where next with Tesla prices in the UK?

[J1mbo]

And what if China chooses to 'kill' the Shanghai factory as part of the trade war. The Chinese government rule with an iron fist, it really doesn't matter what aggements are currently in place with Tesla the Party ALWAYS comes first, if they feel the need to hurt US pride they will action quicker than Elon can write a tweet.

More likely Trump will indirectly ban a critical component and stop the US factory in it's tracks.

The Chinese want Tesla there - aside from the benefits of employing thousands of locals and a largely domestic supply chain they need millions of BEVs if they are going to clean up their environment.

 

[thegruf]

...The Chinese want Tesla there - aside from the benefits of employing thousands of locals and a largely domestic supply chain they need millions of BEVs if they are going to clean up their environment...

the cynic in me wants to add "...and pilfer Tesla's technology", but yes, Tesla China plant will succeed.

 

[Jonah125]

I am an ardent Tesla fan but I will cancel my SR+ and wait for the LR RWD.

 

[NorfolkMustard]

LR-RWD may never come to the UK. It's only still available in the US off-line, so it can be slowly killed-off.

 

[thegruf]

I am an ardent Tesla fan but I will cancel my SR+ and wait for the LR RWD.

I wouldn't do that. No guarantee that version will come to the UK, in fact I would guess it won't.

 

[Jonah125]

Perhaps the onslaught of ICE manufacturers producing 300 mile range models at approx £35,000 might induce a change of thought.

 

[thegruf]

Perhaps the onslaught of ICE manufacturers producing 300 mile range models at approx £35,000 might induce a change of thought.

not waiting that long

 

[LukeT]

I intend to buy my car at today's price rather than yesterday's higher price, but I will do it. I accept that I'll likely pay quite a bit more than I would if I bought a few months hence. Because I think fast change will be the norm for quite a while. It's a rapidly changing market and the really decent competition simply hasn't turned up yet. Jag, Audi and merc don't have range, charging infra or competing tech. Soon the competition will, whether they're part of it or not.

I'm happy to do this in part because I support it and I don't want to wait any longer to make this change. I've been looking at it for 3 years plus. But I will also be a long owner and a high per year mileage driver. So my car will cover lots of miles and therefore take most of its depreciation while still under warranty. Then I expect I'll keep it much longer still because they appear genuinely good for a long life, but I can cross that bridge when I come to it.

The costs will come down soon enough that M3 or an equivalent will get to (the oddly magical) 35k. Battery cost is far off constant. Chinese manufacture is coming. More besides.

On balance I think tesla is more likely to survive than fail. Being bought can be survival or even a big step to success. It is a true game changer and we are at a time of transition. Tesla's got loads of issues and they're hard to deal with but it's still ahead of the game, it's genuinely changed established thinking and its products are better than just being the "first". They are genuinely good in an established industry. They're not the best at everything, obviously, but that's not the point...

None of this excuses the irritating price and spec jumps but if I wasn't buying a car I might buy some shares. Albeit not that many!

 

[WannabeOwner]

mileage and I prefer not to own cars outside warranty

I've been in that boat, swapping every 3 years to avoid going over 100,000 miles on ICE ... but I think that approach might be safely extended for EVs. Still rather early-days of course ... and there is the temptation of More Cameras to cause me to replace ... this time around at least

So just ordered a Model 3 Performance to go with our X

Hehehe ... I thought you and your missus worked in Sensible Professions

the onslaught of ICE manufacturers producing 300 mile range models

300 mile range EVs? we are talking at 75 MPH on the motorway right? not WLTP lies ... and not yet another VW Prototype Announcement ... I'll believe it when Bjorn has a YouTube showing him actually getting a decent range from it.

I haven't been following the eTron forum, I ought to do that, but the iPace forum is littered with issues. Seems that changing from ICE to EV isn't as trivial as people assumed, and actually Tesla did an astounding job with the choices they made originally ... and which they then improved on with M3, and now with the revamping of MS / MX motors.

And the "onslaught" seems to be the launch of models with 20,000 unit p.a. targets, and (if they are any good - e.g. Kona) wait times in years ...

Soon the competition will

I am really surprised that, coming to the market 7 years after MS launch, the Competition didn't wipe the floor with Tesla. First-mover has all the problems to solve, followers can see how it went, pick up the best brains, and source the latest Tech. So why so mediocre? (I'm looking at you iPace, eTron, EQC ...)

 

[LukeT]

I am really surprised that, coming to the market 7 years after MS launch, the Competition didn't wipe the floor with Tesla. First-mover has all the problems to solve, followers can see how it went, pick up the best brains, and source the latest Tech. So why so mediocre? (I'm looking at you iPace, eTron, EQC ...)

Me too. I expected that if anything was left as a true USP for Tesla to me it would be Autopilot tech. But they still smash the competition on range and passable charging infrastructure which I'd have thought would be entry level for new competitors. Which will be the competitor to offer the holy trinity of range, charging infra and tech, and when? Polestar?

Seems to me they've focussed on beating tesla at luxury and that's a pointless diversion. Of course they can do that.

 

[Peteski]

I am really surprised that, coming to the market 7 years after MS launch, the Competition didn't wipe the floor with Tesla. First-mover has all the problems to solve, followers can see how it went, pick up the best brains, and source the latest Tech. So why so mediocre? (I'm looking at you iPace, eTron, EQC ...)

They are still focused on their ICE legacy and struggling to get to grips with the battery tech, supply etc. Having a franchised dealership model geared up for ICE servicing doesn't help much either.

Meanwhile Tesla are relatively compact and sharply focused on the EV market. Therefore Tesla's opportunity in the premium EV market is still wide open. Even with the Model 3 delays and production ramp up, it has still reached the market with pretty much zero direct EV competition in 2019. Model Y may well have some limited direct competition when it gets release e.g. Polestar 2, but I doubt the production numbers will be all that significant. I also think the Model Y will still have class leading range and performance, as the Model 3 enjoys today.

So I can easily see myself sticking with Tesla well into the next decade, even though I'm open to any decent alternatives.

 

[WannabeOwner]

They are still focused on their ICE legacy and struggling to get to grips with the battery tech, supply etc

I'm really surprised they didn't crack that one out of the bag ... I know that range only matters when it matters, so not for anyone that has 100% of their journeys within range, but coming out with 10% less range than Tesla seems like shooting oneself in the foot. And, as was to be expected, Tesla had been holding back and then fitted the more efficient M3 motors to MS/MX and increased their range by 10% ... plus Tesla have battery size choices for Price/Range tradeoff for customers. Surprised that iPace / eTron launched with "one size" ...

but that all has to do, IMO, and as you say, with their supply chain. I've read supply-chain has brought variability to battery which accounts for some of the early iPace cars having much reduced range, and given the limited numbers they will be building (battery-supply constrained) my guess is they were between Rock and Hard-place.

and iPace seem to be in a fair amount of trouble with their Infotainment software. That's solvable of course, and may well be forgotten once solved (it has been with Tesla ... Jag drivers may have longer memories though ...)

I'm open to any decent alternatives

Me too, but only if Charging is as trivially easy as Supercharger. You may have seen my recent rant - 20 minutes just to get connected to Ecotriity, and then only 40kW - I can't see Ionity tc. solving this inside of 3 years, so that's my next iteration of Tesla in the bag, and that will be readily CCS compatible to charge at either/or

 

[goRt]

So I can easily see myself sticking with Tesla well into the next decade, even though I'm open to any decent alternatives.

You do know "the next decade" is just over 7 months away!

 

[gangzoom]

So just ordered a Model 3 Performance to go with our X. Nothing else interested us in that class and there were no other EV options to even compete.

We just cancelled our SR+ order, so the X will still be lonely.

I've actually just had a proper look on Autotrader last few days to see what I would replace the X with if we sold it......the top candidate a used P85 for just over £30k, so even if Tesla went POP these still remain the best EVs by far .

 

[J1mbo]

I miss my P85, but I don’t miss the seats. So uncomfortable. Main reason why I changed to a 90D.

 

[cizUK]

Even the Model 3 SR+ pricing is nuts, £39k UK versus $39k in the US. We really are getting an awful 'deal' here in the UK

Why are we getting an awful deal?
Do the maths - £38,900 - VAT of £6,483 = £32,417 = $41,060.
US - $39,900 + $1,200 = $41,100
So a $40 saving, plus their interest on the currency change and the extra cost of their carriage.
We're getting a great deal!

 

[KennethS]

Why are we getting an awful deal?
Do the maths - £38,900 - VAT of £6,483 = £32,417 = $41,060.
US - $39,900 + $1,200 = $41,100
So a $40 saving, plus their interest on the currency change and the extra cost of their carriage.
We're getting a great deal!

I agree. I don't know why people seem to just ignore the 20% VAT that is added on here (and the fact that USA pricing excludes state sales tax, which varies by state). There is nothing the supplier of the goods can do about VAT and it is not their fault.

 

[WannabeOwner]

So a $40 saving, plus their interest on the currency change and the extra cost of their carriage.

And the Import Duty ...

 

[cizUK]

And the Import Duty ...

Didn't think of that, how much is it?

 

[WannabeOwner]

Sorry, don't know. Model-S/X imported as "bits" and assembled in EU to avoid Import Duty. Model-3 imported "whole", so import duty applies ...