Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Tesla Motors, Green Daily
Tesla's new $5,000 wait list for 2009 Roadster
Quite a few people have paid a hefty sum to be on the waiting list for the upcoming Tesla Roadster. Tesla Motors has already taken enough orders that the 2008 model year is "sold out," but there is still a chance that someone who signs up for a Roadster now will get a 2008 car. So how do you get on the list? It's pretty simple, just find $5,000 and send it to Tesla as a "wait list payment." If you pony up the $5,000 right now, you can expect to get a Roadster in late 2008 (if you're lucky) or, more likely, some time in 2009.
I forget exactly how Tesla's pre-order list worked in the past and if this $5,000 has always been the entry price for the Roadster waiting list. I don't think so, and the AutoblogGreen archives and Google help me out. Back in July, the San Jose Mercury News' Matt Nauman wrote:
At this point, buyers can put down either $50,000, which gets them a car by July of 2008, or $30,000, which gets them a car whenever all the folks who put down $50,000 have their car. On the Tesla Web site, these two tiers of depositers are described as a "Premium Buyer" and a "Patient Buyer."
What would you call the people who send in $5,000 now?
[Source: Tesla Motors vis Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
why not the LS2LS7? 2:52PM (11/08/2007)
I was told Tesla has sold their entire 2008 production run of 600 cars out and has 50 people on the list for 2009 cars already.
12 cars a week in 2008 (over 2 a day) is a tall order for cars where final assembly is done by hand. I'd kinda expect to see production slippages.
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Dave 3:56PM (11/08/2007)
I imagine Tesla's waiting list just grew immensely.
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Kardax 4:12PM (11/08/2007)
I could put my name on the waiting list right now, but I wouldn't be able to pay for the rest when my number got called :|
I suspect some of the $5000 deposit holders have similar problems...
why not the LS2/LS7?: I agree... hand assembly is not compatible with high sales volumes. If Tesla proves they're the real deal by shipping reliable cars, gets good auto magazine reviews, and exports to Europe... they could sell 3,000 Roadsters a year easily. They'll definitely have to figure out how to accelerate production to keep up with demand.
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BlackbirdHighway 4:45PM (11/08/2007)
The waiting list may be growing now, but just wait until they actually start shipping.
The car business has a long history startups that didn't come through. I have faith that Tesla will, but lots of people will simply see it as too risky and won't buy it until there is an actual product delivered into customers hands. At that point, I expect a flood of orders.
I predict that the wait will eventually increase to two years or more.
If oil goes any higher, or even stays this high, then the demand for Whitestar and Volt, and even the Miles, assuming it comes through, will be enormous.
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why not the LS2LS7? 5:44PM (11/08/2007)
I don't think that rising gas prices will cause significantly more Roadster sales. The Roadster costs so much ($92K) that no one is doing it as a financial measure. Total cost of ownership for this vehicle will still be far more than that of a gas car even if gas prices triple.
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BlackbirdHighway 5:54PM (11/08/2007)
I agree, high oil prices are more likely to drive cars like the Whitestar, Volt, and the Miles, when they finally make it into production.
The biggest sales driver right now for the Tesla Roadster is pure buzz and trendiness.
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Domenick 8:06PM (11/08/2007)
I would call the people who send in $5,000 now a lot better off than myself. I think I need a new job.
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why not the LS2LS7? 8:43PM (11/08/2007)
Sorry BlackbirdHighway to question you, that's exactly what you said the first time and I misread it.
I think even at $50-$60K Whitestar isn't going to sell on running costs yet. But if gas prices double again, it might be a different story.
If GM can make Volt at the price they say (and I don't really believe they can), then it will make a measurable number of sales based upon running costs. Not the majority or anything, but it's a start.
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why not the LS2LS7? 8:43PM (11/08/2007)
Sorry BlackbirdHighway to question you, that's exactly what you said the first time and I misread it.
I think even at $50-$60K Whitestar isn't going to sell on running costs yet. But if gas prices double again, it might be a different story.
If GM can make Volt at the price they say (and I don't really believe they can), then it will make a measurable number of sales based upon running costs. Not the majority or anything, but it's a start.
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Anth 11:15PM (11/08/2007)
Are the waiting list spots transferable? Can I put $5000 down now and then e-bay my spot on the list for much more as it gets closer to delivery?
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BlackbirdHighway 6:48AM (11/09/2007)
I doubt you can sell your spot on the wating list directly, but you could always try to resell the car once you receive it.
A flip is a risky proposition though, if something goes wrong, and the car loses it's buzz, or Tesla decides to drop the price, or finds a way to increase production, or whatever, then you might lose out. It all comes down to: Are you feeling lucky? I'm sure that some people will buy just to flip. It happens to just about anything that's popular. There's a lot of people right now with houses they can't afford because they thought they could flip, and got caught.
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Kent Beuchert 11:10AM (11/09/2007)
Considering the fact that the upcoming Fisker shreds any claims of Tesla as the prmier EV, I'd
say those still on the list simply haven't gotten the word that the Tesla has been renered obsolete and impractical by the go-anywhere-do-anything-Fisker, and look a whole lot better doing it and
with twice as many friends. Eberhard banked totally on looks to sell the Tesla - he forgot that people actually want to go places outside the county. Eberhard The Fool is now learning the hard way that his arrogant and silly claims to outdo Detroit are nothing but wind. I'll take a Fisker, please, and cancel my order for that Tester car.
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Kardax 11:27AM (11/09/2007)
For those in the audience who haven't heard of Kent Beuchert, please click his name to review his posting history before commenting.
"Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level and beat you with experience."
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BlackbirdHighway 12:48PM (11/09/2007)
Kardax, That's a good saying, but there's another one I like even better: "Never wrestle with a pig, you just get all muddy and the pig likes it."
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Kardax 1:24PM (11/09/2007)
BlackbirdHighway: Good one, I'll have to remember it ;)
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why not the LS2LS7? 1:57PM (11/09/2007)
Right now, even Tesla is vapor. You can't make vapor obsolete!
If Fisker wants to make the premier EV, they could start by shipping an EV. Right now I don't think they ship anything and if google serves me right, their first product is a PHEV, not an EV.
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stevejust 5:08PM (11/09/2007)
Fisker's making a plugin HYBRID, not an EV.
Fisker's mileage won't be anywhere close to Tesla's 135 mpg-equivalent. I need to know what mileage the Fisker's going to get, and what's going on with the CR-Z and FT-HS before I put the $5,000 on the Tesla. While I've heard that people who've asked for the deposits back are getting them, they're not getting them back with any interest, so it's not like its sitting in escrow.
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Chris M 3:00AM (11/10/2007)
Kent Beuchert is a Detroit/GM fanboy, who doesn't like anything that doesn't come from Michigan. He didn't like hybrids - until GM started making them. He didn't like plug-ins - until GM revealed their Volt concept.
So, it isn't suprising that he'd prefer a vaporous vague announcement of a possible future PHEV (no prototype in sight) from a Michigan firm over a real, fully tested and validated, ready for production EV from a California company. No doubt, if Tesla was headquartered in Detroit, he'd be singing high praise about them!
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BlackbirdHighway 7:42AM (11/10/2007)
Tesla is headquartered in California, but they do at least have a R&D office in the Detroit area. Smart thinking, really, take advantage of the large numbers of laid-off auto engineers with long experience in exactly the areas where Tesla is weakest.
Just about everything about the way Tesla has operated has been quite impressive.
People have recently made a big deal about the delays with the transmission, yet delays like that hit automakers all the time. Tesla is just being more open about it than most. Just last Thursday, ABG reported that Volkswagen delayed the Jetta CleanTDI for six months. Completely different problem, but that's how it goes, Even a huge company like VW suffers delays when problems turn up.
I would guess that our first look at a Whitestar Mockup/Prototype will be shortly after the first of the Roadsters are delivered. I hope they have a big ceremony/press event when the first Roadster is delivered to Elon Musk. It's one heck of an achievement.
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jthorner 11:21AM (11/15/2007)
Fools and their money are easily parted. Sometimes people with lots of money are still suckers.
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