Model 3 Configuration Time Window

[brshoemak]

This might be answered best by someone who already owns a Tesla but it still relates to the Model 3.

Based on prior experience or what might have been said about the Model 3, how long do you imagine the time window for configuring the Model 3 will be open? Basically, once I receive the email to configure it, how long will I have to decide before I lose my reservation or place in line?

Are we talking a week, two weeks, a month?

 

[Zaxxon]

Are we talking a week, two weeks, a month?

If it's anything like the Model X was, you'll be invited and then largely left alone for many months. If others that were invited after you confirm before you they may obviously jump ahead of you, but when our X reservation was called, Tesla did not hound us.

 

[eSpiritIV]

i really would expect that whenever you get your email to configure, it wont related to what order your car is delivered or built. Even if you submit your order a month later.

Your que will be set based on time of order and the other factors that were already disclosed last year. Ie...employes>existing owners>first day in store reservation holders> online orders....then somewhere in that mix the whole east coast vs west coast>then overseas orders.
Once all people configure their car you might also get a boost if you buy a fully loaded model. But i dont think that info was truly confirmed. only speculated.

 

[kevin457]

probably in May-June they invite tesla sapcex employees, (heard estimates of 10,000) it may take a few months to work through those as the lines start up. So half way though producing those they invite current tesla owners in cali. likely another 10-20k, half way through that they do all US tesla owners, all cali, all US, rest of world. staggering all so they have orders placed a few months of their production will help cashflow by delivering higher profit cars first, scheduling production ramp for each option, and limiting number of changeovers when production speed is higher.

I'd put the general pop US at around Dec if they meet the optimistic schedule.

 

[dsvick]

i really would expect that whenever you get your email to configure, it wont related to what order your car is delivered or built. Even if you submit your order a month later.

Your que will be set based on time of order and the other factors that were already disclosed last year. Ie...employes>existing owners>first day in store reservation holders> online orders....then somewhere in that mix the whole east coast vs west coast>then overseas orders.
Once all people configure their car you might also get a boost if you buy a fully loaded model. But i dont think that info was truly confirmed. only speculated.

Tesla says you'll be invited to configure based on the date you placed your reservation, not everyone will get to configure at the same time, it will be done in batches for each region. So yes, if you get the email to configure and sit on it for a month, anyone that configures and confirms before you will be put into the production queue ahead of you. Once you confirm there may be some shuffling of people that confirmed around the same time as you, but I doubt it would affect anyone that confirmed theirs more than a few weeks ahead of you.

 

[MiamiNole]

I thought there was some type of deferral process where you can defer your configuration date up to two times before you'd have to cancel your reservation? I know I read about that here on these forums after we all reserved. Was that misinformation?

 

[smak]

So wait, the design studio invites will go out based on location, or everyb

Tesla says you'll be invited to configure based on the date you placed your reservation, not everyone will get to configure at the same time, it will be done in batches for each region. So yes, if you get the email to configure and sit on it for a month, anyone that configures and confirms before you will be put into the production queue ahead of you. Once you confirm there may be some shuffling of people that confirmed around the same time as you, but I doubt it would affect anyone that confirmed theirs more than a few weeks ahead of you.

They have to give you some deadline in order to get you your car within your "group". A guy in New York won't get his car before me if he orders before me obviously, but in the same note, I can't wait forever to order, or some of those going East will pass me.

I think they will break it up into regions, and each region will get a deadline to order.

Within your region, it may not matter when you order within that time frame, you will then get your car by the next criteria, battery size, options, etc...

But they may do it by day, so if I place my order on the first day, then I'll be grouped with similar cars that also placed an order that day.

But I think 1 day is a little small a window.

-smak-

 

[brshoemak]

I'm not too worried about the order in which it's built. I'm east coast, around 220K in the queue (not that that inherently matters), and I'm not planning for a fully loaded M3 - so I expect a wait regardless. I just want to make sure that my option to configure one isn't taken away at some point.

The usual replacement cycle for one of our vehicles would be right about 2019 which is when Musk initially said it would be put into production. It's a little earlier than expected, so I didn't want to find out that if I wait a 3 months I'll lose my chance.

We haven't test driven a Model S yet, so I'm hoping to get my wife in one when the weather is better in order to help my case for some more options (roof, etc.). The more time she can stew about it, the better my chances of her giving the Ok. She's the kind of person who likes technology but thinks that more features means more things that can break (I'm like that to some degree) - that's why we bought a really nice fridge, but made sure to get one without a water dispenser on the door.

 

[Jason Bourne]

Aside from how it works and who's car is built how quickly after ordering and confirming, I suspect that almost all employees and line-waiters will config and order as quickly as they can once they're allowed to. The point I'm making is that if OP, or anyone, is in one of the early batches of people invited to configure and order, they'd better move fast if they want to stay ahead of the pack.

Now, what comes back in to play at that point is what car configs Tesla will prioritize for delivery from within those groups of orders... who knows...

 

[CricTic]

As the OP stated, he's not interested in staying ahead of the pack. He just wants to know that if he waits a month or two to configure, he won't be bumped to the back of the line and end up with a 2020 delivery.

I'm in the same boat, actually. I reserved on March 31, but wouldn't mind waiting a few months after my configuration window opens to be in a better place financially before submitting my order. A car that rolls off the line a couple months later might be more reliable too, which would be a nice side benefit. I'm fine with letting a few people get ahead of me in line, but I definitely don't want to be bumped to the end and potentially add an additional year or more to the delivery time.

Is this a genuine concern? Or could someone potentially wait even six months or so before configuring, and not lose their place in line beyond the people who configured ahead of them?

 

[Ken7]

I'm assuming we'll be given the chance to test drive the car prior to placing a final order.

 

[JoaoD]

I thought there was some type of deferral process where you can defer your configuration date up to two times before you'd have to cancel your reservation? I know I read about that here on these forums after we all reserved. Was that misinformation?

As far as I know, you can defer your delivery (up to two times?), after you have reserved your car and made the initial payment (5k?). Imagine you configure a Model S today, and you chose to be delivered in June, but something happens and you have to get out of the country and won't be here in June, or you lost some money and will have to wait 2 months to get the remaining value of the car. You can ask to postpone your delivery to September for example.

If you have not made a reservation I don't think you will have any time limit to when you can order your Model 3. (Unless you wait so many years that it is no longer in production like the Roadster)

Your reservation only dictates when you can access the order page. If you wait two years after you get invited to make your purchase you will probably get your car at the same time that someone that did not even have a reservation but made the order at the same time (Assuming the order page will be open to anyone without a reservation in two years)

 

[JeffK]

The original reservation agreement (from March 16th) said 10 days

If you do not wish to enter into a Purchase Agreement at the time that you are contacted by Tesla, you have the option to relinquish your reservation sequence position and defer to a later position to be determined by us (only one deferral is permitted). If you do not communicate your decision to us within ten (10) days of notification to place your order, you will automatically be granted your one deferral and we will defer your reservation position.

The newer agreement from March 25th stripped all the details.

 

[Morristhecat]

If I recall correctly, back when I ordered my S 4.5 years ago, when you got the invitation, the sooner you put your order in the queue the sooner you got your car. If you were to sit on it for a month, the guys who received the invite at the same time would end up with a car about a month earlier, all options being the same. If you ordered something that wasn't in production yet, such as coil springs or the S60, you would wait longer until those were in production. But when they did start production, you would be that much ahead in the queue than folks who recently ordered.

 

[182RG]

My guess is you'll be given some time after configuration. This gives Tesla the ability to batch and select the 'Highly Optioned' vehicles out of the queue, and prioritize them mixed with employee, geography, previous owner, etc. No one outside of Tesla will know how the production queue will be managed. However, if they ignore 'Highly Optioned', and the increased margin they bring to the revenue column, they will be doing their shareholders a dis-service. I doubt you see $35K models for a very long time, if ever.

 

[182RG]

Now, what comes back in to play at that point is what car configs Tesla will prioritize for delivery from within those groups of orders... who knows...

Highly profitable ones. It has to figure into the mix.

 

[Sonny Daze]

My guess is you'll be given some time after configuration. This gives Tesla the ability to batch and select the 'Highly Optioned' vehicles out of the queue, and prioritize them mixed with employee, geography, previous owner, etc. No one outside of Tesla will know how the production queue will be managed. However, if they ignore 'Highly Optioned', and the increased margin they bring to the revenue column, they will be doing their shareholders a dis-service. I doubt you see $35K models for a very long time, if ever.

I think there will be $35K models going to employees early on. Are they going to say to employees that can't afford more that they'll have to wait months or longer? Plus they want to be able to say to the world that they kept their promise to produce a $35K EV.

I do believe once production ramps up and they start selling to non employees/owners they will focus on the highly optioned to bring in cash. I think they have mentioned the highly optioned first approach a couple times since the reveal.

 

[dsvick]

However, if they ignore 'Highly Optioned', and the increased margin they bring to the revenue column, they will be doing their shareholders a dis-service. I doubt you see $35K models for a very long time, if ever.

I think there will be $35K models going to employees early on. Are they going to say to employees that can't afford more that they'll have to wait months or longer? Plus they want to be able to say to the world that they kept their promise to produce a $35K EV.

I do believe once production ramps up and they start selling to non employees/owners they will focus on the highly optioned to bring in cash. I think they have mentioned the highly optioned first approach a couple times since the reveal.

Why would regular customers be any different from employees? If they don't make employees wait, then they won't make a regular customer wait months to get their base model $35K car either. I know that, before the reveal, they mentioned highly optioned cars will be first. My thinking is that, with the increased production schedule, producing them first will have much less of an impact than it would with a slower ramp up. I think that the only affect options will have on your position in the production queue will be to structure the queue for efficiency and build your car with other like optioned vehicles. This could all be wishful thinking though ...

 

[182RG]

Why would regular customers be any different from employees? If they don't make employees wait, then they won't make a regular customer wait months to get their base model $35K car either.

There are a lot of potential reasons. There are far more regular customers than there are employees, across a wider financial demographic. Tesla manufactures cars in one of the most expensive places to live in the country, and pays a wage that probably doesn't allow for a tremendous amount of disposable income. It's a good will gesture to employees, it's good PR. It allows them to screw up, to practice, to sort out issues. A perfect car will not spit out of the factory on day 1. (it will be interesting to see if Tesla requires an NDA for early employee purchases).

Margins on vehicles at production startup are thin. You don't have the efficiencies up to speed. Why wouldn't a company try and maximize margins in this phase to cover these startup in-efficiencies? It is the only appropriate thing to do for shareholders of a public company. I don't believe ramp up is going to be anywhere near as fast as the wild projections indicate. GS doesn't believe it either.

Wait months? I think some are going to be waiting years. I'll get everything but 'P' and 'L' as an option. I don't expect to get one until 2020.

 

[shrspeedblade]

I doubt you see $35K models for a very long time, if ever.

LOL what sort of statement is that?

I'm not one of the most optimistic on this board, as I still have a hunch that mainly employee and maybe a few thousand customer cars will be delivered this year. But there is a line between being pessimistic and just being an internet troll, and you tip toe along that line. So I have to ask:

Are you short Tesla?