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New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

blog.caranddriver.com

141–150 of 224 posts

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#141
post #50

Does Tesla do free firmware upgrades for all owners, regardless if they are the second, etc. owner? Because that is another thing that will crush dealers. Gas car manufacturers will not update ECU software unless the car is either in warranty or its an actual recall.

Yep, ownership doesn't matter.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#142
post #47
post #18

This is great news. People often forget that dealerships often abuse their power and take advantage of consumers. This is especially true since purchasing a car is a large purchase with information asymmetry (although new resources have made this less true). It's especially appalling how dealerships often discriminate on race and gender [0] I am disappointed that this move only applies to zero-emission vehicles but h…

On the other hand, this could be an incentive to purchase zero-emission vehicles instead of the alternatives, as the buying experience would be theoretically much better than that of going to a traditional dealer.

If you are not price sensitive, it's very easy to have an excellent buying experience.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#143
post #138
post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best way to buy cars is option out exactly what you want and get the invoice price. Personally I've used carsdirect. Now with invoice price in mind, send emails to all dealers in your area. Simply explain you want X car @ X price and that you are emailing many dealers and will move forward with the dealer that has the best deal. Its important that you compare cars across dealers by the difference from invoice pri…

Or just use Costco Auto, and get invoice, sub a hundred or a few hundred (depending on mfg).

I don't have any experience with Costco Auto but knowing Costco it's probably a good program.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#144
post #79

Suggestion: go to Amsterdam Schiphol. Take a Tesla Model S to the city. Then make up your mind about the "Apple of cars". The consensus in NL is that you're better off with a Porsche Panamera than a Tesla, most likely with a less painful (although still painful) amortisation. Certainly, if you're taller than 180cm, drive before you buy into the hype.

6'2" Telsa owner here. No idea what you're talking about on not fitting.

If it's a real concern get the panoramic roof which gains you another 3-4" of headroom.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#145
post #136
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is great news. It is! > People often forget that dealerships often abuse their power and take advantage of consumers. I doubt many people forget that. Car salesmen have some of the worst reputations of any profession in the US. Purchasing a car can be nerve-wracking. The research I felt compelled to do beforehand felt like I was preparing myself for battle, because I knew the incentives were diametrically oppos…

The best way to buy cars is option out exactly what you want and get the invoice price. Personally I've used carsdirect. Now with invoice price in mind, send emails to all dealers in your area. Simply explain you want X car @ X price and that you are emailing many dealers and will move forward with the dealer that has the best deal. Its important that you compare cars across dealers by the difference from invoice pri…

Also once you've narrowed the list of dealers. Make sure that the dealer actually has the car in question. Ask for the vin number. I've had the unfortunate experience of them trying a bait and switch once.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#146
post #136
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is great news. It is! > People often forget that dealerships often abuse their power and take advantage of consumers. I doubt many people forget that. Car salesmen have some of the worst reputations of any profession in the US. Purchasing a car can be nerve-wracking. The research I felt compelled to do beforehand felt like I was preparing myself for battle, because I knew the incentives were diametrically oppos…

The best way to buy cars is option out exactly what you want and get the invoice price. Personally I've used carsdirect. Now with invoice price in mind, send emails to all dealers in your area. Simply explain you want X car @ X price and that you are emailing many dealers and will move forward with the dealer that has the best deal. Its important that you compare cars across dealers by the difference from invoice pri…

You're missing a huge part. Get an insurance quote for what it will run you every 6 months. You can also get a tag, title and tax quote as well.

Also 200-300 for DMV is for a $2000 car in CA or a $6000 car in OK. $200-300 sounds extraordinarily low based on my purchases in both the midwest (MO, TX, OK) and west coast (CA 10%+).

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#147
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is great news. It is! > People often forget that dealerships often abuse their power and take advantage of consumers. I doubt many people forget that. Car salesmen have some of the worst reputations of any profession in the US. Purchasing a car can be nerve-wracking. The research I felt compelled to do beforehand felt like I was preparing myself for battle, because I knew the incentives were diametrically oppos…

If you are buying a new run of the mill car and are not picky about colors/options, you are basically buying a commodity - every new car of the given make and model is just like the next. If you also happen to live in the U.S. near a metro area, chances are that there are a ton of dealerships nearby willing to compete to get their high-value inventory off the lot. You can turn the tables around quite easily and stres…

Couple of things. Dealers know you're doing this, so they'll try to confuse/bamboozle you to regain their advantage in information asymmetry. You have to be 100% sure of what you want, and why you want it. The slightest hesitation, and they'll have you.

Secondly: this tactic works even better near the end of the month. Salesmen have sales goals; if s/he is a little short of that goal (or the next tier), you bet they'll do everything, including throwing in their grandma, to clinch the deal.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#148
post #136
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is great news. It is! > People often forget that dealerships often abuse their power and take advantage of consumers. I doubt many people forget that. Car salesmen have some of the worst reputations of any profession in the US. Purchasing a car can be nerve-wracking. The research I felt compelled to do beforehand felt like I was preparing myself for battle, because I knew the incentives were diametrically oppos…

The best way to buy cars is option out exactly what you want and get the invoice price. Personally I've used carsdirect. Now with invoice price in mind, send emails to all dealers in your area. Simply explain you want X car @ X price and that you are emailing many dealers and will move forward with the dealer that has the best deal. Its important that you compare cars across dealers by the difference from invoice pri…

The best way to buy a car is from Tesla. Configure your car exactly as you want it online. See the exact price you will pay. When you're ready, click the button and put down a deposit using a credit card on their web site. When the car is delivered, pay the balance with an ACH transfer. Drive it home.

You certainly can do well with traditional dealers if you're prepared. It's just crazy that you even have to worry about it.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#149
post #50

Does Tesla do free firmware upgrades for all owners, regardless if they are the second, etc. owner? Because that is another thing that will crush dealers. Gas car manufacturers will not update ECU software unless the car is either in warranty or its an actual recall.

To my limited knowledge most (maybe all) of the software in Tesla model S can be updated over the air, using cars cellular internet connection.

That's correct. It's possible for a service center to load software over a wire, but that's only necessary when something goes wrong. In the normal course of events, the car pops up a little alert saying there's a software update available, and asking when you want to install it. Updates are free forever (although one expects that updates for older hardware will stop being made eventually). It's basically like an iPhone in this regard.

Re: New Jersey legalizes direct Tesla sales

#150
post #79

Suggestion: go to Amsterdam Schiphol. Take a Tesla Model S to the city. Then make up your mind about the "Apple of cars". The consensus in NL is that you're better off with a Porsche Panamera than a Tesla, most likely with a less painful (although still painful) amortisation. Certainly, if you're taller than 180cm, drive before you buy into the hype.

Why so complicated with going to Amsterdam and all that? Just go to your nearest Tesla location and take a test drive.

Just be careful, because odds are good that you will want to buy one after doing so, and they are not cheap.

I'm 190cm tall and I own a Model S and it's extremely comfortable for me, both as driver and passenger.

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