5 ms·

Brilliant marketing: 1. get people worried about something they previously didn't care about; 2. as a solution, add a new part to the car that will need frequ

by crdb 10y ago

Brilliant marketing: 1. get people worried about something they previously didn't care about; 2. as a solution, add a new part to the car that will need frequent replacement and maintenance, thereby increasing the CLV.

gcb0 10y ago
I can't wait for the model 3. it will have a bear attack prevention rock as standard equipment!
- cowholio4 10y ago
  At least that would be more practical!
- tajen 10y ago
  Indeed. I see people complaint that this is marketing. It exactly is. Just like Steve Jobs and his jewel-style boxes. Some people enjoy paying for a good show. The biodefense is straight out from a Tarantino style: When you exaggerate enough that you can't possibly be taken seriously, but the audience starts discussing whether that's credible or not. There is a strange expectation that you can't have a good laugh about your products if they are not otherwise perfect. I'm not a sociologist, but something tell me that when the discussion shifts on non-essential elements like the HEPA filter, people assume the rest of the car just works. I'm asthmatic and I've been told people in a car are more exposed to polluants than cyclists. Should I consider a Tesla ;)?
  - Klathmon 10y ago
    It is kind of silly all the arguing here. I'm half expecting a study to hit the front page tomorrow that tries to see if the "ludicrous mode" is actually "ludicrous"...
  - gcb0 10y ago
    maybe, but you will be losing the Toyota radio that goes up to eleven. in all seriousness, just buy any car and install the optional hepa filter. no American car install them by default, saving them some $0.50 in production costs. but you can then buy the filters for $10 and install yourself in under two hours. you can even add the active carbon polymer sheet to prevent outside smell.
- Natsu 10y ago
  Knowing Tesla, said bear attack prevention rock would be ferromagnetic and thus it would get launched from a small mass driver, causing it to hit the bear's head at Mach 3.
onion2k 10y ago
3. Get the car featured in every zombie/terrorist/zombie terrorist movie made from now on.
gambiting 10y ago
I don't think that's completely true. I come from the Polish Silesia region which is full of heavy industry, and in my absolutely normal car I had to replace the cabin air filter every 6 months - it was just black with soot. Now I live in the UK and in my car here I've had the same filter for 2 years now and it's almost brand new - the difference in air pollution is massive and is definitely something I care about. And your comment reminds me of the discussions about DPF(diesel particulate filters) - they are installed in diesel cars to reduce the soot emissions, but of course, instead of being happy, people complain that there is yet another part that can break down and which will need replacing("why can't cars be as simple as they were 10/20/30/40 years ago" - pick your own decade depending on the age of the person talking).
- forgetsusername 10y ago
  >the difference in air pollution is massive and is definitely something I care about. The one hour you spend in your car daily probably isn't going to mitigate what you're breathing in every day outside the car, if that's something you care about.
  - DanBC 10y ago
    In London the most polluted parts are the roads, and the pollution people get from "being in traffic" kills significant numbers of people each year. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/15/nearly-9500-people-die-each-year-in-london-because-of-air-pollution-study http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/15/nearly-95... > Nearly 9,500 people die early each year in London due to long-term exposure to air pollution, more than twice as many as previously thought, according to new research. > The premature deaths are due to two key pollutants, fine particulates known as PM2.5s and the toxic gas nitrogen dioxide (NO2), according to a study carried out by researchers at King’s College London. > The study – which was commissioned by the Greater London Authority and Transport for London – is believed to be the first by any city in the world to attempt to quantify how many people are being harmed by NO2. The gas is largely created by diesel cars, lorries and buses, and affects lung capacity and growth.
SideburnsOfDoom 10y ago
> 1. get people worried about something they previously didn't care about; If that's good or not depends on if the "something" is a real problem, right? So in this case .... https://www.google.com/search?q=human+cost+of+air+pollution https://www.google.com/search?q=human+cost+of+air+pollution
sundvor 10y ago
This is not exactly new. I replace the air filters in my Mazda and Subaru cars fairly regularly. The filters aren't cheap, either. Same for my Coway unit in our house.

by crdb 10y ago

gcb0 10y ago

I can't wait for the model 3. it will have a bear attack prevention rock as standard equipment!

cowholio4 10y ago
At least that would be more practical!
tajen 10y ago
Indeed. I see people complaint that this is marketing. It exactly is. Just like Steve Jobs and his jewel-style boxes. Some people enjoy paying for a good show. The biodefense is straight out from a Tarantino style: When you exaggerate enough that you can't possibly be taken seriously, but the audience starts discussing whether that's credible or not. There is a strange expectation that you can't have a good laugh about your products if they are not otherwise perfect. I'm not a sociologist, but something tell me that when the discussion shifts on non-essential elements like the HEPA filter, people assume the rest of the car just works. I'm asthmatic and I've been told people in a car are more exposed to polluants than cyclists. Should I consider a Tesla ;)?
- Klathmon 10y ago
  It is kind of silly all the arguing here. I'm half expecting a study to hit the front page tomorrow that tries to see if the "ludicrous mode" is actually "ludicrous"...
- gcb0 10y ago
  maybe, but you will be losing the Toyota radio that goes up to eleven. in all seriousness, just buy any car and install the optional hepa filter. no American car install them by default, saving them some $0.50 in production costs. but you can then buy the filters for $10 and install yourself in under two hours. you can even add the active carbon polymer sheet to prevent outside smell.
Natsu 10y ago
Knowing Tesla, said bear attack prevention rock would be ferromagnetic and thus it would get launched from a small mass driver, causing it to hit the bear's head at Mach 3.

onion2k 10y ago

3. Get the car featured in every zombie/terrorist/zombie terrorist movie made from now on.

gambiting 10y ago

I don't think that's completely true. I come from the Polish Silesia region which is full of heavy industry, and in my absolutely normal car I had to replace the cabin air filter every 6 months - it was just black with soot. Now I live in the UK and in my car here I've had the same filter for 2 years now and it's almost brand new - the difference in air pollution is massive and is definitely something I care about. And your comment reminds me of the discussions about DPF(diesel particulate filters) - they are installed in diesel cars to reduce the soot emissions, but of course, instead of being happy, people complain that there is yet another part that can break down and which will need replacing("why can't cars be as simple as they were 10/20/30/40 years ago" - pick your own decade depending on the age of the person talking).

forgetsusername 10y ago
>the difference in air pollution is massive and is definitely something I care about. The one hour you spend in your car daily probably isn't going to mitigate what you're breathing in every day outside the car, if that's something you care about.
- DanBC 10y ago
  In London the most polluted parts are the roads, and the pollution people get from "being in traffic" kills significant numbers of people each year. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/15/nearly-9500-people-die-each-year-in-london-because-of-air-pollution-study http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/15/nearly-95... > Nearly 9,500 people die early each year in London due to long-term exposure to air pollution, more than twice as many as previously thought, according to new research. > The premature deaths are due to two key pollutants, fine particulates known as PM2.5s and the toxic gas nitrogen dioxide (NO2), according to a study carried out by researchers at King’s College London. > The study – which was commissioned by the Greater London Authority and Transport for London – is believed to be the first by any city in the world to attempt to quantify how many people are being harmed by NO2. The gas is largely created by diesel cars, lorries and buses, and affects lung capacity and growth.

SideburnsOfDoom 10y ago

> 1. get people worried about something they previously didn't care about; If that's good or not depends on if the "something" is a real problem, right? So in this case .... https://www.google.com/search?q=human+cost+of+air+pollution https://www.google.com/search?q=human+cost+of+air+pollution

sundvor 10y ago

This is not exactly new. I replace the air filters in my Mazda and Subaru cars fairly regularly. The filters aren't cheap, either. Same for my Coway unit in our house.