Tesla reaches US Model 3 Reservation Holders to ask if they want a refund
Cars
Published on November 15, 2018 |
by Zachary Shahan
15. November 2018 of Zachary Shahan
Tesla is in an interesting position. Hundreds of thousands of people make reservations for a model 3. Perhaps 100,000 of them have now got their cars (or not 100,000 of them since many buyers have come in "off the street"). It's most likely that hundreds of thousands are still waiting to book their cars. Many of these people are overseas, but many are probably still in the United States. Who are they? Should they order? If not, should they always request a refund?
One of our authors is on a reservation. Tonight he received a text message from someone at Tesla and asked if he wants a refund. He went on a test drive a few months ago, but has not reached anything, so he found it a little interesting and surprising to receive this text on the phone.
The message was short and cute. As you look to the right, after a short hi (I have cut that part to exclude the names), the sales advisor wrote: "We saw that you have not ordered model 3. Please let me know you are" D that your deposit of $ 1k is returned. Thanks. "
This is interesting for some reasons. One is that you think Tesla will hold on cash for as long as possible so it's surprising to see that the company offers to give it back.
That said, can The money is not really used by Tesla anyway (it's not considered real income at this stage), so why not? With Tesla's bank account looking as good as possible, the company might decide that it was time to reload some of the dead money. In addition, Tesla can try to ensure that customers have a good experience and do not feel that the company holds the money longer than it should.
A few more business and explanations can also be a game – and what is mentioned above ideas can not have something to do with it.
Maybe this is an approach Tesla now uses to push consumers – in a super subtle and low-pressure way – to finally proceed and book a car. The company has sent out a handful of ep cheese during the past few months, encourages reservation holders (like me) to convert to buyers and orders a Tesla Model 3 long range … Tesla Model 3 All-Wheel Drive … Tesla Model 3 Performance … Tesla Model 3 Mid Range – What's Fresh. I have personally received a handful of reminders (including this week) that cars are available for test stations.
Another possibility is that Tesla is eager to learn more about the remaining reservation holders in the United States. Are they really planning to buy a car? Are they just waiting for the $ 35K car? Will they admit they will not order and receive a refund? Tesla employees are probably trying to figure out what remaining demand from reservation holders is actually allowing them to plan production, shipping and delivery plans accordingly.
The person who passed the text message with me wondered that it could also be related to DOJ poking around so much. Perhaps the company realized that it "needs to clean something," as he said, and get more reserve holders money back before a new problem is on the company's hands. Update: To clarify, there is nothing specific about speculation here – only the general pressure from DOJ may have Tesla go beyond with regard to financial management and customer relations.
It's also the chance the message was once a rogue employee, not a big business malformation. It seems unlikely, but we should figure out soon enough.
We probably will not find out the whole story behind this message. There are many possible explanations for it, and Tesla is likely to keep them close to the chest. But there is always room for speculation and hypotheses, right? Any other thoughts?
We traveled to Tesla for comments. We have not heard yet, but will update this article if we receive something material about this story.
About the Author
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Zach has long-term investments in TSLA, FSLR, SPWR, SEDG, and ABB. After several years of sun and EV, he simply has a great faith in these companies and feels that they are good cleantech companies to invest in. But He does not offer any professional investment advice and will not be responsible for losing money, so not hope for conclusions.
