5 ms·
There will come a time when Musk needs to step away from Tesla, but that day is not today. He's publicly mused about stepping away (SpaceX is his real fav), bu
by martythemaniak 9y ago
There will come a time when Musk needs to step away from Tesla, but that day is not today. He's publicly mused about stepping away (SpaceX is his real fav), but had his tenure renewed recently.
If all Tesla did was sell pretty good cars, they'd probably get crushed by the incumbents. Tesla, is selling way more than that - they're selling the idea of a brighter, better future. You're not just buying an EV, but you're helping climate change, you're reducing pollution, you'll be reducing human death and suffering and ending traffic jams and hey - it all comes in a exclusive, technologically-advanced, aesthetically pleasing package.
Now, some might object that this is largely a bunch of marketing/PR bullshit, and you will likely be technically correct, but would still miss the point. If people wanted a nice, efficient EV, they'd buy the Bolt, which by all accounts, is pretty damn good. But Tesla sells this "bullshit" because it's what people actually want to buy, and EVs happen to be the delivery vehicle. So as much as you might dislike this "bullshit", it's a core reason why Tesla even exists in 2018.
Where does Musk fit into this? He happens to be the personification of this idea today. In the popular mind he is "cool" so when you buy a Tesla, you're also implicitly buying part of this cool, much like buying an iPhone back in the day got you a part of Jobs' cool. Eventually Tesla will become it's own thing (as Apple is today) and outgrow Musk, but that's still years away.
OTOH, if you want to know what's actually going on at Tesla and what they need, this will probably give you the best idea out of any material on the internet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpCrkO1x-Qo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpCrkO1x-Qo
It's an in-depth interview with a guy who owns a consultancy which disassembles, analyses and sells reports on vehicles, both for manufacturers looking for research on their competitors and at improving their own products. His findings are extremely interesting - he's downright astounded at how incredible parts of the car are (battery, electronics) and thinks established companies should be quacking in their boots. OTOH, he thinks they've made a number of blunders in other parts, such as their production line design or parts of the car (for example, he thinks the body is 20-25% heavier than it needs to be, with parts that serve no discernable purpose)
- cm2187 9y agoI wonder how many people buy Teslas because they think it will save the planet vs because they think it has a lot of torque
- SlowRobotAhead 9y agoI wish these people understood that the aluminum in the Tesla is mined in Australia, sent to China, sent to Iceland, sent back to China, sent to the USA. Almost the same with the new process lithium they use. These cars will NEVER outpace their own footprint. But try explaining truth to people who just “want to believe”.
- skybrian 9y agoThat sounds bad but transport by ship is very cheap, even for long distances. I'd want to see the numbers.
- SlowRobotAhead 9y agoCheap, yea. But also extremely dirty. What is the mpg ona tanker using crude diesel again? Cool, now swing that tanker three or four times through Singapore.
- skybrian 9y agoOkay, but you have to divide by the entire cargo of the ship, which is quite enormous. So I still don't think it's something easy to estimate without doing the math.
- Spooky23 9y agoCargo ships are flagged in countries of convenience and don’t meet many standards. The top 15 biggest polluting ships produce more pollutants like sulfur oxide than all cars
- spectrum1234 9y agoIt's way better than anything else. Seriously.
- froindt 9y agoThe bunker fuel used by cargo ships is a byproduct of the refining process after they extract the higher quality fuels. The fuel has to go somewhere. We could bury it back in the ground because we don't want to burn it, but we need some fuel to power international trade. In terms of energy per ton mile, you can't really beat a cargo ship. Horribly long link from Google, pdf warning. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.springer.com/cda/content/document/cda_downloaddocument/9783319263731-c2.pdf%3FSGWID%3D0-0-45-1544977-p177784655&ved=2ahUKEwiU5Onq7czaAhVo9IMKHd0BBo8QFjAAegQICBAB&usg=AOvVaw0GcuHYmkT8p2s3ICJM5PDc https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://...
- dingdongding 9y agoAny TLDR version of this video?
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- tokipin 9y agoThis is a common misunderstanding in my opinion. People don't really care about the environment/climate change that much. People may think they do, but in practice the amount of people that would convert that sentiment to a purchase on a high-ticket item is probably a tiny niche, and not something you would build a business strategy around for something so capital intensive. The point of Tesla is to force electrification simply by making cars that are better than gas cars, because then the broader market does most of the remaining work. Tesla has always known that the whole environmentalism thing is insufficient and unnecessary. I think what throws people off is Tesla's stock price and brand. People who don't understand what can go into these assume it must be "hype and dreams," and they conclude that Tesla is popular because of marketing tricks.
- bewo001 9y agoThe brilliant stroke of Musk was to market the electric car to sports car buyers. They don't care about high cost, short range, and performance at sub zero temperatures.
- abledon 9y agoThis talk show is amazing. Thanks
- bsder 9y agoHe also thinks that the the suspension system is amazing and comments that anything having to do with the "skateboard" (floorboards, suspension, lower chassis) are absolutely phenomenally good. So, you have a car with highly advanced electronics that drives spectacularly well but has lousy fit and finish. That combination has produced a lot of very profitable cars over the years. Basically, the stuff that can be improved gradually got pushed down on the list while the core stuff is correct from start. https://youtu.be/CpCrkO1x-Qo?t=2176 https://youtu.be/CpCrkO1x-Qo?t=2176 "Anybody that's in the car industry that ignores this car is doing it at their own peril."