Totally agree. Makes no sense for Tesla to ask people to apply for financing before the car is ready for delivery.Before placing my order I asked the SA if using cash as payment method until I got a VIN and closer delivery timeline would slow my order down, he said No it would not.
After getting my VIN switching to financing was easy for me, I emailed the SA, told him I got the vin and it's time to change to financing and all is well. Tesla definitely needs to make this more transparent to people so they don't get their credit hit multiple times needlessly.
I can see them doing a pre-approval, sure, no problem - that helps people to get a ballpark figure on what could potentially qualify for, and what monthly payments might look like. But running a hard credit inquiry and applying for financing 3-4 months before purchasing a car? This is an opportunity for improvement.