Tesla owners are upset that they now have to share “their” chargers with people driving cheap Hyundais

If you are wondering why the American car company did this in the first place and is getting rid of one of its key competitive advantages, the answer is easy. This is about money, first of all, billions of “others”.

Elon Musk is very fond of stating that his goal is not money, but a clean planet. But Tesla’s latest move suggests something else. The automaker has announced that by the end of next year, it will also make 3,500 Superchargers available to owners of competing electric cars in the States. However, Musk’s messiahship is not really behind this, he is not even primarily interested in marketing or a business opportunity. After all, it would be a double-edged sword in this direction – until now, the network of 18,000 charging points was one of the main reasons why people preferred Tesla cars over others.

Last year’s pro-inflationary (it calls itself “anti-inflationary” but does the opposite) law of the Joe Biden administration led to the change. The latter primarily continues to scatter public money, and it also includes a fund of 7.5 billion dollars (approx. 168.43 billion CZK) intended for the expansion of charging infrastructure. However, in order for their operators to be able to reach for part of the package, they need to make their racks available to any battery-powered car. This is exactly why Tesla did something like this.

But every action is followed by a reaction, and it is no different in this case. The brand’s latest move is not at all pleasing to some of its car owners. Nelson Jackson said that the Supercharger network was a big reason why he bought the Model S. But now the American feels betrayed by Tesla. “It’s unfortunate on so many levels. I don’t think they thought it through properly,” he adds, worried that he will have to wait in a much longer queue for cheap cars from Hyundai.

Nelson also states that if his next charging experiences are negative, he even intends to say goodbye to his car. “I’m definitely not going to drive a $100,000 Model S if I don’t have a way to add energy.” It’s interesting that he would like to go back to gasoline at such a time. In addition, this will probably happen, because Jackson already had to wait in queues longer than before during the holidays, and at the same time Tesla did not allow foreign cars to connect to its network. More people at the stands also reduced the charging speed, of course.

Other Tesla owners interviewed by Business Insider show that it is not only the bitterness of one owner. At the same time, however, he also spoke to people who welcome the given decision. This is because Musk just proves, after all, that the car company is really only about a cleaner world. It will therefore be interesting to see what their reactions will be at the moment when a significant part of the Supercharger network will be occupied by owners of competing cars.

However, JD Power’s Brent Gruber suggests that problems are 100% to be expected. “Battery car registrations are double the construction of charging stations in the United States. That’s already an imbalance that needs to be reckoned with,” he said. We can only add that we have been pointing this out for quite a few years, but until now every supporter of electric cars has claimed that everything can be done. Apparently not.

By 2024, Tesla will also make 3,500 stands available to owners of competing electric cars. Thanks to this, he can count on government money, but also on the hostility of his own customers. Photo: Tesla

Source: Business Insider

Petr Prokopec

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