EV inventory building on dealer lots. Tesla begins truck production. Rivian ramping up production.
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Has Tesla announced pricing for their Cybertruck yet? I can’t seem to find it…
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I recently looked at a Mach-E Premium with long range battery on a local Ford’s website. It’s on the dealer lot. I thought the price was a bit high, so looked at the window sticker they posted for any add-ons. Nope. Then went to ford.com to build my own. The base price online was $4k cheaper than the one on the dealer lot. Did they recently lower Mach-E prices as well?
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Google news search turns this up as the most info but still indefinite.
They did, by $3k. On some dealer websites you’ll see this:
“Price includes: $3000 - Retail Stock Order Bonus Cash. Exp. 10/02/2023”
That’s just the MSRP reduction, not something extra the dealer is throwing in.
I’ve been looking at the Mach E also, but it’s not compelling vs the Model Y. With tax credit the cheapest Model Y is about $2k cheaper than the base Mach E with AWD. The Model Y is faster, more efficient, and has better range.
If I could just get past the Elon ick factor.
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Can you get past the Henry Ford ick factor? Even The Henry Ford Organization has to admit:
Ford’s own attitudes towards Jews were the major reason for the publication of “The International Jew.” His anti-Semitic beliefs formed along several strands from his upbringing, attitudes, and personal beliefs.
Maybe one should buy an ID.4, but can you get past the Diesel-Gate factor?
Maybe one should buy a Ioniq 5 or 6, but can you get past their Child Labor use (in the US no less!)?
There are no pristine car companies. But, Tesla itself has a Mission Statement that is more altruistic than most: “to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy ."
As such, Tesla has recently Open Sourced its plug/port design and has licensed FOR FREE its use by Ford, GM, Rivian, Polestar (Volvo), and Mercedes. Sure, there are tangible side-benefits for Tesla here, but Elon and Tesla see broader adoption of EVs as their main goal, not just making money. Try and find that in any other car company.
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That’s what I try to tell myself - all the car companies are led by a**holes. It’s just that one of them screams it from the rooftops on a daily basis. 
It’s still very hard to send Elon my $.
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I just priced a Mustang Mach-E Premium, RWD, extended range battery. $53,440. To do a Model Y Long Range , $56,490. I included enhanced auto pilot so that it compares with Blue Cruise on the Mustang.
I did not include the AWD on the Mach-E because I was trying to maximize range, not performance. Which is my care-about. I’ve had plenty of fast cars in my life. With an EV I will want range. They are fast enough as is for me.
But yes, the MY is faster and slightly longer range than the M-E.
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Many people I meet are basing their opinions of Musk not from directly reading his Twitter stream, but from media articles on his tweets. Musk is often more nuanced that the media reports, IMO.
TBF, I still disagree with Elon strongly on a number of issues. OTOH, I agree with him strongly on a number of (to me) more important issues.
I own a piece of Tesla, as do many Fools. Think of buying a Model Y as helping us.
For me, AWD isn’t about performance, it’s about safety in bad weather and on bad roads.
And you do realize even Ford CEO Farley admits the Mach-E is not state of the art engineering:
“We didn’t know that our wiring harness for Mach-E was 1.6 kilometers longer than it needed to be. We didn’t know it’s 70 pounds heavier and that that’s [cost an extra] $300 a battery,” he said on a call with investors Thursday. “We didn’t know that we underinvested in braking technology to save on the battery size.”
“It takes us 25 percent more engineers to do the same work statements as our competitors,”
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I follow Musk on Twitter. He says some objectively nutty stuff. He also retweets some really nutty stuff.
Completely aside but on topic, I just saw on Twitter video of the first Cybertruck leaving the factory in Texas.
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AWD gives you zero additional traction in cornering or braking. It only helps you get moving. Often when you’d be better off not.
—Peter
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I can see that I guess. But it does negatively impact range (on the Mustang, which is why I did not choose that option - on the Model Y you need the dual-motor to get the long range in the first place). It’s hard to compare the two cars on a precise basis. To me the cars are equally priced to within the error bars of price and feature.
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The overriding reason for me to get AWD was that the powers that be wouldn’t insist on my putting on chains when driving up to Tahoe was getting iffy due to snow.
-IGU-
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While pretty obvious braking-wise, AWD is a great asset for cornering, especially in an EV. I know the Edmunds article people keep referring to, but even the follow-up article there admits:
For those who do need more, 4WD and AWD systems offer increased traction and handling capabilities under many circumstances. They’re especially helpful on slick, loose or slippery surfaces because they can direct power to the wheels that have the most traction.
And then with EV AWD, one typically has separate motors for front and rear (sometimes even two motors on the rear in addition to the one in front), so you don’t have the same number and type of differentials to deal with, engineering-wise. Not to mention the instant response from the EV motors in the first place.
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They’re not for sale yet, so no pricing announced yet. No point announcing and then changing it a few times. My best guess is 55k, 68k, 85k. And I bet they work real hard to get that 85k down to 79.9k as quickly as possible for the tax credit. I also suspect there will only be one model available at first (likely the middle range one).
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Enhanced autopilot isn’t worth it to me. Standard autopilot is a revelation when you’ve been used to the “lane keep assist” type system in our 2019 Honda or 2021 Chevy.
The RWD Model Y could be coming to the USA very soon:
“Cleanerwatt was the first to notice that Tesla just got approval [in the USA] for a new rear-wheel-drive (RWD) Model Y using lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries that will likely be very affordable.”
Sounds good to me. Model Y RWD for $42k, less $7500 tax credit?
Useful comparison:
Comparing AWD versions, the Model Y is more efficient than the Mach E by quite a lot.
2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium ER AWD 19-inch
92 MPGe: 366 Wh/mi (228 Wh/km)
2023 Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD 19-inch
122 MPGe: 276 Wh/mi (172 Wh/km)
276Wh/mi is about the lifetime average for our Chevy Bolt, a much smaller car.
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Henry Ford is dead. He has been dead for decades and while he did some objectively good things, on balance he was a terrible person. From his invasive management of his workers’ lives to his virulent anti-semitism, from paling with Hitler to his treatment of suppliers, not to mention how he treated his son, he is not worthy of emulation in any respect so far as I can tell.
Elon Musk is alive. He is putting trolls and anti-semites on a world wide stage. He is encouraging hateful and abusive behaviors, and celebrating it along the way. He tweets and re-tweets gross and offensive memes, and I don’t need “the media” to tell me this since he thoughtfully puts them on his own feed under his own name, multiple times a day.
He has objectively done some great things, but that, like Ford, does not make him worthy of my respect nor encourage me to support him in his many endeavors. I understand if someone doesn’t want to buy his cars, just as I understand if some Jewish people still don’t want to buy a Ford.
For the record, Tesla was required to adapt to a common standard in the EU, so they’re likely trying to (and succeeding) forestall such an effort in the US. And yes, there are signficant, gigantic advantages for them to do so, so I don’t buy the “he’s doing it out of the goodness of his heart” BS. When I see him doing good works for the sake of good works maybe I’ll change my mind. Not now, certainly, on the basis of one business decision which advantages himself anyway.
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A cynical view unsupported by any facts. Thankfully, the US isn’t always like other governments, and the closest politicians have come was to require support of a standard to receive government dollars.
Would Warren Buffett have given away the SuperCharging moat away so easily and for free? Would Farley or Barra or Källenius or Scaringe had they been smart/able enough to build such a network themselves?
Up until now, the only practical EVs for many were Teslas as they were the only ones in which one could do the US Road Trip thing. That’s no longer the case. Now pretty nice EVs like the Mach-e or R1T or EQE SUV that one would have to avoid since they were impractical for road trips, can be seriously considered now.
The jury is just convening to decide if this move benefits Tesla overall or now. My guess is Buffett would have kept the moat.
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Wait. There are a TON of laws and regulations, federal, about cars and roads. The three-lamp stoplight, most road signs, fuel nozzles for gas and diesel, the list goes on and on.
That’s interesting to know. Thanks. So standard autopilot would be what I’m used to in my 2018 Accord with adaptive cruise control (all the way to zero mph) and lane keep assist, but even better? And of course emergency braking.