$60K for a Tesla and it's off?

Your $50k Lotus, your $100k Jag, your $30k Chevy or Ford, and your $10k Kia are all going to have some flaws. Speaking of Kia- my buddy bought an electric Kia that blew its entire battery management system on the drive from the dealer after signing the papers. He returned it- that one was closer to $35k. You’re going to pay more for a lower equivalent in electric cars because it’s still pretty bleeding edge tech. For $60 you get a misaligned door or mounding- for $30 you get 100 mike range or a longer walk home.

When automobiles had only been selling for a couple decades- they cost a lot more and were still pretty rough. It’s new tech- you got on the early adopter train. You’re paying to BETA a technology. If you want to pay $60 for fit an finish go get a Camry or an infinity. Often being disappointed by a purchase isn’t the fault of the manufacturer- it’s because you didn’t take the time to understand what you were buying.

If you spent any time on research you’d see that roadster owners and even model S owners who paid more than you have fit and finish and other problems. Most are still happy with the purchase. Most report overall satisfaction in resolution of the problem after reporting it- some do not- but you’ll see lots of these little reports on this kind of issue.

You ASSUMED the price meant you were buying a luxury car. But you’re buying the technology- you can get a Leaf for $30k that has less than half the range, or for $10k more you can get a Leaf E+ with 2/3rds the range and it’s still the same crappy economy platform with better electronics- or for $60 you can get a model 3 for starting at $35 that has more range than the $40k leaf and isn’t basically a sub compact.

How do you think a company MUCH smaller than world wide conglomerate giant Nissan, can make a bigger, sexier looking, longer range, more pleasant to drive, more powerful car for less? Then step up to the S and get a full-size sedan with even BETTER range- pretty much the best range of any off the shelf EV... for $20k more than a 200 odd mike range leaf? Do the math. Every inch of range increases the costs greatly. For $60k you’re paying for range and getting the rest on comp.

Personally? I’d be very upset to pay $60k for a daily driven commute car that had little flaws like that. You won’t see me in line to buy a Tesla because they are fine EV’s but my priorities are elsewhere. Of your priorities were elsewhere then you perhaps should have bought something that fits you priorities. That’s the balance point of cars.

A $50k Lotus isn’t going to be the most comfortable or luxurious car, it will likely have imperfections and poor workmanship here and there cosmetically. It will likely squeak and rattle. It goes like skunk. That’s their buyer. Someone who wants to go fast and have fun doing it. They put the money into that. The Camry is relatively quiet and smooth, it’s big, it’s frugal. It isn’t exciting (unless your idea of excitement is a Camry and you likely find water a tad spicy..) and it isn’t fast. They could make it fast and exciting- and charge double the price- and the Camry buyer largely wouldn’t pay because those aren’t the reasons a person buys a Camry.

Apple spends a lot of money making things look sleek and feel a certain way. They charge more for their products and their primary buyer is willing to pay more to get that extra finish. You sir are an Apple customer who wanted a top of the line iMac pro, but you bought a Linux PC made in some guys garage. It’s a fine machine and still cost you more than an off the shelf windows machine- but it costs less than an iMac pro and outperforms it in key areas. It just doesn’t have the same level of polish. $500 is always $500- but being upset your $500 gaming computer isn’t as pretty as a $6000 alienware equivalent is silly. If you wanted pretty you shoulda spent your money on pretty. If you want to “have it all” $60,000 isn’t going to get you “everything” when it comes to cars. You have to compromise on what you want and what your budget is.