Feeling judged...

[Webeevdrivers]

Well, I'd love to say I understand where you are coming from (no really I would) but I don't have the same problem with my smart ED. On a high note people do seem to buy us lunch quite often...and then thy tell us to stick it out as things will get better.

But if it will help, I checked with Angela and as I thought she wants to help you out, So, if you want to, she'll trade you straight across for her smart. wadayasay.

 

[Skotty]

I love my Model S 100D. Let me start out by saying that right away. Something however that I’ve dealt with is feeling and being judged negatively by friends and family for owning (leasing actually) such an expensive car. Even when I explain the fact that monthly costs after gas savings really aren’t much higher than my BMW X3, this car has a certain stigma that I’m not sure will ever go away.

We do pretty well financially for the Bay Area, but now after having leased this car, when people find out I have one all of a sudden “dinner is on me”. All of a sudden, we shouldn’t be complaining about the cost of our kid’s school, the cost of living out here, etc because “well, you have a Tesla, you can’t be hurting that bad.”

So I’m curious, is this something most of you deal with and how do you get past it. I try not to care too much what others think, but I also really dislike the feeling of being judged for the car I drive...

Why did you buy it? If you support Tesla's mission, or their efforts to do groundbreaking work on things like autopilot, then that should be part of the story. Because in that case, you didn't just buy a car, you were also supporting something greater.

 

[SMAlset]

Living in the bay area you see a lot of rather expensive cars. And homes. Doesn't mean they are paid off, also could be a lease like you. Might mean one is a really good saver or over their head in debt. Hey luckily interest rates have been low, if not, doubt we'd see so many Teslas sold and on the road.

Fortunately we don't have "friends" with that attitude and most of them and our neighbors work in the tech industry and have probably done well in the stock market so something like this doesn't seem to be a concern for them.

 

[Tiger]

Yeah, your friends are right, you shouldn't be complaining, "you have a Tesla, you can’t be hurting that bad"

 

[Lhshockey24]

Why did you buy it? If you support Tesla's mission, or their efforts to do groundbreaking work on things like autopilot, then that should be part of the story. Because in that case, you didn't just buy a car, you were also supporting something greater.

Why I got it: dream car, wanted one since initial release back several years ago. I love cars and technology. I think ICE cars should be phased out so supporting Tesla means they have more $$ to mass produce the Model 3.
Why my wife let me do it: the environmental impact, tax credit likely going away, oh, and she test drove it at about 450wh/mi

 

[Patrick W]

In a couple of years of ownership I don't think I've run into negative comments on what I paid. The few negative comments I've had have been from folks (always conservatives, BTW) who call the cars Coal Burners.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

I hear you. It’s a status symbo

The great thing about the Model S is it's so many different things to different people.

Some will see it as the future, and it's existence gets them excited
Some will see it as a really fast car (at least in a straight line)
Some will see it as a fancy iPad on wheels
Some will see it as a car that drives itself

Now of course all the positives come with negatives.

Some will see it as a car that drives itself and this is really annoying
Some will see it as a pretentious status symbol. That there are better ways to go green than having a fancy car
Some will see it as yet another rich mans toy
Some will see it as evil because of the federal incentives involved

As the Model 3 comes online, and incentives disappear people will start to see a Tesla as a viable alternative to other cars without associating all the baggage with it.

 

[Shawn Snider]

To be brutally honest, your friends and family seem like douchebags... Sorry... Those responses and those kinds of attitudes I don't stand for. Even if they're family, "oh, it's on you, you have a tesla" make me reply "Thanks for dinner, goodbye" and then never speak/interact with them ever again.

Maybe I'm just an asshole, but I don't like those kind of negative attitudes around me. Life is too short, enjoy a Tesla!

 

[calisnow]

I love my Model S 100D. Let me start out by saying that right away. Something however that I’ve dealt with is feeling and being judged negatively by friends and family for owning (leasing actually) such an expensive car. Even when I explain the fact that monthly costs after gas savings really aren’t much higher than my BMW X3, this car has a certain stigma that I’m not sure will ever go away.

We do pretty well financially for the Bay Area, but now after having leased this car, when people find out I have one all of a sudden “dinner is on me”. All of a sudden, we shouldn’t be complaining about the cost of our kid’s school, the cost of living out here, etc because “well, you have a Tesla, you can’t be hurting that bad.”

So I’m curious, is this something most of you deal with and how do you get past it. I try not to care too much what others think, but I also really dislike the feeling of being judged for the car I drive...

If you are so clueless you didn't realize that driving around in a six figure status mobile would affect the way folks perceive you I'm not sure what to say.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

If you are so clueless you didn't realize that driving around in a six figure status mobile would affect the way folks perceive you I'm not sure what to say.

You can't really tell the difference between a 60K Model S, and a 140K Model S from the looks alone.

You have no idea whether a particular Model S was a sound money choice or complete insanity.

 

[sauce]

If you are so clueless you didn't realize that driving around in a six figure status mobile would affect the way folks perceive you I'm not sure what to say.

I would temper and say one who's never owned a high end car before may or may not have an idea of what perception change it's going to trigger among friends, relatives and co-workers, but for sure it's somewhat more difficult to anticipate if you've never been there before.

I've been through pretty much everything OP has talked about and while I have not a problem with it (it actually amuses me and I find it a good opportunity to learn a little more about my own social network), my wife is way more affected by what others think.

One thing's for sure, is I'm not afraid of the reasons I got my S and so I'm not gonna hide my car. I enjoy it every day and if someone shows a negative reaction I make sure he knows it.

If a customer tries to give me a rough time about it, he gets the ''oh you have a problem with reinvesting hard-earned income to give back to the environment after all these years where my job meant I imposed a huge carbon footprint to give you the right service?'' rant. I understand that may not sit well everywhere but in Quebec most would be hard-pressed to argue against that.

 

[Xtek]

I'm a senior engineer at Amazon and still get the "oooh, fancy you own a Tesla!". Mind you our junior engineers start at over $100k/yr.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ it's my car and my money, not theirs

 

[clostridium]

Everybody chooses what they want to invest their resources into based on their own personal priorities. You've chosen to purchase the car. You don't owe anybody any apologies. Tell them why you did it if they ask and if they still give you crap then just ignore them. It reminds me of people that choose to buy season tickets year in and year out to a professional sports team. It's really expensive to do that in most places especially when you consider all the costs of actually going to a game other than just the ticket price. They made their choice and as long as the money they use on it isn't stolen it's their right. Same with your car.

I was self conscious at first but people know that I did lots of research and calculations before getting the car. I will point out that I've got what is now the base model of car. A lot of people are very curious about the car and ask lots of questions. It's pretty easy to tell once they talk to me that it's not about a status symbol. This is by far the most expensive vehicle I've ever purchase or even considered purchasing. I ran some numbers and realized that it wasn't as expensive as I'd thought due to multiple factors.

What I can't figure out is why people pay 70-100k+ for some of these luxury cars that really are just status symbols. They don't do anything different from other cars for the most part. At least someone who buys a cool sports car got something that is different from other cars. Someone buying top end BMWs, MBs, Audis, etc. in many cases have nothing to show for the extra expense except that it's fancier. Your investment provides far more.

 

[SSedan]

I bought my P85 used, when people ask me what I paid I usually just tell them "about the same as the crewcab 1/2 ton 4X4 truck".

Here in the upper MIdwest crewcab trucks and Tahoes are the norm and a Silverado 1500 crewcab is over $50k easy and many of the guys that have those have a camper, or fishing boat, season NFL tickets etc. Diesel trucks are a fair bit more and the toys towed behind$$$$$

MS I can enjoy 365days a year and the fuel savings softens the financial burden.

 

[Xtek]

What I can't figure out is why people pay 70-100k+ for some of these luxury cars that really are just status symbols. They don't do anything different from other cars for the most part. At least someone who buys a cool sports car got something that is different from other cars. Someone buying top end BMWs, MBs, Audis, etc. in many cases have nothing to show for the extra expense except that it's fancier. Your investment provides far more.

I can answer this.

Because Tesla's aren't luxury vehicles. I know they're called that, but they're not. The leather is cheap, the interior is a bit chincy, build quality is mediocre. Don't get me wrong, I love my Model X -- but it's not a luxury vehicle. It just has a luxury vehicle price tag.

The interior of my Audi S6 (2014) has a much, much better interior. Better build quality, better leather. When people get in my AUdi they point ouf the nice leather, the quilted stitching, the nice feel of the switches. When people get in my Tesla they focus on the screen, the tech.

They're not on the same level of luxury as the cars they're compared against, but that's okay.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

I can answer this.

Because Tesla's aren't luxury vehicles. I know they're called that, but they're not. The leather is cheap, the interior is a bit chincy, build quality is mediocre. Don't get me wrong, I love my Model X -- but it's not a luxury vehicle. It just has a luxury vehicle price tag.

The interior of my Audi S6 (2014) has a much, much better interior. Better build quality, better leather. When people get in my AUdi they point ouf the nice leather, the quilted stitching, the nice feel of the switches. When people get in my Tesla they focus on the screen, the tech.

They're not on the same level of luxury as the cars they're compared against, but that's okay.

That's most certainly true of the current generation Model S/X. Where instead of the luxury interior you got a much more simplified interior with an immensely better power train than a luxury ICE car.

But, that won't last much longer. The Model 3 will become the car that the Tesla Model S was at a much lower cost so the Model S has to become a true luxury car. So I expect to see it get a vastly improved interior or else people simply won't buy it.

This change will help those who to judge people on their cars immensely.

With the current Model S people often misjudged because it really isn't what they assume it is.

With the next generation Model S they might be able to. Especially if it has a foot massagers.

 

[Lhshockey24]

I appreciate a lot of the responses here (with the exception of a couple typical internet jerks). I'm definitely still in that newcomer self-conscious phase, but it's good to hear I'm not the only one who has felt like that before. I posted hoping to realize just that and the comments have definitely offered a helpful perspective. Thanks!

 

[candersoh]

2011 i was driving my tesla roadster and pulled into a convenience store parking lot. a guy with a long beard, no shirt no shoes, and tattered jeans quickly made his way over to me with his fist in the air. he said "the people have spoken!" this was in austin, tx and he was clear that the people should decide what car they want to buy and let it be something that helps clean the water and the air. it's not about prestige, arrogance, $$$....the tesla brand stands for something to me. IMO, there are those that have sabotaged it to be about success and $$. it's not.

 

[vthomas]

Bay Area

I think it's a Bay Area effect. I live up the road from you in San Ramon and feel the same way. While we have about 5 Teslas on our block (including a Model 3), many still drive their "beaters" to work (including me - I still commute in my i3). I definitely feel an unspoken stigma about driving nicer cars to the workplace...can't quite explain it. My sister and brother-in-law in the North Bay have an MS and MX and were so worried about the workplace chatter the first time driving either to work, and they're both doctors.

That said, give it a few weeks/months, and you'll get over it and just enjoy the ride.

 

[mal_tsla]

We don't get this too often. But when it does happen, I usually roll with it. "yep, I'm thinking of getting a couple more, maybe different colors to suit the mood"

Usually a few giggles later everyone realizes how silly that whole thing was.