anyone want to work on that with me? Or feel free to critique. It’s sort of like air bnb for car charging.
Who is going to spend 10k to get a charger in their driveway strangers can stop by and pay you $20 to use?
Uber works because people already own the car. Even EV people don’t already own a supercharger, they have a much simpler one.
My road trip to the beach would take 4 hours more in a Tesla than a ICE. That time would be waiting at rest stops along the way...
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/sep/27/south-aus...
Batteries are going to be an issue
This is ignorant and downplays the companies that have existed for decades.
Tesla isnt profitable, the rest of the auto companies are profitable.
These auto companies have already developed electric vehicles(see Bolt and Leaf) but demand doesnt cause them to produce Tesla amounts of electric vehicles. If they saw an increase in demand, they will use their billion dollar infrastructure to continue to produce vehicles.
To think there is any 'struggling to keep up' with Tesla for automotive is an ignorance of the automotive industry. Tesla is trying to survive, the established players are developing their own new technology.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/18/ubs-says-audis-disappointing...
Its not as easy as they thought.
They used to have Best In Class interiors which gave them a boost in the luxury markets, but they are average in 2018.
If tomorrow Ford/Chevy/Toyota announces a model 3 like car for 2020 release with something close to the 3's specs, Tesla is dead unless they can pull a rabbit out of their hat. Tesla can do what- 350k to 400k cars a year based on current numbers? The big players can do that in weeks.
I think there is some merit to the point about batteries- Tesla has a supply chain in place for that while everyone else is going to be fighting on the open market (as far as I know).