Yes, another Tesla thread....but this one should prove useful, and not be just a bunch of mindless rambling by pro or anti-BEV zealots. For those of you in the D.C. area (particularly the Virginia suburbs, where I live), who own Tesla or are interested ingesting one, the company is opening up a new shop on what was formerly a Maserati/Alfa Romeo shop in South Arlington, on Glebe Rd, just south of the I-95 overpass, a couple of miles southwest of the city. (2710 S. Glebe Rd, Arlington, VA)

Unlike most auto manufacturers, Tesla dealerships are company-owned/operated, so this site was apparently purchased directly by the company, and will not be a private franchise. More may follow, as Tesla has plans for three new dealerships in Virginia.



https://richmond.com/business/tesla-...2487bec37.html


https://www.bizjournals.com/washingt...alershiop.html

 

I didn’t realize there was a D.C. Tesla store and it happens to be near Capital One Arena. I’m going to the Caps game tonight and plan to stop in the Tesla store as I’m starting to get antsy about replacing my BMW M340 sooner rather than later, especially if I have some equity in my lease. Since there is no negotiating with Tesla it could make sense. Only issue was someone bumped into my car and it shows up on the carfax.

I am also considering a M5 but they are not easy to come by but I put my name on the list for an allocation. Anyway, I’m excited to see what these Tesla stores are all about.

 

There's also one just off Route 7, on Tyco Road, at Tyson's Corner, in the nearby Virginia suburbs. It's part of the big complex of Tysons dealerships for a number of different automakers.

 

If you're getting antsy then Tesla may not work out. Model 3 looks like the quickest availability, with delivery in December for something ordered today. All the others look to be well into next year.

 

I seriously hate Tesla’s marketing. First they have a ridiculous price on their website that show the price of the car after gas savings which to me is ridiculous but whatever, if you are going to do that at least also include the fact that the charger is going to cost around $1,000 or more so shouldn’t that be subtracted from gas savings? Also, my friend just ordered a Model 3P and it said estimated delivery on the website was November and now they are saying estimated delivery is now February. Lastly, the website said the D.C. store was open until 7pm and when I get there at 5:58 last night the doors were locked and they changed the hours on the door that says they close at 6pm.

So update today, last night I put my info on the website about test driving a car and I get a text first thing this morning from a guy that says he is here to help me with any questions I have and I had three questions for him that I responded to within a couple hours. Still waiting for a response 12 hours later.

Sorry for the rant but seriously WTF. Anyhow, once I actually get to test drive one and go to the store to pick out the color/interior, I plan on ordering it. Since my lease is up in June it should be here around that time since the website says the Plaid’s estimated delivery is December so that really means June.

 

For those who are not familiar with Tesla "dealerships", perhaps you might be interested. There are no dealerships in the traditional sense. They carry no new car inventory. You can test drive a car similar to what you are interested in. They can answer questions. They can give you more detailed delivery information on the car and configuration you are interested in. Sometimes there are demonstrators for sale; maybe some used cars as well. You can order a car there, but it is no different than the website. One thing you might be able to do is order off menu, such as the Model 3 Performance with the 19" wheels, etc.

One reason the schedule pushes out is, Fremont builds cars in big batches based on delivery location. I think Shanghai is starting to service Europe, not sure. As Giga Austin and Berlin commence production, delivery times should improve. Supply vs demand, as they say. I understand the base Model 3 had an option to to use the Shanghai batteries which allowed for quicker delivery. Those batteries had a little less range, but allowed 100% charging with less degredation. We charge to 80%.

Good luck.

 

I get that, the main reason I wanted to go was just to sit in the car and check it out in person and see the colors in person. It’s just a store vs. a dealer and I get that. It’s just if you are going to reach out to me and tell me to ask any questions at least respond back or don’t reach out at all. The arbitrary gas savings is a little disingenuous because there are just too many variables and I just feel at this point they don’t need to do that and buyers of this level of car shouldn’t be that dumb where they have to be shown that. I still like the product but just some minor annoyances.

 

I didn’t know they had stores like this. I always wondered how test driving a Tesla worked. I’ve only seen a few used ones at local dealerships and one at a Lexus sales training event.

 

They are you can now buy a Model Y in some parts of Europe. Shanghai now out produces Fremont.
I think supply in 2022 might actually get worse despite Giga Germany and Texas.

 

If "gas savings" price was not the default it would be ok, but it's been like this for many years despite the unpopularity.

​​​​​​You don't have to buy an extra charger, it comes with the mobile charger. At least, back when I bought it did and we have always just used that.

The way service and sales is conducted took some getting used to. Scheduling as much as you can, like a test drive, is a good idea. They aren't really set up like a traditional dealership with an ocean of bored associates there to help walk-ins. Service communication over the phone is terrible, but texting over the app has worked pretty well for me. With the COVID protocols, service has been pretty terrible trying to get this one warranty item addressed that can't be done via mobile service. My local service center requires keeping your car overnight for seemingly pretty much anything and they only provide Uber credits. That's the number one thing I miss about the Lexus dealer, they give out loaners like candy. Even my Benz dealer only provides them for B service and repairs now.

 

They have two tabs, one with potential savings included and one is purchase price. The default is the tab with the potential savings but the purchase price is what you should be looking at. Also, Tesla service isn't the best (understatement) so if you expect a certain level of service, it may not be the brand for you. If you get a good car, you never have to deal with them but some cars just have issues and when dealing with them, can be a real pain if you're not patient. Typically, if its a small problem, the mobile service is great to use as you schedule the issue over the app and they come to you and fix the problem. If its a bigger issue and the only time they have is a couple weeks out in the service center, you have to try and escalate it if the car isn't working. They will most likely get you in but it may take a day or two for the coordinator to get back to you over text and this could be frustrating for many people (you never typically "talk" to anyone...just texts).

Of course you can just drop the car off at the service center if the problem is big enough (things like broken motor, dead battery etc) just like any dealer but they may just give you Uber credits vs. a loaner to get home. My car has had 1 issue in the 2+ years i've had it and it was a 1 day fix and they gave me a loaner but I have 4 service centers in the vicinity so its easy to get things fixed quickly (at least 2 years ago it was). I don't recommend Tesla for many Lexus buyers as their priorities are so different from Tesla buyers (quality, high service expectations vs. performance and high tech features).

I think typical Model 3 buyers don't care about stuff like this but I find Model S buyers really get upset over things like above. Buyer beware

 

The "potential savings" is stupid, if you ask me.
As far as seeing all the different car colors, you may not be able to see all of them depending on what is there. 2nd, there aren't many choices. 3rd the colors appeal to people differently depending on which car. For example, I like white on the Model 3 but not on the Model Y.

Here is our car:

 

I don't expect Lexus type service and I have leased a Dodge before so I understand setting expectations and I know, for the most part, what I am getting into. My Dodge experience was great and I would expect my experience with Tesla to be great too as long as my expectations are in check. What I don't have patience for is some Tesla guy texting me about buying one and saying he is there to answer any questions I have and still not responding to my questions a day later. If you are going to do that, don't bother texting me at all.

On the Model S, I don't like the white so I was going to just get black but now I am leaning towards the red. I have never had a red car and I kind of like the red with the black accents on the Model S but I really want to see it in person or at lease look at a color swatch or something they have in the store. I also want to see what the white interior looks like as well even though I will likely just get black interior.

 

I’ve never had a red car but I absolutely love my 3 in red. Color pops nicely. Not sure if they’ve changed the shade of red, but Tesla does pretty solid reds

 

So I finally get a response from the Tesla guy that texted me asking to help me with any questions and I finally received a text back after two days and he couldn't be more unhelpful. I had three specific questions for him and the response I got back was literally just a link to the Tesla website. Again, why reach out to me via text and act like you are there to help me if you really aren't and can't be bothered. I know their product is so good that maybe they don't need to focus on these little things but come on.