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The car industry is focused on selling the 2019 model, not the 2040 model. Exploring future technologies is cool, and almost certainly a wise move for the long
by Turing_Machine 9y ago
The car industry is focused on selling the 2019 model, not the 2040 model.
Exploring future technologies is cool, and almost certainly a wise move for the long term.
That doesn't alter the fact that they're still going to need to have a new gasoline-powered model for next fall.
- kjksf 9y agoTesla has been selling Model S since 2012, Model X since 2015 and Model 3 since late 2017. Mazda could have been selling a kick-ass electric model of Mazda in 2019. And if they did it right, maybe they too would have 500k of pre-orders and the "problem" of not being able to build the cars fast enough. The question is: why are they investing in technology that is in inevitable decline vs. investing in the technology that will inevitably win? Now, I know why. A guy in charge of diesel engine development is at least a VP at Mazda. He doesn't want to fire his engineers. He doesn't want to fire himself. He has power and he will use every bit of it to downplay and delay inevitable. That's understandable from human psychology point of view but it's bad business. Innovator's dilemma is real and many companies failed to make the obvious investments in the future technology on time. See Kodak or BlackBerry. And when they finally did, it was too late. 5 years ago we could have an argument about diesel vs. electric. Today the future winner is clear.
- Turing_Machine 9y agoTesla has been selling expensive luxury cars to a niche market.
- nawitus 9y ago"The question is: why are they investing in technology that is in inevitable decline vs. investing in the technology that will inevitably win?" It can be profitable to invest in declining technology. Mazda almost by definition thinks it's profitable to still invest in ICEs. They can also invest in other drivetrains at the same time. The company can raise more money (assuming they can persuade investors).
- ams6110 9y ago> Mazda could have been selling a kick-ass electric model of Mazda in 2019. And I would not have purchased one, because no matter how great it was, the practical limitations of EVs make them a non-starter for me. I would be much more interested in a highly efficient ICE (assuming it is reliable, affordable, etc.)
- kjksf 9y agoIf that's a statement of your personal preferences, then there's no disagreement. You do you. If you claim that Mazda could not sell well made electric car then: * Tesla has 500 thousand pre-orders for Tesla 3 * Mazda sold 290 thousand cars in US + Mexico in 2017 (https://insidemazda.mazdausa.com/press-release/december-2017-sales/ https://insidemazda.mazdausa.com/press-release/december-2017...)
- petre 9y agoPre orders are not the same as cars sold. The preorder costs 1k and you can cancel it, while a new model 3 starts at 35k. The Mazda CX5 which accounts for 128k units sold in '17 costs $25 to 28k.
- imtringued 9y agoBatteries are too expensive. Every car maker is waiting for them to come down in price. This limitation applies to every car company that doesn't produce expensive luxury cars. I can guarantee you that as soon as batteries are affordable enough these companies are going to switch to EVs instantly.
- lafar6502 9y agoWell they run a business and you just use your time to generate random comments. Why would I believe a bunch of stinky gasoline-drinking engineers?