Picking up tomorrow, Tesla said I have a 15 minute window to pickup, BS

[m3tx]

Hi Don!


I am incredibly excited for you to be picking up your Tesla! Your 15-minute pickup appointment is scheduled for July 11th, 2018 @ 11:00AM at our Houston-North service center, located at:

14820 North Fwy

Houston, TX 77090

281.982.7130


To ensure there are no delays on during your appointment, please carefully review the information below for accuracy:

My reply. Magan, I am looking forward to it but I can tell you right now I am going to take longer than 15 minutes to inspect before I accept. I dont expect any problems as I see most customers on teslamotorsclub.com are very happy but 15 minutes to inspect a 57K car is not acceptable, if you want to schedule a longer period some other day that is ok. don

So it's almost 10 hours past your appointment time now, wondering if you're still at the service center or if you took delivery?

More seriously, how did it go? I am taking delivery next week from that center (although I was told date might be pushed, maybe because people take forever to inspect ), and curious to hear about the process

 

[Ejl80]

Why is there demand? People love being abused by poor service?

You completely ignored my uncorking example 6 months after delivery. Who else does THAT? And at no cost?

You seem to think Tesla is being difficult because they take pleasure in doing so? They went from delivering 20K cars a year, to 50K, to a 100K. Now its going straight from 100K to 300K a year.

Anyone who runs a business knows how difficult it is to "survive", They have to survive, and scale out, and manage consumer expectations while doing it in a cost efficient and cost effective manner at the same time.

Ford makes 7000 cars in 4 hours. Ford can make up to 15 million cars in a year. No one wants more than 2.6 million of them in a year however and this was back in 2016.

There is demand because BMW, MB, Audi, Lexus, etc do not make a comparable car right now. If I get rushed out the door while inspecting my car, I can will return to BMW when they create a comparable electric 3 series. That I believe is everyone's point. There is demand because they are the only game in town. Once they have competition, people will not stay if there is poor service.

 

[Knightshade]

There is demand because BMW, MB, Audi, Lexus, etc do not make a comparable car right now. If I get rushed out the door while inspecting my car, I can will return to BMW when they create a comparable electric 3 series. That I believe is everyone's point. There is demand because they are the only game in town. Once they have competition, people will not stay if there is poor service.

People also won't stay if they go bankrupt because they couldn't deliver cars fast enough by spending an hour with each buyer at delivery

Or because they had to open way too many DCs and hire way too many delivery people to be able to spend an hour with each buyer and deliver a huge # of cars too.

 

[MXWing]

People also won't stay if they go bankrupt because they couldn't deliver cars fast enough by spending an hour with each buyer at delivery

Or because they had to open way too many DCs and hire way too many delivery people to be able to spend an hour with each buyer and deliver a huge # of cars too.

Sorry your explanation is too rational and too simple so it has to be wrong.

There has to be some maleficence or some ulterior shannigans at play. Just have to dig deeper to find it.

 

[Ejl80]

People also won't stay if they go bankrupt because they couldn't deliver cars fast enough by spending an hour with each buyer at delivery

Or because they had to open way too many DCs and hire way too many delivery people to be able to spend an hour with each buyer and deliver a huge # of cars too.

If they go bankrupt it is due to mismanagement and attempting to grow too fast without putting the proper infrastructure in place first. I hope tesla survives forever and they hit a home run here.

 

[MXWing]

If they go bankrupt it is due to mismanagement and attempting to grow too fast without putting the proper infrastructure in place first. I hope tesla survives forever and they hit a home run here.

Tesla burnt through $9,000 PER MINUTE at one point. They had all the infrastructure and R&D in place except for the one that mattered the absolute most - car production.

Car production is still issue 1-12 on the top 10 list of critical issues.

Delivery infrastructure doesn't add to the bottom line so understandably it ramps the slowest.

 

[Ejl80]

Tesla burnt through $9,000 PER MINUTE at one point. They had all the infrastructure and R&D in place except for the one that mattered the absolute most - car production.

Car production is still issue 1-12 on the top 10 list of critical issues.

Delivery infrastructure doesn't add to the bottom line so understandably it ramps the slowest.

I didn’t say delivery infrastructure. I know that is what the thread is about, but I meant in general. Top to bottom.

 

[SpudLime]

After reading this thread it’s almost like we need to reach out and organize some sort of gathering locally. It would be our way of showing support for this company who is trying to change the world.

It’s going through some growing pains and I want it to succeed.

If that means organizing through the SC a Saturday every couple months to gather with other owners to go over all the ins and outs, then I would totally do that. I’m sure plenty others would as well.

Just like getting a new fancy phone or computer, I’m always taking the time to show friends and family all the nifty thingamabobs.

Not everyone is dedicated to scouring the internet for every little detail these cars can do. I do it because I enjoy it. It would be even more fun to show others.

In short it could be a fun way for group support to fellow owners, take the burnden off Elon and crew who are obviously expanding past capacity.

 

[Cycle11111]

Just did my pickup in Fremont. The big issue is arrive within 15 minute window, but I poked around for 45 minutes before I drove away.

 

[AtlasReardan]

It seems like people are focusing on the wrong issues with this topic. I'm sympathetic to someone that feels stressed over assuming ownership of a large purchase with only 5 minutes of inspection time, but what is the source of the stress? The root cause is the thought of taking ownership of the car with an undiscovered issue affecting its value. Tesla needs to assure people that a short delivery process doesn't mean getting stuck holding the bag if there's an issue. So it's not a 5 - 15 minute inspection--it's a 5 - 15 minute delivery, and the customer can take all the time they want to inspect from the privacy of their own home. "If you find any issues in the first 24-48 hours, let us know and we'll take care of you." So Tesla gets their lean, mean, low-staffed delivery process, and for the few (hopefully) customers that have an issue, they'll have a process to resolve with confidence.

I don't know what Tesla's official policy is on issues reported after driving away, but based on what I've read, it seems like they try to make things right (albeit with some variability in the time to resolve issues). If they said, "Give us your $50k - $80k for a Model 3, we'll give you 5 minutes to check it out, and then it's your problem--caveat emptor," I'd be miffed too. But that doesn't seem to be the case.

If they can remove the prospect of getting stuck with a problem (no matter how likely or unlikely), then the stress associated with the short delivery fades away, and it starts to look like a benefit.

 

[Moderatefan]

I don't think it's that easy to "scale out" staff and delivery points friction free as you seem to think.

They just laid off 3.5k people, who were said to not work on the factory floor and would not affect production. Maybe they were delivery people? Seems fishy. So, if margins are not there yet and they need to show profit, then for the next 6 months customers get 15 min and delivery people get stress related anxiety? If they ask me whether I want some part of the car removed to pay for extra delivery specialists, I would probably be ok w/ 15min, but otherwise 30min seem like a good balance to target.

 

[JeffreyY]

After reading this thread it’s almost like we need to reach out and organize some sort of gathering locally. It would be our way of showing support for this company who is trying to change the world.

It’s going through some growing pains and I want it to succeed.

If that means organizing through the SC a Saturday every couple months to gather with other owners to go over all the ins and outs, then I would totally do that. I’m sure plenty others would as well.

Just like getting a new fancy phone or computer, I’m always taking the time to show friends and family all the nifty thingamabobs.

Not everyone is dedicated to scouring the internet for every little detail these cars can do. I do it because I enjoy it. It would be even more fun to show others.

In short it could be a fun way for group support to fellow owners, take the burnden off Elon and crew who are obviously expanding past capacity.

Rockin’ Idea!

 

[Moderatefan]

If you find any issues in the first 24-48 hours, let us know and we'll take care of you.

I've seen many topics with people asking whether to take delivery or reject the car based on some problems they find. Many were suggesting them to reject, esp paint issues, b/c "body shop paint never matches factory paint". Many were fine with follow up paint jobs, but there were a few horror stories with an owner having to have the car repainted 3-4 times until colors matched and people having car in a shop for weeks/months having to follow up all the time and no clarity when they get the car back. So, if you have to take the car in a bunch of times and go through that frustration, then rejection and 3-4 weeks wait for a replacement starting to look like a better option.
Therefore, a good inspection could be valuable when compared with 2-3 months of "being taken care of". Not trying to spread FUD, I believe the number of rejections/severe post-delivery re-work is not very great, but I can see why some people think they deserve the opportunity for a thorough inspection.

 

[AtlasReardan]

Therefore, a good inspection could be valuable when compared with 2-3 months of "being taken care of".

Fair enough. Hopefully the major issues could be spotted quickly even during an abbreviated delivery, but a customer-friendly policy over the first 24-48 hours could give comfort to those worried about finding more nuanced issues later.

 

[Moderatefan]

After reading this thread it’s almost like we need to reach out and organize some sort of gathering locally. It would be our way of showing support for this company who is trying to change the world.

It’s going through some growing pains and I want it to succeed.

If that means organizing through the SC a Saturday every couple months to gather with other owners to go over all the ins and outs, then I would totally do that. I’m sure plenty others would as well.

Just like getting a new fancy phone or computer, I’m always taking the time to show friends and family all the nifty thingamabobs.

Not everyone is dedicated to scouring the internet for every little detail these cars can do. I do it because I enjoy it. It would be even more fun to show others.

In short it could be a fun way for group support to fellow owners, take the burnden off Elon and crew who are obviously expanding past capacity.

Delivery specialist telling a customer: "Now that we've shown you basic controls that will help you drive the car away from the lot, we are handing you over to our community support group that will help you get familiar with the rest of the car manual and teach you valuable tips and tricks based on their extended experience of being Tesla drivers. Keep in mind that Tesla does not officially approve all of their tricks, for example, those that allow you not to keep your hands on the wheel at all times."

 

[P85_DA]

The issue with inspection ..is what is the standard to measure against ? Folks have different thresholds for “perfection” ...you can read a member here who has several threads of his own issues ..down to measuring paint thickness...as a company you can’t satisfy these customers ...

 

[AustinPowers]

The issue with inspection ..is what is the standard to measure against ? Folks have different thresholds for “perfection” ...you can read a member here who has several threads of his own issues ..down to measuring paint thickness...as a company you can’t satisfy these customers ...

The problem is that Tesla is well known for having had, at least in the past, sloppy quality control, and there are many stories here on the forum as well as around the web of cars that had all kinds of defects or imperfections, from minor stuff that can be fixed easily to major stuff like gross door misalignments and other similar defects (on some forum member's X for just one extreme example).
With traditional automakers, at least from my experience, you get quality control that deserves the name, and you are in no rush during your delivery process. Perhaps that is why some find the Tesla experience more stressfull.

By the way, I just got an email by VW preparing me for the experience that will await me when picking up my e-Golf from the "Gläserne Manufaktur" in Dresden, and from the details I gather I will be treated in a very special way (and be far more pampered than when we picked up our Touran at the "normal" factory in Wolfsburg - which still was a very pleasant experience). After all, the e-Golf is hand-built and even to VW is very different and more special than the standard plain ICE Golf that they manufacture millions of each year.

I am sure that the Model 3 delivery process over here, once it finally does arrive, will be quite different to the one in the US mainly because there just aren't as many people waiting in line plus not as much pressure on Tesla to get as many out of the door as possible.

 

[psykobunny83]

I completely agree with you. Perhaps if this was the cheap $35, 000 base model then I would understand, but mine is $80, 000 Canadian after all the options. I have only ever owned BMW before and taking delivery is the most exciting part. In Toronto you take the elevator to the 5th floor where your car is waiting upstairs overlooking the city for you to do the final iinspection. Then it goes on a glass elevator down to the street level for you. Tesla can try to tell me it will be 15 minutes all they want, they will take as long as I need. I've never heard of buying a car before where there's so many scratches are issues you need to take care of first. my father who is coming with me for delivery already said we aren't leaving there if there's a single scratch or mark on the car or accepting that. It's perfect or nothing.

 

[P85_DA]

. It's perfect or nothing.

...coming in with that mindset you may as well save your time and buy another car ...M3s have known issues with headlight alignment ...charge port not flush etc ..however the car runs ...prepared to be disappointed

 

[MXWing]

I completely agree with you. Perhaps if this was the cheap $35, 000 base model then I would understand, but mine is $80, 000 Canadian after all the options. I have only ever owned BMW before and taking delivery is the most exciting part. In Toronto you take the elevator to the 5th floor where your car is waiting upstairs overlooking the city for you to do the final iinspection. Then it goes on a glass elevator down to the street level for you. Tesla can try to tell me it will be 15 minutes all they want, they will take as long as I need. I've never heard of buying a car before where there's so many scratches are issues you need to take care of first. my father who is coming with me for delivery already said we aren't leaving there if there's a single scratch or mark on the car or accepting that. It's perfect or nothing.

You better hope you have another way home other than that Model 3 then.