this post was submitted on 15 Feb 2025
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Summary

Sheryl Crow announced on Instagram that she is selling her Tesla and donating the proceeds to NPR, citing concerns over Elon Musk’s leadership.

NPR is under political scrutiny, with Republican lawmakers and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr launching investigations.

Crow’s move is a protest against Musk’s influence in government and Trump’s efforts to defund public media.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 5 days ago (3 children)

This binary view is neat and tidy but wrong. There are a lot of enthusiasts for whom a Tesla is still a desirable car both for capabilities as well as status. I would not be surprised to see its sales keep dropping, but reports of its death are all gonna be premature.

As far as a used Tesla, once we agree that a market for Teslas still exists, then that's all dependent on the price.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

Hmmm not sure, demnd has already dropped dramatically. As I understand it, vurrent sales levels would desimate the company, let alobe justify the hyper inflated stock

Any further drop in sales will just accelerte the crash

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Partly true. Demand will persist but had already changed drastically. EV/fast car enthusiast niche now has much more exciting alternatives, like used porsche macans or BMW i4s. The people who don't care what they drive as long as its cheap is the future market of Tesla, and they'll easily survive the drop in their profit margins. After all, the Model 3/Y were designed to be <$30K cars (AFAIR they cost like $23K to make?!).

The first signs of Musk being a bit fraudulent is how he marketed "full self-driving" in the meantime, the transition to "vision-only" (i.e., removal of ultrasonic sensors) really sealed the fate of FSD but is also totally on brand for musk: the willingness to compromise safety further by removing sensor redundancy to maximize profits.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I know people like to harp on the self-driving promises, but the technology not fraud at all, except for the promises of how soon it will be self-driving. The early adopters especially must feel taken advantage of, paying for lifetime self driving that was only for as long as they owned the car and never appeared.

Anyhow, I still think it’s a valid approach to attempt. We don’t know what approach will succeed until one does, and Teslas approach does have advantages. Cameras are cheap sensors now, that can easily blend as part of a car, and humans do succeed in driving based only on sight. Now it’s a software problem - will we be able to create an ai that can drive? I don’t know, but I don’t see other approaches doing any better, and that’s with much more expensive and ugly hardware.

Until someone succeeds in creating a self-driving vehicle, I’m encouraged that we’re not all jumping into the same hole that may or may not succeed. Let them try something different, and we have a better chance of something working

[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 days ago

We couldn't disagree more.:D

I know people like to harp on the self-driving promises...

"FSD" almost got me into a major accident. It had a tendency to ride in cars' blind spots and when someone cut me off I didn't only make an evasive maneuver but also fight "FSD" which locked the steering and did not brake.

...the technology not fraud at all, except for the promises of how soon it will be self-driving.

So the "idea of the technology" is not fraud, only the presentation, the selling, and the delivery of it. So like everything that is currently available:D

Cameras are cheap sensors now

You know what else are cheap sensors. Actual sensors. FFS they had a >$20K profit margin on each car but they saved $100 on sensors

and humans do succeed in driving based only on sight.

This is so disturbingly incorrect. We rely a LOT on our hearing, our vibration sense, our proprioception too. Have you tried driving with earplugs? It's pretty dangerous

Now it’s a software problem - will we be able to create an ai that can drive?

It's a safety issue. For any safety-critical system you apply redundancy.

I don’t know, but I don’t see other approaches doing any better, and that’s with much more expensive and ugly hardware.

Mercedes and GM have much better autonomous driving systems than Tesla, they just don't market it as """FULL self-driving""". The fact that you're unaware shows how incredibly effective tesla's misleading marketing had been.

we’re not all jumping into the same hole that may or may not succeed.

It will succeed, but eliminating safety measures in half-baked technology will claim lives. And nowhere did I say self-driving can't work, I'm saying that it won't work within the product's lifetime and eliminating redundant sensor data will make the process a lot more unsafe.

Let them try something different, and we have a better chance of something working

Again other companies are already ahead of tesla without the bullshitting involved.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (2 children)

OP: Who would

That's a question, not a binary view. You've made a strawman attack, intended or not.

For the MAGA heads who still like Musk, a Tesla does not roll coal enough. For those who would buy an EV, Tesla is a burned brand.

You're reframing a generalized one to many statement as a literal one to all statement. OP isn't attempting to claim that no one would possibly buy a Tesla, But that the primary sources of ownership in the market are both equally uninterested in purchasing.

There are obviously still people taking ownership of Cybertrucks even now.

As far as a used Tesla, once we agree that a market for Teslas still exists, then that’s all dependent on the price.

Moving those goal posts on out there are we? You made a straw man that OP said 0 market, and now you're 'proving that argument you made wrong, and are going to slide out the argument you made yourself that there is a market therefore you're right.

then that’s all dependent on the price.

What happens when the market for a given price fails to match the cost to produce something?

The only thing that will save the company in the medium term would be for him to divest from it and leave it alone, or funnel tax money from government contracts to keep it floating.

They are the most undesirable manufacturer in the US by a long shot right now.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 0 points 4 days ago

We'll see, if he comes back and cherry pics a single argument. ;)

[–] [email protected] 0 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

Yes please. I’m having a tough time with this because I still find Tesla by far the most compelling vehicle available to me, SpaceX dominates space travel as the future implemented now, and StarLink is desperately needed for all those people out of fiber coverage. There’s really no competition. I was even a Musk fan when he spoke of technologies at these visioneering companies and where they were headed.

But then people started hanging on his every word, every tweet a meme, every word worshipped, and I don’t know wtf happened to him, he left his lane, he left the pavement and jumped into a pit. Was he always this person and it took a while to become public, or did something happen with the idolizing, the hero worship, the obscene amount of money? I can’t support pretty much anything the guy has said for the last several years, I can’t support his actions since he got distracted from those technologies, I can’t contribute any more to his obscene wealth as long as he keeps using it to remake the world to exploit, divide and endanger.

If he divests from Tesla and they drop that robot nonsense, they can become a leading technology company again, a successful car manufacturer with rapid growth, and they’d be a leading contender when I have to replace my current car. As it is, I hope this vehicle lasts long enough for other vehicles to catch up with the technology

[–] [email protected] 0 points 4 days ago

Mmm tasty tasty boots