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

[PeterK]

yeah i understand that the car has great performance on paper and im working 2 full time jobs temporarily just to save up for this beast of a car, however, if im going to drop $122K CAD on a car (yes im willing pay $16K more than the US Price just because im in Canada), the delivery, service, dealer has to be up to par as well.

for me, customer service is 50% the other 50% is the product itself, if either one fails to meet standards, i consider the whole thing a failure. I want Tesla to succeed, its the first company that actually looks to the future, but half assing the customer service part ESPECIALLY first impressions such as delivery will not allow them too. Being a startup, they have to do everything better, cleaner, and faster than the big three.

I agree the delivery and service experience is important when you're spending this much. But from extensive reading of this forum and my own experience I think the OP's delivery (esp. dirty with paint armor bubbles) is an exception.

I had informed the DS that I was charging on 110v at home (not SolarCity's fault, snowstorm delays and need for a new meter) so they gave me a range charge. No due bill items other than the HPWC, which is shipped separately and i cant use until i get my meter anyway. They provided soft drinks to those who wanted them, and apologized for a somewhat limited selection ("No drinking in the car, kids!"). And the DS and a trainee spent 90 minutes with me and my family, wrapping up at 8:45pm.

 

[AC1K]

I agree the delivery and service experience is important when you're spending this much. But from extensive reading of this forum and my own experience I think the OP's delivery (esp. dirty with paint armor bubbles) is an exception. .

im starting to see that with all the responses, i guess most people wont voice their opinion unless its bad.
If a delivery went smooth and everything is right, the people would be out driving instead of at home frustrated infront of the computer letting off steam.

ill buy a Model S P85 regardless, but the time to purchase is still up in the air, if Tesla does have "teething" issues i can wait until they have it right with customer service and technical/mechanical issues, my current car is only 4 years old and its been the most reliable and fun car ive ever had, its not like i would be dead in the water.

there still is no company even close to tesla, the leaf is a joke, the mitubishi ev looks stupid, the fisker, prius an the volt dont solve anything because they still burn gas, what am i left with? im not going to downgrade just to go EV, every successive car ive had has been an upgrade in all aspects, not going to stop now.

 

[Norbert]

I, for one, believe in airing dirty laundry but others believe that it should be kept under wraps!

Personally, I believe in neither of those.

 

[lolachampcar]

AC1K,
Great delivery and my DS has been very good before, during and after....

 

[Rodolfo Paiz]

im starting to see that with all the responses, i guess most people wont voice their opinion unless its bad.
If a delivery went smooth and everything is right, the people would be out driving instead of at home frustrated infront of the computer letting off steam.

It's a well-known concept in marketing: for example, there's a well-done study that showed happy customers tell 3 people about their good experience while unhappy customers tell 15 people about their bad experience. This is all "on average" of course... but yes, happy customers make a lot less noise.

If you're not willing to go through some teething issues, wait a bit before buying. I'm thrilled with my Model S, like I was thrilled with my Roadster. But it's still a young company and there are still teething issues. Witness Alcantaragate going on right now, plus the vampire losses, plus plenty of missing functionality (no track-up view or range buttons on map, no shuffle for songs), and so on. I fully believe Tesla is putting forth their best effort and that everything will work out very well... but today, things are not perfect and you cannot reasonably expect -- yet -- that Tesla's error and failure rates will be near-zero.

On the other hand, if you can stomach some teething issues... the Model S is all that and a bag of chips. I'm thinking of sleeping in the car for a day or two. :-D

 

[jerry33]

On the other hand, if you can stomach some teething issues... the Model S is all that and a bag of chips.

Speaking of chips, I really have to get that car vacuum.

I'm thinking of sleeping in the car for a day or two. :-D

I thought I might have to when I said we're going to pick it up today, but Denise really likes it too.

 

[lolachampcar]

Two comments on the 3 and 15 ratio of good experiences being passed on versus bad-

First, I literally proselytize when in comes to MS. If someone shows interest, I will continue to answer questions until they run out of them and, if I think they are a potential customer, will make sure they get a ride and/or drive in the car as well. I've NEVER done that for any other product.

Second, the best possible scenario for a company is to have an issue and then blow the customer away with how they address it. This allows you access to the "talk to 15" group with the conversation being how well you handled the problem. I've had first hand experience with this and it works. Tesla is trying hard to tune up their business to take advantage of it.

 

[Doug Martoccia]

Given the title of this thread, it's obvious that some dirty laundry would be discussed. I think it's ok to voice a few gripes and complaints; however, it must be done with tact and precision. Making general statements about cars not being clean, etc. is a waste of everyone's time unless accompanied by the specific location where the delivery occurred, your response, Teslas response, etc. If a buyer notes that a car they are buying is dirty, all auto companies, including Tesla, will offer to detail it for you, either that day or at a future date. Condemning the entire company because the XYZ service center was busy and didn't have a car delivered properly is a bit unfair.

People will jump down others throats in a heartbeat on these (and other) forums when statements appear contrary to how they see the world. Negative comments (in any forum) must be handled very carefully. Provide a few details, attempt to explain what happened in a balanced manner, be thoughtful...

 

[kendallpb]

as for paint armor, it isn't tiny bubbles, it is a 1" bubble.

Woah, uh, yeah, definitely complain about this; they must fix it IMHO (and like I said, my local Service Center had no problems arranging...which reminds me I still need to examine it to make sure it looks okay now).

 

[kendallpb]

I agree wholeheartedly. Sometimes in this forum I noticed that if you're not 100% Tesla-fanboy, all the time, people jump all over you! :cursing:
I, for one, believe in airing dirty laundry but others believe that it should be kept under wraps!

I don't see it happening like that in general, or here (I see support, opposition, and just downright amusement at the original post). Maybe we're not reading the same thread, or maybe you just want the opposite--no complaint should ever be disagreed with? ;-) Surely not, but I can't square your comment with what I read here (both in this thread and in the Model S forum in general). Maybe it's a glass half-empty/half-full thing like someone mentioned in this thread.

Anyway, IMHO folks must expect--and will get--push-back when complaints are vague or unrealistic, or there's a lot of attitude, or the complainer doesn't take ownership of their own part, etc. That seems reasonable to me. I'm not saying all these are at issue here--just in general, I feel like I see most push-back from glass-half-full people coming from, and I feel that's a-okay. I don't want a non-stop gripe-fest or a non-stop love-fest; fortunately, I don't see either.

Sorry to get a little meta. Back to the most important part of this thread: The "ghetto" comments still make me grin. :biggrin: Someone should do a photo safari of all the Tesla locations; they probably vary quite a bit in neighborhoods, appearance, etc.

Obligatory DS Recap: My delivery was awesome but, as with many, I still await my parcel shelf and HPWC. I've covered my other, incredibly minor issues in other threads, mostly resolved now.

 

[bellwilliam]

I am off to Germany (Ring) for a week, I will get picture of panels when I get back.

got back today, awesome trip at the Ring.
here are 3 pictures of the panel fits I was complaining about. There are ~3 more panel issue, but I couldn't get a decent shot to show the misalignment, so not posting those, they also aren't as bad.

btw, bad luck. I was away for 7 days. come back home, car won't start. no light, no nothing. talked to a service rep, taught me how to undo the charge port lock thing, and plug in the charger (wasn't plugged in during the trip, my fault. Solar City didn't finish my install on 220v till 2 days ago, but I should of plugged in 110v). unfortunately it won't charge. He informed me it is a 12v issue in this batch of delivery. Will get a tow back to the service center tomorrow.

 

[AMPd]

Thanks for the pics
Wow the white really shows off those gaps/misalignments

Luckily for me this is all I care about

Its what's inside that counts

 

[Rodolfo Paiz]

Two comments on the 3 and 15 ratio of good experiences being passed on versus bad-

First, I literally proselytize when in comes to MS. If someone shows interest, I will continue to answer questions until they run out of them and, if I think they are a potential customer, will make sure they get a ride and/or drive in the car as well. I've NEVER done that for any other product.

Second, the best possible scenario for a company is to have an issue and then blow the customer away with how they address it. This allows you access to the "talk to 15" group with the conversation being how well you handled the problem. I've had first hand experience with this and it works. Tesla is trying hard to tune up their business to take advantage of it.

Agreed on each and every point.

 

[bellwilliam]

update: I called Tesla yesterday about 12v issue. car is completely dead. someone from local service center called me today. no rangers available. so we will see what happens on Monday...

 

[qwk]

If you are impatient, pop the nose cone off, and put a trickle charger on it for a few hours. Should do the trick to start charging.

 

[jomo25]

update: I called Tesla yesterday about 12v issue. car is completely dead. someone from local service center called me today. no rangers available. so we will see what happens on Monday...

I refer you to this post: 12V battery issues (error messages/car charging problems) - Page 22

Also, so you left for a week and didn't leave it plugged in? I thought the recommendation is to leave it plugged in. Not that that should have caused a dead 12V. Just asking for clarification and if that is the recommended protocol.

 

[bellwilliam]

I popped off the nose cone an hour ago, and stuck a charger on it. still nothing so far, will wait overnight.
thanks for the link, it is saying issue fixed with 4.2 which I already have.

long story, but Solar City didn't coordinate the install with electrical company, so I didn't get 220v power till couple of days ago. when SCE came over and hooked up the power. I should of plugged into 110v before I left, my wife didn't bother charge using 220v (she was afraid of doing the charge first time without me), as I would be back in 2 days. car had ~60 miles left before I left for a week trip.

 

[Doug Martoccia]

I popped off the nose cone an hour ago, and stuck a charger on it. still nothing so far, will wait overnight.
thanks for the link, it is saying issue fixed with 4.2 which I already have.

long story, but Solar City didn't coordinate the install with electrical company, so I didn't get 220v power till couple of days ago. when SCE came over and hooked up the power. I should of plugged into 110v before I left, my wife didn't bother charge using 220v (she was afraid of doing the charge first time without me), as I would be back in 2 days. car had ~60 miles left before I left for a week trip.

This vampire drain problem really needs to get fixed ASAP. Ok, by next month when I should be taking delivery <grin>

There is no reason that an EV should require to be plugged in when the car is not driven. My Active E can be left alone for weeks and it's just a prototype with lots of design issues!

 

[bellwilliam]

Charging 12v overnight didn't fix the 12v, it read 6v on voltmeter. I then hooked up a jumper battery, car woke up. Started charging (220v) for few hours, now everything works. Ran voltmeter, 12v battery is now reading 14v. Great so far. Took it out for a drive, everything works.

 

[AMPd]

Glad it was a rather simple fix.