Look at what Apple did with the Watch. They started with gold, then fell back on custom materials they were familiar with: glass, steel, aluminum, silicone, and plastic. All materials that can have a luxury feel when used thoughtfully, but are not expensive at scale.

Apple won’t use leather or wood, it’s not part of their design language. AirPods Max use “a custom-designed mesh textile” and “acoustically engineered memory foam.” They make synthetic materials sound luxury by emphasizing comfort and utility.

It’s interesting to speculate where they might use different materials. Plastic body, glass roof? All-aluminum body? Textured ceramic dashboard? Tesla has already done the glass roof and the large-mold body, but I would expect Apple to excel at marketing mass produced cabin materials as being better than wood and leather.