6 ms·

the article seems to conclude that this is because of tesla's repair or manufacturing practices. but anecdotally, white model 3s are the scariest cars on the r

the article seems to conclude that this is because of tesla's repair or manufacturing practices. but anecdotally, white model 3s are the scariest cars on the road, driven by the worst drivers, most likely to do dangerous and unpredictable things. i certainly wouldn't want to be in the business of insuring tesla drivers and the data seems to back me up - tesla has the highest crash rate of any manufacturer: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevebanker/2025/02/11/tesla-again-has-the-highest-accident-rate-of-any-auto-brand/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevebanker/2025/02/11/tesla-ag...

treetalker 1y ago
Curious: why white Model 3s specifically?
- ljlolel 1y ago
  Cheapest car. A different color costs more $.
  - jerlam 1y ago
    The "free" color rotates - the current one for the Model 3 is "Stealth Grey". According to the site below, white was the free color from 2020 - 2024, which was probably when the bulk of Teslas were sold, especially to places like Hertz who have been dumping them on the used car market. https://www.findmyelectric.com/tesla-colors-model-s-3-x-y/#model-3-colors https://www.findmyelectric.com/tesla-colors-model-s-3-x-y/#m...
    - tzs 1y ago
      Wait...they only have one free color at a time? Is that just a Tesla thing or are there any other widely sold cars that do that? Every car I've considered buying has had several free colors and several colors that cost extra, so I just assumed everyone did that.
- pfannkuchen 1y ago
  [flagged]
  - rideontime 1y ago
    I assume you have some evidence to back up this claim of “population level statistics,” or you wouldn’t have used such language.
    - yibg 1y ago
      It’s a weird claim in this context especially because Asians are statistically involved in fewer major accidents.
      - pfannkuchen 1y ago
        The sort of driving issues that recent first generation learners have is different from the sort of issues that people who drive into trees while speeding or engage in DUI have. These can both be true at the same time. I know everyone is morally allergic to any statement pointing out group differences, even ones that are not about innate differences, and the mind will gravitate towards any other available explanation.
        yibg 1y ago
        The allergy is to broad claims without evidence. Point to some data that indicates more insurance money is paid out to Chinese drivers then we can have an actual discussion.
        pfannkuchen 1y ago
        Insurance companies do not externally publish data aggregated by the relevant dimensions, and they do not publish raw data for us to aggregate ourselves. Let’s for a moment take as a premise that what I’m saying is true. In that version of reality, with all else held constant from our current known reality, would we expect the data publishing to be any different from what we see? It is a politically sensitive topic, after all. Which is to say, an absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. I won’t publish a book on this topic due to lack of sources. I think discussing it on an Internet forum is acceptable? I maintain that the impulse to demand sources in such a case comes from moral offense which is then misattributed to epistemological structure offense.
CharlesW 1y ago
I can only speak to my area, but Tesla drivers north of San Diego started driving noticeably less idiotically when local dealerships started to be regularly protested.
- pfannkuchen 1y ago
  I have seen less Teslas around in general since that started. I used to regularly wait in line at the charger, and lately there has been no line. What you noticed could be a deeper correlation between driving ability or conscientiousness and who is more influenced by perceived social pressure to stop driving a type of car. Most Tesla owners also have a gas car, so it’s not as if they need to purchase a new vehicle to change their driving habits. Another explanation might be that the crazy driving was mostly from new owners before they got used to the acceleration, and with fewer new owners now the crazy driving has reduced.
  - stevenjgarner 1y ago
    > Most Tesla owners also have a gas car Really? Do you have a citation for that? Tesla has sold over 7.25 million vehicles [1]. I could believe that Tesla owners have proportionately higher ownership of a 2nd vehicle, but most of them? [1] https://backlinko.com/tesla-stats https://backlinko.com/tesla-stats
    - ninalanyon 1y ago
      It's possibly true that in the US Tesla owners have an ICE car. Definitely not true here in Norway.

treetalker 1y ago

Curious: why white Model 3s specifically?

ljlolel 1y ago
Cheapest car. A different color costs more $.
- jerlam 1y ago
  The "free" color rotates - the current one for the Model 3 is "Stealth Grey". According to the site below, white was the free color from 2020 - 2024, which was probably when the bulk of Teslas were sold, especially to places like Hertz who have been dumping them on the used car market. https://www.findmyelectric.com/tesla-colors-model-s-3-x-y/#model-3-colors https://www.findmyelectric.com/tesla-colors-model-s-3-x-y/#m...
  - tzs 1y ago
    Wait...they only have one free color at a time? Is that just a Tesla thing or are there any other widely sold cars that do that? Every car I've considered buying has had several free colors and several colors that cost extra, so I just assumed everyone did that.
pfannkuchen 1y ago
[flagged]
- rideontime 1y ago
  I assume you have some evidence to back up this claim of “population level statistics,” or you wouldn’t have used such language.
  - yibg 1y ago
    It’s a weird claim in this context especially because Asians are statistically involved in fewer major accidents.
    - pfannkuchen 1y ago
      The sort of driving issues that recent first generation learners have is different from the sort of issues that people who drive into trees while speeding or engage in DUI have. These can both be true at the same time. I know everyone is morally allergic to any statement pointing out group differences, even ones that are not about innate differences, and the mind will gravitate towards any other available explanation.
      - yibg 1y ago
        The allergy is to broad claims without evidence. Point to some data that indicates more insurance money is paid out to Chinese drivers then we can have an actual discussion.
        pfannkuchen 1y ago
        Insurance companies do not externally publish data aggregated by the relevant dimensions, and they do not publish raw data for us to aggregate ourselves. Let’s for a moment take as a premise that what I’m saying is true. In that version of reality, with all else held constant from our current known reality, would we expect the data publishing to be any different from what we see? It is a politically sensitive topic, after all. Which is to say, an absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. I won’t publish a book on this topic due to lack of sources. I think discussing it on an Internet forum is acceptable? I maintain that the impulse to demand sources in such a case comes from moral offense which is then misattributed to epistemological structure offense.

CharlesW 1y ago

I can only speak to my area, but Tesla drivers north of San Diego started driving noticeably less idiotically when local dealerships started to be regularly protested.

pfannkuchen 1y ago
I have seen less Teslas around in general since that started. I used to regularly wait in line at the charger, and lately there has been no line. What you noticed could be a deeper correlation between driving ability or conscientiousness and who is more influenced by perceived social pressure to stop driving a type of car. Most Tesla owners also have a gas car, so it’s not as if they need to purchase a new vehicle to change their driving habits. Another explanation might be that the crazy driving was mostly from new owners before they got used to the acceleration, and with fewer new owners now the crazy driving has reduced.
- stevenjgarner 1y ago
  > Most Tesla owners also have a gas car Really? Do you have a citation for that? Tesla has sold over 7.25 million vehicles [1]. I could believe that Tesla owners have proportionately higher ownership of a 2nd vehicle, but most of them? [1] https://backlinko.com/tesla-stats https://backlinko.com/tesla-stats
  - ninalanyon 1y ago
    It's possibly true that in the US Tesla owners have an ICE car. Definitely not true here in Norway.