Bob Lutz is Opining Again

[wdolson]

Is there really a difference? dealerships buy the vehicles at a small discount, pay interest to ford/gm/etc. the dealer also foots the bill for rent, employees, keeping the lights on, etc etc

Independent dealers are a separate entity buying the car on time from the maker. If sales go soft for a short period, the dealers take the hit and the manufacturer is shielded from the downturn by the dealers. Some dealers may go bankrupt, but the manufacturer just takes back the cars they already made some money on and sells them on to another dealer. The manufacturer will be in trouble if the downturn lasts longer as their buffer will dry up as dealers fold in ever larger numbers. At the end the failure can become catastrophic as it did for GM and Chrysler and almost did for Ford in 2008-2009.

Without separate dealerships, the manufacturer feels any downturn in the market much faster.

 

[Tezlah]

Tesla won't be able to shift sales entirely online, says former GM executive

 

[TheGrimSweeper]

 

[Barklikeadog]

wd

 

[Barklikeadog]

Tesla won't be able to shift sales entirely online, says former GM executive

don't have to watch a video of that blowhard to know that there is some truth to that.
there will always be a large segment of the population who want to see, touch, drive the car they buy and take it home that day.
just how the consumer is

 

[Peteski]

Tesla won't be able to shift sales entirely online, says former GM executive

No, no, no, no, no, no, no!!! You can't possibly do that!

Well I just did!

 

[Gixx1300R]

Remember that Tesla is suppose to expand service centers. Test drives can be done there along with vehicle prep and deliveries with online orders.

 

[wdolson]

Remember that Tesla is suppose to expand service centers. Test drives can be done there along with vehicle prep and deliveries with online orders.

There will have to be something like that available because a lot of people do want to drive a car before they buy.

 

[outdoors]

don't have to watch a video of that blowhard to know that there is some truth to that.
there will always be a large segment of the population who want to see, touch, drive the car they buy and take it home that day.
just how the consumer is

Yeah I know. I keep banging on the door local Amazon distribution hub to let me in so I can see all the stuff they have. I like to see before I buy. They keep calling security and telling me to go online to shop. The nerve.

 

[Barklikeadog]

Yeah I know. I keep banging on the door local Amazon distribution hub to let me in so I can see all the stuff they have. I like to see before I buy. They keep calling security and telling me to go online to shop. The nerve.

I don't think you can compare buying a pair of shoes off amazon to buying a $60,000 automobile.

Shop local.

 

[outdoors]

I don't think you can compare buying a pair of shoes off amazon to buying a $60,000 automobile.

Shop local.

I have. Think around 10-12 cars. Every experience from a car salesperson made me swear I was never going to do it again. Only one car did I test drive. Could list the brands, it would be like 10 or so.

Then I bought a Tesla. Then I bought another. Became the Tesla salesperson/owner in Michigan where they can't operate. Let 60+ people drive my car without me in it over the last year. Did meet and greets at local Superchargers. Drove to help new owners take delivery out of state.

People buy shoes on Amazon? I am going to have to try that.

Edit: So that is about as local as it gets. Meeting new people that live near me. Shaking a hand. Putting a car seat in the back to show people it works. No pressure. Just conversation. Hey they got me hooked. I like that business model.

 

[wdolson]

I buy a lot of things online, but I'm also a weird fit for some things. I have weird knees that get torqued with shoes that don't support my feet just right (even with orthotics) and I have long legs that make riding in any car with the wrong seats an agony on a long trip. I am also the first person (and so far the only person) in my circle of friends to buy a Tesla.

When I was looking at cars, I crossed a lot of them off my list in less than a minute at a car dealer. As it was when I test drove a Model S, the seats were quite comfortable, but they were the next gen seats. I ordered the car with the multipattern seats and they were awful on my back. I got them swapped for next gen after 6 months.

I wouldn't even buy a new Model S without checking the current seats out.

 

[Buggle]

don't have to watch a video of that blowhard to know that there is some truth to that.
there will always be a large segment of the population who want to see, touch, drive the car they buy and take it home that day.
just how the consumer is

Here's the thing that scares me -- Elon is comfortable with the changing economy, so in a sense he believes others should be as comfy as he is, ergo his belief that his switch to online ordering will be fine. I haven't seen any numbers on it, but there's a lot of model S's in my neighbourhood, and I'd estimate the average owner age at around 60. Those guys don't shop for cars online. They really don't. The M3 base may be ok to sell online only, but the Model X for north of $100k, and especially the Model S.... not so much.

 

[Buggle]

I buy a lot of things online, but I'm also a weird fit for some things. I have weird knees that get torqued with shoes that don't support my feet just right (even with orthotics) and I have long legs that make riding in any car with the wrong seats an agony on a long trip. I am also the first person (and so far the only person) in my circle of friends to buy a Tesla.

When I was looking at cars, I crossed a lot of them off my list in less than a minute at a car dealer. As it was when I test drove a Model S, the seats were quite comfortable, but they were the next gen seats. I ordered the car with the multipattern seats and they were awful on my back. I got them swapped for next gen after 6 months.

I wouldn't even buy a new Model S without checking the current seats out.

I'm 6'5", so the only thing I did before buying the M3 was to make sure I had a damned solid understanding of the legroom and headroom parameters.

 

[wdolson]

I'm 6'5", so the only thing I did before buying the M3 was to make sure I had a damned solid understanding of the legroom and headroom parameters.

I'm only 6'2, but I have the legs of an average guy who is 6'4. I also broke my tailbone as a kid and seats that don't go back far enough causing my legs to be cantered up, or just hit me in the wrong spots puts pressure on the tailbone. It's fine for about an hour, but more than that and my sciatic nerve begins to twinge. I knew my SO's Subaru was not good for long trips when I could barely walk the day after we got home from a road trip to California.

 

[Buggle]

I'm only 6'2, but I have the legs of an average guy who is 6'4. I also broke my tailbone as a kid and seats that don't go back far enough causing my legs to be cantered up, or just hit me in the wrong spots puts pressure on the tailbone. It's fine for about an hour, but more than that and my sciatic nerve begins to twinge. I knew my SO's Subaru was not good for long trips when I could barely walk the day after we got home from a road trip to California.

Even in the M3, which has a shiit ton of room, the dead pedal kills me. I keep thinking of how much I'd prefer it 6-8" further down, or even just eliminated, and if there's anything I can do about it lol...

 

[Barklikeadog]

When I was looking at cars, I crossed a lot of them off my list in less than a minute at a car dealer. As it was when I test drove a Model S, the seats were quite comfortable, but they were the next gen seats. I ordered the car with the multipattern seats and they were awful on my back. I got them swapped for next gen after 6 months.

I wouldn't even buy a new Model S without checking the current seats out.

I think just sitting in a car for a minute is more important than the test drive.

 

[aerodyne]

Even in the M3, which has a shiit ton of room, the dead pedal kills me. I keep thinking of how much I'd prefer it 6-8" further down, or even just eliminated, and if there's anything I can do about it lol...

You can remove dead pedal I'll bet with screwdriver...

 

[Buggle]

You can remove dead pedal I'll bet with screwdriver...

Yeah maybe. I'd assumed it was molded rubber, part of the contour of the area. I'll give it a closer look.

 

[EVDRVN]

Lutz, Root word- Putz