With tonight’s splashy California reveal of the upcoming Model Y crossover, Tesla CEO Elon Musk hopes to achieve two things: positive press, and an avalanche of deposits. It would be a change from the past several weeks, in which an assembly line of undesirable headlines made it appear that a green monument was in danger of toppling.
While pricing and specs should be revealed tonight, J.D. Power thinks it knows what Tesla fans will pay.
The Model Y, based on the Model 3 sedan and boasting a body about 10 percent larger than its sedan sibling, will probably cost 10 percent more than the smaller car, Musk tweeted last week. Assuming the CEO used the Standard Range Model 3 ($35,000) as a benchmark, that would place the starting price closer to the $40k mark.
J.D. Power anticipates a higher starting price. In a report released ahead of the model’s reveal, the company explained that the Model Y sits in a sweet spot in the American market — “More than half (52%) of those who bought a vehicle in the $30,000-$50,000 price range purchased an SUV.” The company figures a $45,000 starting point, before tax rebates. The model’s price ceiling is probably in the area of $85,000, J.D. Power said.
“In 2018, 1.4 million SUVs were sold in the $40,000-$90,000 range. This means if Tesla captures only a modest portion of this segment, it will deliver significant sales growth.”
In today’s market, the sales potential of the crossover tops that of its sedan stablemate, J.D. Power said.
Of course, all of this hinges on Tesla getting the model into production. A report last week, citing Tesla supplier sources, suggested the automaker has only just started figuring the operation out. Its Model Y production site, the report claimed, is still a question mark.
[Image: Tesla]
Interesting. Speaking of inevitable bankruptcy, when will TTAC pull the rip-cord, now that Torstar/VerticalScope is unlikely to survive the year? Strongly suggest you buy up the 7% and get out now. Good luck.
S3XY
Car names
Childish.
He s got some bad code in that brain. What real HORROR will it bring?
It only works that way, out of order. The real order is:
Roadster
S
X
3
Y
Then…
Roadster 2.0
Semi
Pickup
Let it go.
So more vaporware just to raise capital.
Tesla is a joke.
There are over 200,000 copies of Model 3 vaporware driving around.
People received the product they paid for, so receiving reservation money isn’t really ‘raising capital’. The only capital Tesla raised on my refunded reservation was about 2 years’ worth of interest on $1000 – maybe $100. That’s how banks make money, not car makers; car makers have to produce actual product, which Tesla (eventually) does.
I know – I know
Great car. Got it.
But, he aint right in the head. Massive train wreck coming.
He’s not right in the head. The best thing for Tesla to do is send him away. He’s performed his visionary function, but it’s time to move on.
SCE
Grow up. I never said he had to go away.
I said what I believe. You take what I say. Add a twist. Then add a snarky endpoint.
You’re reading me wrong. I meant what I said, and I’ve said it before – he is no longer good for the company.
Questions I want to know: 1) Will it be made with slave labor in China or by disgruntled Californian’s in a tent? 2) Will I be able to test drive one before buying, or have they decided to close the showrooms again? 3) Will it only cost me $3 after considering all federal and state EV subsidies and 20 years worth of gas savings vs a 1975 K5 Blazer?
Yes to every question!
Still trotting out that dog-tired old claim – that EVs, and not ICE autos/the fossil fuel industry – are the only ones to receive government $$$. The Bailout and the oil depletion allowance beg to differ, to the tune of Billions.
Some good news in the State of Ohio – new registration fees coming for EV’s ($200/yr) and Hybrids ($100/yr) to begin paying a share for highway maintenance – of course fossil fuel taxes also are increasing but this is better than the free ride that EV’s/Hybrids previously enjoyed. A small offset to the government subsidies enjoyed by EV/Hybrid owners. I’m waiting for the “complementary charging stations” at the various big-box groceries and retailers to begin “charging for charging” at the “green vehicle only” spaces aligned along the front spaces of the parking lots (evidently “green vehicle” owners are unable to walk long distances from their vehicles to the front door of these establishments). Beginning to consume the pachyderm one bite at a time…
Gas tax in Ohio is $0.28 plus federal $0.184 totaling $0.464 per gallon.
If a car is driven 13476 miles (average 2018 from U.S. DOT) and gets 25.2 MPG (average FE 2017 from Consumer Reports) it uses 534 gallons. Divide 200 by 534 and that’s an equivalent $0.374 tax per “gallon” electric vs $0.28 gas. Just what Ohio (at $0.28) gets for 534 gallons of gas would total $149.52; now it gets $200 flat-rate for electric. A gas car would have to get 18.9 MPG to be at parity for 13476 miles. Notwithstanding you also pay a tax on the electricity used by the car. By this move the state has ensured it is boosting the amount of revenue it collects from an EV driver vs the average gas fleet. You can be sure this wasn’t by accident.
Hey, even better than I thought. EV’s/Hybrids are gonna catch up for what they owe from past free-run days. Great!
My predictions:
1. Pregnant whale styling borrowed from the Model X. Utility sacrificed on the altar of efficiency.
2. Lack of switchgear borrowed from the Model 3.
3. Minimal additional ground clearance or off-road capability as compared to Model 3.
4. Actual deliveries at least two years out, longer if you opt for a minimally optioned version.
If it has less room inside than a Honda CR-V, it’s a total fail IMHO.
Not that I’m cheering for Tesla to fail. The more people they hire, the more my house is worth.
How many people use all of their current CUV’s space or ground clearance? People just want CUV shaped things they don’t actually use them as CUVs for off road camping trips for example.
Yes, and EVs only need 200 miles of range because people only drive 50 miles a day….blah blah blah.
It’s not what people actually do, it what they THINK THEY MIGHT DO that matters. People may not take their CR-Vs off road, but at least it has some pretense of off road capability.
@master: Some people may only drive 50 miles a day, but I do think someone without home charging is going to need much more range. That range is coming since battery technology is progressing rapidly. If I didn’t have home charging I’d want at with at least 300 to 400 miles range. With home charging 100 is fine. Currently, I have home charging, but want 300+ to avoid any public charging.
Let’s not talk about a lack of home charging as an insurmountable obstacle for homeowners (65% of households, 80+% of those who’re buying a $40k+ new car). This also goes for renters of single-family dwellings, duplexes, and tripledeckers as the cost is so small and the landlord won’t care.
A 240Vx20A plug takes an evening and less than $100 in parts to install. That’ll provide 32kWh of charging in an 8-hour night. If you have a 150-mile range car it’s almost empty-to-full.
I installed a 240Vx50A plug in my garage; including the permit it cost $275 and took four hours. My car is fully charged every morning.
“How many people use all of their current CUV’s space or ground clearance?”
Every arthritic CUV owner in snowland.
“3. Minimal additional ground clearance or off-road capability as compared to Model 3.”
It’s a crossover, only a moron would take it off-road. Generally speaking if it doesn’t have a body on frame construction it’s not designed to go off-road. Even the “golden boy” Jeep XJ suffers significant and irreversible damage when off-roaded the way body on frame vehicles are.
There is no crossover on the market that had any pretense of offroadability, even Jeep can’t make those cute utes look capable of driving through anything more serious than a ditch at a 45 degree angle.
Certainly agree with #2 and I think for them to be successful they need to have reasonable quantities (2000 a week) by early Q2 next year. Selling that amount in the US (8000 a month) would actually be quite good and above Acura (with RDX) or Volvo (with XC60). It is unrealistic to expect much more sales if SUV’s in that large price range only sold 1.4 million – expecting any more than 100000 units a year would equal a 7% market share which will not happen anytime soon.
Also agree that it needs to have reasonable space, that is more important than ground clearance.
“Channel-changing”? So it’s gonna be on TV? I’ve never seen a commercial for Tesla.
Why advertise when Elon is a walking, talking ad unto himself. What was that saying about even bad publicity is good publicity?
Y clearly stands for Yawn.
Seriously — there’s not the faintest inkling of a surprise there. Not even a tiny “wow” effect. It’s a Model 3 Crossover, not as ugly as the Model X, not as sleek as Models S and 3. Just what would have been to be expected if Tesla were, say, a maker of microwave ovens. Even new Audis have surprised me more in recent history, and that’s saying something.
It will sell like crazy, of course, if it ever will get sold at all. And it’s at least inoffensive enough on the eyes that I won’t care if it does.