Bought CPO Model S yesterday and now Tesla says they made a mistake and will not honor the Price

[PWlakewood]

What would happen if you paid in full?

 

[mongo]

What would happen if you paid in full?

It says refund of order payment, so I'd think you would get all your monies back.

 

[Alset4S]

What would happen if you paid in full?

Hmmm, interesting thought but I expect Tesla's position would be the same. But not sure how you can pay in full prior to delivery.

 

[whitex]

Hmmm, interesting thought but I expect Tesla's position would be the same. But not sure how you can pay in full prior to delivery.

Every new car I bought from Tesla I had the option to pay in full before delivery, via online portal. CPO probably has the same option.

 

[PhilDavid]

I really don't understand how this thread is so long.

If Tesla made an honest mistake with the price and notified the buyer right away, there is clear legal precedence that mistake prices or fares need not be honored. It's not reasonable for anyone to expect a mistake price to be honored, unless you can provide this was done intentionally, which is not the case here.

Paying in full makes no difference. If a customer paid a mistake price in full, the seller can reverse the transaction and offer the money back.

Now after everyone signs the paperwork, it is done deal, but prior to that, either party can back out of the sale. Tesla has done nothing wrong here, other than make a mistake, and we all make mistakes.

 

[vickh]

thread is long b/c some people in this thread had gotten an earlier price mistake S / X by threatening lawsuits/media. I think Tesla had more margin to play with there though. At ~35K for a P3 they don't

 

[PWlakewood]

Every new car I bought from Tesla I had the option to pay in full before delivery, via online portal. CPO probably has the same option.

Cant you change the amount that you pay as a deposit? Or down payment?

 

[whitex]

Cant you change the amount that you pay as a deposit? Or down payment?

Deposit is paid when you order, so you cannot change it. Down payment vs monthly only matters if you finance via Tesla. If you pay from your account, you can transfer all the money prior to delivery.

 

[whitex]

I really don't understand how this thread is so long.

If Tesla made an honest mistake with the price and notified the buyer right away, there is clear legal precedence that mistake prices or fares need not be honored. It's not reasonable for anyone to expect a mistake price to be honored, unless you can provide this was done intentionally, which is not the case here.

Paying in full makes no difference. If a customer paid a mistake price in full, the seller can reverse the transaction and offer the money back.

Now after everyone signs the paperwork, it is done deal, but prior to that, either party can back out of the sale. Tesla has done nothing wrong here, other than make a mistake, and we all make mistakes.

Ok, so:

1. Define "right away". 1 minute, 1hr, same day, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, 1 year?
2. What if your honest mistake caused financial harm to the other party? Are you liable?

Of course, if they make it clear that either party can walk away from the sale with full refund of any money which changed hands, then it is all moot in this case, since the purchase is not complete and neither party is committed until keys change hands. Now, do they make it clear? Or do you have to interpret fine print to learn that your Order Payment is 100% refundable?

 

[mongo]

Ok, so:

1. Define "right away". 1 minute, 1hr, same day, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, 1 year?
2. What if your honest mistake caused financial harm to the other party? Are you liable?

Of course, if they make it clear that either party can walk away from the sale with full refund of any money which changed hands, then it is all moot in this case, since the purchase is not complete and neither party is committed until keys change hands. Now, do they make it clear? Or do you have to interpret fine print to learn that your Order Payment is 100% refundable?

It's on the first page (of 2) of the order agreement in bold, I linked it for reference.
https://www.tesla.com/order/download-order-agreement?country=US&model_code=ms&is_new_vehicle=0

 

[PhilDavid]

Ok, so:

1. Define "right away". 1 minute, 1hr, same day, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, 1 year?
2. What if your honest mistake caused financial harm to the other party? Are you liable?

Of course, if they make it clear that either party can walk away from the sale with full refund of any money which changed hands, then it is all moot in this case, since the purchase is not complete and neither party is committed until keys change hands. Now, do they make it clear? Or do you have to interpret fine print to learn that your Order Payment is 100% refundable?

I would define "right away" to no more than 5 business days after the deposit payment, but preferably within 2 business days.

No one should be pressured to honor a price that is an honest mistake.

If someone sells a private party car and leave out two zeros by accident, would they be required to honor the mistake price?

Of course not. This is no different.

 

[whitex]

If someone sells a private party car and leave out two zeros by accident, would they be required to honor the mistake price?

Once the money exchanges hands, possibly yes. If you mispriced you car by 20% (like in this case), accepted the "payment in full" check, you might not have the right to say "oups, I need 20% more before I give you the car".

However, coming back to this particular incident, because the Order Payment is fully refundable until you take delivery, it is clear that neither party is committed to the transaction until delivered, i.e. you may pay the deposit and never get the car, as well as you can walk away and get all of your order payment back.

The only issue is that to find this out you have to read the Agreement linked in fine print at the bottom of the order page (see attached screenshot), but it is there. Tesla could have made it crystal clear if they simply called the "Order Payment" a "Refundable Order Payment" or showing it like they do on Model Y order page. Not everyone reads all the agreements in the fine print, or saves them for if Tesla replaces the agreement with a new version with different terms.

 

[TBot101]

The real issue is the number of cars that they mispriced (42 cars) and the amount of time that it took them to notify buyers (4 days)
In those 4 days...I sold my car and purchased $500 worth of accessories. Not to mention my time etc

 

[cucubits]

This is just the tip of the iceberg for Tesla. The cars are great. Everything else about the company is horrible.
They can't get their shhh together. It's mistake after mistake after mistake.

Don't they realize that they're actually driving away customers because of this? The image of good cars - horrible company/customer service comes up EVERYWHERE.

At some point I was ready to order a 3 but then I started realizing things I'd really like to have in a car at this price range and sadly I find myself inching towards an ICE option until some other EV maker comes up... I'm not happy about this, but it's how I feel at the moment.

 

[patrick40363]

Don't they realize that they're actually driving away customers because of this? The image of good cars - horrible company/customer service comes up EVERYWHERE.

At some point I was ready to order a 3 but then I started realizing things I'd really like to have in a car at this price range and sadly I find myself inching towards an ICE option until some other EV maker comes up... I'm not happy about this, but it's how I feel at the moment.

I want a $35K P3.

 

[ucmndd]

The real issue is the number of cars that they mispriced (42 cars) and the amount of time that it took them to notify buyers (4 days)
In those 4 days...I sold my car and purchased $500 worth of accessories. Not to mention my time etc

Number of days strikes me as particularly irrelevant. The order deposit is just that, a deposit, and it does nothing to obligate either party to complete the sale. Either of you can terminate the agreement up to the very last minute.

Your seemingly premature decisions around your current vehicle - particularly since you cop to knowing you were getting a particularly extraordinary deal - are no fault of Tesla’s and I can see no rationale for why they should be held accountable.

 

[sorka]

Sadly, they can. I went through something similar on a new ICE car. Went to the dealer, found that the car I want is in transit to the dealer, spent couple of hours negotiating, we agreed on the price, signed a contract, I put down a deposit, car was supposed to arrive in a few days. A day or two later, I get a phone call that "the sales manager made a mistake, and the price is 10% higher". I spoke with an attorney and it turns out the dealer association over the years has sucessfully lobbied for some great laws to car dealers - after signing the contract I am the only one obligated. The dealer can refund my deposit and sell to someone else up until they hand me the keys. On the other hand, if I wanted out, they could actually sue me for the entire price of the car (though typically they would just keep my deposit and move on).

So, while Tesla and NADA and not friends, it doesn't stop Tesla from benefiting from laws paid for by NADA.

Ps) I complained to Toyota corporate about the aforementioned dealer experience, they told me they can't force the dealer to honor the contract because they are independent from Toyota, but at least they offered me $500 cash if I still bought a Toyota at any other dealer, which I did. Tesla being their own dealer, there would be nobody to complain to.

I'm having a hard time believing that they could hold you to a higher price than you signed the contract for. Sure, they could bail out on you and not sell you the car. Sure they could sue you for the agreed upon price of the car if you bail on the deal you agreed to but if they raise the price, it's not longer the deal you agreed to.

 

[Alset4S]

Number of days strikes me as particularly irrelevant. The order deposit is just that, a deposit, and it does nothing to obligate either party to complete the sale. Either of you can terminate the agreement up to the very last minute.

Your seemingly premature decisions around your current vehicle - particularly since you cop to knowing you were getting a particularly extraordinary deal - are no fault of Tesla’s and I can see no rationale for why they should be held accountable.

True except for one point. The order page very clearly says just above the buy button. " $2,500 order payment required". The word deposit is no where on the page.

 

[ucmndd]

True except for one point. The order page very clearly says just above the buy button. " $2,500 order payment required". The word deposit is no where on the page.

I find the fact that it’s not present on the order page but rather in the order agreement you explicitly agree to as a condition of handing over your $2500 to be equally irrelevant.

If Tesla misrepresented the condition or value of the car in THEIR favor instead of the customer’s, is it reasonable to expect that the customer is compelled to complete the deal or reimburse Tesla for their expenses preparing the car for the sale? Of course not. You can’t have it both ways.

 

[whitex]

I'm having a hard time believing that they could hold you to a higher price than you signed the contract for. Sure, they could bail out on you and not sell you the car. Sure they could sue you for the agreed upon price of the car if you bail on the deal you agreed to but if they raise the price, it's not longer the deal you agreed to.

You got it right. Maybe I didn't communicate it clearly. They can bail out on the agreed upon price, I cannot. Them raising the price is basically them bailing out and inviting me to a new contract. In this case, I chose to purchase from another dealer, and got Toyota a $500 check from Toyota corporate for the troubles.