Issues with CVRP rebate and a Demo M3

[Sofos]

Hi all I bought a demo M3 back in December and I applied for cvrp about a month ago.
I got an email from CVRP a few days ago that I need to submit all these information from Tesla and it has to come from a Tesla representative.

• Applicant’s full name
• Lease/Sales contract date
• Vehicle Identification Number
• Vehicle year, make and model
• Status as New/Used/Demo (Please note: If the status of the vehicle is “Used” or “Demo”, the dealer must also clarify if the vehicle is an unwind, rollback, or unregistered dealer demo vehicle

Have any of you had this issue ?!?!
Thank you.

 

[JBailey895]

I bought a 3P+ demo, and got my check within a month, even before it was registered. Was a quick turn-around, unlike my HOV stickers, which still haven't come.

 

[Sofos]

I bought a 3P+ demo, and got my check within a month, even before it was registered. Was a quick turn-around, unlike my HOV stickers, which still haven't come.

Did your purchase docs say new on top left or used. For some reason mine say used.
Thanks for response.

 

[jjrandorin]

Did your purchase docs say new on top left or used. For some reason mine say used.
Thanks for response.

"Used" vs "new" are terms that have nothing to do with how many miles are on the car, but whether the car was titled or not. If your car says "used" it means that it was titled to someone before you, and then returned for some reason.

Unfortunately, if your car says "used" on the purchase documents, you will not be able to get the rebate. This is one of the things a person would need to watch out for if they are buying a "demo" car in california. "Demo" is not a regulated / legislated term, however "new" and "used" are. You are basically out of luck because your car states "used" because it was titled to someone else before you. A true "demo" car that a manufacturer uses is NOT titled to anyone, so the person buying it is the first consumer registered owner.

your only hope would be if telsa were to come back and tell you they unwound the previous deal, but if they had done that, they would have titled the car as new (and likely sold it for more)

====================================
CVRP GUIDELINES:

Vehicle Eligibility
Eligible vehicles must meet requirements that include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Be on the list of Eligible Vehicles.
• Be new as defined in the California Vehicle Code (CVC) Section 430 and manufactured by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or its authorized licensee. Vehicles considered new vehicles solely for determination of compliance with state emissions standards are not eligible.

430.

A “new vehicle” is a vehicle constructed entirely from new parts that has never been the subject of a retail sale, or registered with the department, or registered with the appropriate agency or authority of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or possession of the United States, or foreign state, province, or country.

========================================

If your car states "USED" on the purchase paperwork, it does not meet this criteria. Thats why they are telling you it has to come from tesla. Your paperwork says Used, and if you are going to get the rebate, they need proof that it meets the criteria above from TESLA not from you.

 

[Sofos]

"Used" vs "new" are terms that have nothing to do with how many miles are on the car, but whether the car was titled or not. If your car says "used" it means that it was titled to someone before you, and then returned for some reason.

Unfortunately, if your car says "used" on the purchase documents, you will not be able to get the rebate. This is one of the things a person would need to watch out for if they are buying a "demo" car in california. "Demo" is not a regulated / legislated term, however "new" and "used" are. You are basically out of luck because your car states "used" because it was titled to someone else before you. A true "demo" car that a manufacturer uses is NOT titled to anyone, so the person buying it is the first consumer registered owner.

your only hope would be if telsa were to come back and tell you they unwound the previous deal, but if they had done that, they would have titled the car as new (and likely sold it for more)

====================================
CVRP GUIDELINES:

Vehicle Eligibility
Eligible vehicles must meet requirements that include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Be on the list of Eligible Vehicles.
• Be new as defined in the California Vehicle Code (CVC) Section 430 and manufactured by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or its authorized licensee. Vehicles considered new vehicles solely for determination of compliance with state emissions standards are not eligible.

430.

A “new vehicle” is a vehicle constructed entirely from new parts that has never been the subject of a retail sale, or registered with the department, or registered with the appropriate agency or authority of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or possession of the United States, or foreign state, province, or country.

========================================

If your car states "USED" on the purchase paperwork, it does not meet this criteria. Thats why they are telling you it has to come from tesla. Your paperwork says Used, and if you are going to get the rebate, they need proof that it meets the criteria above from TESLA not from you.

I'm with you, however I wasn't aware of this and the sales person kept saying that I'll be elegible for the rebates and tax credit.

Heck, they were even telling me that I need to receive the car before the end of the year!

Further the car was previously register to Tesla dealer not an individual so that's a little different.

Without that credits I'm pretty much paying more than a new car, which is messed up.

 

[jjrandorin]

I'm with you, however I wasn't aware of this and the sales person kept saying that I'll be elegible for the rebates and tax credit.

Heck, they were even telling me that I need to receive the car before the end of the year!

Further the car was previously register to Tesla dealer not an individual so that's a little different.

Without that credits I'm pretty much paying more than a new car, which is messed up.

Im not trying to argue with you, I dont have a vested interest in this either way of course (except, I would like to see a fellow consumer get what they think they are supposed to have, so am rooting for you). If the car was NEVER titled to a consumer, the paperwork should say "new" on it, not "used".... so you either need to get tesla to send you paperwork that says NEW, or provide the proof that the CRVP is looking for that it was never titled. It may have been titled to tesla, but it was titled to someone else in between there, or its a mistake by tesla (tesla makes a lot of mistakes so certainly possible).

CRVP isnt going to help you, or make an exception for you... you need tesla to submit paperwork saying it was never titled (thus should have been "new" on the paperwork.

 

[Sofos]

I was just told that destination fee wasn't charged cause it was a returned car and not a test drive that I was initially told.
Do your guys demos and showroom M3s paid a delivery fee? OA claims that only used cars don't pay for this.

 

[jjrandorin]

I was just told that destination fee wasn't charged cause it was a returned car and not a test drive that I was initially told.
Do your guys demos and showroom M3s paid a delivery fee? OA claims that only used cars don't pay for this.

All cars that are "new" pay a destination fee, so yes demos and showroom cars that are not titled pay that fee. Used cars dont. Unfortunately car salespeople can legally lie to you (and have been doing so for as long as cars have been sold). Only the paperwork actually has to be true. The fact that your paperwork said "used" on it would have been the indication that the car was not a standard "demo".

See, thing is, both things can be true. Someone could have bought the car, returned it, then tesla put it into its demo fleet, then made it for sale. That would mean they told you the "truth" even though its not the "entire" truth. I have no idea, I was not there, and I feel for you because many people do not understand that "new" and "used" are very important legal definitions.

Unfortunately, you are likely out of luck as far as getting that CVRP rebate, and your financing etc is already done if you bought it in December. You likely just have to put it behind you, enjoy the car, and chalk it up as expensive knowledge for next time.

 

[Sofos]

All cars that are "new" pay a destination fee, so yes demos and showroom cars that are not titled pay that fee. Used cars dont. Unfortunately car salespeople can legally lie to you (and have been doing so for as long as cars have been sold). Only the paperwork actually has to be true. The fact that your paperwork said "used" on it would have been the indication that the car was not a standard "demo".

See, thing is, both things can be true. Someone could have bought the car, returned it, then tesla put it into its demo fleet, then made it for sale. That would mean they told you the "truth" even though its not the "entire" truth. I have no idea, I was not there, and I feel for you because many people do not understand that "new" and "used" are very important legal definitions.

Unfortunately, you are likely out of luck as far as getting that CVRP rebate, and your financing etc is already done if you bought it in December. You likely just have to put it behind you, enjoy the car, and chalk it up as expensive knowledge for next time.

Thanks again for your response.
I guess that's a PSA for everyone and lessons learned. I've been leasing cars for years, I feel I just let my guard down as I didnt expect traditional dealer lies from Tesla.

 

[jjrandorin]

Thanks again for your response.
I guess that's a PSA for everyone and lessons learned. I've been leasing cars for years, I feel I just let my guard down as I didnt expect traditional dealer lies from Tesla.

True.... i normally attribute lack of knowledge to tesla, vs real shadiness, although the effect is the same. Like, I would imagine that something like I said earlier could have actually happened (someone returned car, car put into stock as a local demo, then a decision to sell car, tesla SA saw car as demo and said "yes, its a demo"... while the people who process the paperwork pull up the car and put the proper information on the actual purchase invoice.


Doesnt help you but, in general, they are just highly unorganized / inexperienced... which still means they need watching, but not because they are usually actively out to get you, like most car dealers... but because they dont know.

 

[OCR1]

You have to really do your homework before you buy a Tesla. Virtually everything a Tesla rep has told me has turned out be wrong. I don’t know that it’s that much better with traditional dealerships though. An uninformed consumer runs the risk of being burned regardless of the manufacturer.

 

[Sofos]

You have to really do your homework before you buy a Tesla. Virtually everything a Tesla rep has told me has turned out be wrong. I don’t know that it’s that much better with traditional dealerships though. An uninformed consumer runs the risk of being burned regardless of the manufacturer.

I guess we can't trust any business nowadays and we have to do our own homework.

The fact remains that I was sold a 7 day returned vehicle and I was consistently lied and told that I would get all my rebates and deceived by not letting me know that the car was pre-titled and used.
When I picked up the car I saw the contract that stated that it was used I was ignorant enough to think that all demos or showrooms cars are shown like that.
Like I said lesson learned and mistakes like this won't happen again.

 

[Sofos]

Sorry to keep beating on a dead horse but I'm intrigued of the fact that Tesla requires people to not have applied for any type of rebates in order to honor the seven day return policy and at the same time sell the car as a used demo.
What's the point if noone can apply for the rebates with a used title!

 

[OCR1]

Sorry to keep beating on a dead horse but I'm intrigued of the fact that Tesla requires people to not have applied for any type of rebates in order to honor the seven day return policy and at the same time sell the car as a used demo.
What's the point if noone can apply for the rebates with a used title!

I think the point is to prevent people from scamming them by purchasing their cars, applying for a bunch of rebates, and then returning the cars.

 

[Sofos]

Which is fine, the problem is why sell the car as used and not a rollback or new.