Motivation: Why do it, and who does it
General motivations for getting a Tesla
There are lots of cars out there, of all types now, including other electric cars.
So why choose Tesla?
There are a variety of reasons:
- To help save the planet:
Despite the greed-motivated denyers, there is tryly irrefutable evidence that
infestation of the planet by humans is royally screwing up the environment,
including ever more punishing storms and winters.
Being able to transport yourself without polluting the air is compelling.
And you'll know that you're not contributing to umpteen tanker trucks delivering
gasoline, oil rig explostions killing workers and polluting the ocean, tanker ships
spilling oil, or the upcoming Toyota idiocy of hydrogen tanks everywhere.
Always remember that you can generated electicity at home, but you can't produce
gasoline at home.
If you haven't been concerned about the increase in CO2, see the
Tesla Powerwall presentation
to see the reality, the danger, and things that can be done about it.
A late August 2015 report on personal vehicle commuting cited the enormous waste
of gasoline of conventional automobile engines idling in growing traffic jams.
There are still far too many tailpipes out there as the population in general
gorges on gasoline.
- Rewarding innovation:
Apple has a loyal following because they are people a lot like us, who talk to
us, and have the talent and ceaseless compulsion to make great strides in
technology, at the same time being environmentally responsible.
Tesla's Elon Musk is the same type of person, seeing the carbon graphs and
the need to act now, recognizing that there is a planetary emergency.
This resonates with thinking people. It's the king of leadership that makes
people want to join in, and be part of both innovation and solution.
- Really, really tired of filth:
If you want to stay satisfied with your internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle,
don't look under the hood of a Tesla.
There is no engine in a Tesla.
Instead of a filthy, horrendously complex heat engine there is just storage space.
Go to a gas station to fill up, and after jockeying to get to a pump, you have
to contend with a dirty panel with a slow payment registration process and a
dirty handle in your hand for four minutes, many times standing in the rain or
freezing cold.
- The endless, costly maintenance of ordinary cars:
ICE cars require oil changes about every 3 months, where you have to keep track
of the mileage, then go to a dealer or one of those sketchy oil change places,
and wait, and then shell out about $40 (oil, labor, disposal fee).
And throughout each year you're anticipating when the next costly thing will go
wrong: a belt snaps, a hose deteriorates and leaks, an engine gasket develops a
leak and drips oil on your garage floor or driveway, the engine needs a "flush",
one of the several pumps fails, the timing belt needs replacement, the muffler
or exhaust pipe or support brackets have rusted away, etc.
With every annual state vehicle inspection you have to be concerned that the car
will pass emissions tests, and the costs involved if it doesn't.
- Gas stations are slowly disappearing as regulatory and insurance costs can
make them uneconomical to run.
- Gas pump charge card skimming has become rampant.
The security of gas pumps is primitive, requiring just a simple key to get
inside to install an invisible skimmer, and such keys are readily available online.
Easy identity and bank account theft.
- Tired of throwing away money every time you brake:
Energy costs money, be it gasoline or electrons.
With an ICE car, every time you brake you are throwing away energy that you
expended to get the car up to speed, producing heat, brake dust, and wearing
down your rotors. This waste really grates on one after a while.
You really want regenerative braking, to convert kinetic energy back into
potential energy.
- Eliminate acceleration anxiety:
As if there isn't enough stress in modern life, there is the stress of trying to
accelerate an internal combustion vehicle in merging onto a highway or getting
out of a bad situation, where you floor the accelerator, the engine roars like
it's going to bust a crankshaft, and the car gradually gets up to the speed you need.
An electric car can eliminate that stress in your life, and the Tesla does it
extraordinarily well.
- You want an electric car that's stylish:
Mainstream car makers who offer an electric vehicle have been styling those
vehicles as if they are trying to deter people from buying them.
(Some auto executives have said that they are marketing an electric model only
to satisfy California regulations, and are losing money on each sale, and thus
offering the model only begrudgingly.)
The Model S is a remarkably attractive car with the lowest drag coefficient of
any mass market vehicle.
Personal motivations
In my case, the personal motivations were:
- An Aging car:
More than 10 years old and over 100,000 miles on the odometer, you just know it
won't be long before major, costly repairs will be happening.
And the last thing anybody needs is for their car to konk out on the road; or,
worse, for a mechanical failure to result in loss of control and mayhem.
- Lack of driver assists on car:
Older cars simply don't have modern technology assists such as automatic braking
to avoid collisions.
Such aids are increasingly important as we age and our reflexes diminish.
- Tesla technology just right now:
Tesla has evolve from rear-wheel drive to all-wheel drive, with the addition of
a lot of helpful technologies.
The 2015 Model S is far more complelling that the 2013 or 2014 versions.
- Attractive loan rate from Tesla:
The Model S costs a bunch of money, more than most people will have at hand.
Buying it with an auto loan is about the only way to do it.
I looked around at the best rates available.
The one I got from Tesla, with my credit rating, was outstanding.
- Interest rates will be going up:
The Federal Reserve has been cautioning that interest rates will be nudged
upward toward the end of 2015, and with that go all interest rates, including
car loans.
- The Massachusetts electric car rebate program (MOR-EV) is finite:
That state will give Tesla buyers $2500 for buying that electric car.
This is a lump-funded program which won't be around forever.
- The federal tax credit won't last forever:
That's $7,500. Get it while it's available.
- Personally, I was at a good point to do it:
There are times when our finances are in appropriate shape to handle a
significant expenditure.
Should you buy an electric car when gasoline prices are down?
There is an old adage: Dig a well before you become thirsty.
Those of us who have been around a while remember the horrendous gasoline lines
in the 1970s, in 1973 and 1979, incited by events in the Middle East.
In mid 2014 gasoline prices were around $4 per gallon in the U.S.
In mid August, 2015, in the midst of comfy $2 per gallon prices,
the cost per gallon suddenly shut up in the midwest because of a key refinery
shutdown in Indiana.
And we are long overdue for a federal gasoline tax boost to address our
long-neglected road conditions.
The lesson to be learned is that gasoline prices are very susceptible
to sudden increase due to pipeline problems, refinery problems, or other events
which cause upheaval in the market.
Americans are known in the world more for their arrogance than their
intelligence, where as soon as gasoline prices drop they'll rush out and buy the
most consumptive vehicle that will fit in their garage; then when prices shoot
up you will inevitably see them being interviewed at the pump bemoaning how much
it costs to fill their enormous tank.
The minority of Americans will buy efficient vehicles, electric if possible.
So, who are the people who buy Teslas?
Yes, people who are well off buy Teslas; but many of the buyers are people of
rather ordinary means who perceive the purchase as very much worth doing.
That was the case with me, where this acquisition was a stretch.
Someone I can very much identify with in this endeavor:
http://www.teslamotors.com/customer-stories/me-and-electrons.
There is also this timely study of who actually buys Teslas:
The Average Tesla Driver Isn't Who You'd Expect
and related: A surprising look at who buys the Tesla Model S
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