Hi all,
My dad was offered $6654 for a trade-in on October 24th and accepted online before any deadline. The quote, and he has it saved as a PDF, listed:
"Your saved trade-in credit: $6654, Valid until October 31st, 2021."
That same day, he made the decision to purchase a Model 3 LR largely on the basis of this offer, but then did not see any credit for the trade-in related to his order on the account page. He called Tesla, and they said he would not see a credit listed on the account until closer to the delivery date. He called Tesla again prior to October 31st, confirming his intent to accept and wondering why no Tesla credit was shown. Phone rep told him she could apply it manually, and it would show up in a couple days. Later on, he scheduled a test drive on November 11th and inquired why his credit did not show. Rep said she did something to the account and told him he later could upload odometer, and he did the next day November 12th.
He asked at basically every step along the way if trade value could be changed. And reps assured him no major changes could occur, unless the odometer was majorly wrong or their was a significant (undrivable) defect with the vehicle. When I've talked to Tesla in the past, I have asked about trade-in values, and again they assured that no major price changes occur, absent something major (e.g., an unreported collision or lying about the odometer). The language that my dad agreed to when accepting:
"
I certify that the details above are accurate and that my trade-in is in good condition, drivable, free of
major cosmetic and mechanical issues and has no history of any major accidents.
I acknowledge that this is an estimated value for my trade-in, and that it can change significantly based on
market conditions and the vehicle’s final odometer reading at the time of delivery. Tesla will provide a final
offer approximately two weeks prior to the delivery date
"
Yesterday, after uploading his odometer, which is not significantly different than when the initial quote came, Tesla's updated offer came: $1500. The particular language is:
Your valuation is complete and expires on 12/13/2021.
Trade-In Credit$1,500.00
Long story short, a drop from $6654 to $1500 when the used market for his vehicle type has *increased* in price is not a difference with respect to market conditions. There are no new "major defects" or anything of that sort. They dropped his trade-in value 78% based on no major changes in the cars history only after he put down a $250 non-refundable deposit and made commitments to install a Level-2 charger at home. This cannot be reasonably construed as a change in "market conditions", when the market has strengthened for his vehicle type. In my view, this is an abusive and predatory practice and feels very much like bait and switch. Let me also say, I have long been a fan of Tesla, have an order for a Tesla myself, and have been a long-term investor in Tesla. I'm not some crazed anti-Tesla person. However, this behavior is not acceptable. If this not rectified, this will result in two cancelled orders (one from my dad and one from myself).
Tesla has tons of brand power and has distinguished themselves in performance and in a number of ways. They don't need to resort to tactics like this.
Tl;dr My dad's trade-in value was changed from $6654 to $1500, only after he placed his order and placed a $250 fee, with no major differences.
My dad was offered $6654 for a trade-in on October 24th and accepted online before any deadline. The quote, and he has it saved as a PDF, listed:
"Your saved trade-in credit: $6654, Valid until October 31st, 2021."
That same day, he made the decision to purchase a Model 3 LR largely on the basis of this offer, but then did not see any credit for the trade-in related to his order on the account page. He called Tesla, and they said he would not see a credit listed on the account until closer to the delivery date. He called Tesla again prior to October 31st, confirming his intent to accept and wondering why no Tesla credit was shown. Phone rep told him she could apply it manually, and it would show up in a couple days. Later on, he scheduled a test drive on November 11th and inquired why his credit did not show. Rep said she did something to the account and told him he later could upload odometer, and he did the next day November 12th.
He asked at basically every step along the way if trade value could be changed. And reps assured him no major changes could occur, unless the odometer was majorly wrong or their was a significant (undrivable) defect with the vehicle. When I've talked to Tesla in the past, I have asked about trade-in values, and again they assured that no major price changes occur, absent something major (e.g., an unreported collision or lying about the odometer). The language that my dad agreed to when accepting:
"
I certify that the details above are accurate and that my trade-in is in good condition, drivable, free of
major cosmetic and mechanical issues and has no history of any major accidents.
I acknowledge that this is an estimated value for my trade-in, and that it can change significantly based on
market conditions and the vehicle’s final odometer reading at the time of delivery. Tesla will provide a final
offer approximately two weeks prior to the delivery date
"
Yesterday, after uploading his odometer, which is not significantly different than when the initial quote came, Tesla's updated offer came: $1500. The particular language is:
Your valuation is complete and expires on 12/13/2021.
Trade-In Credit$1,500.00
Long story short, a drop from $6654 to $1500 when the used market for his vehicle type has *increased* in price is not a difference with respect to market conditions. There are no new "major defects" or anything of that sort. They dropped his trade-in value 78% based on no major changes in the cars history only after he put down a $250 non-refundable deposit and made commitments to install a Level-2 charger at home. This cannot be reasonably construed as a change in "market conditions", when the market has strengthened for his vehicle type. In my view, this is an abusive and predatory practice and feels very much like bait and switch. Let me also say, I have long been a fan of Tesla, have an order for a Tesla myself, and have been a long-term investor in Tesla. I'm not some crazed anti-Tesla person. However, this behavior is not acceptable. If this not rectified, this will result in two cancelled orders (one from my dad and one from myself).
Tesla has tons of brand power and has distinguished themselves in performance and in a number of ways. They don't need to resort to tactics like this.
Tl;dr My dad's trade-in value was changed from $6654 to $1500, only after he placed his order and placed a $250 fee, with no major differences.
