Who Asked For This

90-sec read

Every now and then, you see a story in the news that makes you think: ‘Who asked for this’.

Last week, Tesla unveiled their new Roadster.

The car drove upside down on a ramp, then launched itself into the air using thrusters, flipped, and landed safely.

Tesla says production will begin in 2028, eight years after the original promised target.

Impressive as it is, the flying version isn't road legal and will be reserved for a limited, invitation-only model.

Compare that with what people have actually been asking for. A few weeks ago, the NY Times ran an article looking into why cheap, no-frills cars (the "econoboxes" of the 1970s) have disappeared from the automobile industry.

Their argument was that cheap cars didn't vanish because people stopped wanting them. They vanished because automakers stopped making them.

The average new car now costs around $50,000, while finding one for under $20,000 has become almost impossible.

Instead of making cars cheaper, companies have been finding new ways to charge for what's already there. Last year, Volkswagen offered a subscription that unlocked extra horsepower even though the engine already had that capability.

BMW did something similar by charging a monthly fee for heated seats that were already installed in the car.

Somewhere along the way, making a decent, affordable car became less interesting than finding new ways to make it do things nobody asked for.

I'm sure making a car fly is very impressive. I'm just not sure that's what anyone was asking for.

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For the curious: The discussion about affordable cars was inspired by Clifford Winston’s guest essay in The New York Times, “The Death of the Basic American Car.”