Elon Musk and Tesla have become damaged brands.
In his current role as head of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, Musk is alienating people for fear of losing their jobs, not to mention how it could impact security and safety by depleting staffing specifically geared to that.
Meanwhile, Tesla stockholders are seeing their shares dwindle in value – considerably.
What I found interesting was a post about Musk on LinkedIn made by Shahin Alizadeh, President/CEO of Toronto-based Downtown AutoGroup, which retails Toyota, Ford Lincoln, Hyundai, Nissan, Genesis and Chrysler Dodge, Jeep RAM all in one Autoplex. I’ve known Shahin for several years and I respect his candour on all things automotive. He has put his money where his mouth is or vice-versa, which is to say he is not shy about stating his opinions, while also building one of the most unique autoplexes in the world, combining cars and condominiums for sale on the same property.
“Several years ago before Tesla became a household name, people asked me what I thought of Tesla and Elon Musk,” Shahin began in his post. “I wasn’t qualified to express an educated opinion at the time as my only exposure to an EV within my various brands was the Nissan Leaf, not an overly successful nameplate commercially. As time passed and Tesla continued its meteoric rise, I became interested in understanding what was behind this phenomenon. It quickly became evident to me that this was not simply about electrification or combating global warming. Indeed, Musk saw flaws in the auto retailing world, an Industry that was the subject of some distrust by the public, whether justified or not.”
He added that given the size of the industry, Musk brilliantly envisioned an alternative by creating the optics of a better purchase experience.
“Two groups of consumers gravitated to Tesla: those who felt they were making a positive contribution to combating global warming, and the disgruntled consumers who saw a better way of purchasing a vehicle, regardless of it being internal combustion engine or EV,” Shahin said. “In the end in a very strange way, our industry helped create the monster without fully realizing it.
“As we watch the most significant attempt at dismantling the entire EV market in the U.S., it is quite ironic that the man who sold us on the idea of EVs being the future of transportation some 15 years ago is now so far removed from preaching his original sermon that it makes one’s stomach turn.
“To Musk, there is no longer a distinction between a Tesla or any EV and the biggest gas guzzlers on the market. It is all about the return on investment.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what Shahin meant, and he said he was generically talking about Musk investing in U.S. President Donald Trump.
A few days ago, Trump did what was essentially a huge endorsement for Tesla – I read one story that called it an infomercial because he was standing in front of some of Musk’s shiny, new vehicles and even stepped inside one – saying he wanted to buy one of the company’s cars. Musk looked on with pride. Clearly Trump was trying to do Musk a solid because of Tesla’s plunging stock. You can analyze the reason for that any way – dislike for the brand, dislike for Musk and/or Trump.
But why would Trump want to buy any passenger car, Tesla or otherwise?. He is driven everywhere in a variety of vehicles, all of them bulletproof. He will always have access to them even when his term is up, and assuming his security clearance is not taken away from him.
Personally, I think if Trump were to buy a Tesla, the Cybertruck would be more to his liking. It has drawn as much controversy as him.
It’s funny Trump would care about EVs in general since he stated on many occasions his dislike for them and ending rebates for them.
But given that Musk endorsed Trump’s candidacy with some $300 million, this could be his way of saying thanks with free, worldwide publicity. I’m sure Trump’s base would follow his lead if he had a change of thought on EVs. But more recently stories have surfaced about Musk giving Trump another $100 million for his political operation.
So, maybe Shahin is right. It’s all about ROI, or maybe it’s ROT – Return On Trump.
Perry Lefko is the Content Manager of The Car Magazine. He can be reached at [email protected]. Feel free to forward any story suggestions or comments.
