Elon Musk: Stop your end of the quarter mad dash....it hurts delivery experience

[stopcrazypp]

ALL of his points are valid, if this is a $100K luxury car, it better be damn perfect in every single way upon delivery. i've worked at a dealership (mazda) and even they go through every square mm before delivery, its absolutely perfect. We aren't buying a used POS from some guy on craigs list or kijiji, there should be no "loose ends". to deliver a car that's not even charged? WTF, i would understand if its a used car but BRAND NEW = full tank, no exceptions.

I've made no comments on the merits of his specific points except for whether they relate to any quarter end dash, so I'm not sure why you responded to me specifically. And on that point I don't think there's any evidence this is quarter end related, and as I pointed out, the points outside of the 1-5 definitely have nothing to do with any rush (nor are they really news if you have been following this forum).

But anyways, on those 1-5 points, I agree with blc1017. Point out the issues to the DS and see how they respond. From previous delivery stories I have read, the DS do make a note of every issue you point out and will help you resolve it (even if it's not possible to do it immediately).

Looking further up thread, it seems the OP pointed out the car was dirty but pointed out none of the other points to the DS. That's a different situation than the original post, which made its sound like the delivery experience was horrible (as in he pointed out all those long list of issues and the rep did nothing about any of it). However, the real situation seems to be that he pointed out the car was dirty (and perhaps the range), but didn't look at the rest more thoroughly until he got home and ended up disappointed.

 

[Clprenz]

Took delivery of my S today. There were a ton of Tesla (30+) at the service center. They are all to be delivered by end of the week. This is crazy, there are only few people working at Service Center. Quality of delivery is not top notch.

1. my S was not fully charged, it shows ~100 miles range. Where do Tesla think I live ? luckily I live 40 miles away, but I could not of gone to all the places I wanted today.
2. my S was not washed.
3. interior was not clean.
4. paint "armor" was 2nd rate, some were bubbling.
5. passenger door don't latch properly 70% of the time.

my rep was helpful and knowledgeable, but did or couldn't do nothing about 1-5.

*what's up with no rear floor mat, are we back in Yugo era ?
*what's up with no HPWC delivery. If you can't deliver, don't take the money upfront
*firmware still at 4.2. what's up with that ?
*what's up with ghetto Service Center. this is a "luxury car"
*can the web browser be any crappier ?

Mr. Musk: stop the delivery mad dash, stop trying to appease Wall Street. Trying to move all the cars out this week, just means less cars delivered next week. It also doesn't make business sense.

I don't think people are understanding the magnitude of the impact of tesla being profitable. They NEED to be profitable not only for their stock, but to keep in business. Their suppliers have been having some problems and those need to be addressed but, I would understand that Tesla still needs to have a clean car, 150 miles+ charge, and a good experience for a $80,000 car. At this quarter of them all, the Street is more important for tesla.

 

[Electric1]

While you're correct that there should be no loose ends, this isn't like a standard company yet so the comparisons you make aren't valid. They've been doing it for what, a few months? I always sigh when people talk about cancelling or 'never doing business again' with such and such company over these sorts of things. If essentially minor things like this mean you cancel your order for your Model S - which is unique in the world - then clearly you never really wanted it that much to begin with.

Agreed. My delivery experience was far from flawless, yet understanding that 1) this is a new venture for us all, 2) it could have been worse 3) one simply has to understand that
IF you want a "Mercedes/BMW (and my last experience with them wasn't so hot on the delivery side either/Audi experience", go ahead and buy one (and have a wonderful delivery experience tomorrow). IF you want an all electric, performance 5/7 passenger wondercar, buy a Model S.


All of that havig been said, if we want to be true Beta testers and help TM improve, we should share our positive and negative experience with them, in an appropriate fashion, so that they can learn from their mistakes.

 

[Doug_G]

okay, i guess our government sucks and Alberta has no rebate

Or Provincial Sales Tax! Don't forget that pretty much everyone else is paying Provincial or State taxes on top of that.

 

[K Hall]

My car arrived direct from the factory and rolled off the truck. It had 160 mi of range on it. It had not been detailed. The DS noted that they owed me a detail on my due bill. I went strait to the car wash (another thread ) washed it, drove to Chipotle and plugged it in while I had lunch. Plugging it in is a lot of fun BTW.

I do understand the psychology of a feeling of entitlement after laying out $100 K. I can tell you it’s worth every penny. The problems you are articulating are incredibly small compared to what you get back out of a Model S.

For Pete sake man up!

The car is indescribably superior to anything else in my garage. Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. The ICE cars all feel like they are broken after driving the MS.


If you can’t afford the car then that is another discussion. Don’t buy it. If you can, you will never regret that decision even f it does arrive dirty.


Respectfully,

K. Hall

 

[CapitalistOppressor]

First of all, every concern raised by the OP is a valid concern. Tesla does not provide a consistently high quality delivery experience. They ought to. Period, end of story.

That said, they are a startup and haven't had a hundred years to perfect this process like every other car maker has (to a greater or lesser degree). Anyone expecting perfection has unrealistic expectations. Period, end of story.

Most of the pushback in this thread is probably a result of calling the service center ghetto. I must admit I lol'd at that. Rephrase that and the tone of the conversation would have gone differently.

 

[Beavis]

Just worth noting that cars "delivered" means nothing in the quarterly results; it's cars "paid for" that counts.

FTR, I agree it's good advice to not assume that Tesla knows where you want to drive after you take possession; tell your DS in advance if you need a full charge. Also, as with any new car take the time to do a walk around - you're signing that you received the vehicle in good condition unless otherwise noted.

The car needs to be delivered in order to recognize revenue per GAAP. So, in order to make their numbers, they do need to deliver cars.

 

[Doug Martoccia]

Dear Tesla-

When you deliver my car, you can drive it though mud puddles get it really dirty. I can just hit the drive through car wash on the way home. I can also skip the High Priced Water Cooler (HPWC) and the expensive plastic stuff people put on the front of their cars to protect the paint as I really don't need these extravagances. What I would like is for the car to be well built, long lasting and with no mechanical defects.

Sincerely.

Doug M

 

[AMPd]

Dear Tesla-

When you deliver my car, you can drive it though mud puddles get it really dirty. I can just hit the drive through car wash on the way home. I can also skip the High Priced Water Cooler (HPWC) and the expensive plastic stuff people put on the front of their cars to protect the paint as I really don't need these extravagances. What I would like is for the car to be well built, long lasting and with no mechanical defects.

Sincerely.

Doug M

I love this answer.
All that matters after getting the car is that there are no mechanical issues, dirt can be washed away, plastics can be added on later!

 

[aznt1217]

I think the OP makes a valid point. But truthfully speaking Luxury car dealers aren't any better. I actually request they not wash my car. Most dealerships do a really poor job and end up marring the clear coat surface (but hey maybe you got good luxury dealers where you are).

- I know this isn't an excuse but why not take it up with Tesla and your store directly. If you were really irate do you have photos to prove it and follow up with customer service/your store? There have been plenty of similar stories and Tesla has footed the bill for them.
- I also am curious to know about your panel gap fit and finish issues. Please post pictures so the community here at TMC can help you and who knows maybe even George B might get on the case. Yes George B has personally helped people on this forum.
- Which store is it? Perhaps its something that should be called out for quality control.

 

[AC1K]

That said, they are a startup and haven't had a hundred years to perfect this process like every other car maker has (to a greater or lesser degree). Anyone expecting perfection has unrealistic expectations. Period, end of story.
.

I don't really agree with this, even when i bought a Hyundai 4 years ago, they had it perfect on delivery, i looked at every square millimeter of the car and it was clean and detailed through out. That car was only $36K and came with floor mats front and back embroidered with the Genesis logo (so the equivalent of premium floor mats), so if i spend $100K i should have the same amount of service and quality but 3x the car.

it shouldn't matter if they are a startup, they can observe how others have done it and do it better, dont tell me the CSR's have never bought a car from anyone other than Tesla.

i don't know if the general buyer on these boards have so much money bleeding out of them that they don't care or what but being 30 and NOT making 6+ figures a year i worked hard to get this money, i expect results from it, and the results im expecting are no where near unreasonable since dealers like Kia/Hyunda/toyota/ford and Mitsubishi have provided high quality service for 1/8th the price.

- - - Updated - - -

I think the OP makes a valid point. But truthfully speaking Luxury car dealers aren't any better. I actually request they not wash my car. Most dealerships do a really poor job and end up marring the clear coat surface (but hey maybe you got good luxury dealers where you are). .

wow, really? i used to work at Mazda and if the car has been sitting outside for a long time before getting sold, the paint would have a grimy residue on it so they would wash and do a full 3 stage wax the car to make it have the smooth "brand new" feel again
It was not acceptable to have a non-clean/non-detailed car upon delivery.

i guess some dealers just don't give a sh*t.

 

[vfx]

Ben I'm curious about the "ghetto service center". If it's the LA service center and I was there today you should know that it was the first/second Tesla store in the world when Tesla had both service and sales in the same place. It was 1.5 million build and a beautiful state of the art showroom with computers for customers, snacks and a spotless service room. They sold and repaired Roadsters there for 3 years. They regularly had high profile fancy parties there. I attended the one at the ROTEC movie premier that showed at the theater down the street. Very posh.

When the 3rd street Promanade Tesla Store was built, it changed to a service center. Now with the dozens of huge MS in states of repair and delivery they are hemorrhaging for space and it's like a squirrel trying to fit a full winters supply of nuts in it's cheeks. Comparing Tesla owned service centers to established separately owned Infiniti, Merc, BMW dealerships is just not fair for a startup.

It's now about 10 times too small and Tesla corporate (who decides these things) knows it. The lease has two more years and the owner (a Roadster owner) won't let them out of it. It looks terrible now. They have things like tires and parts and boxes stacked up in every corner. They built a wall and knocked down others just to get cars inside.
New service centers in Torrance and Van Nuys are being built. The Tesla store up north is being closed now and the LA service center will move to a bigger facility but not nearly fast enough.

It's just growing pains. Cool car. Everything else is catching up.

 

[Norbert]

Without saying anything about specific issues, I'd like to point out (though surely not a new point), that these are related to Tesla not only being a startup on a new volume level, but also other similar factors: The delivery rate having been raised to 500/week, at the same time as the gov loan has been used and cash reserves are limited. In order to become profitable, Tesla needs (or needed) to reduce production costs first. They will soon be able to employ more people, and build more service centers etc., but currently they are probably still constrained (or have been until recently).

 

[DrTaras]

They regularly had high profile fancy parties there. I attended the one at the ROTEC movie premier that showed at the theater down the street. Very posh.

The 'ghetto' facility even had a cameo role in ROTEC!

 

[vfx]

The 'ghetto' facility even had a cameo role in ROTEC!

You mean WKTEC?

 

[ModelS1079]

people dismiss them or jump down their throats? I think the OP has every right to be dissatisfied with his delivery experience.

I agree but want more details. Was it a Jewish black Latino or maybe even rich ghetto. Not all ghettos are created equally. Suppose it could be a middle class ghetto (sometimes those can be dangerous too). We're the customers inside gangsta looking? Was hip hop playing on the radio. Please expand on these details need them to better evaluate your experience and your bias. Let us all know. Btw did you have option for home delivery. I did but then I probably would have complained about it being done in my own ghetto



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[/QUOTE]

Mods, please, help.

 

[NigelM]

The car needs to be delivered in order to recognize revenue per GAAP. So, in order to make their numbers, they do need to deliver cars.

Under GAAP there's more than one option for recognizing revenue. You are correct if one uses the standard sales basis where revenue is only recognized when title of the product is transferred; although arguably that happens when the temp tag is issued and not when the car is physically delivered. However, there exists the alternative to book revenue based on percentage of completion; I'd argue this is quite acceptable when building a $100k piece of machinery that has been completely paid for and Tesla could easily book 99% of the revenue and remain GAAP compliant.

It's a little irrelevant as IMO the issue is related to Tesla's increased production rate and growing pains in delivery capacity rather than trying to make Q1 numbers.

 

[brian45011]

Under GAAP there's more than one option for recognizing revenue.

Does this help?: "We recognize revenue when (i) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (ii) delivery has occurred and there are no uncertainties regarding customer acceptance; (iii) fees are fixed or determinable; and (iv) collection is reasonably assured."

 

[jomo25]

There's definitely a correlation to them being stretched further during quarter ends. It is because they are trying to make numbers for the quarter. To dismiss this is a bit naive IMO. Even my IDS admitted to me today that they are stretched thin this week cuz they are trying to get as much out the door as possible. He even said there will be a noticeable slowdown the next week as people recover from the flurry of activity this week. Thus, my car will likely not enter production til the end of next week or even the week after since they will be slowing down next week.

 

[DrTaras]

You mean WKTEC?

Probably WKTEC too