Tesla "Insane Mode" 0-60 in 3 seconds

Freeway said:

just in time for its scheduled 2014 release date lol.

Lol.  Make or break time for Elon.  Not a fan of the car for several reasons, but the roof has me torn: styling is ugly and uninspired to my eye, but the view from inside looks phenomenal.  Guess it depends on whether you want to rate it from the driver's seat or the curb.

ctrzaska said:

Freeway said:

just in time for its scheduled 2014 release date lol.

Lol.  Make or break time for Elon.  Not a fan of the car for several reasons, but the roof has me torn: styling is ugly and uninspired to my eye, but the view from inside looks phenomenal.  Guess it depends on whether you want to rate it from the driver's seat or the curb.

Sorry but compared to the Electric BMW or the Volt or the Leaf this car styling is very nice. 

I was at my usual Friday night vantage point on the corner of Elgin and Peel in Hong Kong watching high end cars swoop by and noticed one thing about Teslas (mostly driven by Uber drivers):  people have to stumble awkwardly to get out of the back seats.  For $80k I'd go with a Mercedes.  I know the new round is $35k a pop  and I wish them well, but dammit if they don't look like Mazdas.  It's like watching the evolution of the iMac and we're at the weird phase where it looks like a Betty Crocker Easy Bake oven (the iMac, not the car... this is an analogy). 

$35k is the base price.  More realistic prices will be in the range of $40k - $60k.

Yes, sure.  But to survive you've got to lure those from the non-electric crowd who are looking at their regular 3-series cars, etc. (even Musk has stated that's their competition) and that ain't going to do it IMO.

ctrzaska said:

Freeway said:

just in time for its scheduled 2014 release date lol.

Lol.  Make or break time for Elon.  Not a fan of the car for several reasons, but the roof has me torn: styling is ugly and uninspired to my eye, but the view from inside looks phenomenal.  Guess it depends on whether you want to rate it from the driver's seat or the curb.

I do think that this Tesla will hit the market before Elio Motors "revises" their time table for the first units rolling off the assembly line yet again. The Elio and its ponzi scheme is erily similar to the story of Twenthieth Century motors and the Dale. 

Building a car company from scratch is insanely difficult, forget about one that uses totally new technology. As I said I think there is a need for better infrastructure before I would call one practical in NJ. But the Model S is an amazingly great car.

I hope they make it. But I still think the chance of building a viable company is no better than 50/50. Especially with the likes of BMW, GM and Nissan nipping at their heals, even if their product is not nearly as good (though I would expect BMW to get up into its class).

yahooyahoo said:

Most likely the Model 3 won't be out until 2018 or 2019.  

Gotta hand it to Elon, he got nearly $200 million interest-free yesterday.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

bramzzoinks said:

Building a car company from scratch is insanely difficult, forget about one that uses totally new technology. As I said I think there is a need for better infrastructure before I would call one practical in NJ. But the Model S is an amazingly great car.

I hope they make it. But I still think the chance of building a viable company is no better than 50/50. Especially with the likes of BMW, GM and Nissan nipping at their heals, even if their product is not nearly as good (though I would expect BMW to get up into its class).

BMW already had the greenest car and most efficient in 2015 with the i3 (and though I hate that styling too, others don't--the i8, however, is a badass car).  Their numbers aren't anywhere near Tesla's, but they can ratchet up real quick.  Once Poraxhe releases their 911 hybrid, the performance game is over, I think.  The 918 was an engineering marvel in a class by itself, and arguably one of the best drivers cars ever made.

i have owned a leaf for two years.  I have no problems commuting from here to Astoria and back, charging at home.  The infrastructure argument is only valid if this would be your only car, and you wanted to take road trip.   

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

I thought about reserving an Elio trike 2 or 3 years ago but decided that I wouldn't feel safe on NJ roads/highways.  I didn't realize how long they've been delayed.

Freeway said:

ctrzaska said:

Freeway said:

just in time for its scheduled 2014 release date lol.

Lol.  Make or break time for Elon.  Not a fan of the car for several reasons, but the roof has me torn: styling is ugly and uninspired to my eye, but the view from inside looks phenomenal.  Guess it depends on whether you want to rate it from the driver's seat or the curb.

I do think that this Tesla will hit the market before Elio Motors "revises" their time table for the first units rolling off the assembly line yet again. The Elio and its ponzi scheme is erily similar to the story of Twenthieth Century motors and the Dale. 

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

If you are talking about the bailout, Ford asked for and received nothing.  

yahooyahoo said:

I thought about reserving an Elio trike 2 or 3 years ago but decided that I wouldn't feel safe on NJ roads/highways.  I didn't realize how long they've been delayed.

Freeway said:

ctrzaska said:

Freeway said:

just in time for its scheduled 2014 release date lol.

Lol.  Make or break time for Elon.  Not a fan of the car for several reasons, but the roof has me torn: styling is ugly and uninspired to my eye, but the view from inside looks phenomenal.  Guess it depends on whether you want to rate it from the driver's seat or the curb.

I do think that this Tesla will hit the market before Elio Motors "revises" their time table for the first units rolling off the assembly line yet again. The Elio and its ponzi scheme is erily similar to the story of Twenthieth Century motors and the Dale. 

They have excuse after excuse as to why , yet they keep taking reservations for cars they will likely never build. 

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

He's also building the Gigafactory in one of the driest places in America despite the need for huge amounts of water. 

Red_Barchetta said:

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

The Gigafactory also touches on the tax break-- $1.4 Billion.  (And he had gotten unions all up in arms there back in Feb, though not sure how that resolved itself.)

Red_Barchetta said:

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

As would every start up car company on earth.   

Teue, to an extent, but it remains to be seen whether the tax breaks provided to the consumers will negatively impact their growth when they shortly dry up.  No other carmaker has that dependency.

Woot said:

Red_Barchetta said:

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

As would every start up car company on earth.   

I'm not sure I agree with that, and if I do I don't think I agree with the premise.  Let's keep in mind that all these tax credits and government largesse create a product that only a select few can afford.  Furthermore those who make that purchase get their own $7500 tax credit.  I don't expect that there are a lot of Sanders voters who own a Tesla. Eventually this technology may lead to a product that can be afforded by the masses, but the corporation and billionaire benefitted from the beginning.  

If you were an investor in the 19th century one of the worst investments you could make would be in the building of railroads. Just about all the companies went bankrupt and the initial investors wiped out. The "robber barons" who made huge money were the ones who later bought the assets of the railroads after the initial companies when bankrupt.

Red_Barchetta said:

Woot said:

Red_Barchetta said:

pmartinezv said:

Jdoughy said:

Red_Barchetta said:

.

That's on top of how many Billions in government subsidy?  

Many fewer billions than the government gave to GM and Ford to bail out the companies driven into the ground by their unions!

And even fewer than the subsidies the oil companies themselves have been receiving for decades. 

That's not the point.  The point is that progressive folks fawn over Musk as an environmentalist and job creator.  The truth is that his company would be a failure without the tax breaks and ability to sell carbon credits.  

As would every start up car company on earth.   

I'm not sure I agree with that, and if I do I don't think I agree with the premise.  Let's keep in mind that all these tax credits and government largesse create a product that only a select few can afford.  Furthermore those who make that purchase get their own $7500 tax credit.  I don't expect that there are a lot of Sanders voters who own a Tesla. Eventually this technology may lead to a product that can be afforded by the masses, but the corporation and billionaire benefitted from the beginning.  

There are tax credits for many other models many of which are in lower ranges such as Prius and Leaf. 

I think it makes sense to use tax credits to encourage people of average means to purchase an environmentally friendly vehicle that they might otherwise not be able to.  Not those looking to spend $75,000 on a performance car. 

Red_Barchetta said:

I think it makes sense to use tax credits to encourage people of average means to purchase an environmentally friendly vehicle that they might otherwise not be able to.  Not those looking to spend $75,000 on a performance car. 

That's a fair point, but those models were needed to fund the expansion needed to support the model 3.   Now there are 300,000 pre orders for an affordable electric car. Tesla is impacting the environment and changing way people drive in the US.   

FilmCarp said:

i have owned a leaf for two years.  I have no problems commuting from here to Astoria and back, charging at home.  The infrastructure argument is only valid if this would be your only car, and you wanted to take road trip.   

A colleague of mine took a trip from NJ to California and back in his Tesla model S. Maybe he planned his route by taking into account where the charging stations, but he still had a nice time. Since charging at Tesla stations is included in the high price of the model S, his fuel cost was quite low. It was $30 out of pocket for the coast-to-coast-and-back trip, for those times when he had to charge at non-Tesla stations.

Food for thought: Within the next couple of months there will be more Tesla charging spots in Manhattan than gas stations.  

You think NYC changed drastically when horse-drawn carriages became motorcars? (Less horse dung and urine smell, less clip-clop, fewer animals going mad in a crowd.) Imagine what NYC could be like with all silent, non-polluting electric vehicles.  If auto-driving cars become the norm - even gridlock would become a thing of the past.

Sometimes I think we need to put "cards in spokes" of those quiet cars so we can hear them coming.

I was JUST about to say that.  That alone could be the worst thing to happen to Manhattan pedestrians since the invention of taxicabs.