[cmgxyz]

As somebody potentially in the market for an EV, I can say that for me, Musk is most definitely a factor.

Not the only factor, to be sure, but the off-putting icing on an otherwise average cake. If Tesla were the only decent EV in town, I might hold my nose through Musk’s behaviour and buy one. They aren’t, though, so I don’t have to.

The other major factors in my decision are the very public QA issues, safety issues, and questionable design decisions (eg. all-touchscreen controls, dangerous “full self-driving” fallacy) that, combined, leave me thinking “yeah, maybe I’d rather buy from a somewhat more boring company with a longer history of _making safely-working cars_”

I don’t kid myself that the heads of most car companies are necessarily decent human beings who align with me ethically or politically, but all other things being increasingly equal, why would I opt for the one run by a childish unstable egomaniac who stands in loud, public opposition to most of what I believe in?

[sergiosgc]

Maybe because VW, for example, has actually skirted pollution laws, with intent. Or because PSA management publicly derides any effort for EV transition. Or maybe because Toyota has for 20 years falsely promised EV fuel cells/engines in the next five years, all the while happily selling ICE vehicles.

If you look closely at any big corporation management, they are all egomaniacs. Just not childish enough to publicize that fact.