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Tesla Model 3 Is Replacing Toyota Prius as Green Car of Choice
- blacksmith_tb 8y agoHmm, this seems like an apples to oranges comparison. EV customers are not hybrid customers (even PHEV models like the Prius Prime - full disclosure, I drive a Prime). It's odd to see Forbes claiming people bought Teslas instead of Primes - they're not very similar... It would be more relevant to compare Model 3 sales to the Nissan Leaf[1] and Chevy Bolt[2]. 1: https://www.forbes.com/sites/sebastianblanco/2018/01/09/nissan-leaf-300000-sales-global/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/sebastianblanco/2018/01/09/niss... 2: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/gm-sells-more-than-20000-chevy-bolts-in-2017-2018-01-03 https://www.marketwatch.com/story/gm-sells-more-than-20000-c...
- stcredzero 8y agoHmm, this seems like an apples to oranges comparison. EV customers are not hybrid customers Citation? I'm considering both an EV and a hybrid for my next car.
- blacksmith_tb 8y agoYou are hereby allowed to buy whatever car you'd like to! What that suggests (and what Forbes doesn't quite seem to be getting at) is that more people are buying EVs in general - they make a lot of sense for in-town / commuting use.
- outworlder 8y ago> they make a lot of sense for in-town / commuting use. And a lot of sense for a bunch of other things. These are higher end Model 3's, they have a pretty decent range.
- blacksmith_tb 8y agoYes, clearly the Teslas are standout EVs (but at standout prices). The steady sales of the Leaf and Bolt suggest to me that more people are inclined to choose them as budget EVs with "good enough" range.
- newfocogi 8y agoThe author supports the title of the article based on the Tesla Q2 report that the Prius has been the most common trade-in for the model 3. When I drive daily in a sea of Prii (pl. of Prius), and I get excited when I see a few model 3's a week, I feel like it's too early to make that strong of a statement.
- gnicholas 8y agoExactly — the fact that people who buy a Tesla Model 3 are likely to be trading in a Prius doesn't mean the Model 3 is "replacing" the Prius. It means the Model 3 targets a subset of customers of the Prius and is substantially more expensive (which is why people are trading in). I live near Palo Alto and see lots of Teslas and Prii. The Teslas might be more common in parking lots along Sand Hill Road, but Prii are more common pretty much everywhere else. Based on the evidence cited, a better conclusion would be: Tesla Model 3 is Replacing The Prius Among Wealthy Buyers.
- rconti 8y agoSure, but the Prius has been out for almost 2 decades. It's a lame almost-clickbait, almost contentless article, but it's not an unreasonable conclusion. The 3 is already EVERYWHERE in the bay area, it's by far the most common car I've ever owned, and in very short order it'll be more common than the S, which has been out for, what, 6 years now? Just last night I had another 3 immediately in front of me and an S immediately behind.
- artursapek 8y agoIt's an analysis of a trend, with admittedly a small sample size thus far. But it's a trend nonetheless. Prii have been produced for decades; the 3 for maybe a year?
- Finnucane 8y ago>When I drive daily in a sea of Prii (pl. of Prius) Man, in Latin, prius isn't even a noun.
- labster 8y ago
- mmanfrin 8y agoAnecdotal, but: my hometown of Orinda is a good bellweather; when the Prius first came out, the small downtown area felt like 1/3rd of the cars were Prii. In the past couple years, every time I visit I see many, many Teslas. It's an affluent but liberal town in the Bay Area, a lot of people who buy in to green-but-luxury brands.
- dmode 8y agoI live in Fremont and my neighborhood has 3 Model 3s between 10 neighbors.
- clankfan 8y agoHello from Lafayette.
- rconti 8y agoIn some ways it's far more impressive that the Prius is as ubiquitous in the Bay Area as it is. People who would never buy a Corolla flocked to it. The 3 is also a generic transportation appliance, but it's a much nicer one.
- mmanfrin 8y agoWatching traffic in downtown SF is a game of seeing if the total sum of non-Prius cars outnumber the Priuses or not.
- notjustanymike 8y agoThe last time Forbes was a credible news source was when the Prius was just coming out.
- TAForObvReasons 8y agoit's interesting how a discussion about the SEC possibly investigating Musk and Tesla over Twitter comments was flagged by HN moderators and this blog post presenting a rosy view of Tesla showed up in its wake
- DmenshunlAnlsis 8y agoAs far as I can tell there are just two moderators, and this is a big website. Is it possible that they’re just focusing on what gets the most flags and not scouring every post? Maybe the pro-Tesla people flag articles critical of the brand in a way that gets moderator attention more than everyone else flags a post like this? It seems more likely to me than any other explanation.
- TAForObvReasons 8y agoSo HN already has certain voting ring detectors -- shouldn't the moderators be able to detect the pro-tesla/pro-musk voting ring?
- DmenshunlAnlsis 8y agoI don't know anything about that, but if it’s not coordinated behavior then why would it run afoul of a detector? Maybe Muskies are just way more easily angered than everyone else, so their actions coordinate, but they’re doing it spontaneously? I could be wrong, I just doubt that this adds up to more than the moderators being overworked and overwhelmed.
- PhantomGremlin 8y agoIt's not really "Forbes". The article was written by a "Forbes Contributor", which is an unpaid blogger. I elaborate here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17728614 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17728614 I agree with you, back in the "good old days" Forbes was a respectable publication. Not any more.
- rocky1138 8y agoI'd love to trade in the Prius to get a Tesla but there's no way in hell I'm doing that when they are so expensive. You can get a used Prius for about CAD$14,000. Maybe in another 5 or 6 years.
- whataboutism 8y agoYou can get a pre-owned Model S right now for $43,600 Source: https://ev-cpo.com/hunter/ https://ev-cpo.com/hunter/
- mikestew 8y agoSo only about three times the quoted CAD$14K of a used Prius? What about used Tesla Model S's, again?
- BlackjackCF 8y agoThis is exactly how I feel. I've owned my Prius for 4 years at this point and I love it. I think I'm just going to ride it until it dies. Then I'll consider getting a Tesla.
- rlglwx 8y agoWhat everyone is overlooking is that of course the Prius would be a top trade-in how many have been produced in the last 20 years? It's like saying that the CAR X is the new Camry, because the number one trade-in is the Camry. The Camry being the best selling passenger car for the last 25 years... What's number two on the list? The BMW 3 Series, which is way more in line with what you'd expect and certainly not a "green car" by any stretch of the imagination.
- brightball 8y agoStill don't understand why anyone would get either option over a Volt, from a purely "green" standpoint. I absolutely get the appeal of Tesla from a quality and technology standpoint though.
- Jeremy1026 8y agoTelsa over Volt is easy for me, no carrying around a gas engine that I don't need. I actually don't even have a Tesla, but I do drive an all electric. I didn't want to carry around added weight in an ICE engine and have more room for batteries.
- brightball 8y agoNot sure why. Not having range anxiety is great. I’ve had mine for 2 years and I’m getting 124mpg over the lifetime.
- cptskippy 8y agoSome people don't think highly of American automakers, Chevy in particular, so for them it's not even an option. I don't think I would every personally buy one.
- h4b4n3r0 8y agoDidn't even read the article: calling BS. Model 3 is easily twice as expensive. It is a better car by all accounts, but the steep price differential will make it safe from becoming the "green car of choice".
- cryptozeus 8y agoLol exactly my thought...they are not even in one price range. No one is thinking of buying prius or tesla
- woodandsteel 8y agoWhat is much more important is the Model 3 replacing pure ICE cars, that is the real revolution.
- dingaling 8y agoThat is what hybrids have been doing for 20 years.
- smsm42 8y agoTesla 3 costs (at least) twice of the Prius, doesn't it? Are we talking about multimillionaires with zero sensitivity to price, of is $25K in California now considered pocket change not worth mentioning? If not, I don't see how that could be true.