I'm seeing similar frustrations in this TMC community. It feels like this is a growing problem which Tesla needs to address, but they are either blind to it or just don't care.
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How Tesla Will Fall - Ben Sullins
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Or a third option as stated in the video, "they" have a very poor captain at the helm.
smogne41
Active Member
As long as they can sell every car they can make, they absolutely do not care. This will all catch up with them some day of course, and when it does it will happen very fast and be a total bloodbath. I hope they come out the other side a far better company then they are now, but at this point I am not holding my breath.
Barklikeadog
Active Member
Excellent stuff. Really reminds me of my own concerns over the years. Back when I test drove an S, I took a spin in my own vehicle around the service lot.
Car after car with customer plates, many of them dusty. You know how cars get that serious raindrop type of dust when parked outside for a long time?
That's what I saw. Days and weeks go by and you see the same cars along the road parked in the same spots. How can anyone tolerate that? A friend had his
model x in the center for months for minor repairs from a fender bender. His rental car from insurance ran out and his wife was dropping him off at the office.
I never look at the good reviews, I look at the bad ones. If the bad ones are ridiculous stuff...like a product was delivered late, or hardware was missing... no big deal. Not having your
car for a month or not being able to get a human being on the phone... big deal.
Then you have the whole Elon thing. Ever since the 'going private' insanity, I thought they'd be better off without him. He doesn't care about customer service or
workplace issues. That is a mundane business expense and waste of time to someone like him. More fun to make a flamethrower than it is to stop racial segregation
in your facility. I always thought that the promise (and selling) of fsd would eventually be a disaster and was unnecessary. Go ahead and make an awesome driver assist safety
package. Sell something that currently exists. Anything more is creating an enormous liability that you have to deliver on. You will still sell XXX number of cars without
having that obligation hanging over your business. You already have the safest driving demographic there is... upper middle class men aged 35-70.
And by the way, not everyone out there is trying to destroy you. They have legit critiques. You can't act like you are going to break all the rules and then get upset that
NHTSA or whoever is looking at you because they think you are breaking the rules. You'd better hope Beijing doesn't decide to destroy you. no recourse there!
I'm opposite of Ben, never owned the product, but own the stock.
Maybe I'll get an extra fat check from Big Oil for this post. They can print this in Paid Troll for Big Oil Monthly and use it for training purposes.
or am I getting paid by short sellers, I can't remember. Money is just flying all over the place!
Car after car with customer plates, many of them dusty. You know how cars get that serious raindrop type of dust when parked outside for a long time?
That's what I saw. Days and weeks go by and you see the same cars along the road parked in the same spots. How can anyone tolerate that? A friend had his
model x in the center for months for minor repairs from a fender bender. His rental car from insurance ran out and his wife was dropping him off at the office.
I never look at the good reviews, I look at the bad ones. If the bad ones are ridiculous stuff...like a product was delivered late, or hardware was missing... no big deal. Not having your
car for a month or not being able to get a human being on the phone... big deal.
Then you have the whole Elon thing. Ever since the 'going private' insanity, I thought they'd be better off without him. He doesn't care about customer service or
workplace issues. That is a mundane business expense and waste of time to someone like him. More fun to make a flamethrower than it is to stop racial segregation
in your facility. I always thought that the promise (and selling) of fsd would eventually be a disaster and was unnecessary. Go ahead and make an awesome driver assist safety
package. Sell something that currently exists. Anything more is creating an enormous liability that you have to deliver on. You will still sell XXX number of cars without
having that obligation hanging over your business. You already have the safest driving demographic there is... upper middle class men aged 35-70.
And by the way, not everyone out there is trying to destroy you. They have legit critiques. You can't act like you are going to break all the rules and then get upset that
NHTSA or whoever is looking at you because they think you are breaking the rules. You'd better hope Beijing doesn't decide to destroy you. no recourse there!
I'm opposite of Ben, never owned the product, but own the stock.
Maybe I'll get an extra fat check from Big Oil for this post. They can print this in Paid Troll for Big Oil Monthly and use it for training purposes.
or am I getting paid by short sellers, I can't remember. Money is just flying all over the place!
Gotta hope Tesla doesn't lose its faithful followers but that seems like a possible path. And mainstream customers are already the most difficult to win over. Tesla needs to focus on EVs, improving communication, build quality, adding more SCs, adding more qualified staff, improving the supply chain (especially for repairs), adding more superchargers, add more EV vehicles, shorten remodel cycles, etc.
Elon probably needs to hand over the reins so he can pull a Bezos and work on his side projects (AI robots, robotaxis, spaceX, starlink, boring company, phone, cryptos, influencer, etc).
Elon probably needs to hand over the reins so he can pull a Bezos and work on his side projects (AI robots, robotaxis, spaceX, starlink, boring company, phone, cryptos, influencer, etc).
My wish is for their lasting success with EV's, but to also hire someone at the top that can at least attempt to balance customer concerns with great profitability. Focus on profitability to the exclusion of customer concerns, hurts us. Total focus on the customer, would crush the bottom line. There HAS to reasonable way forward. It can never be perfect, but it just feels too lopsided right now.
Personally, i believe Ben is being honest. The hard core fan community is predictably attacking him now. I also believe the hard core are doing a disservice to Tesla. It's tough, because these cars are so amazing that they elicit strong emotions. That's why i'm getting one.
Great point, and Ben's discussion about the "Moore's Chasm" concept, really brought this home for me.
Personally, i believe Ben is being honest. The hard core fan community is predictably attacking him now. I also believe the hard core are doing a disservice to Tesla. It's tough, because these cars are so amazing that they elicit strong emotions. That's why i'm getting one.
israndy
Supercharger Hunter
Hardcore fanboys are sick of negative clickbait.
There are lots of things wrong with Tesla, but there are lots of things wrong with all carmakers. Sure, we want to enumerate the issues so we can get working to fix Tesla, but that title is pure clickbait. And with all the bad press JUST to get clicks it's gonna elicit said response.
There are lots of things wrong with Tesla, but there are lots of things wrong with all carmakers. Sure, we want to enumerate the issues so we can get working to fix Tesla, but that title is pure clickbait. And with all the bad press JUST to get clicks it's gonna elicit said response.
Barklikeadog
Active Member
When I think about service, I have to look at the F150 as a good example of how you do it. Obviously the F150 has its flaws, issues, things break, etc.
But that vehicle is what keeps the lights on at Ford. Without it, the company fails and disappears. Ford has an enormous interest in fixing the vehicles
as fast as possible and keeping their customers of 10, 20, 30, 40 years rolling and happy. Call them stealerships or whatever, but it is nice to have a sales
and service guy that you know, who recognize you, and have a real interest in you buying another vehicle there in the future. (I'm not against direct sales by the way)
smogne41
Active Member
Also, keep in mind that a few years ago Ben Sullins was absolutely a Tesla fan. His channel used to be called 'Teslanomics' in fact. I would not have classed him as a fanboy though since he was always reasonably honest about presenting the good and the bad, but he absolutely was one of the major 'pro-Tesla' YouTube channels back then. The fact that he as reached this point should absolutely be a wake-up call. Sure there is a click-bait component to the video titles, but that is a requirement to be successful on YouTube. I don't find anything untrue on unbalanced in this (or his other recent) video.
People say this, and perhaps its my age, but I am NEVER, and WILL NEVER click a video / thread title that sounds like it was written by the ad company Taboola, like this one is, or like "You wont BELIEVE what ELON has done NOW!
The video title itself tells me that the creator of the content doesnt think its interesting enough to get attention without trying to create some stupid drama / controversy.
If the content creator doesnt think its interesting enough for someone to want to look at it without resorting to clickbait, why should I (or anyone?). So, yeah I havent seen this video, wont, or anything with a title like this either for, or against any specific topic (not limited to cars).
Barklikeadog
Active Member
That is uhhh an interesting stance. The title of the video isn't misleading compared to the content. The guy has a well thought out breakdown of the self-inflicted wounds
at Tesla that could potentially lead to their downfall as an industry leader. Discussing the issues a company has with customer service isn't FUD.
smogne41
Active Member
He said he is fixing one thing in it and it will up again soon. He posted a short on youtube about it just a bit ago.
IMO, Ben is presenting honest opinions and concerns about a company that makes cars that he loves. I want someone at Tesla to take notice before it's too late. They can sell all the cars they make - for years - and still be on the wrong path.
Elon is famous for criticizing companies that get comfortable and lose their hunger and competitive spirit. I submit that is exactly what is happening with Tesla. They don't need to compete in the area of customer satisfaction yet. If Tesla waits until even THEY see they have to, it'll be way too late.
israndy
Supercharger Hunter
I would say Ben was one of my original follows once the Tesla bug bit me. But like Gali's stuff, over time it's more content than info.
I agree Tesla is getting a bad rep, and if Ben wants to retitle the video I'll check it out, perhaps that's why it's down
I agree Tesla is getting a bad rep, and if Ben wants to retitle the video I'll check it out, perhaps that's why it's down
Barklikeadog
Active Member
Do you always judge a book by its cover, or is this simply an intentional blind spot in your thought process?
israndy
Supercharger Hunter
patrick42h
Member
I am glad that Ben made this video. It was made even more impactful because it came from someone like him, who has been in the community for the better part of a decade.
Tesla has some major internal problems that it needs to work out if it is going to continue to grow and thrive as a car company.
Tesla has some major internal problems that it needs to work out if it is going to continue to grow and thrive as a car company.
Just for balance, this is a pretty good rebuttal of the Sullins video, to give a counter balanced view point.
The points in this counter video are logical too.
The points in this counter video are logical too.
