The profit margin on cars looks good. If the 3 and Y cost around $35k and $40k to Tesla, they have a lot of room to respond to competitive pressures.

I think Tesla's battery moves are spot on. Investing in extraction, processing, refining, and manufacturing is going to pay off big time in the future.

I think this is the future for Tesla as a business, frankly. They should be a manufacturer of batteries and other EV components.

Tesla is the king of battery manufacturing. Their EV drivetrains are the most efficient on the market today. But their cars kinda suck overall and they are not going to be competitive with the traditional auto makers in the long run. Better to sell batteries & motors to Toyota, and sell power walls & solar to consumers / resellers. That is their core competency.

> Tesla is the king of battery manufacturing

Did you mean Panasonic?

> But their cars kinda suck overall

Do explain how a kinda sucky car, Model Y, became best selling car in Europe in September and is tracking to be best selling car world wide in 2023.

And yes, I do mean "car", not "electric car". Model Y is outselling Peugeot 208, a car half its price.

https://electrek.co/2022/10/28/tesla-model-y-best-selling-ca...

https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/teslas...

> Do explain how a kinda sucky car, Model Y, became best selling car in Europe in September and is tracking to be best selling car world wide in 2023.

Because gas is obscenely expensive in Europe, so EVs are in high demand and there are very few "real" EVs available. Especially in the form factor of the Y, which is especially popular these days.

The model 3/Y are over priced, have poor build quality, and are a nightmare to have serviced. But there are no real competitors (yet).