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Model S (Whitestar) ordering

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In response to a Private Message I received, I asked Tesla about ordering Model S if you are not already a Roadster owner.

Tesla replied that they have not yet announced the date for taking non-Roadster orders, but it will be sometime after the launch. Non-Roadster owners will have the chance to get into the Signature series if there are spots available after the current family/friends of the Roadster have had their go. Each Roadster owner will get 5 invites to the Model S series.

Signature Series: (40k deposit)
1st priority: Roadster owner gets 1 position for each Roadster.
2nd priority: Roadster owners with multiple deposits and 5 friend/family invites
3rd priority: general public (if positions are available).

General Production: (5k deposit)
Priority: Roadster Owners
2nd: General Public

If people want specific contact information for Tesla about this, please send me a Private Message and I will be happy to help hook you up. Tesla does recommend getting in touch with them ahead of time so that they can contact everyone who is interested as soon as deposits are beginning.
 
I have inquired via e mail and phone as to putting a deposit on a Model S and have received no communications back in either regard. Maybe they are sending a mass response to all at the same time after the unveil. I am not a Roadster owner and I am perfectly happy waiting until after the Signature series. I think I want most of the bugs worked out anyway perferrably on someone else's car :)
 
Yes, they indicated to me that they were building up a list of folks who are not current customers right now. They intend to do some sort of mass communication as soon as they start taking deposits.

Edit to add: If you are worried that your email got lost in the shuffle, PM me and I will give you the contact info I have so you may try again.
 
If it did get lost in the shuffle I suppose I have plenty of time to rectify that. As I mentioned I am looking for something after 1001. I called TM and talked to Dave and he took my info and said he would send me info but then I never heard anything from him. I suppose I should have clarified WHEN I would hear something from him for my own comfort. On the phone it sounded like they already had info to send out and I would be getting it shortly but perhaps that was not the case. I also got a verification check on my e mail that I sent and I replied to that so I am not real worried that I have dropped through the cracks. Perhaps he should have just said we will get back to you after the 26th. And perhaps I should have just asked !!!! doooooh
 
Greetings, Roadster owners.
My name is Rob, and I am attempting a first post. I don't own a Roadster, but only because I am 6'5" with size 15 feet, and it takes me 5 minutes to get in or out of the car, which seems to highly amuse those standing watching. I was told by Tesla people that I needed to wait for the Model S.
I have driven a RAV4EV for 6 years, have PV on my house above the Napa Valley, and have been following Tesla for years. I had a question for Graham and he generously offered to help me contact Tesla.
What we found out may affect a lot of you. As you see in his post, there are three levels of ordering:
First, Roadster owners.
Second, "Friends and Family of Roadster owners.
Third, All the rest of the unwashed masses.
As you know, if you are down the list a bit, it could take years to get your EV. Some of you are not worried about that, and I would assume you have either never driven an EV for any length of time, or you have your Roadster and drive around happily whenever you feel like it.
I have been trying to find out how some of us in the third group could end up being in the second. I have offered to detail various persons cars. I suspect some people wonder about me. But being able to order in the second group *could* move your EV delivery up by a year or so.
Is this important? That's why I'm here. I have heard that Tesla is making a list (checking it twice?) of those who are interested. They have yet to send paperwork to Roadster owners, but say each one will be able to sponsor 5 other interested parties for ordering the sedan.
It would be interesting to see how many on this list fall into Category Three who would like to make new friends and move up as an added benefit. I already read that some will have to "see it first", meaning, I assume, touch, drive, smell, check the tail lights and kick the tires. That might make a difference, but I betcha Tesla builds a world class car. I want one.
Whatcha think?
 
I called today and specifically asked about transferring my Sedan signature series option, and $10,000 discount, to my parents.

They would love to have a pure electric vehicle and this level of luxury (BWM 5 series or 7 series) is just what they like.

I hope to have the details soon on the family transfer option.
I am sure I could just buy it myself and then do the money transfer between family members.
But I would rather avoid that hassle and just let my parents directly purchase it from Tesla Motors.
 
OK, I just sent in the money and the form. Let's see where I fall into line.

Here is my reasoning:

  1. The Roadster will be my "Fun" car, I need a practical "Town" car that will carry more than one other person and 2 bags of groceries, and my girlfriend has a Lexus hybrid for longer trips.
  2. I will be putting myself on the list for a Prius Plug-in Hybrid when it becomes available next year, 2010. BTW, I have a 2005 Prius now that has worked great.
  3. When the factory start date comes up, I will have had the Prius Plug-in for a year or so and can make my decision on whether to sell that and move forward with the Model S or not, and am willing to risk $400 for that option.
  4. The savings of $10k savings more than offsets the cost of money of $40k for 2 years. The risk of losing all of the $40k if Tesla fails is offset by refund timing and the intangible of supporting Tesla to see if they can make a go of it; my personal stimulus package for Tesla.

This is getting me excited, and because Tesla claims that the charger connections will be compatible between the Roadster and the Model S, I am already thinking about the best, cost-effective way to wire my garage for both an HPC and a NEMA 14-50 for the MC240 charger. I will then put these between two bays in my garage for maximum flexibility.