Photo: Tesla/GJK/edited by autoevolution
Some people still believe there is high demand for Tesla vehicles, but that is not true. So much so that Tesla offered 10,000 miles of free Supercharging and a $7,500 discount to those taking delivery of their cars until December 31. Ironically, Tesla is contacting some customers to blame the bad weather for backtracking these commitments to them.
One of these customers shared the message Tesla sent her. According to the EV maker, her Model Y’s delivery was “delayed due to inclement weather from last week.” That said, it will not make it before her current scheduled delivery appointment. The EV maker told her it would have to reschedule her appointment to the first week of January based on the current estimated time of arrival (ETA).
In the same message, Tesla shoots the bad news: if delivery happens in 2023, this buyer “will not be eligible for the $7,500 adjustment or free super charging (sic) miles.” Apart from the interesting choice of words, it makes it seem like the delay is her fault, which made GJK – we’ll name her like that to protect her privacy – go public to protest against the situation.
She rightfully wants Tesla to honor its promises. Although weather difficulties are also not to blame on the EV maker, it is ultimately responsible for delivering her a Model Y on December 31, as scheduled. The Model Y buyer is considering canceling the purchase, asking for a full refund (including the deposit), and suing Tesla, depending on what the company will do next.
GJK’s post helped reveal three other cases in the same thread. A group member said the weather affected deliveries of 10,000 vehicles. As the Model Y buyer calculated, that means Tesla may save $75 million if all these customers keep their orders. On the other hand, the most likely scenario is that they will cancel them, which should seriously impact Tesla’s Q4 2022 results.
The truth is that Tesla offered these incentives solely to improve them. The surprising element here is that it is willing to frustrate old and new customers by making that very clear. We would not be surprised if it repeated this promotion in March to improve sales numbers in Q1 2023.
Curiously, some people tried to convince her to purchase the EV anyway because “it’s the best car they ever owned,” because they bought it without incentives with no regrets – perhaps a bit of envy for the $7,500 some are getting – or because of other similar remarks. Some tried to argue the message was false or that GJK’s post was just FUD – nothing out of the ordinary with the so-called Tesla community.
Those trying to defend the EV maker with more objective arguments stated that Tesla is doing that to prevent GJK from paying $15,000 less on her Model Y. The EV maker is allegedly offering the rebate to incentivize people to buy now instead of next year, when the $7,500 federal tax credit may be available to some Tesla vehicles if they meet the eligibility criteria.
For GJK, that’s simple: she only bought the car because of the $7,500 discount and the free Supercharging miles. Without it, she’s not interested. All the Model Y buyer asks is that Tesla has the integrity to stick to the deal it made with her. GJK already paid for the car and does not care about receiving it now or in January as long as Tesla does not revoke the advantages it promised to offer just because it could not deliver the EV when it said it would. Fair enough.
In the same message, Tesla shoots the bad news: if delivery happens in 2023, this buyer “will not be eligible for the $7,500 adjustment or free super charging (sic) miles.” Apart from the interesting choice of words, it makes it seem like the delay is her fault, which made GJK – we’ll name her like that to protect her privacy – go public to protest against the situation.
She rightfully wants Tesla to honor its promises. Although weather difficulties are also not to blame on the EV maker, it is ultimately responsible for delivering her a Model Y on December 31, as scheduled. The Model Y buyer is considering canceling the purchase, asking for a full refund (including the deposit), and suing Tesla, depending on what the company will do next.
GJK’s post helped reveal three other cases in the same thread. A group member said the weather affected deliveries of 10,000 vehicles. As the Model Y buyer calculated, that means Tesla may save $75 million if all these customers keep their orders. On the other hand, the most likely scenario is that they will cancel them, which should seriously impact Tesla’s Q4 2022 results.
The truth is that Tesla offered these incentives solely to improve them. The surprising element here is that it is willing to frustrate old and new customers by making that very clear. We would not be surprised if it repeated this promotion in March to improve sales numbers in Q1 2023.
Curiously, some people tried to convince her to purchase the EV anyway because “it’s the best car they ever owned,” because they bought it without incentives with no regrets – perhaps a bit of envy for the $7,500 some are getting – or because of other similar remarks. Some tried to argue the message was false or that GJK’s post was just FUD – nothing out of the ordinary with the so-called Tesla community.
Those trying to defend the EV maker with more objective arguments stated that Tesla is doing that to prevent GJK from paying $15,000 less on her Model Y. The EV maker is allegedly offering the rebate to incentivize people to buy now instead of next year, when the $7,500 federal tax credit may be available to some Tesla vehicles if they meet the eligibility criteria.
For GJK, that’s simple: she only bought the car because of the $7,500 discount and the free Supercharging miles. Without it, she’s not interested. All the Model Y buyer asks is that Tesla has the integrity to stick to the deal it made with her. GJK already paid for the car and does not care about receiving it now or in January as long as Tesla does not revoke the advantages it promised to offer just because it could not deliver the EV when it said it would. Fair enough.
Google News