Every. Single. Time

[islandchick]

I let all the cheerleaders convince me to invest a huge chunk of my liquid assets in a Tesla, stuff like this

Relax, mine was in the shop for 6 weeks after delivery, after waiting almost 2 years for the car. Price dropped $5500 by the time It was ready for me to start diving it.

It's part of the Tesla experience.

Seriously, folks? This is ok? How much extra money/time/patience do you have? And I'm an asshole for expecting a high-end car to come to me fully assembled, ready to drive. Just shaking my head.
I so wanted one of these cars.

 

[Glamisduner]

I let all the cheerleaders convince me to invest a huge chunk of my liquid assets in a Tesla, stuff like this
Seriously, folks? This is ok? How much extra money/time/patience do you have? And I'm an asshole for expecting a high-end car to come to me fully assembled, ready to drive. Just shaking my head.
I so wanted one of these cars.

Sadly it's still the best car I have ever owned.

 

[islandchick]

If you're happy with it, that's what matters. You obviously have more money/time/patience than I. Enjoy! I am sad that I am unable to justify the purchase of a vehicle I have lusted after for over 10 years.

 

[ewoodrick]

Tesla is NOT the car car for which that happens. Go into a classic car dealer and two people can some out with deals on the same car that is even a greater differential.
The only difference with Tesla is that they effectively only have a single pricing mechanism, whereas classic dealerships have multiple mechanisms in place to hid and obfuscate pricing differences.

In the US, Costco has become one of the larger sellers of auto because they pre-negotiate a single price for vehicles. It's not Tesla that's broken, it's the remainder of the industry that has programmed you to think that the price never changed, whereas reality is far from that.

Sticker price on other cars is the one price that you are pretty sure that you aren't going to pay. On a Tesla, it IS the price that you are going to pay.

 

[islandchick]

It's not the sticker price, although I was so stupid as to believe the $35k Model 3 promise, expecting fully loaded to be $50k ish not $72k. And I have looked into (non C) POs with amazement at the randomness of the pricing. It is the fact that the cars are completely, wholly unreliable. And Tesla just replies with DILLIGAF. Just astounding! I know there are people who have had 0 problems, and got in early enough or have the right je ne sais quoi to get decent, even good treatment from staff. To those people, I tip my hat. I have already gotten poor treatment from staff in showrooms, service centers, online and on the phone, so I am skeptical that I would be one of the ones in the future being treated well, or who lucks out with a well made vehicle. I wanted the Tesla for the Superchargers, then they started charging money for them, not allowing the purchase of monthly/annual passes, anything pre-paid so I would know my costs ahead of time and guess what? People are reporting the pricing doubling or more on their superchargers since charging began. Every person who considers him/herself a "maker" chides the folks to whom they condescend to "know what you're getting before you get into it" and to "take responsibility for the financial choices you make" but you can't. And don't say that gas costs are not fixed either, I know that. But I also have multiple choices in gas mileage for the vehicles, and gas stations to fill up. Not so wit Tesla. And so many people justify with all of Tesla's bad behaviors "they are a startup" how long will you give them that pass? 10 more years? 20? 50? "It is just part of the ownership experience" should not be ok, that should be a phrase to express positive experiences, not negative ones.
Yes, I refuse to buy a Jaguar or Volvo largely because of longstanding reputations of having great cars until a lemon comes along, and instead of just taking care of the customer, the companies fight tooth and nail.

 

[Glamisduner]

It's not the sticker price, although I was so stupid as to believe the $35k Model 3 promise, expecting fully loaded to be $50k ish not $72k. And I have looked into (non C) POs with amazement at the randomness of the pricing. It is the fact that the cars are completely, wholly unreliable. And Tesla just replies with DILLIGAF. Just astounding! I know there are people who have had 0 problems, and got in early enough or have the right je ne sais quoi to get decent, even good treatment from staff. To those people, I tip my hat. I have already gotten poor treatment from staff in showrooms, service centers, online and on the phone, so I am skeptical that I would be one of the ones in the future being treated well, or who lucks out with a well made vehicle. I wanted the Tesla for the Superchargers, then they started charging money for them, not allowing the purchase of monthly/annual passes, anything pre-paid so I would know my costs ahead of time and guess what? People are reporting the pricing doubling or more on their superchargers since charging began. Every person who considers him/herself a "maker" chides the folks to whom they condescend to "know what you're getting before you get into it" and to "take responsibility for the financial choices you make" but you can't. And don't say that gas costs are not fixed either, I know that. But I also have multiple choices in gas mileage for the vehicles, and gas stations to fill up. Not so wit Tesla. And so many people justify with all of Tesla's bad behaviors "they are a startup" how long will you give them that pass? 10 more years? 20? 50? "It is just part of the ownership experience" should not be ok, that should be a phrase to express positive experiences, not negative ones.
Yes, I refuse to buy a Jaguar or Volvo largely because of longstanding reputations of having great cars until a lemon comes along, and instead of just taking care of the customer, the companies fight tooth and nail.

Maybe Tesla isn't for you and that's ok.

My car has been in for service allot, but not for reliability issues, mostly rattles and paint, and initial panel gap fixes, where the body shop broke clips causing the rattles for most of them. Of course there are other ways to charge your car other than teslas superchargers, there are lots of other ev charging stations. I think they are usually more expressive though. That's why I feel like Trsla does not have real competition. Supercharging network needs to improve but it's still far beyond what other manufactures are offering, same goes for the car.

Also I have only used a supercharger once since buying the car, so it might not be so that important to must people unless you roadtrip often. I have put 13k miles on it despite the long repair time when I first got the car in October so I drive allot...

Not sure why charging would be pre paid? Surcharges are mostly for long distance travel and every city has vastly different power rates. Just like us suckers here in CA paying nearly $4 a gallon for gas, while others states have prices closer to $2 a gallon. I don't think subscription charging was ever going to be offered, just like there is no subscription for gas or diesel?

 

[islandchick]

No lifetime free gas or diesel are ever offered for ICE vehicles either, also they "give" as bonuses 1000kW or something packs, or did I make this up? I live 200 miles from the city. I would have to use a supercharger a lot. BTW this particular supercharger, in all the times I have driven past has once had one car charging there.
You are correct, Tesla is not for me, which is not my failing. It is theirs.

 

[Glamisduner]

No lifetime free gas or diesel are ever offered for ICE vehicles either, also they "give" as bonuses 1000kW or something packs, or did I make this up? I live 200 miles from the city. I would have to use a supercharger a lot. BTW this particular supercharger, in all the times I have driven past has once had one car charging there.
You are correct, Tesla is not for me, which is not my failing. It is theirs.

Well sometimes companies will give you a free tank of gas with your purchase Why does living 200 miles from the a city mean you would need to use the supercharger allot? Are you saying you go to the city often when it is 200 miles away?

My daily commute is 84+ miles easily over 100 if I have an activity after work, which is very often. I drive way more than most people. But your driving 400 miles per day with no level 2 or better charger at your destination (assuming 200 miles each way). Then I would certainly say an EV is not for you. Lets me real, this would not be ideal. Sure you could make it work, but ICE makes more sense especially if you doing all those oil changes yourself. No one wants to drive for 6 hours every day, and have to stop at a supercharger. That's like 12-14 hour work day, and you need every minute of the rest of your time to eat and sleep.

I will say that current EV's are best suited for people who can charge at work, or at home, or don't have a long commute so supercharging isn't needed as often.

I will also say that if your commute is over 200 miles each way, this is not tesla's fault, and your in a very small percentile of people. If your saying that you would occasionally drive 200 miles to the city and have no destination charger, then I don't understand why stopping a supercharger is going to be a problem. Sure it costs money, but the rest of the time your saving on fuel costs.

 

[islandchick]

Well sometimes companies will give you a free tank of gas with your purchase Why does living 200 miles from the a city mean you would need to use the supercharger allot? Are you saying you go to the city often when it is 200 miles away?

Yes. I do. Doctors, stores, family. Several times a month.
A free tank =/= free fuel for life.
Also, while we're at it oshit it's raining gotta bring in the crated chair. dammit

 

[islandchick]

I'm sure I'm the only one who noticed/cared that Tesla has historically (they are slightly more forthcoming now) done everything they can to hide the cash price from the buyer. They say "after rebates and savings" . This is more dirty business, and I don't know who it was who said that the rebates have nothing to do with the manufacturer, that it is a wholly separate thing need to look at those numbers, because I was really surprised when I was able to find out the real price of the vehicle, and it was more than $10k higher than what they made it appear.
Once again, I guess I am the only one, and Tesla is perfect and I am just a hater. Or too poor to be worthy. Or some other excuse. Because, you know, it is too much to expect a car company to follow through on promises, or to offer decent products AND customer service. That's why we're "poor", because we're stupid.
One last recollection which I am sure is once again completely untrue, and ridiculous - did Elon not say that the Superchargers were going to be solar powered, freestanding so they can be put anywhere people will need them like at rest areas. Nah. Why would a solar power company that is under the same umbrella as a car company ever even think about promising that, or following through...right?! That might have taken some wind out of the "electricity ain't free" argument. Yep, definitely. it's allllllll me. none them.

 

[neroden]

islandchick:

As an activist investor I think customer service is critically important and I am trying to get the most crucial customer service problems fixed.

Given your awful customer service experiences, which are sadly pretty normal, I understand not buying a Tesla.

Hopefully the customer service will eventually get tolerable enough for you to buy a Tesla eventually. They are really amazing cars. But clearly not this year. There are many good people inside Tesla trying to make customer service good, but the "system" for customer service is a complete shambles and needs massive work.

BTW, Supercharger costs are now posted live to your car (like gas costs) so you know the cost, and they're still very low compared to gas, and you can pay them later (no need to pay immediately) -- I wouldn't worry about that. Customer service is the big deal.

 

[Glamisduner]

islandchick:

As an activist investor I think customer service is critically important and I am trying to get the most crucial customer service problems fixed.

Given your awful customer service experiences, which are sadly pretty normal, I understand not buying a Tesla.

Hopefully the customer service will eventually get tolerable enough for you to buy a Tesla eventually. They are really amazing cars. But clearly not this year. There are many good people inside Tesla trying to make customer service good, but the "system" for customer service is a complete shambles and needs massive work.

BTW, Supercharger costs are now posted live to your car (like gas costs) so you know the cost, and they're still very low compared to gas, and you can pay them later (no need to pay immediately) -- I wouldn't worry about that. Customer service is the big deal.

Customer service for me has been better than Nissan and Ford, but with longer wait times, and more initial problems to fix due to initial quality. But they have taken care of me every time, although I have had to push back on a few things of course. This is my first luxury car though, and I hear lexus is the best. Still my loaners have always been model S's which is way better than anything ford or Nissan ever provided me. I know it's not the same for everyone, but my experience is that if an issue to repair gets rejected, you just take it to another dealership until you find one that will fix it. With Tesla that is just harder to do, but I would just keep scheduling more service appointments until it gets fixed. I have not had to do this yet with Tesla but I know others have been frustrated, and I have seen it at the same service centers I have been to, so I agree it's the worst part of owning the car right now, but most people do not need service as often as my car has either.

 

[Wol747]

I don't know if anyone from Tesla comes on here but I have to say that the sales/delivery experience here in Sydney, Australia is a big disappointment.

I have been trying to get ANY information on my Model S order for weeks - delivery was supposed to be Aug/Sept then "I will be able to tell you next week" then (next week) "I will be able to say NEXT week" then silence - no answer to my email.

One has to organise things - insurance, selling present car etc: it's one thing to have a firm date even if it's longer away than one was led to believe, but when buying an AU$160k plus car I do begin to wonder if the company is serious about delivering a transport system or just farts on wheels.

 

[ewoodrick]

I don't know if anyone from Tesla comes on here but I have to say that the sales/delivery experience here in Sydney, Australia is a big disappointment.

I have been trying to get ANY information on my Model S order for weeks - delivery was supposed to be Aug/Sept then "I will be able to tell you next week" then (next week) "I will be able to say NEXT week" then silence - no answer to my email.

One has to organise things - insurance, selling present car etc: it's one thing to have a firm date even if it's longer away than one was led to believe, but when buying an AU$160k plus car I do begin to wonder if the company is serious about delivering a transport system or just farts on wheels.

The one and only thing that you should expect is that they will get in touch with you a few days before it is time to pick-up. If you expect q week by week update or even knowledge, it just doesn't exist.

If you understand what they provide, then the do a fair job. If you expect hand-holding, you have incorrect expectations. I'm pretty sure that the local folks will have no idea until the boat lands.

 

[Wol747]

>>If you understand what they provide, then the do a fair job. If you expect hand-holding, you have incorrect expectations. I'm pretty sure that the local folks will have no idea until the boat lands.<<

No-one expects “handholding”, but given a ship takes several weeks to get from the US of A to Kangarooland the least that a customer might be entitled to is an update as to when it would be appropriate to onganise his affairs. If the Sydney sales/delivery have no idea what’s coming their way it reflects very badly on the system; if they do it’s not a good look on their part.

 

[shtstrrer]

Just one last something. Thank y’all for your participation in thread, and even for the rude people who feel the need to constantly dismiss and degrade me. But I am not going to continue dignifying a place with my attention that bans people out of the blue, for no reason and no notice before or after. I guess this forum is just like the company, anyone who doesn’t toe the line is persona non grata. It is within your purview to be and do so, but that is no way to become mainstream, or to actually show superiority of any kind. Enjoy your bubble. Maybe it would be best to make the entire board private, and require a loyalty test to even view posts. That way the unwashed will not sully your utopia.
Yes, I am islandchick. And I came on to reply to a message and found I could not because banned. I charge anyone interested to justify that, especially the lack of contact from any admin or mod before during or after. Now I can’t even delete my profile or posts. Laterzzzzzzz