[peeters]

Other car companies need to sink a relatively huge sum of money into R&D to get into the electric car field, and are left with a product that will probably for the most part cannibalize their own sales. They seem to think "hey, some hippies want electric cars, and we might lose their business if we can't offer them one. So let's make sure we get that checkmark." The result is often a half-ass attempt to keep up and show progress rather than true innovation.

Tesla is trying to disrupt the market as a new player. To do so, they are trying to redefine the industry every step of the way (made-to-order cars, direct sales, etc). They also need true innovation to generate sales, because they're a dark horse. But unlike electric offerings from other companies, Tesla's end goal isn't to offer the best electric car. That would disrupt a very small industry. Their goal is to offer the best car, period. And so they're coming out with electric cars that hands-down beat same-class cars in some traditional factors like performance, and are comparable in other factors (like range)