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People are down voting you for some reason, but you're not wrong, but I also think the part about driving a sunk cost fallacy is not specific to Teslas. I know

People are down voting you for some reason, but you're not wrong, but I also think the part about driving a sunk cost fallacy is not specific to Teslas. I know probably at least seven people who bought expensive two-seat performance cars that run on premium fuel and use very expensive tires that wear out quickly, in addition to other costly maintenance items, and they absolutely are the definition of a sunk cost fallacy. The majority of the people I know with such cars that have found them to be expensive and impractical are unwilling or unable to sell them because they don't want to admit to themselves that buying the thing in the first place might have been a mistake. They all ended up buying another much more practical car (corolla, civic, etc) and using that for most daily purposes. My opinion is that this phenomenon can be seen with almost any very expensive status symbol car. Not just Teslas. Probably a $120k model S is a better example than a $35-45k model 3, but even so...

johnisgood 6y ago
Yeah I think the OP is right, I interpreted it to be the choice-supportive bias, which is pretty much a known bias: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choice-supportive_bias https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choice-supportive_bias. > Choice-supportive bias or post-purchase rationalization is the tendency to retroactively ascribe positive attributes to an option one has selected and/or to demote the forgone options.[1] It is part of cognitive science, and is a distinct cognitive bias that occurs once a decision is made. For example, if a person chooses option A instead of option B, they are likely to ignore or downplay the faults of option A while amplifying or ascribing new negative faults to option B. As you said, it is not limited to Teslas, of course.
jimmaswell 6y ago
I got an old Z31 for fun and ironically it has the same mileage as my daily driver Grand Cherokee (~14mpg). And I feel like all in all it's a cheaper and easier car to work on, smaller tires less electronics etc. I believe most modern sports cars get even better gas mileage than this so maybe my tolerance for gas cost is just outdated. What kind of sports cars did the people you know get? A Mustang shouldn't be that bad but some of the other brands can be ridiculous.
- walrus01 6y ago
  350z, 370z, RX8, people who put too much money into modifying a Miata, stuff like that. The RX8 owners were particularly unhappy after the engines all failed. If you really want to see some poor choices in automotive purchasing, talk to military officers who've seen their direct report E2/E3 go out and buy top specification Dodge Chargers at 25% interest on 72-84 month terms. It's a whole trope.
minhazm 6y ago
The Model 3 is priced comparable to a BMW 3 series. The only maintenance you have on them is tires, air filter, wipers, windshield washer fluid, and eventually brake pads. There’s no engine maintenance, no oil changes, no premium gas, no transmission issues, no timing belt, starter, ignition, etc. If you look at an actual cost of ownership comparison, the Model 3 actually compares favorably to even a Toyota Camry over 5 yrs of ownership. Even in expensive electricity places like CA it’s still way cheaper than gas. The up front cost is a bit higher, but long term it’s cheaper.

johnisgood 6y ago

Yeah I think the OP is right, I interpreted it to be the choice-supportive bias, which is pretty much a known bias: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choice-supportive_bias https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choice-supportive_bias. > Choice-supportive bias or post-purchase rationalization is the tendency to retroactively ascribe positive attributes to an option one has selected and/or to demote the forgone options.[1] It is part of cognitive science, and is a distinct cognitive bias that occurs once a decision is made. For example, if a person chooses option A instead of option B, they are likely to ignore or downplay the faults of option A while amplifying or ascribing new negative faults to option B. As you said, it is not limited to Teslas, of course.

jimmaswell 6y ago

I got an old Z31 for fun and ironically it has the same mileage as my daily driver Grand Cherokee (~14mpg). And I feel like all in all it's a cheaper and easier car to work on, smaller tires less electronics etc. I believe most modern sports cars get even better gas mileage than this so maybe my tolerance for gas cost is just outdated. What kind of sports cars did the people you know get? A Mustang shouldn't be that bad but some of the other brands can be ridiculous.

walrus01 6y ago
350z, 370z, RX8, people who put too much money into modifying a Miata, stuff like that. The RX8 owners were particularly unhappy after the engines all failed. If you really want to see some poor choices in automotive purchasing, talk to military officers who've seen their direct report E2/E3 go out and buy top specification Dodge Chargers at 25% interest on 72-84 month terms. It's a whole trope.

minhazm 6y ago

The Model 3 is priced comparable to a BMW 3 series. The only maintenance you have on them is tires, air filter, wipers, windshield washer fluid, and eventually brake pads. There’s no engine maintenance, no oil changes, no premium gas, no transmission issues, no timing belt, starter, ignition, etc. If you look at an actual cost of ownership comparison, the Model 3 actually compares favorably to even a Toyota Camry over 5 yrs of ownership. Even in expensive electricity places like CA it’s still way cheaper than gas. The up front cost is a bit higher, but long term it’s cheaper.