More realistic numbers (and w/o exemptions and "time saved") and I get $974/mo. for the 60 kWh model. Which is, well, an expensive car; around a BMW 7-series lease cost. But BMW sells plenty of those, and so can Tesla. But telling me it's a $500/mo car? That's too much.
I hate to split hairs, but $974 is a very low lease payment for a 7-series. You could get there if you ordered a zero-option car and got the highest discount you can (around 7%). More realistically, the Tesla S payment compares favorably to a well equipped 5-series, which is the car they targeted.
I also agree that it's non-sensical to pitch this as a $500 car. The numbers required by their calculator to reach that level are absurd. For example, a 535i gets 20/24/30 mpg (city/combined/hwy). Tesla's calculator starts at 19 MPH. That's silly.
