Value is linked to price. Tesla is doing the public a disservice by encouraging the notion that the Model S starts at $49k, when it really starts closer to $70 in order to approach a conventional car in utility.
Do you get $70k worth of car when you spend $70k on a Model S? Absolutely. You get something that can hold a candle to if not surpass the $70k BMW M5 in every way. But the curve isn't linear - the $49k barebones Model S is nowhere near as useful as the BMW 528 you'd get for the same money.
Just, stop. Many, many people will be happy with the base model. Your argument is like complaining that an iPad doesn't have a keyboard or that the base model doesn't have cellular.
"Car of the Year" doesn't mean, "Car everybody needs to go buy".
Taking a quote from Motor Trend's website:
the vehicle that best represents exceptional value, superiority in its class and most significant development
Take a look at historical "Car of the Year":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_Trend_Car_of_the_Year#Car...
Notice, for example, the Nissan GT-R ($100,000) for 2009, and the Honda Civic ($15,000) for 2006