But the bottleneck to Teslas becoming popular enough to make a dent in the carbon emissions (however popular that is) is not the price, it's the production rate

But the bottleneck to Teslas becoming popular enough to make a dent in the carbon emissions (however popular that is) is not the price, it's the production rate. My guess is that, as with so many Silicon Valley ventures, their value is mainly determined by the amount of hype, ie. number of people who want Teslas, regardless of whether they will ever be able to produce enough to meet that demand. If they go for break-even between supply and demand they'll probably make more money, but they'll be worthless. It's perverse, but I think that's the reality they'll be facing.