Details are just that… Details. Yet, small things, like that pebble hidden in your shoe, can prove the most painful.

While I am a supporter of Tesla and Elon Musk’s initiatives, I recently came to consider that, as the race towards electric cars is now full on, Tesla may find themselves on the losing end of it.

Tesla were a pioneer in the field and deemed to revolutionise the automotive world. Yet, traditional carmakers are still here and as the electric world grows, so does their offering. Porsche, Mercedes, BMW, Volvo, etc… They are all announcing and showing off electric cars. And these look great, boast performances as good as Tesla and… a better finish.

While recently sitting on a bus, I got to find myself staring at the road besides me. There was a Tesla Model X. The one feature that did strike me at that time, looking at this “exclusive” Tesla in the wild, was the bad finish on the car.

The rubbers on the roof looked tired already, the door handles did not line up, the overall quality looked like it was on par with what I could witness on basic Toyota or Hyundai models.

Meanwhile, the Mercedes and BMWs I came across offered no flaw with lines falling perfectly in place. The quality was there to be witnessed.

Now, as in everything, quality may not be the first thing people look for but, when parting ways with a substantial amount of money, that level of quality and attention to details is what makes (or should make) a massive difference.

This is the reflection process behind getting a Huawei P20 Pro smartphone instead of an iPhone for instance and the reason why today’s challengers may well become tomorrow’s winners.

Also published on Medium.