Are The Model 3's Teething Problems Opening The Door For The Competition To Catch Up?

Indeed. WHEN Toyota chooses to do a mainstream electric, it will be much better than the Model 3. BMW, Porsche, Audi, BMW, and even ridiculous Jaguar are about to obliterate Tesla with superior product.

"... it’s not clear how many are only buying the least expensive version starting at $35,000."

With most cars you find few buyers at the lowest trims. That in and of itself is no issue. The issue is getting cars built and delivered to buyers, regardless of trim level.

Tesla has got to start delivering cars in quantity, before their financial situation implodes. Investors will only wait for so long before pulling their cash. If Tesla can truly begin delivering soon, and start showing a positive cash flow, they should be fine. But they have to get those deliveries going.

Well, they have them going, they just need to speed them up and they need to keep a "reasonable" margin. This is currently (if ever) not likely with the $35k standard range version which is why it is MIA.

The Model 3 and all of Tesla's vehicles' Supercharger recharging stations are still few and far between and now they are twice as slow as the 350KW CCS chargers which almost all of the world's automakers are using. And they are being installed by a host of cash-happy orgs - the Ionity European automaker confab , the oil companies (Royal Dutch Shell), and evGo charging company is building a coast to coast network. The automakers have thousands of times more cash on hand than Tesla and it won't take long before their charging network will overwhelm the underbuilt Supercharger network, which is so strained for capacity that it had to ban vehicles used in any kind of commercial fashion - even real estate vehicles. Tesla is also on the verge of losing its $7500 govt tax credit, which will place its vehicles at a $7500 price disadvantage against the hundreds of competing electric cars that will hit real live showrooms over the next several years. Tesla's situation is not rosy. And they are all out of new models to use to raise cash. And their ZEV credits are a shadow of what they once were and will shortly disappear with the advent of competitors.

Still few and far in between?! Where do you live? They are all over the place.

@vdiv It depends on where you live. If you live is Socialist-Fascist-Communist land, they are everywhere, but if you live in the real world, supercharger stations are few and far between.

The superchargers cover 95% of the US, so I'm pretty sure the remaining 5% is extreme hickville. Jesus Christ MDarringer, even Alabama has 8 superchargers. Where the eff do you live?

https://www.tesla.com/findus#/bounds/70,-50,5,-170,d?search=supercharger&name=North%20America

And most people charge for 20-30min while they grab a bite, shop, use the restroom, etc. I wouldn't want to be in a car for more than 4 hours anyway without some sort of break.

With 220-335 miles of range, you would not need them every 8 miles. The main point is to use superchargers when you travel. San Francisco is only 7x7 miles, and there are 2 stations just south of it. If you live in SF proper and don't have a garage, there are 1,000 EV chargers already. 4 Superchargers are coming in 2018, mostly for Model 3 owners that are less likely to afford having a garage. San Jose does not have a Supercharger either, but there are EV stations literally everywhere and most people have garages in the South Bay.

Gee - we have been saying this for several years - and I even said this in a post this week

One of the things Tesla has not mentioned is that the tax-breaks on its car will diminish as they move production from quarter to quarter. Some people planning on the breaks will no longer be able to claim them.

But -I have always been against the sales model of TESLA. WHen other manufacturers have competitive cars - and offer them through their dealer networks - limited distribution and service will be a major minus to Tesla..

Last but not least - we STILL do not have a major demand for EVs - the ones that are available are not selling in great numbers - and I do not believe that they will until charging problems are solved - and that will take Decades - not years.

Also - now that they are taking into consideration the chain of the power - Evs are not as pollution free as they are being sold as - and we still have to upgrade our power grids and electric generation facilities - the planning is not in place - much less the permits.

Of course - without the tax credits - how many of those TEsla "deposits" will result in orders -how many will refund them - and will TEsla have the money for refunds?

The tax breaks will go away for everyone after 200k cars, it is a temporary inconvenience for Tesla. Nissan will hit it in a couple years as well.

Charging is a non issue if you have a standard commute and 200 miles of range.

As for pollutants, the cars themselves are not polluting the air which is my biggest pet peeve when walking around city streets. I would rather have a power plant work a bit harder 40 miles away than breathing in nasty fumes from the car in front of me. Plus with grid storage plants will be able to produce more power with the same facilities. Peaker plants are a thing of the past.