I think you're conflating two things - positive signaling (i.e., I want a Tesla because I want to be cool) and consumer choice (i.e., I would've bought a Tesla

I think you're conflating two things - positive signaling (i.e., I want a Tesla because I want to be cool) and consumer choice (i.e., I would've bought a Tesla but I don't want to anymore because of how Elon Musk has behaved).