This is my Biggest concern being a Tesla Owner

[Flybuddy]

Fredmertz: you are kind of an insensitive Nerak.

Ethel agrees with you

 

[TomServo]

I had a couple of Corvette's vandalized over the years. I got lucky once, a few of us were coming home from a car show and stopped at a burger joint just off the highway in rural Missouri and I put my Targa top on as it was blazing hot, my buddy left his top down on his convertible. So some scumbag dumped a milkshake into his car. We had to tear his interior apart to clean it, took days, and hundreds of dollars in parts to get it right. He had a sexy 1971 that was a show stopper and many award winner.

There are assholes out there.

 

[adecker]

I don't want to turn this thread into a political debate so i'll just put a couple of my opinions and call it a day.

I don't know many conservatives that aren't open minded. I think a lot of the time it's about what they believe they should have an open mind about and what they shouldn't. I am conservative but I have a lot of liberal and conservative friends. I've gotten into some pretty heated debates about what they think I should be open minded about and a lot of the time it's not that I won't consider both sides, it's just I've picked one and they don't like my opinion. I am conservative on a lot of issues because that's where I see the best outcome i'm not saying it is best, that's just what I see and I understand that others can disagree.

Also when it comes to Scientific consensus, I think both sides will accept a scientific consensus as long as we aren't talking about antivaxers or flat earthers, lets agree they aren't on any side. When it comes to climate change, the big argument in the scientific community isn't whether it's happening or not, it's what affect has the human population had on climate change. Like I said, I don't want to turn this thread political so I'm not going to get into any specifics, people are welcome to take any side they want. All I will say is there are large numbers of scientists on each side of the arguement.

I will agree that self reliance is very important to myself and every conservative that I know. I was always proud to work my way through school since I didn't want loans and my family couldn't afford to help me. I've always believed that I need to work hard to better my life, make the company I work for successful and better my country...although I am from Canada and I plan to move to the US and maybe even work for Tesla if I find a job opening in my field.

Now I know that there are a lot of people that hate on Tesla like I mentioned before that are probably right wing. The people that coal-roll, or park in an EV only spot, or just talk down to EV owners. Personally I don't like to think as those people as political people at all, I think there are some people on the right that are only there because they want to own guns and not pay a bunch of taxes, just like I believe there are some people on the left that are only there because they want more benefits for less work. I try to keep those individuals out of my mind when thinking about politics because they make both sides look bad when they don't care too much about any other issues except the ones that directly affects them.


Finally one thing we both agree with is Tesla is awesome, EV's are awesome, Solar is awesome, and most renewable energy is awesome. I will say I personally don't like wind energy, there is some debate about how many birds they kill, but even the low end estimate is a lot of birds. But solar is awesome.

I am in the exact same boat as you. Don't forget Nuclear. Nuclear is one of the best renewables if we could better educate the public. We also need to develop a better plan for dealing with the waste, personally I am a fan of shooting it at the sun but that has it's own risks. Burying it very deep is also a good option since it's already radioactive if you dig deep enough. Solar needs a lot of research and work but it's getting there quickly as far as panel efficiency goes. Wind I am OK with but I grew up in the Midwest where its giant open fields and lots of wind. Hydro is another one of my favorites be it current turbines or dams.

 

[KyleATMn]

People are terrible sometimes, and anyone with a nice car can probably point out an example of someone taking their bad day out on said car in some way. I've parked cars 20 parking spaces out just to have people park purposely VERY close to me and in other instances ding my door and leave. People can suck. I'm worried about that with Tesla, but it's not something that ways heavy on my mind. There could be more political-leaning hate due to the inferences you could make above, but I believe it just comes down to if you're the type of person that is okay with damaging property. All we can do is not create a stigma that with Tesla that Mercedes and other higher end car owners have curated. The double parker, the traffic weaver, the non turn signal-er, etc.

You'll still catch me 20 spaces out. Cheers!

 

[Spacep0d]

I don’t think it has anything to do with perceived political stands. It is more simple and basic: envy. A person can try to justify that so they don’t feel inferior, but the root is the same. This problem occurs with all expensive or flashy cars. Teslas may have some additional baggage because of their prominence as a cool ride, but it is all the same thing.

When someone ICEs a charger or rolls coal against an EV-driver, that's not envy so much as contempt or hatred. Some people just want to hurt those who offend their beliefs and sensibilities, even if they get it wrong (and they so often do). This is why I wouldn't put a Darwin fish on my car. It's a symbol, but it won't trigger envy. It'll trigger rage by some self-selected actors, in that case I wouldn't want my car unattended in their presence. It's a predictable and demonstrable phenomenon, and it's easy to guess which regions would trigger a more or less aggressive response to a mere sticker on a car. That sticker represents an idea. So too does a Tesla or any EV.

Likewise, we might guess that a Confederate flag on a gun-rack-equipped truck is probably not owned by a Leftist vegan greenie. You can disagree, but I'd be right almost every time simply based on prior patterns of human behavior. Symbols have meaning, and a Tesla will never not be a symbol of something to someone who knows what they're looking at, for better or worse.

Envy can be a good thing. I want that, therefore I will work hard for it. Some will exhibit envy with destruction of property to 'even the scales'.

However, there are those who just want to hurt others they see as a threat or who they feel have wronged them by their very existence. This often has to do with associations, which is why so many older people hated Japanese cars for a while. We just got through WWII and many of them still had negative associations with anything made in Japan. Associations exist for EVs too, and politics cannot be divorced from the minds of all observers. My Dad was one of those people who poked fun at Japanese cars, but he bought a 72' Corolla! He was, despite his own prejudices, an early adopter. I had no such prejudices but my lived experience being born in '68 was different from his. The first car I fell in love with was a Honda Z600.

EVs are a 'threat' in many ways; the existing ICE/fuel infrastructure, construction of new gas stations, sales and service of new ICE cars. They're a possible perceived threat to anyone who works in jobs related to ICE anything or fossil fuels, and to anyone upset about growing emissions restrictions, or to anyone who thinks that EV owners are greens, Leftists, or liberals and opposes their lifestyle or presidential candidate in some way. It's an obvious mistake to judge someone on so much by a symbol (an EV, namely a Tesla) and then act on that in a criminal manner, but nobody said vandals were smart. It's okay to disagree with someone and even be friends with them, but that attitude seems rarer these days.

Vandalism of cars is fueled by a constellation of factors. Envy is in the mix, but it misses the point to end there even if it's the safer and more politically-correct answer. In my view it doesn't comport with reality and the large sample size of observed, demonstrable, and predictable human behavior.

 

[T4AQ9SDR7F8M]

Just wanted to say that my biggest concern as a Tesla owner is the damned phantom braking. It is so annoying. I have PTSD now from tapping on that obnoxious-blue Navigate On Autopilot button, because you never know when phantom braking is going to strike next.

 

[theganjaguru]

Definitely not unique to Tesla’s. My previous truck got a nice long keying on the rear passenger door shortly after moving to it our complex. Why? Who knows angry jealous neighbors.

At least with a Tesla you can record them and (in many cases) have the cops find them, or post the videos online and let the internet shame them

 

[Spacep0d]

Just wanted to say that my biggest concern as a Tesla owner is the damned phantom braking. It is so annoying. I have PTSD now from tapping on that obnoxious-blue Navigate On Autopilot button, because you never know when phantom braking is going to strike next.

That would really weird me out too, but less so if I can predict it. Sounds like one cannot? Oof. Bad one.

 

[Spacep0d]

Definitely not unique to Tesla’s. My previous truck got a nice long keying on the rear passenger door shortly after moving to it our complex. Why? Who knows angry jealous neighbors.

At least with a Tesla you can record them and (in many cases) have the cops find them, or post the videos online and let the internet shame them

True, not unique to Teslas by any stretch. EVs bring their own hate, but it's not unique to Teslas or EVs by any stretch. I also think it's temporary. I think most people are a test ride or drive away from falling in love with a Tesla.

 

[tonyb99]

Does owning a Tesla make me left-wing? Right-wing? No, just a car nut...

 

[Laguna M3]

True, not unique to Teslas by any stretch. EVs bring their own hate, but it's not unique to Teslas or EVs by any stretch. I also think it's temporary. I think most people are a test ride or drive away from falling in love with a Tesla.

My neighbor had his car totaled when someone crashed into it while it was parked in front of his house. I was telling him about my MY which should be coming later this month and he sounded interested. I told him that if he decides to test drive, he better be prepared to buy because he won't want to drive anything else.

 

[Spacep0d]

My neighbor had his car totaled when someone crashed into it while it was parked in front of his house. I was telling him about my MY which should be coming later this month and he sounded interested. I told him that if he decides to test drive, he better be prepared to buy because he won't want to drive anything else.

So true. That's what happened to me!

 

[Spacep0d]

Does owning a Tesla make me left-wing? Right-wing? No, just a car nut...

It doesn't, but people still have their perceptions relating to your Tesla as a first impression on the road. While you're happily zooming along in your awesome EV, others may think you're a Leftist, a greenie, vegan, tree-hugger, gun-hater, Biden/Kamala voter, atheist, etc. Could be all or some based on the peculiar perception, experiences, and worldview of the observer. Many observers aren't very educated, or not educated about EVs. Why else would people be sometimes so triggered by something *good*?

It's not about what YOU think when it comes to these associations so much as understanding what others tend to think (over large sample sizes, varying by region) and why.

Does overt atheism go down as well in Portland as it does Montgomery? If not, why not? Why is it that we can make predictions about human behavior fairly accurately, allowing for the exceptions which prove the rule? Why do we know which states are more meaningfully religious than others, or red vs. blue or purple? We know this is in part due to polling data, but any astute observer could discover the same thing with a little observant interaction. Now, would we expect the same reaction to a Tesla in Portland as we would in Montgomery or Galveston, TX? If not, why not?

It's really the same phenomenon when it comes to human behavior and how the perception of EVs (and Tesla) is commingled with one's worldview or general outlook. Humans make associations with Tesla based on their limited (or not) experience with them, Elon, the company, all of that FUD out there, EVs in general, and any perceived (not real necessarily) threats to home, hearth, and family. This is why some people go to great lengths to modify their trucks to 'roll coal' against EVs (this is a conscious and planned series of choices) or to organize an ICEing (charger blocking) event at the local Tesla Supercharger using paragons of legacy ICE vehicles such as Chargers, Camaros, trucks, etc.. You rarely see a charger getting blocked out by non-Tesla EVs, because it's a similar mindset and a lot of other non-Tesla owners are probably Tesla fans.

I know not everyone thinks about human behavior as much as I do, but it's there. It's actually a helpful skill when considering stocks and the companies and people/products behind them too—like a certain EV company we might be HODLing.

 

[Dennisis]

So true. That's what happened to me!

And me!

 

[labmixz]

I know people think if you own a Tesla you're rich. Not true as many of us are just hard working not rich citizens.

tesla-sentry-mode-captures-woman-scratching-model-y-with-knife

I mean, generally it's just the same thing as owning a BMW or Mercedes or really anything over $30k. After nearly 12 years of owning BMW's I've only had one incident. Where someone at a bar slashed all four of my tires on my BMW M3, still don't know who or why (i.e. was some drunk idiot).