Everyone forgets where the German cars, Henry Ford, etc came from politically.
I was looking into my first EV, and politics just didn’t weigh that much into the decision. Now, the “infotainment as a perpetual service”, that turned me off and away from Tesla. With CarPlay my car dash will never lose service, and will always be free to use with updates from Apple/Google. I can’t imagine why people would ever pay for their infotainment when CarPlay is better or equal in all cases to the alternative.
The issue is that the alternatives generally aren’t that much better in a vacuum. Infotainment vs Tesla infotainment (removing the CarPlay merits): It’s not even close. Tesla is like 10-15 years ahead of everything else on the US market in their price range. Car manufacturers famously lock in their tech and designs something like 3 years before public release.
Will there be meaningful software updates for your Kia EV6 in 2028? Absolutely not, no way.
Do you want to tow anything more than 1000Kg? Good luck outside of Tesla.
NACS? Not one single other car available yet.
Do you want a dashcam? Rivian is the only other brand, IIRC.
I’m not apologizing for Tesla, but it’s really painful how awfulall other cars are compared to the competition.
Rivian don’t sell vehicles outside the west though so they’re always going to be on the back burner internationally. Plus of course, most of the world don’t want to pick up truck style vehicle in any case.
Not necessarily Carl Benz himself, but it has been litigated that the company had ties to the nazi regime. I’m not arguing that Mercedes was founded on Nazi values, I’m just saying there was a connection and a less than stellar history of bedfellows.
That is an insane take to me. Elon Musk is Nazi scum and the Tesla has issues, but the infotainment system is the best you can get in any car and the main reason I haven’t been able to get rid of it, ignoring the fact that literally every other non Chinese EV in the same price range in my country is objectively worse specced.
Having an extremely responsive map with satellite imagery that boots up instantly is already better than every other car out there, but it also has built-in dashcam and livestream functionality for all 4 cameras, which is a bitch to install in other cars, and it’s already saved me a bunch of times.
Android Auto just plain sucks ass, disconnects constantly and a lot of newer models still require a wired connection.
Also worth noting you’re not paying for the infotainment, you’re paying for the cellular connection, with whatever local cellular company they are working with. In my case it’s cheaper than getting a data plan directly from the cellular company and my old Hyundai didn’t even have that option in my country.
Everyone forgets where the German cars, Henry Ford, etc came from politically.
I was looking into my first EV, and politics just didn’t weigh that much into the decision. Now, the “infotainment as a perpetual service”, that turned me off and away from Tesla. With CarPlay my car dash will never lose service, and will always be free to use with updates from Apple/Google. I can’t imagine why people would ever pay for their infotainment when CarPlay is better or equal in all cases to the alternative.
Are either Ford or Mercedes currently run by Nazis? Can the average person on the street name the CEO of either of them?
The problem with Tesla is that everyone hates the guy who has made himself the face of the company at a time when there are plenty of alternatives.
The issue is that the alternatives generally aren’t that much better in a vacuum. Infotainment vs Tesla infotainment (removing the CarPlay merits): It’s not even close. Tesla is like 10-15 years ahead of everything else on the US market in their price range. Car manufacturers famously lock in their tech and designs something like 3 years before public release.
Will there be meaningful software updates for your Kia EV6 in 2028? Absolutely not, no way.
Do you want to tow anything more than 1000Kg? Good luck outside of Tesla.
NACS? Not one single other car available yet.
Do you want a dashcam? Rivian is the only other brand, IIRC.
I’m not apologizing for Tesla, but it’s really painful how awfulall other cars are compared to the competition.
If Rivian had a more affordable option they’d be eating Teslas lunch right now. R2 coming next year.
Rivian don’t sell vehicles outside the west though so they’re always going to be on the back burner internationally. Plus of course, most of the world don’t want to pick up truck style vehicle in any case.
15 years ahead on record recalls and NTSA crash test no- call-no-shows.
German cars come from Carl Benz, who built the first automobile in 1885, four years before Hitlers birth.
Not necessarily Carl Benz himself, but it has been litigated that the company had ties to the nazi regime. I’m not arguing that Mercedes was founded on Nazi values, I’m just saying there was a connection and a less than stellar history of bedfellows.
Also actual Nazis were worse than the “nazis” everyone’s worried about now.
That is an insane take to me. Elon Musk is Nazi scum and the Tesla has issues, but the infotainment system is the best you can get in any car and the main reason I haven’t been able to get rid of it, ignoring the fact that literally every other non Chinese EV in the same price range in my country is objectively worse specced.
Having an extremely responsive map with satellite imagery that boots up instantly is already better than every other car out there, but it also has built-in dashcam and livestream functionality for all 4 cameras, which is a bitch to install in other cars, and it’s already saved me a bunch of times.
Android Auto just plain sucks ass, disconnects constantly and a lot of newer models still require a wired connection.
Also worth noting you’re not paying for the infotainment, you’re paying for the cellular connection, with whatever local cellular company they are working with. In my case it’s cheaper than getting a data plan directly from the cellular company and my old Hyundai didn’t even have that option in my country.
I’m happy with my stereo being a glorified Bluetooth speaker
Don’t have a working stereo in my 22-yo truck or 23-yo car. Bluetooth speaker it is!
(I don’t generally listen to anything driving. I like to chill and think about life. Which ain’t always the wise move.)
Hell yeah. I prob have a 1/3 split between music, podcasts and silence. Silence do be a double edged sword