Tesla Stores

[vfx]

If you have problems with the manufacture, you don't think you'd have them with their dealers?

That too.

 

[FalconNinetyD]

Apparently all of those laws mandating dealers in order to protect the customer didn't help here:

Camaro owner records mechanics abusing car, scheming to get damages paid for | Motoramic - Yahoo! Autos

 

[jordanthompson]

And I know that Toyota of Melbourne (I am sure that they are not the only dealer) pay their mechanics by the number of problems they find and can get the owner to pay for.

 

[mnx]

And I know that Toyota of Melbourne (I am sure that they are not the only dealer) pay their mechanics by the number of problems they find and can get the owner to pay for.

There's nothing wrong with that in theory, as long as all the problems found are legitimate. I guess it comes down to if the owners of the dealership and the mechanics have any sort of integrity.

 

[jordanthompson]

There's nothing wrong with that in theory, as long as all the problems found are legitimate. I guess it comes down to if the owners of the dealership and the mechanics have any sort of integrity.

As as software engineer, this is how I relate to that concept:

 

[Doug_G]

There's nothing wrong with that in theory, as long as all the problems found are legitimate. I guess it comes down to if the owners of the dealership and the mechanics have any sort of integrity.

Years ago the local (name withheld) dealer kept pulling shenanigans. My mother had a car from that dealer, and insisted on going back to them while the car was still under warranty. But she asked me to handle it for her because she was sure they were messing with her. They were, though from what I could tell they were mainly ripping off the manufacturer by doing unnecessary repairs under warranty. Still, it was a huge hassle dealing with them.

The last time I went there was for the final service before the warranty expired (I've never been happy to see a warranty expire before or since). I called them a month before the expiry date, just to be safe, but they still gave me an appointment slightly after the date. I was suspicious. Sure enough they tried to charge me for the repairs. I'm sure they were going to double-dip it. When I objected the guy literally said, "well, you can't blame me for trying, right?" My answer was, "I sure as hell can!" Never been through their doors again.

A couple of years later that dealership almost lost their franchise because the manufacturer got so many complaints about their service, and they finally had to clean up their act. Still won't go near the place, though.

 

[Kipernicus]

Dyer Consequences: Let's Make A Deal

Eventually, I escape with the car I wanted at the price I agreed upon, but they don't make it easy. And that's why people abhor car dealers. You know that you'll be forced to run a gauntlet of charlatans attempting to mug you each step of the way, ideally to the point where you pay more than full retail.

 

[Jaff]

(didn't see this posted yet)...The Toronto office has changed their phone message to advise that the new Toronto Store will be opening on Nov 15 / 12 at Yorkdale Mall, and, that the Tesla Service Centers in Vancouver & Montreal will be open by the end of 2012...sounds like a party coming! :smile:

 

[mnx]

(didn't see this posted yet)...The Toronto office has changed their phone message to advise that the new Toronto Store will be opening on Nov 15 / 12 at Yorkdale Mall, and, that the Tesla Service Centers in Vancouver & Montreal will be open by the end of 2012...sounds like a party coming! :smile:

You beat me to it, I saw it on facebook last night. It said the grand opening was November 16th though...

 

[v12 to 12v]

In my experience, it is. I had some issues with my Sienna (Toyota) that were covered by the manufacturer's extended warranty (not the dealer's warranty). It was slam-dunk no problem to get it done. I know for a fact had I had the dealer's warranty, it would have been and ordeal to get the same work done. The manufacturer has a lot more at stake than the dealer. Just look at the difference in their salesmen (people!) There are not many car dealers I would want to meet on the street or have over to dinner, but the Tesla guys (and gals!) are a different breed - they are in it for altruistic reasons as well as making a few bucks. How many normal car sales people have degrees from Stanford or MIT? I have met several from Tesla and none without a college education from a school I have actually heard of. Not the case with normal car dealers - you are lucky to find one with any college education (OK - maybe a little exaggeration for effect here.)

My friend and I had the interesting experience of being guests at the Venitian/Palazzo in Las Vegas during a car dealer and broker convention this year.
One of the groups there had the acronym NABD. That cracked me up. We ended up changing hotels a day later.

 

[FalconNinetyD]

i received an email this morning saying the San Diego store will be opening on Thursday, October 25th. From 6:30pm - 8:30pm they will be having an "exclusive event" for reservation holders.

 

[markb1]

i received an email this morning saying the San Diego store will be opening on Thursday, October 25th. From 6:30pm - 8:30pm they will be having an "exclusive event" for reservation holders.

Got that, too. The email also said the San Diego service center would open on October 24th.

 

[v12 to 12v]

Elon's Statements regarding Tesla Stores and Dealerships

Tesla CEO Elon Musk Takes on Car Dealers - Corporate Intelligence - WSJ

 

[art]

we need a store in the mpls. area. mall of america ? 42,000,000 visitors a year.

 

[bonnie]

we need a store in the mpls. area. mall of america ? 42,000,000 visitors a year.

I agree - a store at MOA would be a great spot.

 

[meloccom]

Is it just me or are the recent actions by North American Dealers Association (NADA) and others a big threat to Tesla's business model and survival?
lawsuits-filed-against-tesla-stores-in-ny-ma
Given the political connections of NADA and the discussions about the anticompetitive state dealership laws on this forum -
Discussion about anticompetitive state dealership laws
I don't think the case for Tesla is cut and dried. It's likely that Tesla will lose one of the cases when there is the potential to be sued in 48 states.
Possibly they need to consider some alternate strategies, at least for the US states where they lose their cases against NADA.
My brilliant idea would be to create a mobile shop, similar to this Starbucks below but with George’s design ethic.
Starbucks Opens Its First Mobile Shop | Branding Magazine
So, for example if they are forced to close a “Gallerie” in Texas they can simply have a travelling shop …er … show that invites you to log onto Teslmotors.com when you get home after learning all the benefits of driving a Tesla EV.
Does anyone think I am overreacting?

 

[earthling]

Repost from Huge THANK YOU to existing owner thread

I think, because of this, TSLA should just close any 'galleries' in problematic states and just open service centers, relying on word of mouth advertising. It should work just fine, it's not like they have a shortage of demand these days.

Well, the NY and MA Dealers Associations have kindly offered to split marketing costs with them in those states.

Well something in these two comments triggered the "Evil Genius" part of my brain. What if Tesla has already factored in the costs of any potential lawsuits and really is just considering it as part of their marketing budget? I think that well done "Service Centers" could fill the need for any touchy-feely requests, although granted they won't be located in high foot traffic malls and such.

- - - Updated - - -

we need a store in the mpls. area. mall of america ? 42,000,000 visitors a year.

Holy Cow! That's more than 100,000 people EVERYDAY!! (Something must be broke in my math department)

 

[kaisen]

Holy Cow! That's more than 100,000 people EVERYDAY!! (Something must be broke in my math department)

Yes, as many people visit the MOA as Disney World. I live about three miles away.

There have been other galleries in MOA, inlcuding a large Chrysler 'store' years ago. Ford has vehicles in the common entrances to Nickelodeon Universe theme park and has for years.

BUT they cannot engage in sales activities. They may display them, discuss them, demonstrate features....they just cannot discuss price or terms.

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. I own a dealership, and have jumped through the hoops for twenty plus years. The laws need to change, not just for Tesla or manufacturers, but for dealers as well. It's hard to adapt to the preferences of consumers when the laws (including local zoning laws) simply don't allow it.

 

[earthling]

First off, let me be the first to say welcome to the TeslaMotorsClub forums.

...There have been other galleries in MOA, inlcuding a large Chrysler 'store' years ago. Ford has vehicles in the common entrances to Nickelodeon Universe theme park and has for years.

BUT they cannot engage in sales activities. They may display them, discuss them, demonstrate features....they just cannot discuss price or terms.

Well then, that seems to me that vehicle manufacturers have already set a precedent as far as "galleries" go for showing off the company products. Thank you kaisen.

Cheers =)

 

[kaisen]

Well then, that seems to me that vehicle manufacturers have already set a precedent as far as "galleries" go for showing off the company products.

Yes, the Chrysler 'store' was a 15,000 square foot space, 12K for display and 3K for retail store of Chrysler branded items.

When it was operating in the Mall of America it saw 4,000 visitors on slower days and peaked at 12,500 visitors per day on the busiest, averaging almost 40,000 visitors per week.....about the same as Disney's Epcot Center.

Employees were trained to answer questions about the products, and could help them with everything except buying a car, but they referred them to their nearest dealership. Of course, Chrysler had thousands of dealers 15 years ago when the "Great Cars, Great Trucks" store was open at MOA.

Tesla is forging new trails with their sales model, and I truly hope they can stand their ground.

Not everyone sees the value in what traditional dealerships have become. Think about it. Five acres or more of prime location, with a 40,000 square foot sales/service facility with at least a couple hundred vehicles in stock. In a typical metro location that's $5+ million in real estate, and up to $40MM
Even a hundred new cars represent another $2-4MM. The monthly fixed and semi-fixed costs of a franchised new-car dealership can run $300-500K per month. The pressure to 'move iron' is certainly on.

However, fewer buyers care about the dealer's services, facility, conveniences, location, or selection. It's all about price, and they're researching that online. Can you see that dealer A has a gorgeous new facility with marble floors, free Wi-Fi, flatscreen TVs, and leather furniture when you search price online? Nope. Results sorted by price.

Smart dealers would LOVE to simply rent a cheap space in the mall and take orders. But they can't do it either. I can't think of a state that would grant a dealer's license (new or used) to a mall location. They might allow a mall location as a satellite. Zoning in most governing municipalities have set-in-stone ideas of what a 'dealership' looks like. It would take change at many levels to allow dealerships to operate in the internet age.

Hopefully Tesla can/will play a large role in changing those old paradigms.