I can see I'm a lone voice on this one, so I'm gonna keep it short.....:wink:
1. As a Roadster owner I like, no love, the Tesla service standard. It surpasses anything I've come across in years of driving a multitude of cars including some very high-priced ones. The convenience alone of having Tesla come to me would be worth the money; after all, time is money and there's nothing more irritating than sitting at an auto-dealer somewhere (why are they never within walking distance of anywhere useful?) waiting for a service to be completed.
2. TANSTAAFL - I know that whenever I've had a car where the service/maintenance was "free" it just means I paid upfront in the purchase price. Sure it can be argued that Tesla should do that, but IMO it's preferable that they are open with the costs and giving a choice if you want it.
3. We're buying $100k cars FCOL. What's with all the anguish of buying first class service to take care of them for a few hundred bucks? If it's a hardship for anyone then they should really consider whether they should buy a Model S at all; I'd always advise anyone not to overstretch themselves.
4. I also don't see a problem with the 12k stuff. Every car I ever owned had maintenance schedules shorter than that.
5. Buying in advance to get a discount is also rather attractive. I'm sure that didn't happen when I paid upfront in the purchase price for other cars.
(Ties on blindfold, but declines the last cigarette...)
OK, fire away....
I'll side with you.
We're all early adopters.
We've all researched this to the hilt and are, on a daily basis, nit-picking every single aspect of this care and the company putting it together.
I would argue that we've all lost perspective.
When you bought your last car, did you spend hundreds of hours examining every detail of how it was made, each and every option available, and place all this under a microscope to critically dissect? I don't think so. But that's what we early adopters are doing to the Model S.
Think about why Roadster owners aren't complaining about the service fees. Why is that?
No maintenance plan is free--the cost is built in to the car. Because we are Americans, we believe the BS we are given about it being "free" just like we believe the word "Sale" means you are getting a bargain. Last I checked, you never pay full price for anything at most department stores because things are ALWAYS on sale. Tesla says, "here's what it costs" and we freak out because it's not hidden in the price of the car. Maybe they should make the list price of the Model S $5,000 more, then put the car "on sale." Would you feel better about it then?
When you adopt technology early, you get the cool gadget and can be the first of your friends to experience it. It's part cool new toy, part bragging rights, and it's partly that you like messing around with new technology. And this car IS new technology. But with all new technology, there are glitches and flaws. You're gonna get that here, too. The difference, however, is that Tesla is actually listening to us and, ON THE FLY, adapting. Fixes for creep mode, changed visor lights, redesigned head room in the back, removing carbon fiber near the undercarriage, software fixes, friggin' drink holders and storage space devices, the list goes on and on. When was the last time Apple changed a feature of the iphone on short notice because people complained (yes, I know about the antenna workaround)? Samsung? Sony?
If you don't have a high tolerance for the unknown, for imperfection, for inconvenience, you should not be an early adopter of the Model S. And you don't get the goodies, either. One way or another, we all have to make decisions, and my gut says side with the Roadster owners.
