I think your perception of last year like mine toes back several by covid effect. Other brands have had comparable electric vehicles for years now, and even then Tesla was never alone in the EV market.

[–] Staccato@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Comparable? Not really. The i3, Leaf, and Bolt didn't have the same fast charging capability or range as the Model 3, and luxury brands are out of reach for the average consumer.

The vehicles that are actually putting out comparable specs had their first model years in 2021 (Ford, VW) or 2022 (Hyundai and Kia).

[–] Paralda@programming.dev 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Not comparable stock. Even in Q1 2022, 75% of all EV sales in the US were Teslas.

When I bought mine, I legitimately tried to get a Ford or a Volvo, but the dealerships had no stock and kept adding insane dealer fees and markups. With my used Tesla I just had to wait a week for delivery. Musk hadn't gone fully off the deepend either yet.

[–] cogman@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Yup, got mine in 2018. He'd done shitty things by that time but wasn't full mask off. At the time the only 2 real alternatives were the bolt and leaf. Neither had enough range for me.

But now? My next EV will not be a Tesla. I'm driving this one till the wheels fall off, but already there are better alternatives on the market. With everyone adopting NACS there's pretty much no downside.