Tesla’s Price Cuts Are Roiling the Car Market | Hacker News Reader

Tesla’s Price Cuts Are Roiling the Car Market

wsj.com

10 pointsbelltaco16 comments

I had an itch for the Model Y. Rented a 2022 Model Y from hertz.

In short the built quality is horrendous, at 16k miles there were so many rattles and squeaks. Acceleration is amazing. The suspension is equivalent to a track toy that bounces on every bump. Tesla removed ultrasonic sensors in 2023. The autowipers are complete trash. The sound isolation is extremely poor. Driving the car gave me a headache.

So, I won't be buying it. I can't believe how harsh the suspension is. Also, the cabin is really dark at night, as there is 0 mood lighting.

>> Also, the cabin is really dark at night, as there is 0 mood lighting.

Are you referring to while you're driving? Or when you're parked, and cabin lights come on?

If anything, darkness in the cabin seems like a large benefit to me at night. I've driven some cars that have obnoxiously bright blue LEDs on buttons which end up being distracting at night.

I refer to cabin when driving. I like soft mood lighting. I dislike that I could barely see the steering wheel at night, as there is no gauges behind the wheel. Maybe I would get used to it, not sure.

Not sure I see a benefit to seeing the steering wheel, personally. The two scroll wheels for media controls are lit... so otherwise there shouldn't really be anything missing. I'd be concerned extra light affecting night vision, as well. Anything to make the cabin dimmer while actually driving aids that.

I prefer the red cookpit style lighting Audi used to have. Doesn't interfere yet still gives enough light to find switches etc.

There's your problem, no switches to find in a tesla

Aren't they just back to prices 2-3 years ago?

Also, do people really think that cutting profit margins is bullish for Tesla?

If prices stay the same after years, it means price is going down overall due to inflation (even when inflation is lower, it's still 2-3% usually). So, although prices are just going back down to 'normal', they're lower.

Also, this is after basically every single other EV manufacturer has raised prices significantly citing profitability issues. Given Tesla's margins, they can afford to drop their prices and still maintain margins that are positive (possibly, significantly positive).

I'd say it's bullish. Anecdotally, everyone in my circle basically had written off Tesla because of Musk's antics plus the cars seemed to be pricing evenly (or slightly above) to other EVs on the market. However, after the price drops, I'm seeing a LOT of people saying they've reconsidered since the deal is so good compared to other EVs.

$39,000 when introduced March 2019

$51,200 in January 2021

$65,990 in June 2022

$52,990 today

https://jalopnik.com/a-tesla-model-y-will-now-cost-you-over-...

https://www.carsdirect.com/deals-articles/tesla-price-increa...

Wasn't there huge government subsidies when it was introduced which is now gone skewing those prices?

There was originally a $7,500 federal tax credit available. Tesla's eligibility for the that tax credit was cut in half at the start of 2019 and fully ended at the start of 2020, so anyone buying in 2020 or later would have paid the sticker price, unless they benefitted from state-level tax credits.

I think the Model Y qualifies for the new tax credit that just took effect, though there's an income limit and other restrictions.

I’m glad they are cutting prices. I own a model 3 and am quite happy with it. However when people have asked me if i recommend it, I’ve said “not at the current price”.

When I bought mine, I think my net cost including CA sales tax was ~38k. Considering how much less this was than a mildly optioned C class or ES or 3 series, I went with it despite not being in the market for an electric car.

It is fine and reliable but the fit and finish is below the luxury car makers, so when Model 3s started costing 50k it was hard to see the value.

The sub-headline sums it up pretty well: "The EV maker’s sudden move pressures rivals, crimps used-Tesla values"

The window for startup entrants is closing, and closes a bit faster now. It was always monumentally hard to get into making vehicles. You can't overstate the accomplishment of turning Tesla into a viable car maker. I expect some of them to fold this year. Maybe Rivian survives because they make a unique product for one customer.

Ford and GN are probably in good shape if they continue to execute well. Ford might have to roll back their F150 Lightning price increases a bit, but that product has no direct competition.

What's ridiculous is that $TSLA is up on the news of price cuts that cut margins. That's the core issue. At best it means Tesla overshot previous price increases.

https://archive.md/ZL0As

I was able to view this article as a non-subscriber, not sure why though.

Let me know when they're the same price as a corolla

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