Does Tesla Treat Customers Like Idiots with Its Standard Range?

Tesla confirmed that its Model S and X Standard Range are simply electronically limited in range. A risky game?

Strictly identical. Exactly the same, from materials to equipment, including the labor to manufacture, transport, and deliver them to customers. Only a few lines of electronic code change, and the price on the invoice: -10,000 dollars (9,200 euros).

We recently spoke about those called “small range” Model S and Model X at Mobiwisy. It’s now official, but isn’t Tesla playing a dangerous game?

For months, the prices of all models have been fluctuating wildly, both up and down. Buyers are confused, never sure if they’re making their purchase at the right moment. The risk is they delay, get tired… and switch to competitors.

And what about observers, financial analysts, and stock experts, regarding this entirely unclear commercial strategy? The average price of a Tesla continues to fall, and at an alarming rate: in July 2023, the average price dropped 20% compared to July 2022: $54,660 (€50,100)

One might argue that during the era of internal combustion engines, all manufacturers offered various power levels of the same engine, but the proportions were not $10,000. Here, the signal sent — or at least understood — is quite different: the Model S and X are no longer selling well, so let’s try a “low-cost” solution. The customer won’t notice…

The customer is mainly realizing that Teslas have no residual value, whereas all manufacturers — mainstream and luxury — pay close attention to used market trends. Mobiwisy had already published an article on this very problematic phenomenon, which resembles a Ponzi scheme: Tesla wants to sell ever more new cars to undermine the competition, which is slowly restructuring to avoid reckless moves.

Tesla is only at its first generation of customers, and retaining their loyalty will be a real challenge. Not sure it can be achieved this way. In tech, new technology generally democratizes the previous one, like Apple’s iPhone replacing earlier models. Model 14 replaces Model 13, making it more affordable. New performance features, functionalities, ergonomics, or compactness justify this perpetual cycle. Tesla upends this concept: the same existing car is sold cheaper… because it’s unnecessarily limited in performance. The height of commercial suicide?

How do you explain to a customer, already anxious about driving an electric car, that they will be “virtually” stranded even though their battery still has over 100 km range? “Algorithms, my good man!“.

ALSO READ: Deal of the day: Tesla Model Y for €38,690 (-€7,330 / -16%)