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Strange that Tesla has never attacked this angle. Too focused on self-driving trucks and putting humans out of jobs?

rogerrogerr 1y ago
Being associated with delivery vans would dilute the Tesla brand. Imagine seeing beat up Amazon vans with Porsche emblems - it wouldn’t improve your perception of a Porsche as a car you would love to one day own. Yes, other things the company or CEO does are also diluting the brand. It’s still true that the company can be making a rational decision not to attack this segment. Rivian’s marketing people probably hate that they’re doing this, but the company had $2.5B revenue and still lost $1.6B the first half of 2025. They’re in survival mode.
- great_wubwub 1y ago
  > Being associated with delivery vans would dilute the Tesla brand Counterpoint: Mercedes-Benz fleet vans.
  - edot 1y ago
    Yeah, which not only doesn’t dilute the main brand, it also doesn’t even dilute the Sprinter brand. Sprinters are called out by name in rap songs, lusted after for van life builds, etc. EV vans make a ton of sense commercially and personally.
  - bluGill 1y ago
    In the us they don't sell Mercedes-Benz trucks. instead they have a brand 'freightliner' that sells them with a different logo. You can get remove badge and fit a mercedes one if you want but almost nobody does
- phailhaus 1y ago
  > Imagine seeing beat up Amazon vans with Porsche emblems They're literally Mercedes today though.
- PessimalDecimal 1y ago
  Mercedes runs their Sprinter line with the Mercedes star on the front. I know some after-market modifications can turn these into really nice RVs, but they're mostly in the "work van" category. In Europe, Mercedes doesn't really have the same connotations of luxury/aspirational purchase that it does in the US, so maybe that explains the willingness to slap their insignia on a work van. But nobody in the US seems to think Sprinters dilute the perception that other Mercedes are a luxury. Edit: ugh I see at least two others made exactly this same point while I was typing my comment. I guess it shows that it's a valid one...
  - lispisok 1y ago
    In the US Mercedes Sprinter vans are used exclusively by very affluent people so it doesnt dilute the brand there.
    - PessimalDecimal 1y ago
      I think that's true as a personal vehicle. But you'll see them driving around with ladders, pipes, etc. on them as direct competitors to the Ford E-Series. You definitely don't see the Ford vans turned into luxury RVs though!
      - maxerickson 1y ago
        No idea how popular they are, but they certainly exist. https://leisurevans.com/wonder/chassis/ https://leisurevans.com/wonder/chassis/
    - andrewflnr 1y ago
      And also lots of the existing Amazon van fleet.
  - randerson 1y ago
    Lexus is also entering the luxury van segment. They're repurposing the LS badge from their flagship sedan to a van which, in concept form, has 6 wheels: https://www.caranddriver.com/photos/g69178144/lexus-ls-van-concept-gallery/ https://www.caranddriver.com/photos/g69178144/lexus-ls-van-c...
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- hiddencost 1y ago
  Yet strangely being associated with a neo Nazi doesn't?
  - rogerrogerr 1y ago
    > Yes, other things the company or CEO does are also diluting the brand. It’s still true that the company can be making a rational decision not to attack this segment.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - bdangubic 1y ago
    as the other commenter beautifully said “This kind of commentary creates unnecessary impedance in communication” but also every other CEO is safe or worse (worse). Tim, Zuck… they are all worse, much worse than Elon (as bad as he is as a human…).
- perardi 1y ago
  Ah, yes, the esteemed Tesla brand, so well-known for reliability, easy access to rapid maintenance, and the top-notch customer relations and support you need to support fleet vehicles… …oh wait. Teslas have terrible quality control, they’re impossible to get rapidly serviced, and they are run by a mercurial adversarial asshole. What kind of fleet manager worth their salt would _ever_ consider Tesla?
  - rajman187 1y ago
    If I could upvote this more than once I certainly would
- andrewflnr 1y ago
  > Rivian’s marketing people probably hate that they’re doing this Somehow I doubt it. It's a big payday for the company and a big vote of confidence by a customer that doesn't mess around (as far as practical concerns go, ethics obviously doubtful). If Rivian wants to sell practical work EVs, this is their ideal scenario. People actually in the market for EV vans are going to do the math, and mostly won't care about the vague contamination by association with the Amazon brand.
- bastawhiz 1y ago
  That doesn't make sense. Mercedes makes vans. Ford makes E350s but still sells plenty of mustangs. Hell, does the rivian delivery truck even have rivian branding? I haven't seen it if it does. And moreover, Tesla has been talking up plans for its vaporware semi for ages. If they wanted to avoid diluting the brand, they wouldn't promise such a thing.
justahuman74 1y ago
They don't even have to call them Tesla. They could be "Whitebox EV Van" brand

Being associated with delivery vans would dilute the Tesla brand. Imagine seeing beat up Amazon vans with Porsche emblems - it wouldn’t improve your perception of a Porsche as a car you would love to one day own. Yes, other things the company or CEO does are also diluting the brand. It’s still true that the company can be making a rational decision not to attack this segment. Rivian’s marketing people probably hate that they’re doing this, but the company had $2.5B revenue and still lost $1.6B the first half of 2025. They’re in survival mode.

great_wubwub 1y ago
> Being associated with delivery vans would dilute the Tesla brand Counterpoint: Mercedes-Benz fleet vans.
- edot 1y ago
  Yeah, which not only doesn’t dilute the main brand, it also doesn’t even dilute the Sprinter brand. Sprinters are called out by name in rap songs, lusted after for van life builds, etc. EV vans make a ton of sense commercially and personally.
- bluGill 1y ago
  In the us they don't sell Mercedes-Benz trucks. instead they have a brand 'freightliner' that sells them with a different logo. You can get remove badge and fit a mercedes one if you want but almost nobody does
phailhaus 1y ago
> Imagine seeing beat up Amazon vans with Porsche emblems They're literally Mercedes today though.
PessimalDecimal 1y ago
Mercedes runs their Sprinter line with the Mercedes star on the front. I know some after-market modifications can turn these into really nice RVs, but they're mostly in the "work van" category. In Europe, Mercedes doesn't really have the same connotations of luxury/aspirational purchase that it does in the US, so maybe that explains the willingness to slap their insignia on a work van. But nobody in the US seems to think Sprinters dilute the perception that other Mercedes are a luxury. Edit: ugh I see at least two others made exactly this same point while I was typing my comment. I guess it shows that it's a valid one...
- lispisok 1y ago
  In the US Mercedes Sprinter vans are used exclusively by very affluent people so it doesnt dilute the brand there.
  - PessimalDecimal 1y ago
    I think that's true as a personal vehicle. But you'll see them driving around with ladders, pipes, etc. on them as direct competitors to the Ford E-Series. You definitely don't see the Ford vans turned into luxury RVs though!
    - maxerickson 1y ago
      No idea how popular they are, but they certainly exist. https://leisurevans.com/wonder/chassis/ https://leisurevans.com/wonder/chassis/
  - andrewflnr 1y ago
    And also lots of the existing Amazon van fleet.
- randerson 1y ago
  Lexus is also entering the luxury van segment. They're repurposing the LS badge from their flagship sedan to a van which, in concept form, has 6 wheels: https://www.caranddriver.com/photos/g69178144/lexus-ls-van-concept-gallery/ https://www.caranddriver.com/photos/g69178144/lexus-ls-van-c...
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
hiddencost 1y ago
Yet strangely being associated with a neo Nazi doesn't?
- rogerrogerr 1y ago
  > Yes, other things the company or CEO does are also diluting the brand. It’s still true that the company can be making a rational decision not to attack this segment.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- bdangubic 1y ago
  as the other commenter beautifully said “This kind of commentary creates unnecessary impedance in communication” but also every other CEO is safe or worse (worse). Tim, Zuck… they are all worse, much worse than Elon (as bad as he is as a human…).
perardi 1y ago
Ah, yes, the esteemed Tesla brand, so well-known for reliability, easy access to rapid maintenance, and the top-notch customer relations and support you need to support fleet vehicles… …oh wait. Teslas have terrible quality control, they’re impossible to get rapidly serviced, and they are run by a mercurial adversarial asshole. What kind of fleet manager worth their salt would _ever_ consider Tesla?
- rajman187 1y ago
  If I could upvote this more than once I certainly would
andrewflnr 1y ago
> Rivian’s marketing people probably hate that they’re doing this Somehow I doubt it. It's a big payday for the company and a big vote of confidence by a customer that doesn't mess around (as far as practical concerns go, ethics obviously doubtful). If Rivian wants to sell practical work EVs, this is their ideal scenario. People actually in the market for EV vans are going to do the math, and mostly won't care about the vague contamination by association with the Amazon brand.
bastawhiz 1y ago
That doesn't make sense. Mercedes makes vans. Ford makes E350s but still sells plenty of mustangs. Hell, does the rivian delivery truck even have rivian branding? I haven't seen it if it does. And moreover, Tesla has been talking up plans for its vaporware semi for ages. If they wanted to avoid diluting the brand, they wouldn't promise such a thing.

justahuman74 1y ago

They don't even have to call them Tesla. They could be "Whitebox EV Van" brand