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Comment by tcdent | Hacker News Reader

Nobody here seems to remember that this was always the plan: release expensive cars to bootstrap the company which allows them to release progressively cheaper cars until everyone can afford one.

Not a fanboy, but this seems like it went exactly according to plan.

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Nowhere in that plan was "only produce cheap cars." Unless you're aim is to be the budget brand, it's bizarre behaviour not to have a top end flagship model.

Which phase of the plan talks about repurposing the cheap car factory to make humanoid robots?

Where exactly are those cheaper cars? Still waiting for a 30k model 3 like promised.

Elon got distracted and decided we want humanoid robots.

You already have it. Musk's earliest promise of a $30k price point appears to be an interview in September 2009: https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2009/09/25/teslas-elon-musk-on-...

Adjusted for inflation, $30k then is around $45k now. Tesla sells a Model 3 for just over $35k.

It doesn't make any sense to hold someone to a promise like that and not adjust it for inflation. I think you can legitimately complain that he didn't meet the timeline he was aiming for.

I think your point is fair, but look at the 2026 Nissan Leaf.

The base is around $28k. This feels like one of the first "affordable" EVs in the USA. It also comes with decent tech without a subscription, and has comparable ranges to Teslas.

https://www.caranddriver.com/nissan/leaf

Meanwhile folks are waiting (no, not really) for their $35K Cybertruck...

Buy it used?

Yes. It's interesting to see a consequence of this strategy, which is at least some part of your model 3/Y customers bought it because "it is a Tesla", and being Tesla is premium. If you get rid of the premium, you lose that aura. But maybe the impact is small.

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