Quote:
Originally Posted by polak
Cause swing doors are dumb when then they're in the back. Slide doors on the side are without a doubt the best.
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The falcon wing doors are gimmicky. But it's really not the point - these things are $135K a pop, they're there to appeal to the vanity of the Real Housewife who's driving it.
The falcon wings also helped boost Tesla's public profile and I would guess were responsible for a couple thousand Model 3 pre-orders on their own.
Imagine criticizing the original iPhone for not being able to shoot 4K video. Teslas in their current incarnations are not going to reinvent the automotive industry as we know it. But this first generation of mass market vehicles paves the way for future development and innovation.
In my view, electric technology isn't going to become truly mainstream until another major manufacturer adopts 480V charging. And if I were running Volkswagen Auto Group, I would be SPRINTING to get some sort of deal in place to begin manufacturing of supercharge-capable electric vehicles. It would go a long way to restoring public goodwill in the wake of Dieselgate, and Audi (or any German luxury brand, for that matter) will be able to offer buyers similar intangible benefits (ie wanting to own one) to Tesla.
As I said a few pages back, Chevrolet isn't doing 350,000 pre orders for the Bolt in 3 days. But an A4 eTron with a 400km range and supercharging capability? Different story.