Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Should We Be Concerned?

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
My concern is about the SCs in the same building as the showroom. I don't care if they sell cars but I do care about the servicing. It's 50 miles away now. How much farther should I expect to drive? I can't believe mobile techs will be able to do everything a SC can do. Sometimes a lift is necessary., for example.

My service center in Cleveland is laughable in size. Hopefully they blow out all the sales and delivery areas for actual service. My local Chevrolet dealership can handle maybe 5 times as many cars at one time compared to this location. Think how many Chevrolet dealerships are in a large metro area. Obviously more Chevrolet cars at current time. Spend the bucks on the service. Those experiences can create negative speak. Like I tell 10 people I am pissed, but only one person if I am happy.

My Ranger can do just about everything from experience. I find it nice to not have to go to a place that is not convenient for me, and let someone else figure out how to be accommodating to me. Only time a lift was needed for me was to replace my battery fluid for my 50k service.
 
First, I am not concerned about the financial viability of the company long term.

That said, I am concerned about the human impact of reducing the sales staff to zero.
I visited the Tesla Seaside location this afternoon to say goodbye to the remaining sales staff members... today is their last day :(
From an investment prospective, I fully understand eliminating the sales staff. The changes in pricing are also a good thing for the bottom line in the long run.

That said, I hate to see people lose their jobs. Hopefully, some/most can find spots elsewhere in the company. Either way I wish them all the best.
 
It just seems to me we had several negatives come out in rapid succession. All the focus on this thread is on eliminating sales centers, but the price drops are concerning too (prices dropped more than the reduction in tax rebate). As well as Elon now reversing himself and saying Q1 will not show a profit. And goodcarbadcar.net is showing X and S sales down 50% and 70% from the same period last year. Model 3 I can understand with most shipping overseas now, but X and S should be steady. And there wasn't a big increase in their sales at the end of 2018 - maybe an extra 500 each in December. So there's definitely signs of hurt going on. The Q1 earnings call should be very illuminating.

Though we do know it's not competition from the i-Pace - for the 4th month now, they have only sold 200/mo in the US. Is it low demand, dealers not selling them, or most of them going to Europe/China? Or maybe it's not so easy for the big boys to make electric vehicles at scale?
 
  • Informative
Reactions: FlatSix911
I bought my car more than three years ago, and would never have bought it sight unseen or without a test drive. i had 3 or 4 test drives and spent lots of time in showrooms, sitting in the cars, deciding on colors and finishes and testing the audio systems etc. How is one to do that with no showrooms? Why would any "ordinary" buyer, the ones Model 3 is aimed at, buy the car sight unseen or even without a test drive? How do you chose options? I agree with the OP and am fearful this is the wrong path. It feels like a desperate action to scrape up a few bucks to justify the $35,000 Model 3. It might have been better to say, sorry folks, we can't do a $35K car, we will sell it for $37K or $38K or whatever would work, and own up to it and move on.
Saying they will improve service and actually doing it are another fear -- they have said it before. Is the parts problem solved? No. I no longer trust that Tesla will do what they say. This is the most negative post I ever wrote here. Color me worried, very worried.

David, I agree... however you and I may not be the target demographic of the new Model 3 buyer for Tesla going forward.
I have many referrals from friends and associates and will continue to offer test drives and promote the Tesla brand. :cool:
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: David29