Pirate's Cove

The media has been trying to create a rift between Elon Musk and The Donald, making it seem as if Trump is badmouthing Musk, Tesla, and EVs. Nope

Trump sets record straight on Elon Musk, electric vehicles

Despite having a “good relationship” with Tesla’s Elon Musk, former President Trump said he’s completely “against” an electric vehicle mandate.

During an interview on “FOX & Friends” on Thursday, Trump responded to claims that Musk would donate $45 million a month to a super PAC in support of his candidacy and discussed his relationship with the tech mogul despite his negative feelings towards an EV mandate.

“Somebody told me he was going to give me $45 million a month. I said, that sounds like a lot. And even for Elon, that’s a lot,” Trump said. (snip)

The former president, however, touted his “good relationship” with the Tesla founder despite the report.

“He [Elon Musk] did say, I strongly endorse you, despite the fact that I’m against the electric car mandate,” Trump explained before calling the “effort” ridiculous.

“I disagree with the electric cars for everybody,” Trump said, arguing that he’s “very much against” it.

“You want a gasoline propelled car or want maybe a hybrid. You want to have a choice. And that includes electric,” he said.

And that’s the thing: if you want an EV, get one. That’s your choice. If you want a straight gas, regular hybrid, or plugin hybrid, get one. Though, I personally think plugin hybrids are idiotic. When my lease is up at the end of March I will be leasing either a Civic Hybrid or an Accord Sport Hybrid. However, I am seriously considering a lease on an EV, which is $298 a month for 36 months for 30,000 miles (that’s all I need) with nothing down. Manufacturers are offering insane lease deals to employees and dealership employees. For those who understand leasing, this is a $53K vehicle. I pay $225 for a $30K Civic, and I put almost $6k down (I had massive positive equity in 2022, and pocketed almost $6k. I wanted the lower payment).

They’re doing a pretty wild lease for regular customers, $359, you would end up putting about $4000 to $4500 down, though.

We blew out all the ones we have, and other employees put their names on a few in shipping. I am seriously considering one, but, there is a sticky wicket: charging. Four different maps tell me different things on where I can fast charge. I’m not going places to do a level 2 charge and sit there for a long time. All the maps agree on one public charger on the NW side of Raleigh, would take me 20-25 minutes to drive there. Others say stuff is closer, but, they seem to be Tesla superchargers, which are not compatible. This gives me great, great pause.

But, then, there’s the pricing to charge: most of the level 3s are around 43 cents per kilowatt, so, to do a full charge is about $34. It costs me roughly that to fill up my Civic, and, I can go about 60 miles further. So, where is the monetary savings? Granted, I would choose the package where I get $750 of free charging. Not sure if I want to put a level 2 charger at home, would cost up to $2000 (though I could choose a package with a $500 credit and $250 free charging). I do not want a level one, where you plug it into a 3 prong outlet. First, some little punk could unplug it overnight for a lark, second, it can take days to charge at level one. I don’t have a garage.

However, this is where people save money having an EV over another car: charging at home. Not charging out and about. And most people do not have a garage. How many live in apartments? Where does the savings come in?

If you want to travel, a Tesla is probably your best bet. I would have to look for a CSS type plug. An 8 hour trip could quickly become over 9, provided you do not have to wait for the charger to be free. This is giving me serious pause. I know I will pay quite a bit more for a lease in March for a hybrid, with rates higher and cost of vehicles up, but, just not sure I want to give the EV a try. I just want to get in and drive, not play around. And this vehicle is nice. It’s just below the top trim. It drives fantastic. Took one on a 40 minute drive the other week. Enjoyable. It is about 8 inches wider than my Civic, and 5 wider than the Accord I had previously. Doesn’t seem like much, but, 5 to 8 inches in a vehicle is huge. I’ll wait and see what my coworkers think before doing anything.

If I get one, it should be my choice. Not government applying force.