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"The payoff for the public would come in the form of major pollution reductions, but only if solar panels and electric cars break through as viable mass-market
by touristtam 11y ago
"The payoff for the public would come in the form of major pollution reductions, but only if solar panels and electric cars break through as viable mass-market products.
For now, both remain niche products for mostly well-heeled customers."
I don't know. It seems that Tesla is missing an opportunity for building an empire like Ford did.
- foota 11y agoI'm not an expert on the history of Ford, but I imagine that their cars also started off as a luxury item and only after obtaining some market share were they able to build the massively efficient production lines that they are famous for?
- touristtam 11y agoTrue. Apparently Ford started his first car company as a luxury product (that was at the very early 20th century) and it was later purchased and renamed Cadillac. But I would argue that a convergence of event allowing Ford to become a major car manufacturer include the introduction of an affordable model early in the history of the company. Considering the opposition to Tesla from the top 10 world car manufacturer, there will be no significant market share gain until the price can make the cheaper Tesla model an alternative to equivalent market leaders, and possibly introducing a compact car with the same aim.
- JulianMorrison 11y agoNotice how the price of a Tesla car roughly halves at each major iteration? Now project the line out into the mass-market price range.
- touristtam 11y agoTesla cars are still comparing to BMW serie 3 and AUDI serie 4, but those are cheaper and easier to refuel. And an affordable car like the Ford Model-T in today's world market would be like a Dacia Logan at just over 31k LEI (http://www.dacia.ro/ http://www.dacia.ro/) or a FIAT Palio at just over 27k BRL (http://www.fiat.com.br/carros.html http://www.fiat.com.br/carros.html).