I am not sure what the Tesla dealerships are like outside of Calgary, but it’s pretty much as close to an online shop as you can get, while having a physical presence. It’s basically just a car in a room, and then a bunch more in the underground parkade for test driving. Unless they did some updates to the dealership in Chinook in the last few years.
I am not sure what the Tesla dealerships are like outside of Calgary, but it’s pretty much as close to an online shop as you can get, while having a physical presence. It’s basically just a car in a room, and then a bunch more in the underground parkade for test driving. Unless they did some updates to the dealership in Chinook in the last few years.
Tesla store in Chinook was gone already.
I don’t know what there current announcement means for the fairmont drive location.
I am not sure what the Tesla dealerships are like outside of Calgary, but it’s pretty much as close to an online shop as you can get, while having a physical presence. It’s basically just a car in a room, and then a bunch more in the underground parkade for test driving. Unless they did some updates to the dealership in Chinook in the last few years.
Also, this is still sort of correct for any of their dealerships. Many states still have laws where auto manufacturers cannot sell directly to the consumer. Tesla wanted to sell directly to the consumer, so they get around laws by showing cars only in their “dealerships”, and then letting the person buy online based on what they saw in the dealership. Having dealerships would have essentially made last week’s permanent price reduction impossible. It’s always been part of Tesla’s plan to drop prices when they would be able to.
Wait, so if they've now closed the Fairmount Tesla location... how exactly does one get service on one of these damned things? Send it to Vancouver?
Maybe if you had the money to drop on a loaded Model S or Model X, but a Model 3 is ever so slightly more expensive than a BMW 2-Series and I can't imagine that someone in that price bracket can afford to ship their car to Vancouver to get regular maintenance done, never mind a major service.
I think it's more for "if something breaks". Any shop should be able to do tires, brakes etc. It's the non-scheduled maintenance that gets to be an issue. I thought they had certified shops to do that stuff, but a quick check didn't turn anything up.
Wait, so if they've now closed the Fairmount Tesla location... how exactly does one get service on one of these damned things? Send it to Vancouver?
Maybe if you had the money to drop on a loaded Model S or Model X, but a Model 3 is ever so slightly more expensive than a BMW 2-Series and I can't imagine that someone in that price bracket can afford to ship their car to Vancouver to get regular maintenance done, never mind a major service.
If it's truly gone, I assume they will revert back to their mobile "Rangers" who will come directly to your house and service the car there - which is extremely convenient.
Prior to the Fairmount service shop opening, they had certified Calgary Coachworks to do all the major Tesla stuff if a ranger couldn't handle it.
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That Polestar(Volvo(Geely)) is going to destroy them in China before they even get a foothold.
I'm curious why you think you think this, is it because of the Chinese ownership? Volvo currently lacks market share in China, largely because its not on par with the other luxury brands like Mercedes/BMW, and status symbols are highly important in Chinese consumerism.
Short of some serious government intervention, I don't see them turning that around with a car exhibiting Subaru styling and a "vegan" (= PLASTIC) interior.
Ya, I think Chinese ownership gives them motivation to beat out Tesla in their own country. And given how the Chinese government has been acting lately, I wouldn't be surprised if there are some favourable actions that give Geely an advantage.
If it's truly gone, I assume they will revert back to their mobile "Rangers" who will come directly to your house and service the car there - which is extremely convenient.
Convenient for the owner, but inefficient and expensive to have skilled technicians who bill at $120-$180/hour spend much of their work day driving.
Looks like they will be keeping a lot of locations open....whoops!
Quote:
The electric car maker has offered few details about which of its 106 stores and galleries in 26 states it plans to close. Even many shopping center landlords say they have heard nothing from the company about whether their Tesla store will be shut down, according to real-estate brokers and landlords.
What is clearer is how much Tesla owes in future rent payments. The company has total lease obligations of $1.6 billion, with $1.1 billion due between this year and 2023, according to its securities filings. The payments include leases for stores, galleries and other uses including real estate abroad.
In a February securities filing, Tesla said it has “various non-cancellable operating lease agreements,” and any effort by the company to terminate those leases could result in legal battles. Landlords could seek a court injunction to prevent Tesla from closing stores before the lease expiration.
When asked about the 78 percent statistic specifically, the first word out of four of the six employees’ mouths were “bull####.” Regardless of whether they used that exact word, all of them dismissed the figure as misleading at best and outright fabricated at worst.
For months, they had been directed to have customers buy cars themselves through the Tesla website, even if they’re sitting right next to them in the store. But many buyers place an order on their phones after talking with a salesperson for hours or even making multiple visits. Others come into the store, think about it, and then buy online later. In retrospect, multiple employees now suspect this directive as a scheme to orchestrate their own obsolescence.
Due to various state-level franchise laws, Tesla cannot directly sell cars in their stores in several states, including some in the stores for the employees I spoke to. In those cases, as a matter of law, all orders must be placed online, yet another reason the 78 percent figure is misleading. Employees can’t even fill out the online form for the customer, but must direct the customer to order the car on their phone (some do anyways, multiple employees told Jalopnik).
It’s also not clear how Tesla is counting customers who come in to the store because they want to see the very expensive car they’re about to buy but don’t go for an official test drive. Maybe they just talk to a salesperson, learn how the charging system works, and sit in the car for a bit. Or their spouse or partner does the test drive. These are all common pre-buying scenarios, the salespeople said, yet appear to be counted as “online” sales even though it’s highly unlikely the sale would have happened without an in-person store visit.
Interesting stuff here...it sure sounds like management at Tesla has little idea of how it operates...It does explain those high numbers of "online orders". I'd like to know how many orders happen online from people who buy sight unseen(other than walking past one on a street). I'm guessing it's closer to 10%.
Ya, I think Chinese ownership gives them motivation to beat out Tesla in their own country. And given how the Chinese government has been acting lately, I wouldn't be surprised if there are some favourable actions that give Geely an advantage.
I also think it looks nicer than the Tesla's.
Holy crap, you weren't kidding. The Polestar 1 is gorgeous. 🤤
Holy crap, you weren't kidding. The Polestar 1 is gorgeous. 🤤
They need to sell these in North America.
I am interested in the subscription service that they'll be having. I guesss that is like a new version of a lease? I am a bit more interested in the Polestar 2. I don't know if I am fully on board with a hybrid. Some might think its the best of both worlds, but it seems like twice the maintenance pains. It will be interesting to see what a real car manufacturer will do with an EV.
