[uncletaco]

So this is endemic? I noticed a lot of Uber drivers drove Model 3s when I flew into Miami a few months back and saw the same thing in Berkeley a few weeks ago. Are the Model 3 owners having trouble paying that high car note?

[kylecordes]

Apparently Model 3 has a low total cost of ownership/operation per mile - i.e., popular for Uber for the same reason a Prius is popular for Uber.

[parkingrift]

This seemed so absurdly impossible that I had to look it up. I went to Edmunds and sure enough the 5-year TCO for a 2022 LR Model 3 is $115k. The 5-year TCO for a 2022 LE AWD Prius is $69k.

The Model 3 is ridiculously expensive. Base price RWD $47k. You can get into a Prius for $25k. At 58mpg there will never be a breakeven for the Model 3. Economics will be different with this upcoming $7,500 tax credit, but that obviously doesn't apply to any current owners.

[njarboe]

Maybe people tip a lot more when they get a ride in a Tesla over a ride in a Prius. Or the Tesla owning Uber drivers know the biggest threat to their lively hood is Tesla automating them out of a job. When/if that happens, if they own a Tesla, their car can go to work for them.

[uncletaco]

Y'all get on here and say anything

[njarboe]

Talk to Uber drivers that own Tesla's. I have.