They do have a range problem, but not in the way that you probably think.<p>If you take a look at the affordable EV segment, in the 2011 to 2016 era, it has been represented only by Nissan Leaf.<p>People are reporting anywhere between 15-30% of capacity loss within the first 45,000 miles. 
The problem with battery powered vehicles is that there&#x27;s a guaranteed loss of capacity after N charge cycles, which currently seems to be ~600-800 charges (77 miles of range x 600 charges = 46,200 miles)<p>Teslas have obviously not run into this problem yet, because their range is 200+, so you&#x27;d only start seeing significant capacity losses at 120,000 miles driven, which I&#x27;m guessing not many people have done since 2012.<p>But for smaller range vehicles this presents a significant problem: the commute you are able to make in the beginning of ownership may suddenly become impossible in just 3-4 years of driving.
And how do you get more range? You need more batteries.<p>In fact the first vehicle to solve this and have a decent enough capacity buffer at an affordable price will be Tesla 3.<p>On the other hand, this will put the nail in the coffin of the &quot;not being able to scale&quot; argument. In fact, Tesla 3 will be successful ONLY if they&#x27;re able to scale.