9 ms·

I wonder how much of the drop is just due to Elon's public persona in the past 2 years. He's really embraced the billionaire villain arc. In my personal bubble

I wonder how much of the drop is just due to Elon's public persona in the past 2 years. He's really embraced the billionaire villain arc. In my personal bubble of young friends who are right around the age to buy their first EVs, Teslas are kind of cringey to own just because of Elon. Which sucks because Teslas do provide some good value still, especially with the supercharging network.

newaccount74 4y ago
I cancelled my Model 3 order a few years ago because Elon was such a tool. I don't remember exactly what he did, but it was something where I thought, I don't want people to think of that when they see me in my car.
- rayiner 4y ago
  Sounds extremely petty and shallow.
  - ancientworldnow 4y ago
    Maybe they just didn't want to deal with the poor QC and exaggerated range figures and needed another excuse to push them over the edge.
    - adventured 4y ago
      That's not what the parent comment in question said or implied at all.
  - Salgat 4y ago
    Nothing wrong with voting with your dollars. Do you cringe at people who avoid Nestle products?
  - bdcravens 4y ago
    People boycott companies all the time for reasons unrelated to the product.
  - tptacek 4y ago
    Paying for a Tesla is an expressive act. It isn't a Ford Taurus or a Honda Civic; it's nobody's default car.
    - rayiner 4y ago
      So it was always shallow?
      - tptacek 4y ago
        Yes? We are talking about luxury automobiles. There is a component of practical utility in these things, but most of the dollars are allocated to something more akin to fashion, which is expressive. It doesn't make sense to call out a fashion decision as "petty". You could just wear a Dickie's janitor jumpsuit to work, but you don't: you pay some extra amount of money, expressively, to signal something different. I drive an ICE Audi. I like the car, and it's zippy and smooth and fun to drive, but I'm not going to pretend there isn't an huge element of fashion to it. If Audi decided to lean into Nazism, it wouldn't be petty of me to ditch the Audi, just like I wouldn't wear a Fred Perry shirt. If you think about it, the car you drive is one of the stronger social signals you send in American society.
- bdcravens 4y ago
  He wasn't the only reason, but I did the same (and got a Kia EV6 instead)
- sixQuarks 4y ago
  I hope you do this with every product, you should never use Amazon because they treat their workers bad, don’t use google for search because they gave up their “don’t be evil” tagline, and don’t use Apple products either because they use cobalt in their products
  - yongjik 4y ago
    Meh, a person has to pick their battles. If you think Amazon is a worse company than Tesla, by all means, boycott Amazon, and feel free to tell us why.
robswc 4y ago
I find the more "online" people are, the more "in-tune" they are with these things, for better or worse. Tesla just became one of the best selling cars in Europe (in Nov). The new Harry Potter game just became one of the highest selling games on steam (and its not even out). A lot of things that seem like a "big deal" online, don't even hit the radar of most people.
lordfrito 4y ago
The thing that always bothered me about Tesla fans was that it was less a car purchase for them and more about cultural capital and signaling to their extended peer group. The South Park episode about hybrid cars creating a "smug" problem comes to mind. I don't care who or what team designed my car, just that it's well designed and works. Now that Elon is suddenly "uncool" with the never-grew-up after highschool crowd, a significant number of people who bought Teslas suddenly feel cringe. It's fun to watch this kind of idiocy play out and come full circle. Play stupid games win stupid prizes. As if these fans really know who Elon is as a person anyways. ProTip: if you haven't actually met and interacted with a person, then you really know nothing about a person beyond hearsay. What's on the screen ain't real folks. Blows my mind. This isn't a $200 pair of shoes. These are/were seriously expensive cars.
- bdcravens 4y ago
  I'm happy with the EVs my wife and I bought - unless you are familiar with them, our car don't look much different than ICE cars made by the same manufacturer. However, I don't feel the stereotype is completely fair. Plenty of people buy Teslas because they are committed to zero emissions, and Teslas have better range and a great charging network. (and avoiding dealerships is a nice advantage as well)
  - lordfrito 4y ago
    I agree there's a lot to like about the car. But the people who are really and truly committed to owning a Tesla because of the range and charging network don't have to go bragging to all their friends about how they bought a Tesla. If they bought the car for it's range and charge network. It's all still there pretty much same as it was, the equation hasn't changed. Nothing for these people to feel cringe about. On a side note: the people who paid $10k up front for FSD option probably feel a lot of well deserved cringe right now. My buddy bragged over 5 years ago about the package, I bet him it wouldn't be working in 5 years, I won the bet and he feels lousy about the purchase now. A sucker is born every minute.
- bdhe 4y ago
  > As if these fans really know who Elon is as a person anyways. ProTip: if you haven't actually met and interacted with a person, then you really know nothing about a person beyond hearsay. What's on the screen ain't real folks. You don't think Elon tweeting: "My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci" doesn't reveal something about his personality or his values?

newaccount74 4y ago

I cancelled my Model 3 order a few years ago because Elon was such a tool. I don't remember exactly what he did, but it was something where I thought, I don't want people to think of that when they see me in my car.

rayiner 4y ago
Sounds extremely petty and shallow.
- ancientworldnow 4y ago
  Maybe they just didn't want to deal with the poor QC and exaggerated range figures and needed another excuse to push them over the edge.
  - adventured 4y ago
    That's not what the parent comment in question said or implied at all.
- Salgat 4y ago
  Nothing wrong with voting with your dollars. Do you cringe at people who avoid Nestle products?
- bdcravens 4y ago
  People boycott companies all the time for reasons unrelated to the product.
- tptacek 4y ago
  Paying for a Tesla is an expressive act. It isn't a Ford Taurus or a Honda Civic; it's nobody's default car.
  - rayiner 4y ago
    So it was always shallow?
    - tptacek 4y ago
      Yes? We are talking about luxury automobiles. There is a component of practical utility in these things, but most of the dollars are allocated to something more akin to fashion, which is expressive. It doesn't make sense to call out a fashion decision as "petty". You could just wear a Dickie's janitor jumpsuit to work, but you don't: you pay some extra amount of money, expressively, to signal something different. I drive an ICE Audi. I like the car, and it's zippy and smooth and fun to drive, but I'm not going to pretend there isn't an huge element of fashion to it. If Audi decided to lean into Nazism, it wouldn't be petty of me to ditch the Audi, just like I wouldn't wear a Fred Perry shirt. If you think about it, the car you drive is one of the stronger social signals you send in American society.
bdcravens 4y ago
He wasn't the only reason, but I did the same (and got a Kia EV6 instead)
sixQuarks 4y ago
I hope you do this with every product, you should never use Amazon because they treat their workers bad, don’t use google for search because they gave up their “don’t be evil” tagline, and don’t use Apple products either because they use cobalt in their products
- yongjik 4y ago
  Meh, a person has to pick their battles. If you think Amazon is a worse company than Tesla, by all means, boycott Amazon, and feel free to tell us why.

robswc 4y ago

I find the more "online" people are, the more "in-tune" they are with these things, for better or worse. Tesla just became one of the best selling cars in Europe (in Nov). The new Harry Potter game just became one of the highest selling games on steam (and its not even out). A lot of things that seem like a "big deal" online, don't even hit the radar of most people.

lordfrito 4y ago

The thing that always bothered me about Tesla fans was that it was less a car purchase for them and more about cultural capital and signaling to their extended peer group. The South Park episode about hybrid cars creating a "smug" problem comes to mind. I don't care who or what team designed my car, just that it's well designed and works. Now that Elon is suddenly "uncool" with the never-grew-up after highschool crowd, a significant number of people who bought Teslas suddenly feel cringe. It's fun to watch this kind of idiocy play out and come full circle. Play stupid games win stupid prizes. As if these fans really know who Elon is as a person anyways. ProTip: if you haven't actually met and interacted with a person, then you really know nothing about a person beyond hearsay. What's on the screen ain't real folks. Blows my mind. This isn't a $200 pair of shoes. These are/were seriously expensive cars.

bdcravens 4y ago
I'm happy with the EVs my wife and I bought - unless you are familiar with them, our car don't look much different than ICE cars made by the same manufacturer. However, I don't feel the stereotype is completely fair. Plenty of people buy Teslas because they are committed to zero emissions, and Teslas have better range and a great charging network. (and avoiding dealerships is a nice advantage as well)
- lordfrito 4y ago
  I agree there's a lot to like about the car. But the people who are really and truly committed to owning a Tesla because of the range and charging network don't have to go bragging to all their friends about how they bought a Tesla. If they bought the car for it's range and charge network. It's all still there pretty much same as it was, the equation hasn't changed. Nothing for these people to feel cringe about. On a side note: the people who paid $10k up front for FSD option probably feel a lot of well deserved cringe right now. My buddy bragged over 5 years ago about the package, I bet him it wouldn't be working in 5 years, I won the bet and he feels lousy about the purchase now. A sucker is born every minute.
bdhe 4y ago
> As if these fans really know who Elon is as a person anyways. ProTip: if you haven't actually met and interacted with a person, then you really know nothing about a person beyond hearsay. What's on the screen ain't real folks. You don't think Elon tweeting: "My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci" doesn't reveal something about his personality or his values?