The #SpaceCoast has two new #Tesla supercharger stations. I spotted a 12-charger station today at 8660 Astronaut Blvd. in Cape Canaveral, across the street from the Radisson. There's also a new 12-charger station at the Wawa at King St./Fiske Blvd. in Cocoa.
This will be a big help for Tesla and other EV owners in north Merritt Island. We don't own one yet but will probably buy one in the next 2-3 years once interest rates come down.
Friends of mine just drove their Taycan Turismo from MN to TX and back (FIRST Championships) and loved it. They spent close to a year researching and driving EVs and were surprised by the selection and improvements, both in the cars and the charging infrastructure.
@Cosmichomicide Yep, we very much enjoyed the Tesla rental in California earlier this month. We're in the midst of a great technological change for humanity. I wish more people appreciated what is happening. In another 20 years, solar collectors and chargers will be ubiquitous. Homes will come with EV chargers. Many retailers will have a solar panel powering a charger for their customers. This will be everywhere.
@WordsmithFL @Cosmichomicide When you have Tesla car and Tesla solar battery they use the same app. You can set the car to "charge on sunshine". It charges on surplus solar that would otherwise be sent back to the grid.
Or, Tesla could become Betamax. Proprietary technologies are funny that way.
@Cosmichomicide @WordsmithFL Tesla's huge proprietary advantage was its fast charging system and network of charging stations. With prodding and incentives from the Biden administration Tesla opened up all that.
The biggest threat to Tesla, and to SpaceX for that matter, is association with Elon Musk who may in any moment make the same sort of capricious insane decisions he does at Xitter.
@walterbays The numbers show #Tesla sales dropped in Q1 but pretty much all the other EV brand sales are up. It's clear that consumers don't want to be associated with Elon.
Since most EVs are going to the NACS charging standard, in a couple years we can buy whatever EV we want and still use the superchargers -- unless Elon figures out a way to charge more to non-Tesla owners.
But I think we'll see business owners erect chargers with solar panels for customers.
@SECRET_ASIAN_MAN @WordsmithFL @walterbays
Ironically, I look at Teslas on the road in much the same way as I do coal rollers. It's like driving around with truck nuts on your Ram.
@SECRET_ASIAN_MAN @WordsmithFL @Cosmichomicide "While Tesla may have killed itself with progressives, there are still plenty of conservatives to make up the gap."
No, somehow conservatives are required to disbelieve climate change and consider EVs and renewable energy to be woke affectations to be avoided at all costs. So as he drives away liberals Musk is left with no customers.
@walterbays @WordsmithFL @Cosmichomicide not everyone who drives an EV does it for environmental reasons. About the same percentage does it to avoid paying for gasoline.
I do it for the sport.
@SECRET_ASIAN_MAN @WordsmithFL @Cosmichomicide Environment, cheap fuel, sport, low maintenance, EVs check all the boxes.
But from a MAGA mindset climate change is a hoax. Therefore anything addressing climate change is evil. Therefore EVs are evil. Therefore thou shalt not drive one no matter how cheap, convenient, and FUN it is.
*Until* Elon simply codes Teslas to identify at stations for a lower rate. Not hard at all.
I actually don't really care about his relationship with his car buyers. The single source defense contracts, tho - seems like we would eventually learn better.
@WordsmithFL @Cosmichomicide He already charges higher prices to non Teslas. But still it costs much less than the equivalent amount of gasoline.
The only check on his pricing would be competition. Entirely possible with the NACS standard and some make noises about getting seriously into the charging business. Shell maybe? BP also seems possible. So far Tesla is the only one willing to invest for the long term not next quarter financials. So they win big, long term.
@WordsmithFL @walterbays @Cosmichomicide I one of those owners who abandoned Tesla years ago because of Musk.
Tesla saw rebounding sales by dropping prices but that cow has been milked.
While Tesla may have killed itself with progressives, there are still plenty of conservatives to make up the gap.
I would argue that other makers make more compelling cars at a better price point.
The bloom was going to come off the Tesla rose at some point.