> Why did Tesla work initially?

Becaues they were ~first to market - and honestly, as a tesla driver for the last 6 years - It's the best car I ever owned (including Toyota, Mazda, and domestics).

6 years ago, for the effective price of a Honda Accord, I was able to get a car with excellent AWD for NorEast winters, perfect weight distribution (previously drove a Miata for comparison), could beat ~95% 'super cars' in a straight line, and it got 140MPG.

6 years ago. And I've had 0 maintenance outside of tire / air filter changes since. There was nothing anything remotely like it on the market, and it still holds up today. That's incredibly compelling.

Then PedoDiver, and it's been downhill from there... I'll likely get an R3X when it comes out.

▲

raw_anon_1111 9 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Not even Tesla fans claim that Tesla is reliable.

https://www.motor1.com/news/781164/tesla-used-car-reliabilit...

For a year when we were doing the digital nomad thing, my wife and I didn’t own a car and we rented plenty of EVs. Tesla was by far our least favorite. Not having CarPlay alone is dealbreaker

▲

chanux 8 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Maybe it's up to taste. Maybe the QC fell badly after some time.

▲

throwawaypath 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

CR notes, though, that Tesla has improved, with its latest models demonstrating "better-than-average reliability." It’s now in the top 10 of the publication’s new car predictability rankings—just avoid those older models.

That said, it's not all bad news for Tesla on the reliability front. According to Consumer Reports, Tesla ranks ninth in new-car reliability with a predicted reliability of 50. That's just behind Buick (51) and Acura (54), but ahead of Kia (49) and Ford (48), as well as luxury rivals like Audi (44), Volvo (42), and Cadillac (41).

You were so blinded by Elon Derangement Syndrome that you didn't even bother reading your own source.

	▲	throwaway77385 4 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Two thoughts come to mind: First, looking at the data is always a good idea. Thank you for adding that information and correcting the record. Second, it may be counter-productive to label any criticisms of a person as [person] Derangement Syndrome. Elon is an objectively awful, awful human being and one could only be called deranged for finding any redeeming qualities in him. The 'Derangement Syndrome' trope is a cheap tactic to try to shift derangement from the actually deranged person to the people pointing it out.
	▲	raw_anon_1111 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		When we were comparing EVs it was well before Musk went full DOGE. And you did see the part about the lack of CarPlay being an automatic disqualifier for me didn’t you? What does that have do do with Musk? Oh and another citation https://boingboing.net/2026/01/05/new-study-ranks-tesla-as-t...

▲

kakacik 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Not sure which car you compare it to specifically from those manufacturers, but teslas seem much more expensive where I live than most models of those. Comparing it to corresponding BMW would be a more appropriate comparison.

Then comparison of quality of manufacturing and driving experience would end up in very different way (as driver of even older bmw 5 series teslas I've been to feel very cheap, and driving enjoyment goes way further than straight line performance and there teslas just don't deliver).

I agree the pedodirver should have been an eye opener for everybody. People are who they are and they don't change. Circumstances change and thus corresponding reactions, but thats about it.