Wow. They're literally making it look more like a non-boxy Cybertruck. I can imagine Musk swooping in and going "needs more light bars". It reminds me of a certain movie aesthetic though not which one. Tron light cycles? 🤷‍♂️

Can we go back to when Tesla was seen as the quiet electric vehicle driven by people wanting to get away from fossil fuels? ... No? Oh well, at least there are alternate BEVs finally; it'd be really sad to see a return to ICE vehicles instead.

There are some old gas subcompacts out there capable of 40-50 miles per gallon. Many are now worn out and need engine and transmission rebuilds, but if you are able to do this you can get a $1,500 car or cheaper if the problems are obvious like a rod knock, sink a couple grand and a few weeks into it, and end up with a high MPG car with a new engine and transmission that will be very cheap to keep running for a decade.

Note that a 1,800 pound gas burner pulling 50 mpg may emit less CO2 than coal burning powerplants feeding the big heavy cars too many EV makers now produce. They could build to 3,000 pounds with 1/3ed of that battery but they go big, fast, and heavy. A used Tesla vs a used gas subcompact both avoid the emissions associated with building a new car. Even in an engine rebuild the block, head etc are either reused or from the junkyard.

Cherry picking coal burning plants, free labor from experienced mechanics, and driving an unreliable vehicle that will have an increasing number of expensive failures as it goes past the end of its life makes for a very weak argument against any BEVs.

The only justification for any ICE vehicle is frequent & extended usage beyond the electric grid.

Buying ANY new car would be far, far out of my budget. My last engine rebuild was $500 and my own labor. There are few failures that create more work than engine and transmission jobs and those are once a decade or so.

It's different when the experienced mechanic is yourself. It saves buckets of money and provides many more options

I prefer decades old stuff that has no Internet connection so it doesn't broadcast where you go back to the manufacturer. I don't have Google or Apple on a phone either.

To get an electric car I would have to build it myself, and use a non-networked computer to control the motor.

If it's for yourself and it's because you can't afford a new car then just say that. There's no reason to bring in the comparison to coal plants as justification against an electric car if the primary factor is monetary.

Most people aren't mechanics and won't have that option. The more people who stop buying new and used gas cars, the sooner you'll be able to obtain an electric car for a reasonable price.

A postwar junkyard full of Teslas maybe?

Note that I DO use electric bikes for urban use to limit fatigue on long days. They use incredibly small amounts of energy. When we were off-grid I could charge off the solar with no measurable penalty in getting the main battery bank charged. Wr were getting about 5KWH/day and the bike only took 400w/hr to charge from zero.