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Flight was an old idea at the time the Wright brothers took to the air. No doubt you would have dismissed that as a useless gimmick.
It isnt the idea that is new about Tesla, it is the execution of that idea.
I dont suppose you will understand though.
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I heard somewhere that he first car ever created, almost 200 years ago, was an electric car so it's not that innovative.
The big issue with electric cars are the battery capacity and weight of the battery(batteries really as if you open one of those things up you will find lots of smaller batteries).
I still prefer my very economical petrol car which gets more efficient as it burns fuel as it carries less weight as the tank become less full.
Tesla is built on government subsidies and building a business purely on tax payer money is apparently not generally a good business model as there is no competition to challenge Tesla.
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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GuyThiebaut wrote: I heard somewhere that he first car ever created, almost 200 years ago
And the Greeks dreamed of flight...
Does that stop you getting on a 747 today?
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Your carbon footprint will shrink to a post stamp. Fight global warming!
throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart.
modified 20-Oct-19 21:02pm.
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Not at all, the carbon production is just moved to the electricity generating station (as if I care anyway  ).
The thing is that the Model X, as a product, the car, as a piece of outstanding engineering. It is the future.
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Munchies_Matt wrote: It is the future.
If you truly believe that, simply invest in their stock
Bastard Programmer from Hell 
If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]
"If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.
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I didnt say Tesla was the future, I said they are showing us the future.
De Dion were one of the first, and actually very good, car manufacturers. Where is their stock today?
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Electric cars are only viable because no-one is using them. When we're all on electric (as the government seems intent on forcing us there, even more aggressively than they tried to force us into diesel cars) where is the electricity going to come from? Where are the batteries going to come from? What is the impact on the environment?
Still the diesel thing didn't end badly so I can't see why this will either.
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F-ES Sitecore wrote: where is the electricity going to come from?
And the power companies also tell us even if the plants were built the infrastructure (cables, substations etc) to deliver that much power doesn't exist raising the cost astronomically, notwithstanding sourcing the materials required and then installing it would mean literally tearing cities apart to get it out there.
Aint gonna happen.
Already paying too much for electricity, wanna pay >50 times more for something that won't even be ready in your lifetime?
Signature ready for installation. Please Reboot now.
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I agree, it cant be done with the infrastructure we have today.
The same no doubt was said of the first motor car. 'Where are the roads', 'if everyone has one where is all that petrol going to come from', 'the cost of petrol is prohibitive'.
And yet today in the west we have almost one car per adult.
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For sure, the same was said about computers, or any tech. The point I'm trying to highlight is that people know they have to fill their cars with petrol, it's a conscious act that reminds them it consumes resources and is doing environmental harm (if they care about such things), but the problem with electricity is that people have an existing relationship with it...they flip a switch and get light. There's more of a conception that electricity is "free", it comes from thin air almost. I think it makes people think less about the dangers that are there and it can also possibly cause people to trumpet electric cars more than they possibly should.
Until there is a massive renewable energy revolution, nuclear revolution, or massive improvements in inductive charging then the future of electric cars for all isn't quite here yet.
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Oh yes, the environmental impact is of course hidden. In fact many people actually think electric cars are 'green'.
The usefulness of renewables depends on a few things:
i) Pollution in the street. Well, we got rid of lead. Diesel particulates are still a problem.
ii) Pollution at the power station. If we assume CO2 isnt a pollutant, then for example gas is very clean. Coal not bad (compared to wood chip) and can be scrubbed at the power station. Nuclear? It is of course very clean. Provided the plant doesnt blow up, and the waste can be entombed in concrete for a few million years.
The problem with renewables is they are so unreliable. It isnt even the cost, as horrendous as it is, thats the problem, it is the fact it is never there when you need it.
One day I am sure we will find a solution. Geothermal is the most obvious to me. Always on, available globally, 'infinite' heat source, technically quite simple to get to.
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I can see there are a lot of haters here!!
Me think, whether Tesla itself succeed or not, that electric cars is the future.
If I ever need to buy a car it will be electric.
I'd rather be phishing!
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Someone who finally gets the point!
Previous electric cars were utilitarian, cheap, crappy, like the ones in Paris. Tesla has shown how good an electric car can be, and the result is stunningly good.
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I wish Tesla the best - I really do. However, I live in Canada, and last winter we've had a few weeks straight of -30C days. I work from home, and I sometimes have no need for my car for weeks at a time. My car stays outdoors, exposed to the elements.
Put all of these together, and there's just no way I'm part of the target demographics.
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There you have a point, electric motors produce less heat than normal gas engines, so they will need an electric heater I think, which consumes lots of precious electricity 
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They could use batteries to power the electric heater.
(where's the sarcasm emoticon?)
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Around these parts, garages can easily drop below zero during Winter unless they're heated.
Also - have you seen how many people actually have a garage, but still leave their car outdoors because it's filled with so much junk they couldn't park their car in it even if they wanted to?
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Well that is the situation today, and clearly the Tesla isnt ideal for all people, in deed its price already excludes it, however the point is that it represents the future of cars.
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Munchies_Matt wrote: it represents the future of cars.
Only if they can bring down their prices by a significant margin, otherwise "the future of cars" means only very few well-off people will be able to drive them.
Not being a naysayer. I'm actually a fan of what they're trying to do.
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Munchies_Matt wrote: the doors (push button, electric)
So if the battery is dead how do you get in to pop the cover (probably also electric) to open the cover for the charge unit? Or put it in neutral to have it towed?
I'm pretty sure I would not like to live in a world in which I would never be offended.
I am absolutely certain I don't want to live in a world in which you would never be offended.
Freedom doesn't mean the absence of things you don't like.
Dave
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It's got windows all around. This is nothing that can't be solved with a brick.
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Wow, you dont suppose people who can put rockets in space thought of that and put a limit on how low the battery can go or a mechanical override?
I mean, there you are, a computer nerd at his desk, and you, because you are so sure of your own incredible contribution to the world, can out think huge teams of mechanical engineers!
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"Huge teams of mechanical engineers" still aren't beyond collectively making stupid mistakes. Ask NASA about some of the probes they've lost. 
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