What will this mean for competition?
Could it spur competition? I mean, it's definitely going to spur
competition. I mean, if you're out there, you're
shopping for a vehicle, one that's eligible for a $7,500 rebate.
One is not.

I mean, you're going to shop both
vehicles, of course. Everyone knows what Tesla is.
They have a lot of brand recognition. But something like this is going to get
shoppers to look and consider other things.
And a lot of times that does ultimately

end in a purchase.
So without a doubt, Tesla will be at a disadvantage if this goes through.
Jessica, just set the context here, though.
Seven and a half thousand. What does that mean for the ultimate
price point of an EV right now?

Because, well, they're not cheap and
seven and a half thousand doesn't seem that much in comparison to the cost of a
Rivian, for example. Yeah, I mean, that is true.
But I think as we go towards the mass

market consumer, they're looking for
cheaper EVs. And in that case, $7,500 does become
probably more attractive because someone is buying a $100,000 TV.
They're probably not bothered by these rebates anyhow.
And at the end of the day, people are

buying a lot of times, even though they
shouldn't be, on monthly payment. And so when it's calculated out, you're
looking at the monthly payment, the $7,500 applies, especially for at least
customers that can make a really big

difference and make that a lot more
attractive and get consumers to buy. California, though, I'm assuming, has
been a first adopter, early adopter of EVs more broadly when you compare state
to state. So who is how much of the mass market is
still left to penetrate in California?

Well, I think that's the whole thing is
that in California, the market share is over 20%.
So you've had a lot of mass or a lot of early adopters have already purchased.
So getting the mass market is probably the bigger challenge here because these
people need convincing and they probably

don't have the highest income.
They're kind of questioning whether they even want an EV.
So now, if there was ever a time to have an incentive on EVs, it is for the mass
market, not for the people that were early adopters that were excited about
ideas to start with and probably didn't

need much incentive to even purchase.
Just compare state to state. We know that Newsom has not been afraid
to push back at Elon Musk and indeed perhaps be a key supporter of the EV
sector. Would this be replicated elsewhere, do
you think, if federal support did come

away?
I mean, it's like we we have things like CARB states.
Other people are following some of the California Air Resources Board, some of
the edicts that they have put out. So there is a precedent here of other
states kind of following California's

lead.
But at the end of the day, this program does sound quite costly, especially to
sell a lot of vehicles. So states are going to have to find
funding for this program, which may be complicated.
I mean, California has a clear order,

zero emissions vehicle by 2035.
And, you know, if that's the case, then programs like this will have to exist to
spur that mass market to start to buy. If they really want to spur the mass
market, you'd anticipate that you'd let

Chinese these in, which are much cheaper
than US competitors who are therefore given that that would be the case.
Where are the cheaper vehicles? Who will this end up supporting?
Well, I mean, I think any automakers, I mean, they're all kind of scrambling.
I mean, in this era of affordability and

cost of living increases, inflation,
people just feeling a lot less wealthy than they have in the past has been a
big issue for car buyers. So I think a lot of automakers are
trying to focus on the lower end. So anyone that is delivering good value,
that kind of has maybe like, you know, a

$40,000 price tag, they're probably
going to get a lot more eyeballs than some of the other things that we have
seen, you know, like the Jaguar coming out in a few years or any of these, you
know, six-figure, any type of vehicles.

Tesla Excluded From Proposed California EV Buyer Credits

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Bloomberg Technology

EV rebates will increase competition among automakers.

Consumers will compare eligible and ineligible vehicles, potentially benefiting lesser-known brands.

Tesla will be at a disadvantage without rebate eligibility.

The $7,500 rebate is more significant for budget-conscious consumers.

Impact of rebates on consumer purchasing decisions

The rebate's impact is more noticeable on monthly payments, making EVs more attractive.

California's EV market penetration is already high; the challenge is reaching the mass market.

Incentives are needed to convince the mass market, not early adopters.

State and federal support for EV adoption

Other states might follow California's lead in EV initiatives.

Funding for such programs can be challenging for states.

California's 2035 zero-emission vehicle mandate necessitates such programs.

Allowing cheaper Chinese imports could significantly impact the market.

Automakers are focusing on affordability due to economic factors.

Automakers offering good value at lower price points will gain more attention.

High-priced vehicles will likely be less appealing to budget-conscious consumers.