Pick up or Delivery?

[Pruitt]

My Tesla is being delivered to Decatur GA. I live near Charleston SC, about five hours away.

Getting to Decatur won't be easy, so I'm wondering if I should just have the car delivered to my home address.

I'd hate to miss the whole "delivery experience" at the showroom, but that might be the best thing.

For those who've had the car delivered to their address, what are the pros and cons? I understand the truck driver is just that. Do you get a chance to do a full inspection before accepting the delivery? And how do you handle the payment? Give Tesla the money before the car shows up, or...?

Any opinions on this would be appreciated.

 

[mikeash]

The delivery experience isn't all that. The main thing is being taught how to use the car by the delivery specialist, and if you're on here then I bet you've done all your reading and video watching and know everything they'd teach you anyway. I have no idea on the actual mechanics of home delivery, so I'm afraid I can't help with that part, but as far as the experience goes I think home delivery would be just fine.

 

[shonline]

I'm in Charleston as well and was originally scheduled for home delivery late March-April. In an effort t get the car a little quicker, I had the Atlanta DS switch it to pickup in Charlotte. It's an easy drive home, with a quick stop at the Santee SC, I'll get the quick walk through, and a chance for a nice drive home.

My Tesla is being delivered to Decatur GA. I live near Charleston SC, about five hours away.

Getting to Decatur won't be easy, so I'm wondering if I should just have the car delivered to my home address.

I'd hate to miss the whole "delivery experience" at the showroom, but that might be the best thing.

For those who've had the car delivered to their address, what are the pros and cons? I understand the truck driver is just that. Do you get a chance to do a full inspection before accepting the delivery? And how do you handle the payment? Give Tesla the money before the car shows up, or...?

Any opinions on this would be appreciated.

 

[tstafford]

I enjoyed the DS delivery process. And I'm not one to like that stuff. A three hour or so drive with a quick stop at a SC sound like a fun first experience with the car.

 

[Pruitt]

I'm in Charleston as well and was originally scheduled for home delivery late March-April. In an effort t get the car a little quicker, I had the Atlanta DS switch it to pickup in Charlotte. It's an easy drive home, with a quick stop at the Santee SC, I'll get the quick walk through, and a chance for a nice drive home.

I thought about going through Charlotte, but I dealt with Cale and the crew in Marietta a couple years ago during my aborted first purchase (Charlotte wasn't open then). They were very understanding of my situation, so I wanted to go back to them this time as well. So I'll have about a seven-hour drive home, with a stop in Greenville. No way do I want to fight the I75 traffic from Atlanta to Macon!

 

[BertL]

There are a couple other threads with discussion of pros and cons... Delivery at home is possible, but I would consider it an accommodation by Tesla, and you have to accept your delivery experience may not be as good as it could have been. That's completely your choice, as it may or may not be important to you. Some people have had deliveries by drivers that knew something about a Tesla and took them through a brief walk-through, others had "just a driver" that was there to make a delivery of a vehicle if you get my distinction.

Personally, I read every document multiple times before delivery, had watched a zillion videos and hung out on TMC almost daily for a couple months before placing my order... I'm only 45 minutes from my Service Center, but I appreciated meeting my DS that I'd traded so many emails with; I was able to physically inspect my $100K vehicle before signing any paperwork which made me a lot more comfortable; the SC installed my wheel locks while I was there; and I got a really good walk through of every option on my MS by a specialist willing to take the time to do that and answer every question I had, along with providing some useful practical use scenarios that Tesla's documentation sorely lacks. If I were you, I'd plan a mini vacation... Ask your DS for a first morning appointment, fly in early that morning or the night before; take delivery and learn about your new toy the way Tesla would prefer to do that with you; then take a leisurely drive home experiencing your first Supercharge and road trip in what will surely be your best new toy.

 

[Shaggy]

Youtube is your buddy, there a several tesla home deliveries. I'm not sure the delivery driver is supposed to do anything except offload.

Tesla Model S Delivery - YouTube

2015 Tesla Model S P85D Delivery -- (INSANE MODE) - YouTube

Tesla Model-S Ordered On-Line w/Doorstep Delivery - YouTube

Tesla delivery 4 Ray.MOV - YouTube

 

[brec]

I took home delivery to avoid about $2,300 in sales tax. The driver worked for Tesla and was quite helpful. I had lived and breathed Model S for weeks ahead of time, so I didn't feel I needed much hand-holding.

I didn't get a hat.

 

[pedriscoll]

I chose to take delivery at home to avoid driving to Cincinatti from Indianpolis. The car was delivered right to my door in pristine condition. I had watched all the walk through videos so I felt comfortable with accepting it. A sales associate from the Indianapolis store came out and did a formal walk through. Overall it was a very enjoyable process.