It was almost arriving, seeing and winning. Tesla's Model S presented itself as a glimpse of the future, intruded on a rarely disturbed fiefdom of German premiums, and made the traditional tech leaders of the automotive world seem hopelessly behind.
All the hype and enthusiasm generated around Tesla is disproportionate to its size. There are still doubts about its viability in the medium and long term, where the lack of profits remains constant, but the impact on the industry is being profound, even shaking the strong Teutonic foundations.
Tesla is not just an electric car manufacturer. The vision of its CEO, Elon Musk (pictured), is much broader. In addition to electric cars, Tesla builds its own batteries, charging stations and with the recent acquisition of SolarCity, it will enter the energy production and storage market. A holistic approach to a future completely independent of fossil fuels.
Elon Musk created more than one company. He created a lifestyle. It comes close to cult or religion, a similarity with Steve Jobs' Apple, so it is worth paying attention.
There is a mixture of respect and some envy for what Tesla has achieved from the German builders, even if they don't assume it outright. Whether for their bold marketing claims, for ignoring industry rules, or even for turning the banal into something fantastic. One way or another, Tesla so far has managed to get its way. It is the leader in the attack on the electric vehicle market.
Sound the alarms in the car industry
How to combat this new rival, with a distinct mentality and culture, typical of Silicon Valley startups, as opposed to the German builders, shaped and defined by German engineering, since the beginning of the automobile?The truth is, they can't, as long as Tesla is still a luxury boutique brand, unable, for the time being, to make a profit, and therefore constantly financed. A risk that many investors are willing to take, as the only sustainable path for Tesla is growth. Traditional builders, on the other hand, as we enter the era of autonomous and electric mobility, risk cannibalizing their own business.
First answer: BMW
Demonstrating these fears, we can see the first results of BMW's i sub-brand. It anticipated its domestic rivals, and created from scratch, with enormous resources, the i3, an all-electric vehicle with highly technological content, whether on the hardware or software side.
Despite the brand's efforts in promoting and selling what would be the future both in terms of products and services, the i3 has not found the expected success.
“(…) and we cannot forget brands such as Volvo and Jaguar, which have made an impressive path in recent years.”
Yes, the i3 is not a direct rival to the Model S. But even with a distinct, compact form factor and an inferior positioning, it sells less than the Model S even on the European continent. In the US, the results are even more critical, with sales falling only in the second year on the market.