Comment by vannevar

4 days ago

For starters they can sell EVs at a profit, a feat which I believe only Tesla has managed among the US manufacturers.

Sure, but that's mostly an R&D vs time thing. All manufacturers go through a period of time where they are losing huge money as they build out the production capacity and develop their tech. Tesla went years without making money, as did BYD. The incumbents will get there eventually.

  • The incumbents had the same time the Chinese did, and more. They still couldn't do it. Now the Trump administration has effectively forced them out of the EV business. If you're not making EVs, you're not getting any better at making EVs. The best case scenario for US automakers now is that tariffs remain high post-Trump, and America becomes like Cuba or the former Yugoslavia, with people driving inferior cars to the rest of the world because that's all they have access to. But rest assured, at least the rich will be driving the finest Chinese EVs.