Elon Musk says that Lucid and Rivian are tracking toward bankruptcy

[SASSquatch]

I have to smile at the anti Elon comments, I guess he hurt some feelings. The hard truth is the numbers at Rivian are beyond terrible and he is just telling it like it is. The cash burn will come more into focus with the economic downturn. Like it or not Rivian is in a fight for it's existence. But perhaps a merger or purchase would be more likely than extinction. The news media turned on him shortly after the new progressive administration came into power. DFL'ers/Union/Media are tough to fight against, especially without Twitter . And some people (not referring to posters this thread) aren't even sure why they don't like him. I have some acquaintances that are like sheep and regurgitate the talking points of the talking heads on the boob tube. Please remember Mary Barra and GM are the biggest and best BEV manufactures in the land.

With the media machine grinding against him he will become even less popular over time. The Media needs to vilify someone and he is in their sights. I'm just waiting for our Electric bills to double or more with the Democrats throttling energy production.

I think he's also a bit envious of RIVIAN, to be honest. He leveraged his own personal wealth, made deals with the devil (including Chrysler) and spent his nights sleeping on the floor of his office in the TESLA factory - days or weeks away from bankruptcy to get the Model 3 out the door and generate cash flow to keep TESLA alive all while everyone was actively betting on him to fail.

RIVIAN comes along - a comparative cinderella story flush with cash from big hitters like FORD/AMAZON and a landscape MUCH more willing to embrace the EV revolution in part because of the success of TESLA.

So, I think RIVIAN sticks in his craw some. I don't blame him, but at the same time, I think it is wishful thinking on his end.

I don't even see RIVIAN as a direct competitor to TESLA right now. I think he is more worried about FORD and GM to be honest or at least, he should be.

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[virgnia_rivian]

Hey everyone look at me!!

Also, let’s see how Tesla does when the major automakers begin pumping out EV’s by the millions. I’m not predicting anything, just saying competition.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Elon isn't saying something that isn't obvious. Unless they start to actually make vehicles at volume with good margins, Rivian will indeed crater. I can't imagine RJ and the Board don't know this though. With $17B in the bank, it's a bit early to be starting a Rivian deathwatch. Let's take up this discussion in one year from now and see where they're at.

I would be more worried about Lucid, except that they have Saudi money, and the Saudi's are rolling in dough right now. I wouldn't be surprised to see a financing down round for Lucid though.

 

[Gator42]

If we are going to convince consumers who have been living with the convenience of gas to switch to EVs the charging has to be ubiquitous (like gas stations) and easy (like gas stations).

Yah maybe, though I’m fond of the plug in my garage that lets me avoid the gas station…

 

[SASSquatch]

Yah maybe, though I’m fond of the plug in my garage that lets me avoid the gas station…

We all are, Gator42. But most people think 20 percent use case vs 80 percent use case when they are making a purchase.

My guess is that for most americans, charging at home would be the 80% solution - but for the 20% road trips that require infrastructure, they need and want gas-like convenience for the charging experience.

Inherently, EV charging on the road should be better than the gas experience once we get our act together infrastructure wise. Even if EVs never get below twice the time it takes to fill a tank of gas, the fact that you can walk away while you are charging lets you do the things you need to do at a rest stop vs. having to sit there and waste time watching the gas pump.

 

[Gator42]

But most people think 20 percent use case vs 80 percent use case when they are making a purchase

Me: 97 vs 3…and will still have an ICE (vs walking everywhere pre-covid). Guess my household’s an exception…

 

[SASSquatch]

Me: 97 vs 3…and will still have an ICE (vs walking everywhere pre-covid). Guess my household’s an exception…

I'm much closer to your situation 95/5 90/10 at most.

We will always have an ICE vehicle but it will likely always be a hybrid. Our Ford C-Max Hybrid is getting 48 mpg overall on regular gas and we are very happy to have that vehicle in our stable these days.

 

[SASSquatch]

Wishful thinking On Elon's part. He wants no competition!

He also just likes messing with people.

Meanwhile - I really love your profile image. What is that from?

 

[ccmun]

I think the infotainment and lack of physical controls has the potential to kill Rivian unless something changes. There are a lot of people that don't like change, and if you want to succeed long-term, you can't just go after the tech-savvy people as that's really limiting your market. There are a lot of us that just want a no-nonsense vehicle that simply works without all the gadgetry.

The lack of physical controls has not hindered Tesla. People adjusted to smartphones without keyboards, they will adjust.

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

Elon is the reason the R1's even exist....he is the single biggest influencer in the modern era as one man changed a 100+ year old industry in less than a decade (Got that out of the way). Every manufacturer of any merit and many that have zero are introducing EV's and in some cases a 100% shift because of Mr. Musk., including Ferrari, Lamborghini, etc.,

He has done the same with SpaceX and changed the world in that regard as well. No one in their right-mind (that's an asset for him), would ever in a 100 years think of starting a car company from scratch (EV to boot) or an Aerospace Rocket Company (average wage $150K per employee), but he did. He makes a post/tweet and stocks move millions.....Only a fool would disparage the guy.....

If Rivian doesn't make it as we know it under current leadership, I really don't care besides the fact I love people who take risks....No risk-it, no biscuit (Bruce Arians).......If Rivian doesn't survive, Apple or someone of a similar ilk will purchase the company and life will roll on.

I actually think Nikola and Fisker (reserved) have a 20-35% chance of making it, mainly because Magna is building the current Fiskers.....Fisker himself is close to a criminal, not quite the full-blown thief and low-life criminal that John Hennessey (was.....) and Hennessey survived.....

Rivian like everyone else has to execute, but one thing others here have mentioned is Rivian communication and transparency are pathetic and in this generation that is unacceptable.....

 

[jjswan33]

Elon is the reason the R1's even exist....he is the single biggest influencer in the modern era as one man changed a 100+ year old industry in less than a decade (Got that out of the way). Every manufacturer of any merit and many that have zero are introducing EV's and in some cases a 100% shift because of Mr. Musk., including Ferrari, Lamborghini, etc.,

I’m sorry but Elon didn’t even found Tesla and the idea of Tesla the car technology company existed before Elon was involved. So give credit for Tesla’s success to Elon if you want but I give Elon 0 credit for the R1.

Also said it before will say it again, Elon is a d-bag. He doesn’t care about anything these days besides his ego and his wallet.

Regarding the article/podcast itself I could give a f$$k less what Elon thinks about his companies competitors.

 

[NY_Rob]

The lack of physical controls has not hindered Tesla. People adjusted to smartphones without keyboards, they will adjust.

Yeah, and it hasn't stopped 90K people from plopping down $1,000 deposits on a Rivian either. I would wager Rivian would blow the doors off the 90K order number if people knew they would get their Rivian in a couple of months vs. the current 2+ yr wait new reservation customers are facing.

The wait time to get a new Rivian is the only thing holding back Rivian sales- the whole lack of physical controls is a non-factor for Rivian.

 

[Nermal]

Well, his prognostications are almost 100% accurate. So I guess we're toast.

Let's see. What did Bitcoin do today?

 

[Tanquen]

He's gotten more and more out there over the last few years. It's too bad. But most companies are headed toward bankruptcy at one point or another. It's how they handle the day-to-day and month to month securing loans and product, balancing production and overhead, number of employees etc. That's why it's hard to make tons of money, just investing in random companies. A lot of their success is random and or short-lived.

 

[Acoustic71]

https://electrek.co/2022/06/14/elon-musk-lucid-rivian-tracking-toward-bankruptcy/

I personally don't, but it's a slow day at work....

Let's send him to Uranus.

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