reread your link maybe. It was a retrospective stayement, regarding 1st ¼ production volume, prior to working out issues. If you took the time to notice MX vin's are now in the 7,000's & that that means production is humming along - the FUD could be stored up for a better time. Maybe something else will come along worth booing Tesla. Laugh worthy indeed ... a voluntary recall initiated to prevent future accidents for people in the third row. Looks like someone is really hoping for the worst for their company. I suppose they should have done like Prius during the acceleration issues which led to accidents and injuries. Were you laughing that one off as well? Carry on. Oh, and of course you're right I'm sure most of those thousand dollar deposits are phony. They should have concocted a more realistic number. Please, let us know what that should be. .
Refreshing to see a company addressing a potential issue it found, rather than making excuses or worse yet, actively trying to hide it.
I would note that my 2001 Prius was subject to a whole series of recalls. Battery terminal corrosion, tires too soft, etc. What is surprising about the Tesla recalls is how intense they are about safety issues already tested and validated. Yet, when they find ONE INCIDENT of failure, they react to maintain the safest vehicles possible. The additional armor plating of the underside of the Model S battery is something NOT done by most conventional automakers. They usually stop after they meet the minimum standards. Tesla is making recalls for meeting a maximum standard. I'll take that "flaw". So will about 350,000 other folks.
Some sites estimate 75% of true orders. I estimate 50%. This is still 160000 orders ! And it's been only 2 weeks
I suspect many of those deposit hand waving folk will have buyer's remorse. Happens all the time, whether it's a time share vacation, home purchase or life. insurance. Turning on product, cancelations historically run between 1%-50% of buyers. Even if M3 cancelations go higher (say 65%? ) than marketing stat's have ever recorded - reservations/sales would still blow all prior records out of the water. If you don't want to find those stats incredible, feel free to carry on with the, "that don't mean nothin'". But consider the lion's share of model S and Model X reservation holders follow through. Or don't consider it, if that's working for you. All car views are welcome on pc, and there have typically been loads of 'both sides' views posted over the past 2 decades. .
Everyone, including Tesla will agree that a lot of speculators wanting to scalp tax credits or head of line desires. But this simply means that those orders will be handed from one person to another. Then there is a large crowd of folks who are willing to hold a spot till they bail for whatever reason. However, even if up to 80% of the orders do not result in purchases, the results are still shocking. This is because for every individual willing to put down a 18 month waiting deposit, there are anywhere from 2 to 10 folks willing to purchase a model 3 when it is available for driving off the lot (so to speak). So Tesla is in the farsighted position of knowing the huge volumes they need to plan for.
Tesla has to fix their collision repair cost. I am reading that Insurance companies are raising the coverage cost because what Tesla and their body shop partners are charging. If not, who wants to buy a car with $3000 coverage, while something like a Corvette can be had for less than $1000?
oh please ... Comparing a Corvette to a Tesla? Over the past 3 decades I've owned a couple cars similarly priced to Tesla's. The windshield alone on my 80's era Porsche was $5,000 - and that was at 1980's value dollars. The early 2000's range rover tranny was over $6,000 back a decade & ½ ago. Bottom line is if you can't afford the insurance that you can't afford the car - or the house - for the Stratovarius - or the boat. Now for model 3? That will likely be similarly priced - Insurance wise - as the Corvette .
Not a common man's car - that's true - you have to like fiberglass - be going through a mid-life crisis & only need one passenger seat .
To be fair the insurance cost on states like CA are FAR higher than here in the Midwest. I pay less than $600 per year with free windshield replacement if needed. Amica is one of the best insurance companies out there and you have to have a very high credit rating to get them. I've used them for years and nobody can match their superior service.
Chevy Bolt "GM’s balance sheet is in pretty strong shape, so we don’t need to take $1,000 of your money just to hold a spot," Nicholson said today at SAE World Congress. "And you can actually get it in 2016."
