The fact that Model S has "S" in it doesn't put it in the same class as Mercedes S, it's more in the class of Mercedes E class / BMW 5er, so this article doesn't make any sense.
The German KBA (Kraftfahrtbundesamt, similar to the DOT in the USA) classifies the Model S as Oberklasse, the same class like BMW 7 series and Mercedes S class.
Coming from a BMW 7 series and now driving a Model S myself, I sure have the feeling that the Model S carries a prestige comparable or higher to that of the 7er.
The quality of the vehicle (materials, UX, customer service and so on) doesn't match up with most recent BMW 7 and Mercedes S Klasse. It's on par with older ones, but not with the current ones.
The guidelines for the Fahrzeugsegment by the Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt are really kind of crap. If you gave different people the Abgrenzungskriterien to classify all the cars, you'd end up with different results unless because there's an unspoken weight to the criteria.
If I had to hazard a guess, probably 90% of the weight is on base price and another 9% is on "is this vehicle expensive because it's a Camper or Work Truck".
If you asked a 5 year old to play "which one of these is not like they other" they'd quickly zero in on the Tesla models very quickly because they don't look like luxury vehicles. That's not to say that the Tesla models aren't very nice cars, they're just not opulent. The Tesla models cost as much as they do because of the technology under the covers. The other cars in the Oberklasse segment aren't technologically expensive, they're pretty bog standard high performance vehicles slathered in expensive and exotic materials and refinements.
https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-model-3-teardown-video-revie...
Edit: Sorry that was a Model 3, here’s the S
https://insideevs.com/teardown-expert-test-drives-tesla-mode...
Does anyone have any other Munro teardowns? Or perhaps any other independent source reconfirming his view?
Does biased just mean “I don’t like it!” these days?
I mean, having Detroit car makers, notorious for bad build quality, and critique Tesla reeks of people like Steve Ballmer criticizing Apple, or the ULA folks running critics of SpaceX.
Biased means I this case, a tear down free of context. What’s the defect rate of Detroit built cars of similar class and age? How many recalls have they endured?
I’m starting to get a sense of where the bias really lies, thanks.
I couldn't read the word "Tesla" and only saw an unfamiliar car with a logo I hadn't seen before.
My thoughts were "what strange Chinese crap trying to look like a big car is this?". Really.
I know, sounds stupid. I was able to read "Tesla" shortly thereafter and certainly felt stupid, not recognizing the car or the logo after reading so much about Tesla.
My opinion has slightly changed, in the meantime, I don't see them anymore and think of "cheap" and "wannabe", but I suspect that my initial feeling was the true one and I'm now subconsciously factoring in that I know it is a Tesla.
Still, they badly need an experienced "conventional" designer if they see themselves as one of the luxury Mercedes or BMW cars. But I suspect they don't see themselves like that and actively try to force a new design language into the market and create a new niche.
When you first see the Hyundai Genesis line of cars you think it's some sort of high end fine European luxury vehicle because they copied the design language of luxury brands. However when you realize they're Hyundais you immediately think "oh garbage".
When Toyota first starting making the Lexus line they look like glossy versions of their Toyota counterparts and it took many years for them to develop a distinctive design aesthetic. Honda had similar issues with the Acura line in the US and I would argue they still do because the Acura line doesn't exist in other markets so those vehicles are branded as Honda. The Honda Odyssey has always looked more like an Acura to me.
Tesla to their credit didn't try to cash in the prestige of another brand by copying their design language. Tesla's design language is a blank slate in our mind so when we see it we don't know what to expect. We try to associate it with what we know, in this case you thought Chinese crap.
Here's a good article on the Century and the kind of luxury it represents:
http://autoweek.com/article/tokyo-motor-show/no-modern-luxur...
I personally find it quite attractive, it is a crowd pleasing design, but as a first model it could have used some sort of design extravagance. Something that scream "there is a Tesla 5 car down" even if you have just seen the rear corner of the boot or a light. Missed quite a few opportunities to tell people to look at the Tesla because, well, I didn't see it myself.
Edit: I don’t mean it looks like an Audi (obviously I hope) I mean it’s conservative design language similar to Audi.
Model S is basically a V1 car. Audi has made a dozen generations of vehicles, each time getting another chance to refine the design.
The Model 3 is a big leap forward in fit and finish, albeit in a simpler design, without "premium" flourishes.
The next gen Model S will be Tesla's first real foray into designing a serious premium interior on purpose, with experience. It'll be interesting to see how it does.
It's not that it doesn't look premium, it's that it doesn't look luxury. What about a Tesla makes it look more expensive than an Honda Accord or Mazda 6?
When I look at a Tesla it very much reminds me of Mazda. It looks like it's built for performance.
Of course, that doesn't mean you are not right to feel prestige with a Tesla, and that's something important with luxury in general: what's luxury to someone can be absolute garbage to someone else. And quite often, premium products can be of higher quality than luxury products (luxury is often tied to quality, but most importantly brand history, hand-crafted parts, access to some social status, etc).
Seems like if the comparison were flipped, all the Tesla haters would be whining about it being compared to cheaper cars...
EDIT: Foolishly assumed US prices would roughly translate across markets. I had no idea there was such a large differential in other markets. Consider my comment retracted.
So the Tesla sits pretty right in the middle of the two. One could argue that it doesn’t seem fair to compare the sales figure of a €70k car against those of a € 90k car.
Just as a comparison: In Januar 2018, Tesla had 63 newly registered cars in Germany (all models) (1). The BMW 7 series alone had 364. (2) BMW all models 20 759 (1)
(1) https://www.kba.de/SharedDocs/Publikationen/DE/Statistik/Fah...
(2) https://www.kba.de/DE/Statistik/Fahrzeuge/Neuzulassungen/Mon...
I think it's quite hard to consider 69k€ to be the base price. They placed it at €69k to get subsidies for electric cars, which are only granted up to a sales price of €70k.
If you want to customize anything (different color, different interior), you have to get the "Comfort package" @ €13k. You also have to get the "comfort package" if you want basic stuff like navigation or radio.
€82k seems to be the fairer price point, especially considering this was the regular base model price until the government started providing the subsidies :)
In Germany a Mercedes-Benz S-Klasse base price (the S-350) is 85.590 €.
Neither car is $50,000 or $80,000 in the markets the article is talking about, so I'm a bit confused by what your post is referring to.
Hardly the true base price, considering you have to get the "Comfort Package" @ 13k if you want to customize anything or want to get basic stuff like navigation or radio.
There are tons of reasons to get a Tesla in Norway at least (or a leaf/e-golf).
I tried a Tesla S but it was rattling in all the joins and windows and felt like a very poor build so I passed, but I hope some of the others pick up the slack soon like Audi or Mercedes.
By 2025 it will not be legal to sell new petrol or diesel cars anymore[1] here, but I actually want an electric car that goes 500 km. I just want a well built one.
[1] https://www.tu.no/artikler/fossilbilene-skal-fases-ut-i-2025...
And by then, all of the perks you mention, like free parking, free ferries, driving in bus lanes, free road tax, they will all be gone even for electric cars.
Jeremy Clarkson predicted this whole shitshow perfectly way back when he said he was going to start a car company that put 9V batteries in Hummers and sold them as hybrids. It's pretty infuriating from an environmental perspective though.
On a constructive note, have you considered the new Mercedes or BMW plug-ins, like the C350e or the 530e? Realistically you'll get 30 km electric range on one charge, but for many that's enough (or close) for day-to-day driving. By 2025, that's probably doubled (or more). Then you just drive on petrol for your longer trips.
(true) luxury brands have a love/hate relationship with "high sales", because every sale that is made lowers the prestige of the brand (to quote Porsche's CEO, "I worry when I see two of my cars in the same street").
Knowing that, comparing a company that benefits from selling more with companies that benefit from maintaining prestige is absurd.
It's in the same price-class as S-class/7-series, but since operating costs are lower it still attracts E-class/7-series customers.
It's nearer to the high end classes when it comes to tech-factor and autonomy. It's also arguably in a class of its own when it comes to software and OTA updates.
It's in a class of its own when it comes to engine performance, since BMW and Mercedes don't have EVs in that segment. EVs have very different performance characteristics, but Tesla is arguably better in many ways.
It's in the E-class/5-Series segment in fit and finish and various luxury features.
I think the Model S is attracting S-class/7-series customers, without a doubt. I'm sure some of those would sacrifice fit and finish for the unique experience that the Model S delivers. But it doesn't attract everyone in that market. That goes without saying.