Tesla Test Drives in the UK . .

[FairlyOldGit]

not sure if this in the right place - my first post as a potential Tesla Owner Driver . . .
I got a recent email about test drives . .

This spring you are welcome to experience Model 3 for a test drive at over 25 locations across the UK.

I live out in the sticks in East Yorkshire and wanted to find out where the 25 locations were, before thinking about signing up - can anybody list them please.

 

[FairlyOldGit]

Just tried the sign-up procedure, was offered four locations only - Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, I'm guessing just some of the main stores (like seven in London!)
I was hoping for somewhere a little closer to home!

 

[sroy]

Not sure if it's covid related or if this has always been the case but in the US, there are only 3 locations for test drive (and I believe on the west coast) at least last I check but there is a test drive tour. The later depends on timing of course. Not sure if that's the same in other countries.

A nice workaround is to test drive one in a used car lot neaby if there is any. That's what my brother did before getting his (and I test drove his in my case).

 

[skippyinspace]

I have a test drive (Car Loan as it's called during Covid) from Aberdeen this weekend, the Closest dealership to where I am 35 miles away. All of it is being done remotely via video call, Don't even think I'm going to see the salesperson except on screen

 

[tomorrowman]

not sure if this in the right place - my first post as a potential Tesla Owner Driver . . .
I got a recent email about test drives . .


I live out in the sticks in East Yorkshire and wanted to find out where the 25 locations were, before thinking about signing up - can anybody list them please.

Leeds is in Yorkshire - quite a privilege to have a sales centre in your county As a hampshire boy I had to go to Heathrow until Telsa recently opened a Sales/Service centre in Winchester.

Full list of sales centres can be found here Tesla Stores in United Kingdom | Tesla UK

P.S. I did not actually bother with a test drive, which was a 1st for me - No regrets but the viability of that approach is very much person dependent. The other trick is chat to any Tesla owner you can track down in the area - I tend to find them a helpful bunch who without much prompting will extol the virtues and take you for a test drive (though covid complicates matters until June).

Is there anything in particular you want to know ?

 

[Dilly]

Leeds is in Yorkshire - quite a privilege to have a sales centre in your county AS a hampshire boy I had to go to Heathrow until the recently opened one in Winchester.

Full list of sales centres can be found here Tesla Stores in United Kingdom | Tesla UK

P.S. I did not actually bother with a test drive, which was a 1st for me - No regrets but it all depends what you are after. The other trick is chat to any Tesla owner you can track down in the area - I tend to find them a helpful bunch who without much prompting will extol the virtues and take you for a test drive (though covid complicates matters until June)

We’d better not start again but; a Tesla in Yorkshire. Luxury!

 

[tomorrowman]

Many great things beginning with T in Yorkshire - Tea Cakes, Tetley Tea and now Tesla.
Apparently the National Grid even got there.

Did not realise until recently that Yorkshire is the UK's largest country (as a Lancashire lad - in my youth we where brainwashed into believing nothing positive came out of Yorkshire - Thankfully I am now more enlightened)

 

[Alan J]

I bought Off Plan with no Test Drive in August 2019 and haven't regretted it, they had the 7 day hand back rule then, not sure if it still applies, my Plan B was if they offered me a few Quid off to keep it I would do so.

 

[Billbrown1982]

All I will say, is that if your going to do a test drive, this is a great time to do it because the salesman can't come out with you due to Covid. So instead of having a very distracted and directed dalliance around the site, you can actually take the car out and have a proper drive of it for an hour.

 

[JAR897]

I'd certainly recommend a test drive, even if just for the experience of driving a Tesla! I had one back in Summer '20 in Solihull (in a Model S Performance as they had no available Model 3's at the time...), so there's certainly more than just the four you mention.

It's absolutely worth it just for the experience (be prepared to be amazed and confused in equal measure) but the guys and gals on this forum do an amazing job of answering any questions.

Let us know how/if you get on with your test drive and be sure to reach out with any Q's!

 

[JAR897]

All I will say, is that if your going to do a test drive, this is a great time to do it because the salesman can't come out with you due to Covid. So instead of having a very distracted and directed dalliance around the site, you can actually take the car out and have a proper drive of it for an hour.

Exactly! Me and the Misus took a MSP out without a salesman... they were all young (and trendy) and just handed the "key" over and said "Go for it, motorway is about 10 mins away, we've set the nav on a round trip up/down motorway but see you in about an hour".... When I returned (with a massive smile on my face and all the blood firmly in the BACK of my skull) they just smiled back, acknowledging that it'd not been the most efficient drive, and said "good, eh?". I was sold at that moment.

 

[Dilly]

We had ours pre-Covid. They just sent us for half an hour on our own. It was a Tesla event day at hotel near Norwich.

 

[simonh]

I had a test drive at Leeds before buying an M3. It was a great experience. Turn up, they unlock the car, off you go for half an hour on your own. Bring it back, walk away. Then place your order at leisure on your computer (or you can chat to someone if you want who will load up the website on a computer and operate the mouse and keyboard for you), pay the money, turn up of delivery date, inspect and drive away with a car.

If you're expecting the old showroom salesman patter, glass of prosecco, show some interest in your life as you so such a special person (give me my commission so I can eat this month), you will love our brand and the service our dealership offer type of stuff then it ain't.

All of which is why the whole Tesla experience of buying a car is so perfect for me

 

[Mperkins28]

I'd certainly recommend a test drive, even if just for the experience of driving a Tesla! I had one back in Summer '20 in Solihull (in a Model S Performance as they had no available Model 3's at the time...), so there's certainly more than just the four you mention.

It's absolutely worth it just for the experience (be prepared to be amazed and confused in equal measure) but the guys and gals on this forum do an amazing job of answering any questions.

Let us know how/if you get on with your test drive and be sure to reach out with any Q's!

Is the Solihull option still available, or has Tesla now disbanded that centre?

 

[MrBadger]

without a salesman... they were all young (and trendy) and just handed the "key" over and said "Go for it, motorway is about 10 mins away, we've set the nav on a round trip up/down motorway but see you in about an hour"....

Hmmm. Do you know how did they do that? Sat nav is only good for origin to destination trips, with possible supercharge on the way. I've never seen it able to do, or be fooled into doing a round trip. May be some quirk of the trip, or something else like them having access to multi leg trips which the tools that we have available to us do not have?

 

[JAR897]

Hmmm. Do you know how did they do that? Sat nav is only good for origin to destination trips, with possible supercharge on the way. I've never seen it able to do, or be fooled into doing a round trip.

Sure - "Work" was set to one of the junctions on the Motorway, "Home" was set back to the showroom. Sorry, above a little misleading.

 

[HenryT]

Hmmm. Do you know how did they do that? Sat nav is only good for origin to destination trips, with possible supercharge on the way. I've never seen it able to do, or be fooled into doing a round trip. May be some quirk of the trip, or something else like them having access to multi leg trips which the tools that we have available to us do not have?

Presumably they could only do it by putting a few waypoints in? A > B > C > A

 

[MrBadger]

Solution explained - home and work setup as manual destinations. > Work then when at 'work', > Home

Tesla sat nav doesn't support waypoints other than a calculated supercharger stop even if sent from an app (they don't transfer) so A > B > C > A is not an option.

 

[HenryT]

Solution explained - home and work setup as manual destinations. > Work then when at 'work', > Home

Tesla sat nav doesn't support waypoints other than a calculated supercharger stop even if sent from an app (they don't transfer) so A > B > C > A is not an option.

Presumably that means it's just an 'out and back again' route then, rather than a circular tour?

(I'd assumed the A > B > C > A option would have transferred from Google Maps app but haven't tried it. Thanks for the clarification).

 

[Dilly]

Our drive was set to home and work but configured as a circular trip.