I shopped Ford, Buick, and Subaru. I looked at a few others, but quickly crossed them off my list.
For most EVs there are two customers. The bulk are eco buyers trying to buy a vehicle with the least environmental impact and the rest buy to get some kind of incentive (either by rebate or something like HOV lane access). Tesla is different. It draws in the eco buyers, but it also draws in people who are looking at ICE too.
I started out looking for an ICE. I work from home and don't drive everyday, but my father in California is getting up there and the company I consult for is also in California so I needed a road trip car. In 2014 we went down to California in my SO's Subaru Impreza which is OK for around town, but it doesn't have enough leg room for long road trips and I was in agony by the time we got back.
I have long legs and broke my tail bone as a kid. If my legs aren't in a comfortable position on a long drive, my legs start to hurt. So I'm pushed into larger cars or some kind of truck-like vehicle from the get go. I was driving a 24 year old Buick and all I wanted was the same acceleration (7s 0-60), 80% the cargo capacity and 20% better gas mileage in a car big enough for my legs.
After searching for 6 months, I was surprised to find no ICE or hybrid that would fit that bill. One night I looked at the Model S on a lark and found it not only met all my criteria, it blew all of them away. When I sat in one, I found the seat actually went back further than I needed (very rare). It was substantially more than my target price range ($30K-$40K), but it was so vastly more than anything else out there, I started saving. If the Model 3 had been available, I probably would have gone for it, but this was before the Model 3 reveal.
My path is a little unusual, but I have come across many people who would never want any other EV than a Tesla. Not long after I found Tesla I had to take a cab ride and the driver had once owned a body shop and was into cars. He ranted about what junk EVs were, but when I mentioned Tesla made a good car he spent the remainder of the drive praising the Model S and said he wanted one (this was before the Model X was in production).
Bolt, Leaf, i3, etc. buyers usually set out to find an EV and they cross shop all the EVs out there. There are some Tesla buyers who are also cross shopping EVs, but many cross shop cars in the same utility and size bracket regardless of their propulsion source.
There is an eco car ghetto populated with most EVs and many of the PHEVs. With most you have to give up something significant to get the EV power train (in some cases your dignity). But that isn't the case with Tesla's cars. They compete favorably with ICE and people will cross shop them with ICE cars like I did. Tesla is the only EV outside the EV ghetto.
