Also not a fair comparison, as you can put a trailer on a 1/2 ton and tow a lot more than you could in the Golf.

That said, 2000 lbs including trailer weight is still more payload than I’d bet a large percentage of people who buy trucks for personal use ever utilize.

But 45-50% of $40k is still more depreciation than 75% of $23k.

The percentage doesn’t matter. The change from initial purchase price to final resale matters. My Mazda6 is 9.5 years old and has depreciated. about 64% from its original price. 1 model year older versions of the same model (adjusted for mileage) have lost…

Sure, but that’s still 50% more than any car with comparable features.  Landy is overestimating the cost of cars by a long shot.

Accord is considered full size (119 cu. ft combined passenger and cargo volume or more), as it sits at 123 cubic feet of combined space. The Taurus and 300 only hit 122. The Fusion hits 118.8.

If you’re spending $35k on an Impala, Taurus, Charger, etc, you’re getting taken to the woodshed, chopped up, burned to bits, then someone’s spitting on your ashes.

Our local Ford dealer is offering 2019 Tauruses at these prices:
$22,495-$24,495 for an SE
$25,495-$27,495 for an SEL

And frankly, the Taurus is really no…

Trunks weren’t as big as you remember.

A 1978 Cadillac Eldorado (land yacht) had a 16.8 cubic ft trunk.
My 2010 Mazda 6 has a 16.6 cubic foot trunk.
The Current Honda Accord has a 16.7 cubic foot trunk.

A long, shallow trunk is not inherently more useful than a shorter, deep trunk.

Note - if you look at your costs per year over 10 years, you see the midsize car is cheapest, then midsize truck. Even then, there’s some debate to be had. Because for one, midsize cars can be had well below $25k. New Fusions are running $19-20k around here. An Accord or Camry might run you $23k. That lowers their…

Were they actually that big?

A 1978 Cadillac Eldorado had a 16.8 cu. ft. trunk
A 2013 Ford Fusion has a 16 cu ft trunk.
A 2010 Mazda6 has a 16.6 cu ft. trunk.

When it comes to resale, yes, trucks keep a higher resale value. But they cost considerably more, too. A 10 year old F-150 around here runs $10-15k. A Tacoma runs…

I agree - yard trucks should be their first market.

That said, they have demonstrated the ability to rapidly swap battery packs in a model S. If you could push that into production on a semi, with quick swap stations on interstates, you could grab a huge chunk of the market.  A 200 mile range is grossly insufficient…

Honestly, they should start with the semi on building yard trucks.  That operating environment would be perfect for them - short daily distances, small battery, etc....

Sadly, while truck operators really only care about TCO, it took the government shoving mandates at manufacturers to get them to get off their tails on fuel efficiency and offer upgrades that brought TCO down so much that the increased cost of the vehicle was completely offset in under a year.

In any properly…

No one ever said that they were going to “flood the earth in 10 or 20 years”

Denialists simply don’t understand the concept of a tipping point.

I love how denialists make up stuff about what predictions were and how accurate they’ve been

Heck, the Mazda dealership I take my 6 to (free oil changes for life - suckers didn’t know how much that would cost them!), they schedule appointments to the point where you generally have to schedule a week or more in advance - and even then, they can’t seem to get an oil change done in less than an hour.

Reminds me…

In general, I agree.

But even the most reliable car needs service periodically.  While I try to do most of that myself (as with repairs), there are times when it is advantageous to use their service department.  For that, I’d like something - but that basically means clean, modestly comfortable seating, wifi, and a…

Good odds that an emergency declaration gets tied up in court through the rest of his term. He may claim a win, but he’d actually get more done if he actually negotiated with congress.