I usually buy a new car every 4 years (this time will be 5+ years only because of the delivery delays). So my next purchase will likely be in 2026. Will I buy a Tesla then?
My guess is no. Four years is a long time these days. There is more to a company than making a great product. In four years there will be others with great products. The winner among those will be the company who best cares about their customers (or at least gives the strongest impression they care). Tesla has a huge head start now because they are the true innovator, and Elon is a genius. And as has been pointed out, the elimination of car dealerships and the humiliating and time-wasting negotiations over price, has given Tesla a real edge in the customer experience. But realistically there’s nothing more Tesla can do to keep that edge.
Or rather, there is something they could do but that something is not in Elon’s DNA, in fact the reverse is in his DNA—he candidly revealed a while back that he has ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and while that has clearly aided him enormously in his focus and energy devoted to innovation, a hallmark of ASD is problems with social, emotional and communication skills.
Whatever we may feel, Elon does not hate us, he is simply indifferent to us. If he were asked why Tesla doesn’t devote even minuscule attention to his SAs or his customers, his reply would likely be one of confusion: why would anyone do that?
And for the time being, that is fine. I will absolutely love my new refreshed X, whenever it arrives, and will quickly forget the humiliation and frustration he is putting us through. The product will be totally worth it. But in four years’ time, it may be a different story….
