MS 60 already built, en Route to Europe, now 8k devalued - cancel order?

[hugojpinto]

Hi,

I'm feeling kinda disappointed at this moment with the whole thing - I've ordered an MS 60 in the last weeks to avoid the potential common-sense price hike that would come from having the MS 60 going away, having my hand pretty much forced by the fact that such hike would make the Model S ineligible for substantial VAT benefits in Portugal, where I live.

Well Surprise! Since yesterday, with the new Model S pricing, I effectively would have gotten the S 75 with the powered lift gate and glass roof that I couldn't have possibly had chosen (on the penalty of breaking the VAT limit), for the same price as the M 60 now 8k devalued and waiting for the boat to crosse the Atlantic.

Sure, I'm aware that one values what he purchases at the time of purchase, and that the 60 is a soft-limited 75 in reality that is now available for "only" a 2k€ fee, so I can "for a little extra money" have a 75 on my hands. Still, it'll be a solid roof, no powered gate, heavily undervalued car I'll be taking delivery of. It's now worth less and it hasn't even arrived at the delivery stand, much less leave it.

My SA is trying to get an answer for me, but honestly, they were so in the dark yesterday as myself. What's Tesla previous history with such limit cases? Do they try to make amends, do to they tell you to suck it? I'm sure I'm with a few dozen owners on these extreme time windows in which the order has been built but the car is still on the way. So... what are you doing if you're on the same bandwagon?

Thanks!

 

[TexasEV]

If you bought the car to drive it rather than to resell it, what difference does it make?

 

[randy1077]

I think the solid roof may be desirable now that you can't order it anymore. Some people don't like glass roofs.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

You are getting what you bargained for, you're not planning on reselling it, and newsflash: the world turns and time continues to move forward. Take delivery of your car or forfeit your deposit and reorder. Choices are simple.

 

[azred]

You are getting what you bargained for, you're not planning on reselling it, and newsflash: the world turns and time continues to move forward. Take delivery of your car or forfeit your deposit and reorder. Choices are simple.

Perfect response. You could cut and paste your reponse to a large volume of posts in this forum.

 

[alehbaba]

i would cancel...your out 2500 better then out 8k,,,,if you cancel you are still ahead. I think what tesla has done now is sad and leaves a bitter taste in new buyers mouths cause in that flux of ordering and then tesla changes prices.

 

[Max*]

It's not that simple though, lots of people saying "you're not planning on selling it" are being short sighted - you still need to pay off the car. So in the end, you're paying $8k more than you could have otherwise (even if you keep the car forever).

The question is, is it worth $8k-$2,500 (deposit lost) = $5,500 to wait months to re-order the car. Only the OP can decide that for himself.

 

[hugojpinto]

It's not that simple though, lots of people saying "you're not planning on selling it" are being short sighted - you still need to pay off the car. So in the end, you're paying $8k more than you could have otherwise (even if you keep the car forever).

The question is, is it worth $8k-$2,500 (deposit lost) = $5,500 to wait months to re-order the car. Only the OP can decide that for himself.

Well, a sensible, thoughtful answer. Thank you for that.

For some context, I'm actually a huge and very long-time fan of the brand that was trying to maximize the timing and value of the purchase: I've been after this moment for probably more time than some of the repliers have their vehicles. The moment I chose to order was not naive at all - it was when I believed a new sales cycle (post-60) would actually bump prices up (and take the cars out of the Portuguese VAT Tax benefit) so this would be my best chance in a while to pick up the thing at a price I could afford - if someone epitomises the Model 3 reserve scaling up to Model S, that's probably me. For you to get an idea of the taxation involved, a Metallic Blue baseline Model S 60 plus Autopilot costs 96.2k USD in equivalent Euros. This is not pocket money, nor a small purchase: it was driven out of the expectation that prices would go UP (as implied on the discontinuation announcement) as Tesla would erode the low end of the offering to give way for the Model 3, not DOWN.

Still, I am also in no way bashing Tesla - it was my choice, and I have to deal with it, and the company. Still, I feel that if they do not somehow reach out and try to bridge the value gap, I have no similar reason to simply swallow the bad pill and take the (already) devalued asset - I've made business decisions that cost me way more than 2.5k (2k in Euros, actually), so that's what it is, not even too bad, and a decision I'll have to take over the next few days.

Hence, I clearly did not come here whining: you saw me asking what was Tesla's history in dealing with cases such as this, and what whether you were on the same bandwagon I am, or not. Is it not fair to try to know and be prepared to decide?

Many thanks.

Hugo

 

[Spidy]

It's not that simple though, lots of people saying "you're not planning on selling it" are being short sighted - you still need to pay off the car. So in the end, you're paying $8k more than you could have otherwise (even if you keep the car forever).

The question is, is it worth $8k-$2,500 (deposit lost) = $5,500 to wait months to re-order the car. Only the OP can decide that for himself.

According to the tracker his car got out of production 10 days ago so it's late May or early June delivery. And order for Europe placed today are still June delivery. The car will probably go into production shortly after it's confirmed. So it's really don't think it's a big difference, more like few weeks.

So unless one really wanted the body coloured roof I don't see why you would not cancel and order a new one.

 

[Krypto Kat]

I say pay the extra for the 75 upgrade, and you have a car that costs almost the same as ordering a 75 now.

 

[SMAlset]

I'm not sure I understand the expectation that prices would go up as implied by the discontinuation announcement. Both the 60 and 75 models have been around for a while now and the push has been to pursue higher battery capacity (Anything beyond the 100 however sounds like a model redesign to me). As a result I wouldn't expect Tesla to raise the price on the entry level with instead money being made on newer versions. IMO the Model 3's are not going to compete really with the MS--smaller, less storage and crumple zone (safety factor of the S), fewer "luxury" options and I personally am turned off by the one tablet screen as a dashboard source. So I think Tesla will try to hold the line as time goes on on a low end MS. They might give the entry model more of the features that come from higher end models as models get updated, like they have in the past from the MX and P models. But I do expect the price will be kind of stable otherwise.

While the cost of the car for I'm sure most of us is no small thing, I'm of the opinion that you signed a contract for something custom built to your specifications and should stand by your decision. As others have said it's not like Tesla is giving you something less than what you ordered. If you chose under the contract to cancel for the $2500 fee, well then that is your right to do so under the contract. Tesla now has to sell the car you had them make for you to someone else hoping it has what they want and sometimes being forced to drop the price if it doesn't sell quickly enough. Or it probably gets relegated to test drive cars.

I'm sure we've all been there having bought something only to see the price get marked down at some point after purchasing. It's one thing when you are buying something off the shelf and want to return it for a better price it if makes sense, but these are customized cars unless bought as inventory. Many places don't let you return custom orders or have a substantial restocking fee if they do. I've heard some people say well there should be a grace period. Tesla already does give you 7 days without penalty. I don't see them needing to offer anything in the way of adjustments after the fact, especially on custom cars. As for grace periods of sorts, there will always be someone on the "other side" of the cut off date.