J.B. Sauceda

Emmy-winning host of Texas Country Reporter at @texasmonthly. Ex-logistics CEO. Posts re: Texas culture, entrepreneurship, aviation, chili.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@flydmack2002 Super low iq

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

All the people salivating over the supposed mailbox money they’d get buying and renting out a Cybercab are delusional.

I rented my Silverado 2500 out on Turo. We’d kept it after I bought my Model Y just to use with out RV, so I thought renting it could be a nice revenue stream.

Marketing was easy, and I’d assume the same would be true for a CC since they’d just be available to people using the app.

But the upkeep sucks. It took work to keep it in a ready to use state.

People destroy the inside. They smoke. They leave food. They just don’t care. And at least with Turo they had to actually bring it back to me which kept most people somewhat accountable.

Now imagine the vehicle you also use for personal commutes being used by random strangers all day. Imagine the condition it’ll be in when you get in it. Will they be drunk? Pissed off? Messy? Destructive?

Or worse, imagine having to drop what you’re doing to deal with a wreck, flat tire, or other issue with your vehicle.

I have no doubt there’ll be some operators who buy a few and make some good money, but much like AirBnb or Turo, the folks that do make it a business and they crush it.

Just having one isn’t really worth the hassle and increased maintenance costs, especially if it’s your personal vehicle.

There’s a higher bar to rent from a platform like those. My rules were clearly stated, I personally handed off the keys when folks rented, and I had the final say to deny when people had bad histories as renters.

I’m a fan of Tesla vehicles, but this feels half-baked and there are a lot of folks salivating over it who don’t know the first thing about running a service business (which is what that would be).

[Mac @SilverbackMac11]

😮‍💨

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@bradharwick @tcreporter @TexasMonthly @prissc loooooved this reply btw 😂

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

Coming to ya live from the Lone Star Emmy awards.

Wish @tcreporter and @TexasMonthly luck!

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

Elko sounds like he’s running for reelection in Texas

[TexAgs @TexAgs]

Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko: "An utter apology to everyone who supports our program. You all deserve much better. Give me a chance and we'll put a better product on the field. This is not what you deserve."

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@sparkycollier Im sure it will be. It was part of the whole pitch initially.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@deathmetalv10 Bingo

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@DaedalusMW1 lol ok

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@gbeas9 @tcreporter @TexasMonthly I have a firmly written note into management and am currently watching it on my cell phone at the table.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@gkketch That was beautiful. Thank you for sharing. I am so sorry for your unimaginable loss.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

What record does Texas A&M have to finish with this season for Elko to not get fired? Genuinely curious.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

Yeah I get that. My point is that I believe the wear and tear and upkeep requirements will be higher with a more transactional business model like that than even what I experienced with Turo.

I understand the attractiveness of it as a business model, but my bet is this is going to play out a lot like Galveston island.

A LOT of people bought beach houses there far outpacing demand, and most are selling because the work associated with the ownership was worth it relative to the potential income.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

I own a Model Y and genuinely don’t know why anyone would buy this.

[Robotaxi @robotaxi]

Select customers are now being invited to purchase Cybercab for personal use

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

If you don’t already own a car I can see the merits.

I just don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything with my Y.

Working on a laptop for the 15-20 minutes I’m headed somewhere, while sitting in stop-and-go traffic sounds like a nightmare to me. I have an office that is very comfortable.

I like to make calls or unwind in my car/truck.

I’m just not looking to optimize my life like that anymore. Our brains need breaks, or at least mine does. After I sold my business I felt like in retrospect, if I could do it all over again I wouldn’t have filled every inch of my day with work, so my vehicles tend to be more decompression zones than anything.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@girdley Ooooh I could talk about it all day. I have theories. I have opinions.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

This shift has been going on for decades.

In many towns I visit the school district and county are the biggest employers.

[Michael Girdley @girdley]

Go to rural America now and there are no kids or young people. Just old folks eating at the local cafe. It feels so weird. Devoid of energy.

From Claude: “About 30 million people lived on farms in 1940, almost a quarter of the country. Today it's under 2%.”

[Aaron Rolen @AaronJRolen]

I live in rural TX and run a solo law office. Rural America has major issues. 2 of the biggest are (1) no children and (2) the exodus of “well-to-do” families from town. Towns are run-down, and successful folks move to acreage outside town. Towns need money and families.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@Sarah4Texas There are thousands of folks I see on I-35 doing this with no Tesla already!

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@AdamRy_n I think the other thing for me is I just have no aspiration to work on the way home or to work. Tends to be the time I use for track switching my brain as opposed to being more productivity time.

[J.B. Sauceda @jaybsauceda]

@AdamRy_n I just can’t see the value in buying a car you can only use in your city compared to the marginally higher cost of one that works everywhere.