I put a deposit on a Model S over a decade ago. I bought a Signature model (one of the first 1,000 MS made) and became an outspoken evangelist for the company. For the fist year, it was a whirlwind romance and I probably sold a dozen+ cars myself and Tesla treated me like a member of the family. A few years in, things started to get rocky as Tesla got more and more busy but I understood. 100,000 owners vying for its attention made for a different dynamic. But then the Model X and eventually the model 3 came into the picture and Tesla started to be more distant and more cold. At first it was just a lack of personal touch but over time, it became neglect.
Now, its an outright abusive relationship. Tesla literally doesn't pick up the phone (this is not a cute relationship analogy- they don't pick up the phone). They discontinued the "owner experience" group (they used to address owner issues) because... who cares? They cut out the loaner program. They lied constantly ("we're increasing the loaner program! We're building a new service facility just for Model 3! We're selling features we can't deliver!") . They started charging $200 "deductible" for issues that are covered by warranty (after 7 years of not doing so and never making it clear it was even a possibility). I wrote a plaintive email into the great void of "[email protected]" as a last hope that somehow Tesla cared enough to at least lie to me about all this. No response at all.
Tesla, which started out with customer service akin to Apple had slowly devolved into a company with customer service worse than Spectrum (or any other monopolistic company). I guess somewhere along the way they realized that treating customers well was not its best strategy to keep its stock price high. Any resources that had been put to serving customers was reallocated to sales. The lie they tell that they are "trying" is as insulting as a spouse telling you they're "trying" not to cheat. Trying is as simple as investing in customer service (or not divesting what was already in place).
If you've been a Tesla owner for more than 5 years, I can't imagine that you too haven't felt the same neglect and abuse.
I absolutely hate Tesla. I love the car but hate the company. And that is awful. Feels like saying I hate an ex-lover because I truly did love this company for years. I learned to love electric cars and I'm hopeful that some company that still prioritizes customers will make a great one. Otherwise, I may just be stuck with an ICE car because as much as I love electric, I refuse to be treated like crap. Tesla should be ashamed of itself for letting its customers down and for shaming its own product in the process.
Now, its an outright abusive relationship. Tesla literally doesn't pick up the phone (this is not a cute relationship analogy- they don't pick up the phone). They discontinued the "owner experience" group (they used to address owner issues) because... who cares? They cut out the loaner program. They lied constantly ("we're increasing the loaner program! We're building a new service facility just for Model 3! We're selling features we can't deliver!") . They started charging $200 "deductible" for issues that are covered by warranty (after 7 years of not doing so and never making it clear it was even a possibility). I wrote a plaintive email into the great void of "[email protected]" as a last hope that somehow Tesla cared enough to at least lie to me about all this. No response at all.
Tesla, which started out with customer service akin to Apple had slowly devolved into a company with customer service worse than Spectrum (or any other monopolistic company). I guess somewhere along the way they realized that treating customers well was not its best strategy to keep its stock price high. Any resources that had been put to serving customers was reallocated to sales. The lie they tell that they are "trying" is as insulting as a spouse telling you they're "trying" not to cheat. Trying is as simple as investing in customer service (or not divesting what was already in place).
If you've been a Tesla owner for more than 5 years, I can't imagine that you too haven't felt the same neglect and abuse.
I absolutely hate Tesla. I love the car but hate the company. And that is awful. Feels like saying I hate an ex-lover because I truly did love this company for years. I learned to love electric cars and I'm hopeful that some company that still prioritizes customers will make a great one. Otherwise, I may just be stuck with an ICE car because as much as I love electric, I refuse to be treated like crap. Tesla should be ashamed of itself for letting its customers down and for shaming its own product in the process.
