Why Startups (and Tesla) Will Struggle with Electric Pick Ups

[Dids]

I'll respond to a couple of questions. I don't meant to ignore any of them... There are just too many to address on one post typed on a phone keyboard.

When would I buy the F150? The very first year. I will buy the first electric truck I can get my hands on if it meets my needs and preferences. I need good range, features, and options at a price that seems reasonable to me.

Legacy reputation definitely outweighs Tesla reputation for me. They have a reputation of making quality vehicles without quality control issues. Sure... There are exceptions to this, but it's generally true.

As far as service, of course I prefer to not need it. That's not possible with any vehicle. Overall it seems it's much easier to find a Ford or GM service center within a few miles than a Tesla service center. I can also get almost any Ford or GM part same day or have it shipped to me in a few days. It can take months to get certain Tesla parts or have some services completed as far as I can tell. I've never owned a Tesla. I'm basing this on experiences Tesla owners post online and state on Youtube regarding service and parts. The mobile service seems convenient when available, but there are some repairs that require a service center or parts which can be hard to get. People sometimes wait months to get the problems fixed that were present the day their Teslas rolled off the assembly lines.

My phone does not have a keyboard... But that's ok because I don't need to navigate menus or open apps on my phone easily while driving at the same time. Nobody can say it's rational to require drivers to navigate a touchscreen while driving to adjust vents and climate control.

I'm not loyal to one specific brand. I just choose a vehicle based on the totality of its features.

If the Ford and GM EV trucks cost a fortune or lack some needed functionality the Cybertruck provides, I will take the Cybertruck.

I just think it would take a lot for me to give up having regular dashboard gauges and physical buttons for the most common functions in a vehicle. I also have a hard time looking last the quality control issues that plagued the Model 3 and Model Y. I didn't reserve a Cybertruck the day it was revealed, so thankfully I will be able to assess the quality issue with Cybertruck prior to making a purchase. I'll give Tesla the benefit of the doubt for now on Cybertruck build issues that may or may not occur, but we will see what happens.

I'm with you. I plan on keeping my trusty tacoma till I'm sure I like CT. I thought oh I should get a truck from a company that isn't going out of business.... at the time Tesla was struggling a bit. But at the same time I want an electric vehicle from someone that has been doing ev for awhile.... now that I know more about tesla and CT I'm really looking forward to it.

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[EMguy]

But they won't. Nor will their EV production be a tenth of Tesla's. That's the problem.

-Crissa

You don't think Ford will do it? They broke ground on their new factory for electric F150 production not far from when Giga Texas broke ground.

They plan to start production in 2022.

Heck... GM is producing an electric truck starting in 2021.

Ford and GM will certainly have EV trucks available before Tesla fulfills all of its current Cybertruck reservations, will will take several years.

 

[Crissa]

You don't think Ford will do it?

If Ford or GM puts a competitively priced truck...

Yeah, is the Hummer competitively priced?

-Crissa

 

[EMguy]

Yeah, is the Hummer competitively priced?

-Crissa

No... Not even close. I don't think it will sell well. Maybe GM doesn't think it needs to sell a ton at the current price above $100k to make money.

The Hummer EV has awesome specs, but it's out of reach for the vast majority of people currently driving trucks.

I suspect the Ford will be priced near the Cybertruck trimotor, which will be a little more attainable for most people, but it's all a guess right now. I think Ford will need to have something decent around $50k to be successful with its first attempt at electric trucks. $60k max. They will lose some of the market if they come in at the $70k range.

 

[Sirfun]

That video is HILARIOUS! That guy implies there's to much value to lose in the truck market. HAHAHA
Don't you all think the oil companies felt/feel the same way. They are SCREWED. He DIDN'T say how they are gonna defend their CASH COWS. And I have every belief they will not go down without a fight! But, they won't try to win with a better product! That's not in their DNA and they don't think that will work. They don't have the ability to easily change their business model. All this talk about going electric, is an attempt to get at the EASY money they see Tesla and the EV company's have been soaking up through STOCK. BTW, GM has already built their quota of EV's with the $7500 Fed. incentives and Ford is down to about 76,000 left. How's that gone so far? Not very well from what I've seen. So when it comes down to the truck market, things aren't looking to good.
Get your popcorn folks, this should be a fight worth watching!

 

[FutureBoy]

Get your popcorn folks, this should be a fight worth watching!

Aaaaahhhh..... Time for a popcorn break. Now you made me hungry.

 

[Akgolf]

Based on my last quality GM product, I’ll never buy GM again.

I might buy a Ford, except long distance travel is suspect until they get a reliable long distance charging network established. Ford is having issues with the software in the new EV Mustang, not a good sign.

I don’t see anyone coming out with a truck that will be competitive to the Cybertruck in range, specs or price. They’ll need to rely heavily on brand loyalty and those that want a conventional looking truck.

How happy will those buyers be when they realize it’s a shell of the Cybertruck at a higher price?

 

[rr6013]

if CT is $20K less than the competition, there are not enough buttons to keep me away.

Disruption. Tesla, SpaceX,TeslaSolar,Starlink,et.al. Elon can simply out disrupt. This is not his first Rodeo.

@Diehard calls’em the way he sees‘em. Pretty hard to beat intellect, regardless how many widgets the competition factories can grind out. Buyers must be willing to pay the extra privileged price of owning a relic.

CTclub is getting its chain pulled here with more PR bullshit. Entertaining as it may be, just hit the “Ignore” button and it will stop.

 

[EVCanuck]

The author of this article should just imagine that an outsider manufacturer (say VW or Hyundai/Kia) simply announces an ICE pickup truck and in one year it garners 1.5M reservations. Does this look like a struggle now?

 

[Crissa]

Ford says they're going to build the largest charging network in the country. Tesla has nearly a thousand charging locations in the US alone. Maybe if Ford put a charger at every store they operated, but can they do that in a time frame to catch up to Tesla?

They don't even have a factory making the chargers. Tesla has what, three?

-Crissa

 

[Quicksilver]

A couple of folks mentioned parts availability and local service.

One of my sons works for O'rileys and it is amazing the parts you can get for new vehicles and for vehicles 70 years old or more.
The legacy automakers already make enough spare parts to immediately start sending out spares to the big parts retailers and dealers.
My guess is that Tesla will start distributing parts to major parts retailers as soon as they have a surplus after manufacturing enough vehicles to meet demand. They will also have to determine which parts are the most likely to need routine replacement.
The other alternative is to order parts directly from Tesla with overnight delivery if possible. That would eliminate the middleman and possibly create another income stream.
If Tesla is smart they will train and certify techs that want to be independent service contractors and work out of their own shops or existing service centers. I'm sure they train techs now but I mean in very large numbers and hold them to high standards.
If I were thirty years younger I would be training myself and other young guns to work on electric vehicles.
If EV's are truly the future the demand will be there for stock parts. aftermarket parts and accessories and for people to install and service parts on EV's.

 

[Dids]

A couple of folks mentioned parts availability and local service.

One of my sons works for O'rileys and it is amazing the parts you can get for new vehicles and for vehicles 70 years old or more.
The legacy automakers already make enough spare parts to immediately start sending out spares to the big parts retailers and dealers.
My guess is that Tesla will start distributing parts to major parts retailers as soon as they have a surplus after manufacturing enough vehicles to meet demand. They will also have to determine which parts are the most likely to need routine replacement.
The other alternative is to order parts directly from Tesla with overnight delivery if possible. That would eliminate the middleman and possibly create another income stream.
If Tesla is smart they will train and certify techs that want to be independent service contractors and work out of their own shops or existing service centers. I'm sure they train techs now but I mean in very large numbers and hold them to high standards.
If I were thirty years younger I would be training myself and other young guns to work on electric vehicles.
If EV's are truly the future the demand will be there for stock parts. aftermarket parts and accessories and for people to install and service parts on EV's.

There is a problem though... ev have so very little maintenance and repair, it's not a great business to be in. Dealers don't want to sell electric cars because they don't get the service money....

 

[hobbit11]

You don't think Ford will do it? They broke ground on their new factory for electric F150 production not far from when Giga Texas broke ground.

They plan to start production in 2022.

Heck... GM is producing an electric truck starting in 2021.

Ford and GM will certainly have EV trucks available before Tesla fulfills all of its current Cybertruck reservations, will will take several years.

SO???

 

[MEDICALJMP]

You don't think Ford will do it? They broke ground on their new factory for electric F150 production not far from when Giga Texas broke ground.

They plan to start production in 2022.

Heck... GM is producing an electric truck starting in 2021.

Ford and GM will certainly have EV trucks available before Tesla fulfills all of its current Cybertruck reservations, will will take several years.

Mercedes is making a nice EV SUV. When you go to their website to order it Mercedes then says it will cost you more than their gas guzzler and take up to 3 months to build. They actually are discouraging buyers of EVs. GM has done the same in the past, even taking EVs they leased as a test market and crushing them when most of the leases wanted to buy them and had cash in hand. Never underestimate the power of corporate stupidity.


https://insideevs.com/news/486581/mercedes-convince-eqa-buyers-switch-gas-car/

 

[Frank W]

The legacy auto makers are electrifying existing models whereas Tesla is designing new vehicles from the ground up. The innovative technology that it comes up with surpasses everything else out there by a long way. Ford’s so-called tough is anything but. As long as they have been in business you would think that their engineering department would have come out with something a little more innovative like a exoskeleton or thick stainless steel exterior to protect it on the job site. Vertical integration isn’t even on their radar since so many of its parts are outsourced. If something new comes out then you have to wait until the next model year. My current vehicle has been kept out of the dealerships as much as possible. It’s not a fun place to be even with a nice waiting room while you get screwed.