To an extent but long term, no not really. A couple things to keep in mind here:
1. Tesla gets less for their ZEV credits than companies like Ford and GM. The reason for this is because the market for them is only so big but all Tesla produces is electric cars. Because of this, they actually don't get to realize the full credit whereas companies like Ford and GM come out with bullshit compliance vehicles like the Bolt and they realize the full credit. So since Tesla can't realize the full value of the credit, it's actually companies like Ford and GM that are being subsidized.
2. The Model 3, for example, will have a starting price of $35,000 before the tax credits. At $35,000 it will be on par with the cheapest BMW and Audi yet is almost certainly to be better equipped, not to mention you won't spend anything in gas. Depending on how much driving you're doing, gas is a big expense, even when it's cheap, and you can put all the money saved towards your car payment. I was paying $600 a month for my 535i and another $400 in gas. So $1000 all in. For my last Tesla I was paying $670ish a month and nothing in gas. If I was paying electric it would have added about $45 to my monthly bill. So basically nothing. So suddenly people that were looking at $25,000 cars are now looking at a $35,000 Tesla and the math still makes sense.
Tesla is already so far ahead here that it's basically a done deal. Elon has leaked info on a V3 supercharger that will be well over 350kW. That would effectively give you an 80% charge in 5 minutes. That's about on par with a gas car.
They won't, at least I don't think they will. The internal combustion engine is a relic. New technologies are cool but almost all of them add even more complexity to an already complex system. An engine has thousands of parts, hundreds of which move and then an equally (if not more) complex transmission attached to it. That entire drivetrain is going the way of Old Yeller.
I'd like to respond to this but that would be pointless just by virtue of the comments you've made. I can tell you that whatever you think you know, I assure you, you don't. Check out how heavily subsidized the oil industry is. That's a solid start.
From my understanding, there haven't been many attempts at advances because there was no need given the price of oil. Me and a friend that owns a sizable company and does a lot of odd investing were talking about this and he clued me in on some respects. People didn't (and some still don't) see this coming because they falsely assume that they've been trying all this time and the technology has already reached critical mass. When in reality, they've only been tackling this on a macro level for a very short amount of time. The reality is that solar prices are dropping fast, faster than anyone thought. And improvements in battery energy density and cost are improving at a rate that was considered unthinkable just 10 years ago.
Yeah, but I mean... it's the government. How much stock do you put in that? I don't put much. Maybe I look at things differently because everything I do is about investing or making money. The improvement in efficiency, power and reliability in an electric drivetrain over a traditional internal combustion drivetrain is pretty indisputable. People see that writing on the wall and anyone that wants the most powerful drivetrain and the smoothest acceleration is going to want electric. And they want it now actually. The thing holding them back now is pricing which is coming down and charging times which are also coming down.
I could be wrong but so far everything I've said, many of which others here told me I was crazy about, is happening. When the tides start to change after decades of stagnation and I was expecting that change, well I guess there's a little bit of confirmation bias there.
