Not a Tesla Hater, But Maybe Not a Lifer

By Edward A. Sanchez — Feb. 19, 2025

It’s hard to avoid the headlines of Elon Musk’s antics, whether as head of D.O.G.E., making controversial hand gestures, or his inscrutable endorsement of “drill, baby, drill” president Donald Trump. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you’ll know I’m an owner of a 2019 Tesla Model 3 SR+. Musk’s antics aside, it’s been a fantastic car and ownership experience overall.

Whoever is at the helm of the company, I would absolutely consider another Tesla. Simply put, the company has a decade lead on nearly every other carmaker in the world when it comes to EVs, and it shows. As I said in a video on my personal YouTube channel, taking into consideration the entire experience of purchase, service, software updates, and charging infrastructure, I believe Tesla is still the best overall EV you can currently buy. Currently.

But that’s not to say that will be the case in perpetuity. Whether presciently or inadvertently, Tesla sabotaged its own advantage by offering the NACS plug design to the rest of the industry. In about a year, every new EV will be able to use Tesla Superchargers, either as an integrated “plug & charge” experience, or through the Tesla app. One of its biggest competitive moats will now be flooded with its competitors.

Assuming it’s still around, and by most current indications, it will be, my next car might come from Rivian. Specifically, the R3/R3X. I’ve owned two hatchbacks, and they’re simply unbeatable in terms of versatility and compact footprint. As soon as I saw it, I was immediately intrigued. Supposedly, it’s coming in 2027. That’s less than two years away. If it lives up to its performance promise, and is priced competitively, I could very well see it in my garage in the near future.

Financially, Tesla is on a much better footing than Rivian. The way things are going in the current administration, there’s a good chance Rivian’s $6 billion loan from the Department of Energy could be rescinded by a Trump-aligned Republican Congress in a reconciliation bill. The company is counting on that loan to move forward with construction of its planned plant in Georgia, which will focus on production of the R2 and R3. The R3 is Rivian’s best prospect at an export model, with the current R1T and R1S too large and too expensive for most markets. I’m not alone in my fondness for the R3. Rimac Automobili founder and CEO Mate Rimac said he’d buy an R3 “in a heartbeat” if offered in Europe.

By virtue of its boxy shape, I know the R3 won’t be the ultimate EV efficiency leader. When I bought my Model 3 SR+, it was the most efficient EV you could buy. It has already been superseded by the Lucid Air Pure RWD, a larger (and more expensive) car. Assuming it ever makes it to the production stage, the Aptera three-wheeler will likely positively trounce any other EVs in terms of overall efficiency.

But I don’t care. My visceral love of hatchbacks draws me to the R3. If I have the financial means to go for the full-blown, tri-motor R3X, I’m going to buy it. I’m predicting the R3X will be pushing (if not exceeding) $60,000. I hope I’m pleasantly surprised by a lower price, but I might settle for a dual-motor R3, at around $40-45,000.

For a while, Tesla had a virtual monopoly on my future vehicle purchase. But the rest of the EV industry is rapidly catching up, and within a few years, will likely be at parity in terms of overall experience. I’m not rooting for Tesla to fail, but I’m cheered that there are now other competitors that offer compelling alternatives.

(Image courtesy Rivian)