Tesla changed trade-in value from $6654 to $1500 with no major event or missing info: Bait and Switch

[nilesborg]

I would not recommend trading in a car to Tesla - you can get more $ by selling to one of those online companies like Shift, CarMax, Vroom, etc. We got like $2500 more than Tesla was offering for our trade last year.

 

[sleepydoc]

I would not recommend trading in a car to Tesla - you can get more $ by selling to one of those online companies like Shift, CarMax, Vroom, etc. We got like $2500 more than Tesla was offering for our trade last year.

When you trade in a car it either goes on the lot and gets sold by the dealer or gets sold to an auction site. The dealer is also going to make sure they don't lose money on the deal. Tesla isn't in the business of selling used cars besides used Teslas so any non-Tesla that gets traded in will get sold at auction (and then resold.) This means you can almost always do better outside of Tesla for a trade in.

 

[Jerry Summers]

He decided to buy a Tesla largely based on the total value proposition when they gave him an estimated trade-in value. Moreover, he expected it to be reasonably stable based on the myriad of comments Tesla employees told him. He already paid the non-refundable, $250 fee, made arrangements with an electrician to install of level 2 charger at home, spent seven hours to go to the nearest Tesla dealer for a test drive, and (I believe) already applied for a car loan.

Based on the new trade-in value, he no longer wants to purchase the Tesla as it's a very different financial proposition. He is stuck to swallow all of the above monetary, time, and credit score related costs. I realize that many Tesla owners are pretty well off financially, but the costs incurred here are not insignificant to my family.

I believe most of the other sites are offering around $3000. If Tesla low-balled him from the start at $1500, that's no problem. It's transparent and he can just reject the offer. If Tesla employees had not ensured him about the trade-in value, but instead cautioned strongly that these estimates can change very significantly with no clear reason, then fine. But the representation that this was a stable offer, which is cut by 78% only after costs are incurred in furtherance of buying a Tesla absolutely reeks of immoral (if not illegal under FTC Act) bait and switch.

Anyway, he's going to try his luck talking to Tesla. I hope they'll do the morally right thing without too much prodding. We will see how it goes.

That's why Tesla does everything online.....They don't have the risk of some angry customer walking through the door and bringing holy hell with them... They don't even care. They got you jumping through so many hoops before they even delivered your car, your stuck. No thanks, I'll buy from a local dealer with a local service department.

 

[BMWM3Man]

That's why Tesla does everything online.....They don't have the risk of some angry customer walking through the door and bringing holy hell with them... They don't even care. They got you jumping through so many hoops before they even delivered your car, your stuck. No thanks, I'll buy from a local dealer with a local service department.

And your reading a Tesla forum because....? Oh and the two Teslas we bought within the last 6 months were the easiest purchases ever. Good luck at your "local dealer"

 

[thesmokingman]

No thanks, I'll buy from a local dealer with a local service department.

trolololo...

 

[mswlogo]

That's why Tesla does everything online.....They don't have the risk of some angry customer walking through the door and bringing holy hell with them... They don't even care. They got you jumping through so many hoops before they even delivered your car, your stuck. No thanks, I'll buy from a local dealer with a local service department.

With all of Tesla’s issues I’ll still take it over the dog and pony show at dealers.

 

[father_of_6]

That's why Tesla does everything online.....They don't have the risk of some angry customer walking through the door and bringing holy hell with them... They don't even care. They got you jumping through so many hoops before they even delivered your car, your stuck. No thanks, I'll buy from a local dealer with a local service department.

Yeah, I couldn't agree less. Purchasing a Tesla was far better than any previous car dealership experience I've ever had.

Getting a new car is nice, *purchasing* one is typically awful (stressful / time consuming / confusing / deceitful). Tesla has made that part just "go away". Buying a Tesla for me was little different than creating an Amazon account and making a purchase... and I had a trade-in. It's clearly the future.

 

[brancky3]

Yeah, I couldn't agree less. Purchasing a Tesla was far better than any previous car dealership experience I've ever had.

Getting a new car is nice, *purchasing* one is typically awful (stressful / time consuming / confusing / deceitful). Tesla has made that part just "go away". Buying a Tesla for me was little different than creating an Amazon account and making a purchase... and I had a trade-in. It's clearly the future.

I drove 100 miles to pick up my model 3 and the round trip took less time than our buying experience at Ford which is 8 miles away. We literally waited 4.5 hours to get into the finance room to sign the papers. The dealership model needs to die.

 

[father_of_6]

I drove 100 miles to pick up my model 3 and the round trip took less time than our buying experience at Ford which is 8 miles away. We literally waited 4.5 hours to get into the finance room to sign the papers. The dealership model needs to die.

LOL... my M3 pickup drive was 7 hours each way, but the car / driving / supercharging experience on the way back was nice. Our total time spent buying our family van from a local dealer was *also* more than the cross state Tesla experience.

 

[sleepydoc]

I drove 100 miles to pick up my model 3 and the round trip took less time than our buying experience at Ford which is 8 miles away. We literally waited 4.5 hours to get into the finance room to sign the papers. The dealership model needs to die.

ok - show of hands. Who misses the finance guy trying to sell you the warranty?

 

[father_of_6]

ok - show of hands. Who misses the finance guy trying to sell you the warranty?

And the gap insurance, $350 key replacement insurance, VIN etching... half of the time they just added these things to the contract and didn't mention them.

Only thing Tesla could've done better would be to drop the car off at my house.

 

[sleepydoc]

And the gap insurance, $350 key replacement insurance, VIN etching... half of the time they just added these things to the contract and didn't mention them.

Only thing Tesla could've done better would be to drop the car off at my house.

They did that for a coworker. Of course, after her 'touchless delivery' she couldn't get into the car. Turns out the cellular modem was bad - not a great experience!

 

[brancky3]

ok - show of hands. Who misses the finance guy trying to sell you the warranty?

Ford tried to sell us the prepaid maintenance package. On a MachE.

 

[wend]

$9400 trade-in estimate, ordered and now $8300. I expected low ball offer and was ready to accept but didn't expect such a drop after ordering.

 

[BrintTessla]

It's Tesla. Customer service is terrible.

Either
(1) cancel your orders and don't look back
(2) sell the other car to another company, and then remember that the most reliable way to get customer service from Tesla in the future is to be loud on the Internet.

 

[OrthoSurg]

It's Tesla. Customer service is terrible.

Either
(1) cancel your orders and don't look back
(2) sell the other car to another company, and then remember that the most reliable way to get customer service from Tesla in the future is to be loud on the Internet.

I had to deal about a dozen times with Tesla Ferrier in Montreal for repairs and customer service always was great.

The problem is people who are having problems are a minority but are so loud on the internet.