Tesla cars are really cheaply built. Putting every control on a touchscreen is a cost-saving measure. At the same time, Teslas are actually quite expensive to buy.
I think the target audience for this combo are people who love their iPads. I don't love my iPad - I want actual stalks and dials and knobs and buttons in my car so Tesla is not the car for me. In addition to the political intrigues others have mentioned I suspect that Tesla may be reaching the limit of "people who love their iPads" here.
I'm in a similar boat. Touchscreens might look sleek, but it is dangerous in some ways as you can't adjust things without taking your eyes off the road. I do like the big backup camera though. I won't support Elon though, so Tesla is permanently a non-option for me now. The huge failure of the cybertruck also makes me wary of going that route as the number of videos showing the shoddy craftsmanship seems far too high.
I came to comments to make this point. Many of the EU manufacturers finally acknowledged the safety and usability of physical controls through research (aside from the customer clamor as customers realized touch screens weren't actually what they wanted), and EU pivoted. The physical controls EVs are now available.
USA didn't get the memo, or doesn't want to, thanks to differing corporate priorities and differing user persona preferences. USA manufacturers are (eventually) able to be influenced by customer outcry driving enough media to hit the independent dealer networks, but Tesla feels unlikely to do anything with the memo except file it in the circular bin.
Not sure about your "for people who love iPads" comment. I love my iPad Pro w/ Magic Keyboard + Magic Touch case and LTE modem, but get that crap out of my "control without looking" car experience. OTOH, I learned to drive in Europe.
> Putting every control on a touchscreen is a cost-saving measure
That is the meme. But at the same time, they put a (barely usable) rear passenger touchscreen in the back seat mid console on the Model 3 refresh, and now they're putting powered back seats in the Model Y refresh. There's no way that's cheaper than a few buttons/stalks here and there.
Is that something they're purely doing to try to catch the hearts and minds of the Chinese market? As I have been led to believe, for a lot of Chinese, the back seat is very important.
To be fair the model S wasn't like that the last time I drove one (hired 2022 model S). It's less of an iPad than the model 3 is. What is however terrible is none of the trim fits, the constant distractions and attention it requires and after driving a European car, it feels like I'm driving a Temu android tablet.
Hired Polestars since. Those just work, are put together properly and shut the fuck up when you're driving.
I love my iPad, but I’d still rather have knobs and buttons in my car, if I need to adjust it while driving I need to be able to find it without looking.
I think the target audience for this combo are people who love their iPads. I don't love my iPad - I want actual stalks and dials and knobs and buttons in my car so Tesla is not the car for me. In addition to the political intrigues others have mentioned I suspect that Tesla may be reaching the limit of "people who love their iPads" here.