What is public perception of owning a Tesla after Musk's tweet?

[ZenRockGarden]

Hey, mate. I am well aware that Elon is far from perfect. That said, we could certainly do worse in our choice of billionaires. (cf. Bezos, that guy who owns DishTV, et al.)

I just think it’s ironic that Elon (like Trump) was beloved by many on the Left until he crossed a line. (Elon advocating for free speech for all; Trump ran for POTUS.) Now, Elon seems to be getting a LOT of undue and unnecessary hate.

Aside, how do you figure there is “very likely a breech of fiduciary duty” as CEO of TESLA? Do you even know what that term means? You’re making a LOT of assumptions about the situation which neither of us is closely familiar. For all we know, he authorized all of the engineers to use a week of their accrued vacation from TESLA and offered to pay them each $5k for their week’s worth of work. WE DON’T KNOW—so STOP assuming the worst! You’re making yourself look really stupid, mate.

Any officer of a public company is legally required to act in the best interest of THAT company, not pull resources off to his private side adventure. I'm sorry that concept is too complicated for you.

Good luck with the mindless Elon adoration. I prefer to actually use my brain. Elon's latest work on Starship and the Raptor engines? Amazing. His adventures in free-speech-absolutism and making twitter his private playtoy using Tesla staff time? Terrible.

 

[STS-134]

> Elon trusts these engineers and their coding abilities in the midst of taking control of Twitter’s source code that he has purchased.

You don't seem to get it. The TSLA engineers do NOT belong to Elon - they belong to Tesla - a public company for which Elon has feduciary duty.

Yep. The CEO and the board of a company have bosses: the shareholders. Once a company sells shares to the public, it often makes the founders rich, but in doing so, they give up control of the company and are obligated to act in the best interests of those they sold shares to. If the owners of the company want full control over its operations, then they can always choose not to sell the company to someone else and never do an IPO. But that wasn't the path Elon took at Tesla and he and the founders no longer own the company (except for the shares they personally hold, which is a minority of the shares outstanding).

 

[dm33]

It sounds like you have a problem with Elon’s attempts to cultivate and curate free speech online through his Twitter purchase.

Repeating a completely fabricated story about the victim of a murder attempt is hardly curating free speech.

 

[sunwarriors]

At the price now and competition, I feel there are more options out there and Tesla car products are not as much of a cheap value now (you see this in a ton of posts/videos when folks were able to get the MY for $10k-$15k less) and they have had to lower the prices in China.

I think Elon's antics really boils down to whatever your own mindset will allow/support. Some folks simply don't care whatever someone does from a company and will still buy their stuff because they think it's the best or best value. Everything else be damned. Sucks to be working at Twitter for sure I'd say right now.

I view it as similar to the sexual assaulter/harasser/abuser who is a top performer at a company. People let it go because it's the top guy (or Elon or whoever). If you don't like that set up, maybe it's better to just buy something else since unlike 5 years ago, there are lot of of other EV choices now I feel. Just feels bad to support someone who's simply a jerk. Some folks don't care, but you, OP clearly do.

I avoided Tesla solar as well, but Tesla solar is not Tesla cars and have a lot of issues. If the product/brand isn't as great for your situation, at least be willing to open your eyes and see what else is in the market. I feel a lot of folks are Tesla or nothing, but like they say, a car says something about you whether you like it or not and that's not something you have any control over (and other people are free to think however they want too).

 

[Thomas F]

I've owned a Tesla since 2018 - first a Model 3 and now a ModelY. A brother and a sister of mine will definitely purchase an EV as their next auto purchase, but the car they purchase will not be a Tesla because of Musk's antics. I used to be a big fan of Musk, but not so much anymore. Anytime a CEO dabbles in politics he risks alienating ½ of his potential customers. It might not be a problem when the supply of EVs is so limited, but it could well come back to bite when the other EV manufacturers manage to ramp up production. I love Tesla and SpaceX, but Elon…not so much anymore.

 

[advocate8]

had text yesterday from a buddy simply saying “are you going to keep the Musk-mobile?”
I engaged to see what was driving it. it was the ongoing dialogue about Musk and politics.
I’d taken him out in my previous M3P and let him drive it and he was really enthused...
this is a guy who has endless money, and is about ready to buy an EV. he said yesterday there’s no way he could own one now.
I told him to look at an iX or a Polestar 3, thought the charging on the road is gonna suck.
This def will slow him down a year or two or three in shifting to EV.
I don’t know how one could calculate the numbers, but it’s def not helping sales.... or the mission.
I keep hearing the response here that oh, but those on the left who walk away will be replace by buyers on the right he convinces to cross over.
It’s a hell of a lot easier to sell to the ones he’s turning off by not turning them off, though.

 

[PACEMD]

Is it true that new Teslas with come with a free My Pillow? Cause that's what I've heard..........

 

[ElectricIAC]

had text yesterday from a buddy simply saying “are you going to keep the Musk-mobile?”
I engaged to see what was driving it. it was the ongoing dialogue about Musk and politics.
I’d taken him out in my previous M3P and let him drive it and he was really enthused...
this is a guy who has endless money, and is about ready to buy an EV. he said yesterday there’s no way he could own one now.
I told him to look at an iX or a Polestar 3, thought the charging on the road is gonna suck.
This def will slow him down a year or two or three in shifting to EV.
I don’t know how one could calculate the numbers, but it’s def not helping sales.... or the mission.
I keep hearing the response here that oh, but those on the left who walk away will be replace by buyers on the right he convinces to cross over.
It’s a hell of a lot easier to sell to the ones he’s turning off by not turning them off, though.

Put an order in for an i4 M50

Pretty sweet ride.

 

[ElectricIAC]

Is it true that new Teslas with come with a free My Pillow? Cause that's what I've heard..........

Nothing is free with Tesla anymore.

 

[sleepydoc]

Call it what you will but I think most people stop short of boycotting when it comes to convenience.

If a product is great or at least bests the rest in the market then all press is effectively good press. If a product is dog excrement then it’s pretty easy to just say no.

The problem for Tesla comes as the market matures and there are more viable alternatives. Then having a buffoon for a CEO does become a liability. Instead of saying “yeah, Musk is a joke but they have good cars,” people are more likely to say “yeah, their cars might be good, but Musk is a joke and there are other good cars to choose from.”

As much as we don’t like to admit it, emotion plays a big role in most people’s decision making, subconsciously more often than not. As the figurehead of Tesla, Musk’s actions can and will affect people’s impressions of Tesla and those impressions will affect purchase decisions.

 

[PACEMD]

Nothing is free with Tesla anymore.

Well by free I mean as long as you are cool with selling your soul to the Elon............

 

[ElectricIAC]

Instead of saying “yeah, Musk is a joke but they have good cars,” people are more likely to say “yeah, their cars might be good, but Musk is a joke and there are other good cars to choose from.”

As much as we don’t like to admit it, emotion plays a big role in most people’s decision making, subconsciously more often than not. As the figurehead of Tesla, Musk’s actions can and will affect people’s impressions of Tesla and those impressions will affect purchase decisions.

Perhaps, but there is something to be said for being first and best dressed.

BMW really hit it out of the park with the i4 and iX in regards to user friendliness and range but the poor CCS infrastructure will continue to make them a harder sale than a Tesla even if we’re offering 2 years of free DCFC. I hear it all the time especially now that they’re not eligible for the IRA Tax credit.

 

[advocate8]

Put an order in for an i4 M50

Pretty sweet ride.

I haven’t driven that one. I really really liked the iX though. The charging network on the road though... man I hate trying to use anything but superchargers. EA is just utter crap.

 

[ElectricIAC]

I haven’t driven that one. I really really liked the iX though. The charging network on the road though... man I hate trying to use anything but superchargers. EA is just utter crap.

The charging network is where I get the most rebuttals.

They sell on the performance (range and power), brand, and on service standards but never the network.

 

[offhegoes]

The fact that this thread even exists shows what a joke the state of this country is. If I need/like a product I'm getting it. Life is short and unfortunately, I'm not 100% perfect either.

 

[xetairex]

My next car will be an EV, but not Tesla. It’s not just Elon, (his latest bad tweet about an old guy attacked with a hammer is too much beyond the pale). It’s also the bad build quality. The bad service. The cheap interiors and ‘within spec’ joke of exterior ill fitting panels.

Top choice right now is BMW i4-40. Interior space of the i4 could have been better, but the car handles and rides well, goes the same as my Model 3 LR, but is way better in terms of materials and fit and finish.

Whats the catch? Charging network. Not as reliable as the Tesla supercharging network, but getting there. Moreover, my charging is 95% at home, so there’s that.

 

[xetairex]

My number two choice is the Porsche Taycan, and third is the Mercedes EQE (when it eventually arrives).

 

[sleepydoc]

Perhaps, but there is something to be said for being first and best dressed.

BMW really hit it out of the park with the i4 and iX in regards to user friendliness and range but the poor CCS infrastructure will continue to make them a harder sale than a Tesla even if we’re offering 2 years of free DCFC. I hear it all the time especially now that they’re not eligible for the IRA Tax credit.

Well, best dressed is a matter of opinion, but as they say, there’s no accounting for style. As far as being first, remember Blackberry?

The supercharger network and seamless integration with the navigation are clearly huge advantages for Tesla but I think it’s a mistake to assume that they will remain so. As EV’s gain popularity and become more commonplace so will charging networks. If the only real advantage Tesla has is the Supercharger network then they’d better have a plan B in place.

I have a friend with a Leaf who drove from Minneapolis to Chicago a while ago. He had to spend more time planning his trip than I would have but it worked fine, so even now it’s not an insurmountable task, it just isn’t nearly as easy and convenient as it is with a Tesla.

Tesla has a huge advantage in terms of user base, time on the market charging network and image. They need to be careful not to squander that advantage with things poor build quality, service issues, incomplete software and doltish comments by their CEO. History is full of examples of companies that squandered opportunities and the market can be very unforgiving.

 

[ElectricIAC]

Well, best dressed is a matter of opinion, but as they say, there’s no accounting for style. As far as being first, remember Blackberry?

The supercharger network and seamless integration with the navigation are clearly huge advantages for Tesla but I think it’s a mistake to assume that they will remain so. As EV’s gain popularity and become more commonplace so will charging networks. If the only real advantage Tesla has is the Supercharger network then they’d better have a plan B in place.

I have a friend with a Leaf who drove from Minneapolis to Chicago a while ago. He had to spend more time planning his trip than I would have but it worked fine, so even now it’s not an insurmountable task, it just isn’t nearly as easy and convenient as it is with a Tesla.

It’ll get there eventually but it’s not there now, and people are lazier than you think.

Tesla just plain makes it simple, you plug-in and you charge and it gets billed to your card without you having to make any swipes or use an application.

They have the most chargers and for the most part the most transparent pricing.

 

[THEbuz]

Any officer of a public company is legally required to act in the best interest of THAT company, not pull resources off to his private side adventure. I'm sorry that concept is too complicated for you.

Good luck with the mindless Elon adoration. I prefer to actually use my brain. Elon's latest work on Starship and the Raptor engines? Amazing. His adventures in free-speech-absolutism and making twitter his private playtoy using Tesla staff time? Terrible.

Zen,

Your opinion is valid. I’m not here to take that away from you. I just don’t get why you are assuming the worst about Elon’s involvement of TESLA engineers with Twitter, but you do you, mate.