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Order to Delivery Timeline, with a focus on California

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I'm interested in the steps necessary to getting from making a deposit to driving off in a new Model S, with a focus on California. I have some idea of the steps, but I was hoping others could fill in more details:

Step 1: Make deposit
This happens whenever the customer wants

Step 2: Receive "finalize your order" email from Tesla
Tesla instigates this. It happens 5(?) or so months before your expected delivery.

Step 3: Click Finalize
After you configure your vehicle online, you click Finalize.
There's no deadline for you to do this. The "one time deferral" mentioned when you placed your deposit does not seem to be in effect.
It is unclear how delaying on the click button delays delivery.
Clicking the first Finalize button shows you a delivery window, and leads you through a few more steps before the final finalize button. During this time, you can still edit your configuration.
At the end of the finalize process is a button to place your order.
Once you do this, your configuration disappears (at least it did for me), and you're left hoping your last minute playing with the options you want got set to the right thing before your order got officially placed.
TeslaMotors.com will say that they are preparing your documentation.

Step 4: Tesla sends you Motor Vehicle Purchase Agreement to sign
They say it will take 1 day, but it took 3 days for Tesla to send me mine.
The MVPA lists your configuration and a delivery window, although it says that they'll deliver you whatever they feel like whenever they feel like and you're obligated to pay them. (i.e., they can tweak the center console and deliver late, and there's nothing you can do about it.)
TeslaMotors.com will say that they are waiting for you to sign.

Step 5: You sign the MVPA
It's unclear how long you have to do this.
Once you do, TeslaMotors.com will say that they are working on countersigning.

Step 6: Tesla countersigns the MVPA.
Your configuration is again visible on their website, and it says that they are working on building your Model S.
The delivery window now seems absent from their website, but now you can view the configuration that you ordered. and the adjusted vehicle price shown includes the federal rebate but doesn't include other taxes, so it helps you get over the sticker shock you just experienced in the MVPA (which included local taxes but did not include the federal rebate).

Step 7 (if desired): SolarCity calls you to talk about charging installation.
This happened 1 day after Tesla countersigned the MVPA.
That person sends you a survey for you to fill out, and they set a time for the next phone call. You fill out the survey, and email it to SolarCity. They call you to discuss your setup, and this is about where I am in the process.
SolarCity installed my existing solar panels, and now it seems that I need more. I hope they're faster at doing the install this time around.

Step 8: Tesla tells you what your VIN will be and asks for basic delivery information
This happens 2-3 weeks before your car is ready to be shipped.

Step 9 (if desired): You apply for a California vanity plate to brag about how your car doesn't use gasoline.
Can you apply for this before you have a VIN?

Step 10 (if desired): You apply for California carpool lane stickers
It seems that you at least need a VIN and license plate number for this.

Step 11: Tesla sends an updated MVPA for you to sign
This happens a couple days before the car is ready to ship.
They also provide an updated delivery target window.

Step 12: Tesla tells you that your car is at the service center, is prepared, and is scheduled for local delivery.
They give you a final delivery window.

Step 13: You hand over a huge check
It seems that personal checks are okay.
It's unclear if cash is. It's assumed that credit cards or ten million pennies would not be welcomed.

Step 14: You get a new car
It can take a week or two to ship your car depending on where it's headed.
After getting your questions answered, you tell the delivery specialist to go away so that you can play with the most expensive toy you've ever bought.


Anyway, can someone fill in some of the missing details for me?

thanks,
Derek
 
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The hand over large check is any easily portable form of money. I'm pretty sure the pennies don't qualify, and I think wads of cash would raise eyebrows and attention of authorities. Otherwise, checks in all forms. I'm not sure about credit cards, but I'm guessing they'd prefer a check.
 
While you can't pay with pennies you could pay with $1 bills. If there are any objections you can point to the "This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private". :)
 
Once upon a time, when my frequent flyer mile hoarding craze got to disturbing proportions, I ordered about 25,000 of these

http://www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/$1coin/

using my miles-earning credit card and then hauled these sacks of coins to the local Bank of America branch to deposit them into my checking account (and on to pay off the card when the statement came around)!

You should have seen the look on the teller's face; it was priceless! :biggrin:

More recently, some credit card companies figured this out and started charging US Mint transactions as cash advances but, it was good while it lasted.

So, if your credit card were to treat this as a purchase, you could conceivably still use your card indirectly and dump sacks of $1 coins onto Tesla!

Sorry, quite OT. And, don't judge me; the business class flight tickets to Europe were worth it ;)
 
The largest variable on your timeline occurs between steps 1 and 2.

Over time this may shrink now that production us up and running, but for me that was a three and a half (+) year timeframe.

If you placed an order today, I have no idea what the timing is between steps 1 and 2 but they have a lot of reservations and can only expect more after all the auto magazine awards.

I finalized my config back around Sept or so (I think) and signed the initial MVPA at that time. I still don't have a VIN.

I'm P912.

I hope that helps some.

Cheers.
 
The hand over large check is any easily portable form of money. I'm pretty sure the pennies don't qualify, and I think wads of cash would raise eyebrows and attention of authorities. Otherwise, checks in all forms. I'm not sure about credit cards, but I'm guessing they'd prefer a check.

I am sure they will accept wire transfers too ? They will have to in Norway, we haven't had checks since the 1990s...
 
Can someone that has gone through the whole process help to flesh out some details for me?
When does the VIN get assigned in comparison to the delivery date? Does Tesla just send you an email once that happens?
When do they start scheduling delivery?

I've found the process somewhat quirky so far (e.g., you need to click on "finalize" to get your delivery window, but "finalize" isn't the final button), and would be interested to hear what other quirks are out there.
 
You have a good handle on the process up front there. They will give you a target window when they send you the final MVPA, then a more detailed window after the car arrives at the service center, is prepared, and is scheduled for local delivery.

Keep in mind that this was the process for Sigs, the last portions may change with continued ramp-up and system automation.