it lives..........

[unknownroad]

Originally Posted by goof2

One side issue, what dipshit decides to build a battery factory in the SF bay area? With their stringent environmental regulations, high labor costs, high property costs, and (I'm guessing) high tax rates that would be the last place I would want any factory, much less a battery factory. I would be concerned about any company that makes this kind of business decision.

That was my first thought as well. They could probably buy an operational facility in Detroit for less than the cost of the land they'd need to build their factory's parking lot in the Bay area.

A 250-mile range isn't a deal-killer for the ragtop, IMO. If you're dropping $90k on one, you've probably got other cars for long trips. 250 miles is more than enough to get you out to a fancy restaurant, pose downtown for a while, hit the clubs, and get back home to recharge. If you're a big-city hipster rather than a suburbanite, it'll probably get the job done for the whole weekend.

[goof2]

Originally Posted by unknownroad

That was my first thought as well. They could probably buy an operational facility in Detroit for less than the cost of the land they'd need to build their factory's parking lot in the Bay area.

A 250-mile range isn't a deal-killer for the ragtop, IMO. If you're dropping $90k on one, you've probably got other cars for long trips. 250 miles is more than enough to get you out to a fancy restaurant, pose downtown for a while, hit the clubs, and get back home to recharge. If you're a big-city hipster rather than a suburbanite, it'll probably get the job done for the whole weekend.

And that shows the limited usefulness of the vehicle. How many people do you think have the money to spend $90k (actually just over $100k) for a second or third vehicle, even if it didn't have significant range restrictions?

I also consider the 250 mile range optimistic. Again, Top Gear tested one on their track and only managed to get the car 45 miles before it needed recharging. While they were using it at 10/10ths the whole time I wouldn't feel very confident the car would get anywhere near 250 miles when driven at 7/10ths.

This car would be ideal for a "big-city hipster" except most big city hipsters don't have a private garage. How are they going to charge the thing when they have to park on the street or in a large parking garage?

Most of the young "big-city hipsters" I have seen are also $40k per year millionaires living off credit and couldn't afford one $90k car, much less one as a second car.