1) I'm an Apple fanboy.
2) I have a Tesla Model S.
Comments...
1) Tesla has big margins on the Model S, and is plowing that profit into cap ex for growth. New paint shop, production lines, etc. If they did not want to reinvest their profits, they could actually show a bottom line profit.
The current line is subsidizing the growth and development needed to successfully make smaller cheaper cars with lower margin. If Tesla had gone for a 35K car off the bat, they never would have made it on low-margin sales while having to spool up a growing car company.
2) It's all about the batteries. No matter how good your design is, if you can't get the batteries, you don't have a car to sell. Tesla is going to have the Gigafactory all to itself, and they are buying up rights to loads of lithium mining production. Where is Apple going to get the lithium and the assembled batteries?
The Model S 85 has an EPA range around 265, and some S options provide more. The X is around 240. Much more range than ANY other EV. If Apple wants to compete with Volt/Leaf/i3, the battery problem is easier to sol e as those cars don't have much battery capacity.
