Tesla Price Drop

[Jonathan S.]

There were other factors on the refresh that ruled out another Model S but, like @whitex , I found eliminating the stalks a serious step backwards in functionality. Plus only fanboys could tell the refresh from the outgoing version. However, in addressing the original theme of this thread, the price drop does make the car certainly worth consideration. Most drivers would never need what Porsche offers at the limits.

I'd forgotten about the lack of stalks.
Such an obvious cost-cutting move under the guise of a more "sleek" interior.
Can you imagine if some inexpensive ICE lacked stalks? Or an instrument cluster?

Still though, a ~$76k Model S is a good value in many other ways.
And now the Model X just barely clears the $80k limit for the $7.5k federal tax subsidy.
(Still has to clear the income limit, but it's AGI, not actually income, and can be either the purchase year or prior year, so lots of flexibility for qualifiying.)
Given that the Model X was $40k more at the beginning of the year, for anyone who bought at the peak, and looking to sell now, factoring in the differential for wholesale v retail, the Model X current trade-in value is probably ~50% of the purchase price at the beginning of this year.

 

[mikezhang31]

I wonder if I'm in the Taycan minority for being the exact opposite?

i think so, from a value proposition perspective as pure EV: taycan is aweful for people who cross shop between tesla. worse range, more expensive, less practical, more clunky software, nickled and dimed for everything. There is almost nothing you're looking for as an EV person. Whether it is the brand you're trying to portray to the things you identify and want out of a "car".

For the prestige seeker, there is a lot.

For me as a car person, there is almost nothing tesla offers that speaks to me.

 

[whitex]

I think Porsche made the taycan for people who are looking to get a Porsche, but likes the idea of an EV. Not someone who is cross shopping between EV brands.

I don't know what Porsche intended, but that's definitely not what resulted. When I was shopping for my Taycan between 2021 and 2023. Talking with many dealers, they said a very large chunk of Taycan buyers were switching out of other EV's (mostly Tesla), so not "people who are looking to get a Porsche" as their first priority. Myself, I cross shopped Taycan TCT against RS eTron GT, and EQS AMG, Air Saphire, and yes Model S Plaid. I had a Porsche before, but that was over 20 years (and many cars) ago, and the positive experience with the brand back then contributed, but I was looking for my next EV, not for a Porsche.

 

[Jonathan S.]

Using those criteria as a checklist re 4CT vs Model S:

1. Worse range, yes, although the real problem isn't the range, but rather the CCS1 DCFC network, so I'm keeping a third car for our household (Audi A6 Allroad) until that happy day arrives (let me dream, please?) for universal CCS1 access to those ~12k Tesla V3 250kW Superchargers.
2. More expensive, yes, but, oh well.
3. Less practical, the lack of Tesla HUD, stalks, and adaptive or even zero regen breaking are all practicality deal breakers for me.

Alternatives for a non-SUV/CUV medium-ish EV with a hatch:

• MB EQS, reviews sound horrible for driving experience.
• BMW i5 Touring, could be a contender (really like my wife's i4 M50 for what it is), but unlikely to come to U.S., and unless it comes with a bigger battery than the i5 sedan, will have even worse range, plus I could just switch over eventually.
• Audi A6/RS6 e-tron, could be a contender, but won't be here for here for awhile.

I realize that I have unusual criteria an EV buyer, so not saying I'm even remotely representative of the target audience, and hence posting all this mainly for potential amusement value.

As for brand prestige, I wish that I could somehow disguise it as a Subaru Outback.
But at least I have the EV plates for environmental self-righteousness cred.

 

[mikezhang31]

I don't know what Porsche intended, but that's definitely not what resulted. When I was shopping for my Taycan between 2021 and 2023. Talking with many dealers, they said a very large chunk of Taycan buyers were switching out of other EV's (mostly Tesla), so not "people who are looking to get a Porsche" as their first priority. Myself, I cross shopped Taycan TCT against RS eTron GT, and EQS AMG, Air Saphire, and yes Model S Plaid. I had a Porsche before, but that was over 20 years (and many cars) ago, and the positive experience with the brand back then contributed, but I was looking for my next EV, not for a Porsche.

that’s the critical piece of info: how many of them have / had a Porsche or was first time Porsche buyer

 

[whitex]

that’s the critical piece of info: how many of them have / had a Porsche or was first time Porsche buyer

When I attended an event organized my a local dealer for future Taycan owners (people who at least placed a deposit for a Taycan) maybe a third of people I talked to there were EV owners who never owned a Porsche. Tesla was actually the most represented brand in the parking lot for the event.

 

[violuma]

I wonder if I'm in the Taycan minority for being the exact opposite?

I think I'm squarely in the middle ground. I've been driving the same ICE car for 25 years, and told myself I would keep doing that until there was an EV that I was really excited about buying. I suppose the fact that it's a Porsche brought a level of excitement that wasn't present for any other alternative I'd seen (including Tesla).

So I probably wouldn't have bought a Porsche unless it was electric, and I probably wouldn't have bought an EV unless it was a Porsche (or something equivalently motivating).

 

[mikezhang31]

When I attended an event organized my a local dealer for future Taycan owners (people who at least placed a deposit for a Taycan) maybe a third of people I talked to there were EV owners who never owned a Porsche. Tesla was actually the most represented brand in the parking lot for the event.

Wow, I am very surprised. My gut tells me these were folks who bought tesla not for the "EV" part of Tesla.

 

[whitex]

Wow, I am very surprised. My gut tells me these were folks who bought tesla not for the "EV" part of Tesla.

Well, that was Elon's goal, for people to buy Tesla not because it's electric or green, but because they love to drive it - to make EV's desirable. He succeeded. I didn't buy Teslas because they were green, but because they offered unparalleled acceleration and torque on-demand with no lag. Since that can only be achieved with an EV drivetrain, did I buy Teslas because they were EV or not?

 

[violuma]

I wish that I could somehow disguise it as a Subaru Outback.

The "headlight gills" (not sure if that's the official name for them or not) are going to be tough to disguise, but if you haven't seen it, https://www.google.com/search?q=tesla+model+3+honda+civic+badge&tbm=isch. I'm not 100% sure that it's not just photoshopped, but it's still funny.

 

[gtm]

When I attended an event organized my a local dealer for future Taycan owners (people who at least placed a deposit for a Taycan) maybe a third of people I talked to there were EV owners who never owned a Porsche. Tesla was actually the most represented brand in the parking lot for the event.

Anecdotal, but my service advisor said roughly half the Taycan purchasers at his dealership were new to the Porsche brand. I was.

 

[gtm]

Well, that was Elon's goal, for people to buy Tesla not because it's electric or green, but because they love to drive it - to make EV's desirable. He succeeded. I didn't buy Teslas because they were green, but because they offered unparalleled acceleration and torque on-demand with no lag. Since that can only be achieved with an EV drivetrain, did I buy Teslas because they were EV or not?

Bingo. I bought mine because it was a different idea of what a car could be and I was looking for something I hadn't experienced multiple times before. I liked the tech. I loved the instant acceleration. I loved driving that car. That it was an EV and supposedly better for the environment was a plus but not the reason for buying a Tesla. Thing is it wouldn't have been different if it hadn't been an EV. Love him or hate him he made EVs that people want for any number of reasons.

 

[driver69]

Say what you want but with price drops the new Model S LR is a LOT of car for the money now. Taycans meanwhile are only going up to panamera digits, and to be honest I’m not willing to pay north of 250 g’s for a car that will most likely die as soon as battery warranty expires. I personally don’t like Teslas, interior is lacking, build quality is questionable but they’re selling well, really well. Taycans? Not so much. My dealer told me they only sold 8 in 2023, not a single Turbo/S. Stock is full of new 4S/GTS that nobody wants. Porsche will have to either justify the price or bring it down or else we will most likely see Taycans discontinued. Macan/Cayenne will remain the burden carriers, 911s will keep the brand name.

 

[whitex]

The "headlight gills" (not sure if that's the official name for them or not) are going to be tough to disguise, but if you haven't seen it, https://www.google.com/search?q=tesla+model+3+honda+civic+badge&tbm=isch. I'm not 100% sure that it's not just photoshopped, but it's still funny.

Unlikely that it was photoshopped, the Tesla Civic came from a dashcam video which you can probably still find online. Not impossible to photoshop the video, but much more effort.

 

[DougFrisk]

I don't know what Porsche intended, but that's definitely not what resulted. When I was shopping for my Taycan between 2021 and 2023. Talking with many dealers, they said a very large chunk of Taycan buyers were switching out of other EV's (mostly Tesla), so not "people who are looking to get a Porsche" as their first priority. Myself, I cross shopped Taycan TCT against RS eTron GT, and EQS AMG, Air Saphire, and yes Model S Plaid. I had a Porsche before, but that was over 20 years (and many cars) ago, and the positive experience with the brand back then contributed, but I was looking for my next EV, not for a Porsche.

New to Porsche here. We had a spreadsheet. Created a list of must haves, want to haves, and would be nice then ran cars from the ID.4 to the EQS through it. Must haves were mostly safety items we both had to be able to fit, AEB, ACC, AWD, 5+ inches of ground clearance, snow mode. Wants were mainly convenience heated/ventilated seats, ADAS, dog friendly.

What we found was that the 4CT when configured correctly had everything we wanted at a price that wasn't higher than the other options. Went in thinking the Taycan would be a far more expensive option only to find that with the ability to buy exactly what we wanted À la carte with the Taycan made it price competitive. For instance, we probably would have dispensed with RWS if it were only available as part of a $15,000 performance package.

We went in expecting a 12 to 18 month wait, were delighted at getting an April build allocation and are less delighted with the delays culminating in APB2 implying that if the battery needs to be replaced that we won't be seeing our new car until November to January. But hey, if they get it to us before next February it's still within that 12 to 18 month window.