Consumer Reports just published its annual reliability survey. Since Tesla now has two cars, it was taken into consideration as a brand, and it did horribly.
That was mainly due to the falcon doors of the Model X. However, CR traded a few more blows with Elon Musk's auto shop today by saying the Chevrolet Bolt beat the Model 3 to the affordable EV punch.
It almost seems like that BMW 330e commercial where the Germans said you should buy that instead of waiting. Low blows are nothing new in the auto industry, but Tesla partly deserves this one because the Model 3 is taking so much longer to develop.
Consumer Reports' claim is based on numbers, those regarding EV range. Unlike phones, where processing and camera power dominate the market, electric cars are basically compared on range alone... except for the Model S, which for some reason also has hypercar performance.
You'll do less thinking about range because the Bolt has a total range of 238 miles, which Chevrolet says is five times the amount needed for the average commute of 40 miles. But it also offers slightly more range than the basic Model S 60, which starts at a whopping $66,000.
The review admits that all Teslas have a cult-like following of people who love the high-tech aspect. The Bolt is about as dorky looking as the BMW i3, but without the carbon reinforced plastic.
Criticizing interiors is a tradition at CR. The shifter from the Bolt is the same as in the Buick LaCrosse, and they don't like it; there aren't enough buttons, and they don't like that either.
Ever wanted to have a brake button on the steering wheel? Well, the Bolt has one, adding even more juice to the battery through regenerative braking. That's a cool feature, but is it enough to compete with ludicrous mode? Perhaps we should be less obsessed with drag racing EVs and more preoccupied with using less of it. A 700 horsepower Tesla is probably a gas guzzler too if you take what happens downstream into account.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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