It looks like the rumored Tesla hatchback may come true. Tesla Shanghai may get production started by the end of the year.
Imagine a $25k EV with a $7k US governmental tax credit. This is going to put a major dent into sales of budget friendly models proposed to come out of Europe and Asia. For those of you who aren't familiar of how Tesla manufacturing is distributed, Tesla Shanghai will supply the majority of its cars to Asia and Europe while Tesla Fremont and Texas is supposed to take care of the US needs. When Tesla Germany gets into production, it will supply Europe. Sightings of the Tesla Cybertruck has appeared in images from the Austin factory. If any company is going to make this happen it is Tesla. They have a proven track record and a level of customer satisfaction.
For those of you who want a more long distant highway car, with a back seat and larger rear hatch cargo area, this may be of consideration. I am not interested in the limited solar panels on a car for charging for I have a roof top solar system which will fully charge the battery as opposed to a 40 mile range. The first hatch is supposed to have a 250 range which will have access to the DC Supercharger system at a level 3 or 250 kW rate. I like the idea that it can have a roof rack for kayaks and roof top storage box as well as a tow hitch to put a few electric bikes on it. A small camping trailer can also be an option. This is the time to ideally plan what your needs are. I am only saying this from all the questions and data being provided by forum members. I for one an getting the Aptera as a city car for I do not see it being comfortable enough or having enough cargo capacity for long range trips. Tesla is well situated in the service market to have a service van come to you in case of breakdown on a seclude highway. I can't really see ourselves repairing our own vehicle in the middle of a trip on a strange stretch of highway. I really don't need the Tesla to have 1000 miles of range since we have so many level 2 and DC fast chargers in So. Cal. There is really no use lugging the extra batteries around each day. The rest of you will need to evaluate your geography.
Just remember. Once Elon presents a new model it still takes years before it hits the streets and mostly at a higher price than announced. The hatch hasn't even shown yet. First in line are, yet still not available
- Semi
- Roadster
- Cybertruck
I would need a service center closer than 1000 km to me and a total shift in Tesla's attitude towards right to repair before I'd consider a Tesla, even at $25,000.00.
I was just looking at cars at a bunch of dealerships today while I was getting a new tire put on, and a big issue I noticed with some of the used cars, including a Tesla Model Y, is the metal trim around the windows being in horrendous shape. Faded, rusted, whatever the issue is. It seems the Aptera doesn't have that type of trim at all. Another point for Aptera.
Tesla has back orders for the Y and 3 for 3+ months and 1M preorders for the Cybertruck - it will be at least 2 years before any new low cost model comes out in the US market in any kind of volume.
I would be interested if Aptera doesn't happen... But I want something different. Extraordinary. Something that breaks the mold and demonstrates it doesn't have to be the exact same as every other EV or ICEV on the road.
The Aptera is better than the Model 3, it will obviously be better than a Model 2. $25k car will probably start around $32k for the first 2 years before you see something like $29k, it will likely never be $25k given Teslas track record.
Aptera is revolutionary, the Model 2 is just a cheaper smaller Model 3. Aptera will be historic, being the first production SEV, being the most aerodynamic production vehicle of all time, and being one of the first cars to utilize in-wheel motors.
That said, the Model 2 will be one of the cheapest 4-5 seat EVs available, so it will sell very well, but it's not particularly special (you could just buy a Model 3 used).
Part of why I'm looking forward to buying an Aptera is because of the look. I don't want a car that looks like every other car out there. The efficiency is next on the list, and Tesla just doesn't touch Aptera in that regard. That said, I'll be buying an EV soon, and if Aptera doesn't make it to the Canadian market, I've test driven a couple of Teslas, and I appreciate their driver UI and the tech they've implemented.
As a lot of you probably know, my province (BC) is on fire. There are other places with the same issue, and there are more reasons for this than just climate change, but that's a big part of it. If I can do a little bit to offset my contribution to it, I'm going to. Driving electric isn't going to solve the issue, but if everyone chips in, it'll help.
Tesla is far too big and effective a juggernaut of paradigm shift of automotive technology to garner anything less than full attention, whatever they are doing. That being said, they don’t have a monopoly on getting it right. They are also going slow about it with the sensible goal of building and sustaining mass market appeal. Aptera, on the other hand, is way out on the bleeding edge of automotive technology, at least to the extent available to them. Much of what is available to them is going to deviate from mass appeal, at least initially.
I am of the opinion that we need as much of that out on the road as we can get. People’s notion of normal is a mean of what they are exposed to, including the extremes. If extreme Aptera’s get out on the roads where folks are seeing them, that will push the needle of public perception of normal in a direction that I think is desperately needed. The fact that the vehicle as represented suits me in most every other regard is just the clincher. An otherwise ordinary car equally suited just won’t do for me what I expect the Aptera to do. I guess that makes it an image car. Okay, but an ethical image, rather than an image portraying wealth, fashion or any other shallow notion. I am good with that.
How many miles per KWh will the new Tesla achieve? 👀 How big a battery (likely in heavier LiFePo) will it require for whatever range Telsa decides it needs? 👁️ How will this compare to the Aptera's power use and battery size for the same/similar range? This is where Aptera will still have legs to stand on, plus the long life and durability of the body structure (composite shell doesn't need expensive and heavy stainless steel [or even plain old steel] skin to be protective).
This has the potential of draining many orders from Aptera. Im sure this will spur Aptera to move as fast as possible. They will both be in the 25k market and with charging infrastructure improving it negates some of the solar cell advantage. Go Aptera!