Salespeople Misinformed About My Inventory Model S Purchase

[AnxietyRanger]

No one "lied" to you. You bought a used Model S that was built before the recent changes.

Unless, of course, he asked for confirmation that there hadn't been any recent changes and was answered no after factory already changed to the new delivery mode. Then he might have a case, if he asked and was to a significant degree informed by the seller that this inventory model is the same as a new purchaser would get from the factory.

But certainly the timing is tight and we have no idea what he asked and what was answered. It is certainly possible he didn't have a case too. If he was given wrong information, we don't know if it was intentional or unintentional of course. You can't be sure nobody lied, but I agree as the OP said, it could also well be unintentional.

 

[Btrflyl8e]

Odd that this is the OP's very first post, and not another comment.

 

[AnxietyRanger]

Odd that this is the OP's very first post, and not another comment.

Is it really, though. Buy a new car, have something to say about it, sounds like a reason to register to a forum. Tons of people do that.

Anyway, I'll bow out of this one. Where necessary, let's agree to disagree on the topic itself.

 

[Bighorn]

Libel, pure and simple. Not worthy of further comment or assistance.

 

[dsm363]

On 9/24 I finalized a purchase on an inventory Model S 85kw. On 9/26, I picked up the car. Multiple salespeople assured me it was the current model. Now with the announcement of autopilot, it has become apparant that deliveries made after 9/19 included the new hardware.

While it's more than likely possible that the salespeople we unaware of this, it does not change the fact that I made a purchase decision to buy the car (having been misinformed), AFTER the new hardware was being delivered.

Will Tesla do anything to fix this? I was lied to and as a long time supporter of Tesla ($20 per share investor) - I hope they fix this!

is anyone else in the same situation?

I assume you went to the Bellevue store. All the people I've met there have been excellent. I doubt they 'lied' to you. You bought an inventory car and it was current at the time. Some cars left the factory early before the announcement but there is no way they could have know that. Were you going to buy a new car anyway?

 

[AnxietyRanger]

I assume you went to the Bellevue store. All the people I've met there have been excellent. I doubt they 'lied' to you. You bought an inventory car and it was current at the time. Some cars left the factory early before the announcement but there is no way they could have know that. Were you going to buy a new car anyway?

By the way, if you know those people - and they unknowingly passed out wrong information - then I guess it would be a great PR opportunity for Tesla to right such a mistake. If (and, of course, only if) wrong information unknowingly was passed onto the customer that ended up making a purchase decision based on such information.

 

[Valkryst]

I'm just catching up on this thread and WOW! lots of feedback.

To clear the record... I love my salesperson, I just think that they should have been INFORMED of what the company was actually doing.

I've escalated to Tesla and I'm also considering selling the model on the standard market in an attempt to get my money back (doubtful).

I know there were legal issues Tesla was dealing with in some states due to the dealerships all being company owned and not Franchise. In this situation, it could warrant a case for the other side (a side I never believed in until now).

Hopefully Tesla rights this, but I will keep everyone updated on the status.

So far I've sent an email to Elon Musk's office, the "contact us" form on the website, Zean the VP of sales, and the West delivery manager. Hopefully someone gets back to me.

Cheers!

 

[dsm363]

Since it is an inventory car maybe they'll buy it back and you can order new.

Since it was an announcement kept in secret until the reveal there really is nothing for the sales people to know.

 

[dsm363]

Mod note: title updated to reflect the sales person didn't lie per OP

 

[ACDriveMotor]

I know that if I was considering an inventory car I would personally compare the list of features against what was on the TM ordering site. That is basic due diligence for any large purchase if you have such a concern. The car either was or was not "current" according to the ordering website on the day you check. Things change all the time and the sales staff is likely among the last to know of unannounced changes for ANY manufacturer.

 

[AnxietyRanger]

I know that if I was considering an inventory car I would personally compare the list of features against what was on the TM ordering site. That is basic due diligence for any large purchase if you have such a concern. The car either was or was not "current" according to the ordering website on the day you check. Things change all the time and the sales staff is likely among the last to know of unannounced changes for ANY manufacturer.

Fair advice, of course, and I'd look even further - forums like this often have even more detailed information on what is going on with a car model.

Anyway, responded to add this bit of info: One more suggestion to check for the owner of this inventory vehicle. I believe this summer ionizer and some smaller things were added to the car. If it is an older inventory model, perhaps you will want to check that ionizer is there too?

 

[Haggy]

I read a post on the Tesla blog from somebody who was offered the opportunity to trade in. But there was a big price hit, and it doesn't seem to be handled as exchanging one item for another. So there would be double the sales tax, etc.

 

[ACDriveMotor]

Is that a surprise? Governments like to collect taxes and companies must comply with laws. Cars depreciate big time. News at 11

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Looks like one of the owners, maybe OP, has started a petition for retrofit that has been picked up by the media... here we go...

Model S owner launches petition demanding retrofit; Tesla stock continues slide | SiliconBeat

 

[jerry33]

Maybe there needs to be a stoplight dashboard similar to the one on the macrumors.com site. Green=buy now, just updated; yellow=mid cycle, buy with caution; red=new components coming soon, buy only if you really need one today. There could be categories such as motor, battery, Supercharger, display, sensor suite, lights, seats. So the more "greens" there are, the lower your chances that a major component will soon be upgraded.

 

[breser]

As of 9/24 or even 9/26, there were extensive conversations in this forum as people tried to figure out whether the factory was shipping hardware that people hadn't seen before (sensors and whatnot). Many of those conversations pointed out that the sales people themselves didn't know that there were new bits and pieces being delivered to some folks!

Actually the first post saying that the new features were showing up on cars was on 9/22. It did take till the afternoon of the 24th to really confirm that. There are people in that thread saying Tesla employees were telling them the post was lies or a test vehicle and weren't real (along with a lot of speculation to that effect by forum posters).

I don't understand why people are saying that Tesla employees shouldn't have known about this. If you're delivering cars with new features there is no secret. You can keep the scope of the features the hardware will enable secret. But there's no point in keeping the sensors themselves secret, owners are going to notice these things and post about them. Other owners are going to read about it and know about it. So your employees should be able to answer questions about this new hardware and the features that are enabled on the current car.

Tesla really should inform their employees better or hold back things like this from being seen by the public if they want it secret.

I have no stance on this situation with the OP. No idea what he was really told or what he expected. But I don't think it's too much to expect the employees to be informed about what's being delivered.

 

[Valkryst]

Quick Update:
As expected the trade-in option came in for less than I paid. Currently the Tesla Service Center Manager is going to be attending an offsite about a potential retrofit effort (cost, logistics, possibility) and is supposed to present my case to his piers this weekend. He said he will get back to me by Tuesday.

I am also exploring the option of selling the vehicle as I might be able to break-even given the discounts received (assuming the $7,500 tax rebate as part of the net cost). I will let you all know what happens in this regard, as the path to a 85 w/autopilot might be possible.

 

[breser]

Quick Update:
As expected the trade-in option came in for less than I paid. Currently the Tesla Service Center Manager is going to be attending an offsite about a potential retrofit effort (cost, logistics, possibility) and is supposed to present my case to his piers this weekend. He said he will get back to me by Tuesday.

That's very interesting. This at the Bellevue or Seattle service center?

I am also exploring the option of selling the vehicle as I might be able to break-even given the discounts received (assuming the $7,500 tax rebate as part of the net cost). I will let you all know what happens in this regard, as the path to a 85 w/autopilot might be possible.

Unless you can find a buyer out of state or that doesn't qualify for the full tax credit then you're going to have a hard time making the vehicle attractive vs a new or inventory car for anything close to what you paid. You've got a better chance since you got some of a discount being an inventory vehicle, but I still think this is very hard. The problem is sales tax in Washington applies to the sale of your vehicle (only new alternative fueled vehicles are exempt from sales tax). Which ups the cost to a buyer by quite a bit.

 

[dave]

I havent read every single response or thread on this board, but is seems the general attitude is that customers should know that technology changes and be happy with what they bought.

I feel like I should share my opinion as I work as a sales engineer for a technology company. I am continuously in this situation as new products and ALWAYS being developed, and I always have general knowledge of these changes ahead of time. It is my job to apply this knowledge to my customers environments so they purchase the right solutions. I am their trusted advisor, and as such, it is my duty to inform them of technological changes that might be coming soon - even if that means it may delay the sale for some time.

That being said, I have to make a judgment call in each scenario, as I have to sell what is realistically available now and what is in the best interests of the customer. It is usually rather easy to tell though when a customer would be upset by my withholding knowledge of an upcoming release just so I can make an immediate sale.

In this case I don't know if the sales people were just ignorant or deliberately guided by Tesla to withhold information so Elon Musk could make a glorious news release, but I do think a technology sales person has a duty to educate their customers about the product line and near term changes so they can make an informed decision and ultimately be satisfied with the company and their purchase.

This is especially applicable to a company that does not have scheduled hardware refreshes such as typical auto manufacturers or even Apple where you pretty much know the schedule of when a new iPhone is going to be released. I know I waited a few months because to refresh my phone because I knew the iPhone 6 was coming out.

Anyways, not to ramble. Just wanted to point out that a technology company should have an educated sales staff that is willing and able to help guide their customers through imminent technology changes during the sales cycle.

 

[HankLloydRight]

Dave, but what if a customer came to you and said "Hey, Dave... Do you have any demo unit or floor equipment that's a few months old that you can sell me at a discount?"

How obligated would you feel to that customer telling them of unannounced advances in the pipeline?