Introduction
As I am writing this, I am filled with both sadness and anger. This will be a #firstworldproblems post, so if you don’t like those, then stop reading now. For the ones who have stayed, remember that I had my Tesla 3 ordered on April 6, 2018. I later learned that Washington state was going to end their sales tax credit on 5/31/18, meaning you needed to have gotten your car in time. Plenty of time right?
April 24
A friend sends me this Reddit link essentially saying he changed his configuration from 18″ wheels to 19″ wheels and got the VIN number in 2 days.
April 26
A local friend tells me she ordered her car a week AFTER me and already got a delivery date – she too ordered the 19″ wheels. A coworker’s friend also told me they just got a delivery date – 19″ wheels as well. I then look at this.
As you can see, the people who got VIN numbers all ordered 19″ wheels. First let me say that I don’t even like the 19″ wheels. It’s a rougher and probably noisier ride, and I don’t even like the looks of them. Plus they would cost me an extra $1650 with taxes. I reach out to a Tesla rep asking if he could waive the change fees ($500) if I upgraded my rims to the 19″. He confirms with his manager and says it’s okay. Now put yourself in my position. What do you do? There are 2 options:
- Do nothing and wait it out (at this point, I was giving the probability of the car being delivered in time at around 25%)
- Make the change and pay the $1650, but increase the chances of getting your car in time to say 75%, thus netting you a savings of $3200 – $1650 = $1550.
Friday April 27
After talking it over with the wife, I went ahead and made the change.
Monday April 30
I get a VIN number, but I don’t know for which configuration. The Tesla rep isn’t sure either. We suspect the web site hasn’t changed the configuration yet. He asks me if want to try to cancel the change order. I told him, “NO, let’s play this out.” I didn’t want a cancellation of a change order to screw up the order any further.
Wednesday May 2
I get a Tesla order modification email and an order agreement.
Tuesday May 8
I call up my Tesla rep who by the way never responds to my email, but yet will always say, “I meant to call you” when I call him. He says he’s not sure what’s going on either and has asked his supervisor. He muttered something about a new VIN and a new sales rep. Says he’ll call me back later in the day.
Wednesday May 9
I log onto my Tesla account and no VIN is shown, which has to be a bad sign. I’ve resolved the fact that the change to the 19″ wheels put me in the back of the queue. Another coworker got his delivery date pushed back a week to 5/23 to “too many deliveries.” This means even if my car was ready, the queue to pick up the car seems to be filled with these folks:
Conclusion
If I had stuck with the 18″ wheels, I’m pretty sure I would have gotten a May delivery date. The worst case scenario happened – I’m paying an extra $1650 PLUS I lose out on $3200 for making the change. I’m so sad and so mad right now. Writing out this post was somewhat therapeutic though. :(((((((((((
Bummer man! I’m sure driving the Tesla will help you forget though 🙂 they are fun cars… Driving is like a video game. I have a Model X and love it.
I almost got a 3 as well but wasn’t keen on how everything is on the tablet. Maybe it’s something you get used to but it seemed very distracting to me. I ended up going with the Chevy Bolt for my daily driver. It was 45k, 238 mile range and also eligible for the 7.5k federal tax rebate. Interior materials are a few steps down from the X for sure but I’m liking it well enough. It feels a lot bigger than the 3
I love the tesla cars and everything. I even almost ordered one. Unfotunately so did half of the country. In my community there are already a buch of tesla 3… Its now like the car everybody has. It has lost its charm unfortunately… and this is just the beginning! There are so many people waiting for their delivery than soon they are gonna be a lot of them on the streets! :'(
Man Vinh, it finally broke you I guess. Look at it this way though. At every stage of this process, you assessed the situation and made what you believed to be the most prudent choice based on information then available. You lost this one, but I wouldn’t say that you messed up. A gamble is a gamble.
With that said though, your posts have been a little negative lately. Let’s cheer up the atmosphere with some success stories eh?
One other way I look at things to help me get over something (I am much worse at it than you). That is, does this thing break me? If it doesn’t, then 1) I shouldn’t beat myself up over it; and more importantly 2) I am blessed to be in a position where even a big downer won’t bring me down.
did you have a chance to go take a look at the 3 in Bellevue Square?
I was so appalled by the build quality (misaligned panels, gaps, ect) that I went home and canceled my deposit that day, and I was a first day reservation holder.
Oooph, I walked around it, but saw and sat in one in Houston. I think the showroom models may be earlier models in regards to panel gaps, etc. I think the cars rolling out now have lower probability of those build quality issues.
A bit silly IMO. I can’t remember ever even considering to look at panel gaps and misalignments on any of the 8 previous vehicles I’ve owned. I didn’t do it with my 3 either. It looks good, drives fantastic, and auto-pilot is a game-changer, especially in traffic and on long drives. Don’t get caught up with all the drama that short-sellers are trying to stir up.
Short seller? I reserved on day one. I also come from a family that has been in the auto industry for 89 years now.
If Tesla can’t even get panels lined up correctly – imagine what’s going on underneath.
I also asked the sales rep when the car was built, he didn’t know.
Not calling you a short-seller, but stating that this topic among others are part of the short-seller campaign. Just browse the official Tesla forum and various Model 3 FB groups and you’ll spot them easily (of course, you have to take the Tesla fanboys with a grain of salt too).
You’re absolutely right that there are panel gaps, but I don’t think they are really that big of a deal and I don’t know anyone aside from prospective Tesla owners and actual Tesla owners that are ever looking for them.
Lastly, you can get an indication of when the car was built by looking at the VIN number. Tesla has recently addressed the panel gap matter as well: https://electrek.co/2018/04/29/tesla-model-3-panel-gaps-improved/
Keep in mind that they’ve since made improvements in body panel production since the first Model 3’s rolled off the line. Yes, it’s sad that some panels didn’t fit right, but that’s to be expected when we’re talking about the first 1,000 cars rolling off the line.
Good news is it looks like you Model 3 owners are going to get S/X referral links as well so you can make that lost $ back if you’re good at getting referrals (and there are a lot of tricks to get them). I’ve had my S less than a year and have made low five figures in value of referral prizes.
Ah good to know. I may reach out to you once they start referrals.
Enjoy the Tesla! They are cool cars, shows how technology can be totally integrated and make an awesome driving experience.
But this is tone-deaf man… you are complaining about one of the most regressive tax breaks ever. And you still have the other part of the regressive situation… that you benefit from road construction and maintenance paid with taxes that people driving fossil-fuel cars have to pay at the pump every time, and you won’t have to pay for any time soon. In fact, by driving on those roads you are increasing the costs that will be paid by the rabble. I’m not saying don’t enjoy your Tesla, but complaining about not getting your max break back when it is subsidized by people poorer than you is bad form.
I guess you didn’t read past the second sentence of the post.
Why aren’t you complaining about how poor people are subsidizing our first class travel by paying interest on their credit cards? Why aren’t you complaining about CEO pays or the tax breaks for the rich? I play within the system; I didn’t start or end the tax break. If you don’t like these posts, then just stop reading the post and the blog.
Yeah, the whole regressive tax argument is bogus. 49% of people don’t pay any income tax and the 51% of people that do pay taxes are footing the entire bill for the entitlements reserved for the bottom half of society. Shaming Vinh for being pissed that the incentive he was offered to spend more money on an eco-friendly choice is being pulled out from under him is really some naive crap.
I’m sorry, but who doesn’t pay taxes on a gallon of gas?
People that ride the bus, subway, bike and walk. You know, the 62.7% of Americans that live in urban cities, the majority of whom are the primary recipients of welfare and government housing.
Roads are funded by a variety of sources, and the gas tax is just one component. There are plenty of people who walk, bike, or ride the train to work who are subsidizing our roadways through federal and state income taxes even though they may not drive on the roads themselves.
Damn that stinks! That dang Viet gambling blood..