I get that. For me refueling on the road is something I have to think about once or twice a year. I’ve done it only once since I bought it and it wasn’t a big deal (30 minute pit stop, which I used to catch up on my email and stretch my legs). I can imagine if your driving habits are different than mine, it could be an issue.
As for obsessions, over 40 years of driving, I’ve never been as obsessed (or delighted) with a car like I am with my iPace.
Though that’s not what the sign in the Google streetview pictures says, and would also be pretty ambiguous since the assembly plants of the Japanese, German and Korean domiciled manufacturers in their home countries are mainly unionized.
It probably really means cars not branded as GM or Ford (or by some strange convolution considering Fiat to be ‘American’), whether it’s union workers assembling them (in US/Canada) or not (in Mexico where many Detroit brand cars are assembled and few other places), also not counting parts (a lot non union). Seems kind of silly at this point, but whatever. Anyway I wonder what % of parking lot space in the US signs like that account for, how many 0’s after the decimal point in the %?
Back to Tesla, I’d challenge the premise. If you’re not going by ‘I can find a link’ but an actually larger number of cases, I’m not sure I buy a significant wave of vandalism vs. Telsa’s because they are Tesla’s or EV’s (rather than cars or expensive cars). I’ve never heard of it by word of mouth in real life (in the NY area) nor as a frequent story in non-clickbait non-recreational outrage news outlets.
I find Tesla fanbois on the internet to be pretty annoying sometimes. I admire Musk to some degree but he’s a pretty flawed hero overall I think. I’m strongly capitalist but that doesn’t mean I’m into CEO cults of personality. I wouldn’t absolutely never buy a Tesla. But EV’s aren’t a practical proposition for me now (at home I’d have to run an extension cord across the sidewalk when I can get a space in front of my house; on the long road trips I like an EV would be a PITA, no matter what the fanbois say, lots of out of way routes I’ve taken have no charging stations, and I don’t want to wait the better part of an hour to charge). Also Tesla is not quite a real car company yet in terms of build quality, reliability and product support, though I don’t wish them ill in getting there eventually. But obviously (I hope) I don’t vandalize people’s cars.
Maybe it’s just what one notices more, but I generally notice Prius’ going fast and wonder about the implications of ‘saving the planet’ while driving at speeds where air resistance proportional to V^2 lowers the efficiency of any car. Not that people who buy a Prius necessarily believe they are saving the planet, and they can go slow or fast as they please as far as I care, as long as safely.
I’m a little sensitive too probably to ‘X brand drivers’ stereotypes as a BMW owner. In either local congested traffic or multi-lane highways I drive relatively slowly in my M2, and Prii pass me all the time. 
And I think I could prove with video I’m a more courteous than average driver. On two lane curvy roads where it’s worth going fast, I sometimes go pretty fast.
I have a Prius, and I have no problem going 80 (which is keeping up with traffic) down I5 on the way to LA. And I still get great gas mileage doing it.
What I do notice is that some people think I will go slowly, but they learn otherwise pretty quickly.
Someday I’m going to finish my song “Hot Rod Prius” to the tune of “Hot Rod Lincoln.”
Now I live in a place with so many Prii that in 2008 someone said that they were going to put a McCain sticker on their silver Prius to distinguish it from all the Silver Prii with Obama stickers in just about every parking lot. I know what he was talking about.
You need to find a word that rhymes with Prius, to replace “Lincoln” in the best line of that song.
I used to look at license plates of cars, but a few months ago I changed to looking at logos. I soon noticed that in most parts of town, there were more Prii on the road than all models of Chevy cars; in some areas, even more than all Chevys combined including trucks.
Are you saying Elon Musk should run for President?
Couldn’t one extend that argument, and expect all M2 owners to use all 365hp, at all times?
Where do you live that the A/C doesn’t pull more than the solar cells produce?
I don’t know where Pork Rind lives, but here in Phoenix, it’s not hard to fit enough panels on a roof to cover your electrical bill. We have 22 panels, and our annual cost for electricity is about zero. If we buy an EV, we expect to add panels to make up the electricity used to charge the car.
I’ll bet the AC, when running, uses more than the panels produce, but the AC isn’t on all day, and not at all from ~Oct-April.
Not doubting you, there are substantial holes in the supercharger map for the US, especially around the dakotas, montana, central wyoming, eastern nevada, northern arkansas, and the OK panhandle, but these are gradually getting filled in.
I know of at least four superchargers near me that are not on that map. While I’m sure there are still gaps, for most people there wouldn’t be a problem. On the other hand, EVs are not right for everyone.
What manpower? It’s mainly bots on the assembly line, the humans are managing and maintaining the bots.
Why do you think he is a bit of a jerk?
Are you joking? He’s being sued for defamation right now and in his defense, he said “I’m a fucking idiot” for calling some random dude a pedophile.
Of course he’s a jerk. A huge jerk.
I’m guessing that having an electric/hybrid car like a Tesla adds a certain… potlatch(?) style element to the car to some people suffering the sour grapes that a regular gas engine might not.
I mean, I can see someone being bitter and pissy that they’re driving a shitty 2003 Sentra, while you’re driving a late model luxury car, and I can see it infuriating them even more that you have chosen to get the electric model because you have money to burn on that sort of (frivolous, in their minds) environmental thing, while they’re having problems making ends meet.
I don’t see too many people having such political animosity that electric cars would anger them- that seems too stupid to be believable.
Maybe the jealous think that Tesla owners should instead be competitively giving them away and even destroying them in an ostentatious display of wealth.
Here in Western Canada we have cattle producers fighting fast food restaurants over the sale of veggie burgers. Same silly mentality.
Exactly. I’m sure Balthizar or jz would know more but AIUI building an F-150 takes roughly the same amount of time as (to stay with Ford, a Focus or Fiesta). I was addressing RNATB’s point that despite America’s obsession with large trucks, building costs aren’t really a contributing factor.
I meant potlatch after all; basically the idea that you’re SO rich that you can afford to effectively burn money buying an electric car vs. the less expensive conventionally powered luxury car.