Leaf would be the obvious choice, if you think you can live with CHAdeMO and the relatively short range (actually, ID.3 would be the obvious choice if VW sold it in this market). And they seem not to be in as short supply as most other EVs.
A fair number of Taycan buyers trade up from other EVs (as I did), so you might get lucky with a call to your nearest Porsche dealer.
Last edited by burnspbesq; 07-06-2022 at 05:29 AM.
Long chat with a friend who hates the charging issues with her Leaf. Evidently a weird battery design that has made charging on the road very slow. I’m waiting for the Lada which will run on 3000 AA batteries. Thank goodness for Costco
https://yourmotorguide.com/nissan-le...ging-problems/
this is what my friend as alluding to, "battery thermal management"...did not realize the Leaf was NOT designed for road trips, but rather as a commuting vehicle...not sure she did either until she bought it.
Lada - now that's a blast from the past. No idea they still existed after the fall of the Soviet empire. As I recall, they were known as the AK-47 of the automotive world. Not sure I would ever want one. Next you'll tell me that the Dacha (as in gotcha) is doing a revival tour!
for those who get the NY Times, a rather entertaining and illuminating article about Tesla's self-driving technology:https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...ing-flaws.html
I trust they will position a toilet paper dispenser in the front seat...look forward to the snow and slush updates.
Thinking about one… anyone know anything about the the Raven edition?
This hits the nail on the head.
I have 2 kids in college. In the past I have stated that as soon as they are out of school, I'd replace my current car with a Tesla (M3p). As soon as Elon restored that one traitorous Twitter account, he lost me as a customer. Also, what this has done is brought Elon into the public eye a bit more...and so far, I don't like what I see. In a couple of years when I'm ready to buy, I still want an EV but it won't be a Tesla. Good news for me is that more and more EV's are available and by the time I'm ready to buy there will be quite a few valid choices. Actually there are quite a few now...
I'm in pretty much this same boat, I think, but not really because of politics. Tesla was cutting edge when it first came out, and some quirks and foibles were tolerable from the only real name on the market. However, as more established companies have moved into the EV space and have helped advance the field, the choices have broadened and it no longer seems necessary to tolerate the oddities. Also, I've always been concerned that Tesla might get blown in the wind on the whims of its primary owner. More established companies with a more traditional structure seem less prone to sudden decay. The last thing I want to do is make a ten-plus-year investment in the product of an unstable company.
I'll be in the market roughly three years from now. They once were the default choice, now they are actually running behind some others. I won't dismiss them out of hand, but if I were buying today, it would take a good bit of convincing for me to pony up for a Tesla.
Also, I just read this NY Times article about how Tesla is forcing customers into arbitration, making Tesla immune from class action lawsuits. (Paywalled.) Business practices like that don't encourage me as a consumer.
Last edited by Phredd3; 12-19-2022 at 12:29 PM.
I rented a Tesla for a few days a couple of months ago. I knew it was a bit "different" ahead of time, but the oddities definitely take time to get used to. Maybe most people do get used to them, but I personally find using the touchscreen for everything and the sterile/minimalistic design to lack convenience and luxury. It seems more like a "performance car" than a "luxury car." It also seems to be on the cutting edge from a tech/performance perspective but NOT from a "car experience" perspective. Unfortunately, some brands are taking cues from Tesla about the minimalist design and getting rid of physical buttons too. I think legacy automakers should lean into their advantages in mass producing vehicles that people are comfortable with and not completely abandon that user experience. But Tesla should at the very least have a screen behind the steering wheel and a lock/unlock doors button IMHO. The EVs being produced by known luxury brands are definitely showing much more "refinement" than a Tesla. But the owner satisfaction of Tesla owners is still very high, so they must be doing something right. (And the waitlist is still very long for orders, although that may be more because of the anemic supply side.)
A bit off topic but a friend of mine has a Tesla and after we saw Avatar last Friday I asked her if I could drive it. Happily she said yes. The user interface was indeed bizarre. She was trying to get the windshield wipers to clear off the condensation by talking to it, didn't work and only got it working after some fumbling with buttons. She also mentioned she had to carry a fob bc there was no built in garage opener, disappointing inconvenience for a luxury car.
But then I drove it and I was very impressed. The acceleration of course was awesome, but not a surprise. But the handling was unexpectedly great. It really hugged the road but somehow not a bump was felt. Now I'm not a car enthusiast so maybe this is common. All I know was that it was a hell of a lot more fun to drive than my Lexus SUV.
Your Lexus SUV though should be substantially more reliable, per Consumer Reports... https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-plac...lity-rankings/
The older I get, the more I value reliability...
The people I know who own Tesla’s hate the maintenance process. With all the major car companies developing EVs plus other new options, I doubt I will ever consider a Tesla. Personally the infrastructure is not in place to make an EV a good option right now. With Musk’s current trajectory of insufferablility(?) I doubt Tesla will be a top option in the industry by the time the US can support EVs appropriately.