Musk endeavours

[Howard]

Tesla caught out supplying slow old processors in new cars! No apologies or explanations until the customers found out and complained.

If VW did this we'd have an outcry here. However, I'm expecting very sympathetic noises from Tesla supporters .

Buyers of Teslas have to expect that they may be treated with some disdain if it suits the company. This isn't the way to encourage brand loyalty. Another basic marketing error?

Presumably the chips will have to be physically replaced.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-51736405

regards

Howard

[odysseus2000]

Tesla caught out supplying slow old processors in new cars! No apologies or explanations until the customers found out and complained.

If VW did this we'd have an outcry here. However, I'm expecting very sympathetic noises from Tesla supporters .

Buyers of Teslas have to expect that they may be treated with some disdain if it suits the company. This isn't the way to encourage brand loyalty. Another basic marketing error?

Presumably the chips will have to be physically replaced.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-51736405

regards

Howard

Would you rather have your car with the older processor to be replaced with the newer processor when supplies are available or not have the car till the new processor is available?

I suspect most would choose to have their car.

Regards,

[PeterGray]

You might. But you would certainly expect to be given the choice and kept informed!

[odysseus2000]

Spats at Uber:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-waym ... ssion=true

Regards,

[Howard]

Tesla sold 685 cars in Germany in February (that’s 1052 ytd) down 14% on this time last year.

And worse, only 502 cars in the UK (898 ytd).

These are serious declines in market share.

Even with massive subsidies Tesla is looking rather shaky in Europe. Down in all its main markets, Norway, Netherlands, Germany and the UK.

There will be deliveries coming on boats for March but this isn't the performance one would expect from a growing company.

As dspp might say "Do the maths".

regards

Howard

UK stats link below, other European statistics links are in my previous posts.

https://www.smmt.co.uk/vehicle-data/car-registrations/

[odysseus2000]

Gm say they have a 400 mile battery and that they can make it at low cost:

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/04/busi ... index.html

Whether this is bluster or reality is an important question.

Regards,

[dspp]

battery angst

https://seekingalpha.com/article/433010 ... ent=link-2

personally I don't agree with all their points, but worth reading all the same

dspp

[odysseus2000]

battery angst

https://seekingalpha.com/article/433010 ... ent=link-2

personally I don't agree with all their points, but worth reading all the same

dspp

The biggest problem I have is trying to determine what is realistic & what is unrealistic hype & then how will these stories effect punter buying decisions & investors hold/sell dynamics.

The consensus here among the folk who buy new cars as best I can gauge it from the small sample is that they do not trust Tesla & believe that VW & other legacy are more able to make a car sans faults than Tesla.

Another issue, is that a lot of folk I talk too about cars have it in their heads that Tesla are high priced luxury cars & they want lower priced reliable basic transport.

We may get a bit of steer from the Tesla battery day, advertised as some time in April, as to whether Tesla are ahead in batteries & if they can make lower cost batteries. As things are I find it hard to believe GM & VW claims about their batteries & when they will bring them to the market.

There is also no real discussion of how legacy see the relative sales of BEV & ICE & if they are to ramp BEV how are they going to de-ramp ICE. All their marketing is about some future day when BEV will cost the same to make as ICE, but nothing on the implications of this event if it happens.

The whole BEV saga has been a series of well publicised folk saying how BEV have no future through to the present were legacy is to dominate BEV. One could argue that the pre-history still applies & that legacy is all bluster, but things change making this game very difficult to be very confident in.

Regards,

[dspp]

battery angst

https://seekingalpha.com/article/433010 ... ent=link-2

personally I don't agree with all their points, but worth reading all the same

dspp

The biggest problem I have is trying to determine what is realistic & what is unrealistic hype & then how will these stories effect punter buying decisions & investors hold/sell dynamics.

Regards,

Indeed, and that article gives you a good taster of how little is known by even semi-knowledgeable commentators.

regards, dspp

[Howard]

Tesla caught out supplying slow old processors in new cars! No apologies or explanations until the customers found out and complained.

If VW did this we'd have an outcry here. However, I'm expecting very sympathetic noises from Tesla supporters .

Buyers of Teslas have to expect that they may be treated with some disdain if it suits the company. This isn't the way to encourage brand loyalty. Another basic marketing error?

Presumably the chips will have to be physically replaced.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-51736405

regards

Howard

Would you rather have your car with the older processor to be replaced with the newer processor when supplies are available or not have the car till the new processor is available?

I suspect most would choose to have their car.

Regards,

Ody

You know my answer. If I'd paid £50k + for what I believed was a bespoke, factory order, premium car I'd be disgusted at being palmed off with a substandard model which did not meet the contract paperwork. As a customer, who wouldn't feel cheated and taken for a fool?

Surely, as a businessman, you wouldn't palm off your customers with a substandard product? Or at least you would fess up to the problem up front?

But my reaction as a critic is that anything is possible from Tesla as they have a record of not meeting promises.

More importantly the company need to worry, not about me, but about their Chinese customers. This farrago has not yet passed. Looking at the Far East media, they are still covering this problem and the unfortunate customers are keeping it in the headlines. Marketing premium cars is a fairly sophisticated art and customers need to be proud of their purchases. I bet every Chinese customer is looking at their purchase contract to check that their car is up to standard. And I imagine that they are not happy about being ribbed by their friends and colleagues about whether their new car is made from old components.

With headlines like this, Tesla sales will be less than they otherwise would be.

I could provide a large number of press cuttings about this, but worth reading a typical report below (from yesterday's Asian Review)

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Elect ... r-in-China

regards

Howard

[odysseus2000]

Tesla caught out supplying slow old processors in new cars! No apologies or explanations until the customers found out and complained.

If VW did this we'd have an outcry here. However, I'm expecting very sympathetic noises from Tesla supporters .

Buyers of Teslas have to expect that they may be treated with some disdain if it suits the company. This isn't the way to encourage brand loyalty. Another basic marketing error?

Presumably the chips will have to be physically replaced.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-51736405

regards

Howard

Would you rather have your car with the older processor to be replaced with the newer processor when supplies are available or not have the car till the new processor is available?

I suspect most would choose to have their car.

Regards,

Ody

You know my answer. If I'd paid £50k + for what I believed was a bespoke, factory order, premium car I'd be disgusted at being palmed off with a substandard model which did not meet the contract paperwork. As a customer, who wouldn't feel cheated and taken for a fool?

Surely, as a businessman, you wouldn't palm off your customers with a substandard product? Or at least you would fess up to the problem up front?

But my reaction as a critic is that anything is possible from Tesla as they have a record of not meeting promises.

More importantly the company need to worry, not about me, but about their Chinese customers. This farrago has not yet passed. Looking at the Far East media, they are still covering this problem and the unfortunate customers are keeping it in the headlines. Marketing premium cars is a fairly sophisticated art and customers need to be proud of their purchases. I bet every Chinese customer is looking at their purchase contract to check that their car is up to standard. And I imagine that they are not happy about being ribbed by their friends and colleagues about whether their new car is made from old components.

With headlines like this, Tesla sales will be less than they otherwise would be.

I could provide a large number of press cuttings about this, but worth reading a typical report below (from yesterday's Asian Review)

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Elect ... r-in-China

regards

Howard

In the motor trade these things happen.

Toyota killed people with technical errors
VW deceived owners with Diesel gate.

There are always some issues with cars, but mostly the manufacturers are forgiven. For all the folk who boycotted Toyota and/or VW there were many more who didn't.

One has to put these kinds of things into perspective.

Regards,

[Howard]

Would you rather have your car with the older processor to be replaced with the newer processor when supplies are available or not have the car till the new processor is available?

I suspect most would choose to have their car.

Regards,

Ody

You know my answer. If I'd paid £50k + for what I believed was a bespoke, factory order, premium car I'd be disgusted at being palmed off with a substandard model which did not meet the contract paperwork. As a customer, who wouldn't feel cheated and taken for a fool?

Surely, as a businessman, you wouldn't palm off your customers with a substandard product? Or at least you would fess up to the problem up front?

But my reaction as a critic is that anything is possible from Tesla as they have a record of not meeting promises.

More importantly the company need to worry, not about me, but about their Chinese customers. This farrago has not yet passed. Looking at the Far East media, they are still covering this problem and the unfortunate customers are keeping it in the headlines. Marketing premium cars is a fairly sophisticated art and customers need to be proud of their purchases. I bet every Chinese customer is looking at their purchase contract to check that their car is up to standard. And I imagine that they are not happy about being ribbed by their friends and colleagues about whether their new car is made from old components.

With headlines like this, Tesla sales will be less than they otherwise would be.

I could provide a large number of press cuttings about this, but worth reading a typical report below (from yesterday's Asian Review)

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Elect ... r-in-China

regards

Howard

In the motor trade these things happen.

Toyota killed people with technical errors
VW deceived owners with Diesel gate.

There are always some issues with cars, but mostly the manufacturers are forgiven. For all the folk who boycotted Toyota and/or VW there were many more who didn't.

One has to put these kinds of things into perspective.

Regards,

I noticed that in your conversations with dspp you referred to a potential Tesla customer as a "punter".

As engineers, you may not be aware that using "Del Boy" terminology for customers indicates that you aren't really on the same page as most potential customers for £50k + cars.

I may be wrong but Tesla (and their supporters) also seem to treat potential customers in a rather derogative manner. The problem is that the "punters" segment may be rather more limited than Tesla expect. Yes, a lot of wealthy Californians may not be upset by being classed in this manner, but I guess European customers may be a little more discriminating when they have to fork out the equivalent of £55 - £80k for a car. And the Chinese customer may also object too.

Yes, VW's behaviour was unacceptable. But they weren't addressing a premium segment of the car market.

Hopefully you don't treat your customers as mug punters ?

"mange tout"

Howard

[odysseus2000]

I noticed that in your conversations with dspp you called potential Tesla customers "punters".

As engineers, you may not be aware that using "Del Boy" terminology for customers indicates that you aren't really on the same page as most potential customers for £50k + cars.

I may be wrong but Tesla also does seem to treat potential customers in a rather derogative manner. The problem is that the "punters" segment may be rather more limited than Tesla expect. Yes, a lot of wealthy Californians may not be upset by being classed in this manner, but I guess European customers may be a little more discriminating when they have to fork out the equivalent of £55 - £80k for a car. And the Chinese customer may also object too.

Yes, VW's behaviour was unacceptable. But they weren't addressing a premium segment of the car market.

Hopefully you don't treat your customers as mug punters ?

regards

Howard

Punters is just a generic term for people who come to look at what is on offer. It is not what I would put on sales literature, but it is a currently used term by many business to describe those who come to look at their products. Most business I study focus on moving inventory and for that one needs potential buyers or punters to view the material and some of them to become valued customers. By contrast a mug punter is someone you deliberately sell some poor quality stuff to and not something that reputable business do.

VW is also Audi who do aim for a premium segment of the market and are you saying that is alright to lie so long as the lies only cover those who buy from the bottom of your range?

Another very big positive on Tesla cars is there crash results. One can argue that these tests don't necessarily translate into real crashes, but having seem some of the tests, it is clear that Tesla make strong cars, better in some tests than Volvos. Keeping your customers safe is always a good selling point.

Additionally there is plenty of data showing that the Tesla electronic collision avoidance systems have saved lives which is also a big selling point as is the ability to upgrade software to correct problems, enhance performance and control battery longevity.

Clearly you are not interested in buying a Tesla which is fine, but the danger from an investor/traders perspective is that one gets a steer from a small group of people and then assumes everyone else thinks the same.

Regards,

[tjh290633]

Another very big positive on Tesla cars is there (sic) crash results. One can argue that these tests don't necessarily translate into real crashes, but having seem some of the tests, it is clear that Tesla make strong cars, better in some tests than Volvos. Keeping your customers safe is always a good selling point.

I thought a downside is the actual numbers of crashes they have had, when idiot drivers rely on the so-called autopilot.

That's having too much faith in Tesla.

TJH

[odysseus2000]

Another very big positive on Tesla cars is there (sic) crash results. One can argue that these tests don't necessarily translate into real crashes, but having seem some of the tests, it is clear that Tesla make strong cars, better in some tests than Volvos. Keeping your customers safe is always a good selling point.

I thought a downside is the actual numbers of crashes they have had, when idiot drivers rely on the so-called autopilot.

That's having too much faith in Tesla.

TJH

The media are fixated on Tesla crashes. not the over 80 people who are killed each day on US roads or the 10 people who on average are killed or seriously injured each day on UK roads.

Regards,

[odysseus2000]

1 millionth Tesla:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/123 ... 92129?s=20

Regards,

[Howard]

1 millionth Tesla:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/123 ... 92129?s=20

Regards,

Tesla will have over 1 million robotaxis on the road next year"
-Elon Musk, 22 Apr 2019

Making progress ?

regards

Howard

[odysseus2000]

For anyone interested I have sold half of my Tesla shares and may sell more at any moment.

The reason for the sales has nothing to do with Tesla and is all about my concerns about what may happen with the Corona virus.

If the mortality rate for the virus is anything like the figures coming out of Italy (see Corona virus thread for more details) there is imho a high probability that the politicians will panic and introduce some draconian measures and if such measures happen I expect a serious fight from equities and into cash.

Hopefully, I am wrong and if so I will likely re-buy the Tesla equity that I have sold today even if I have to pay more.

My actions are purely defensive against a threat that imho is getting worse.

Regards,

[odysseus2000]

According to today's Country Life magazine, Britains carbon emissions have fallen by 38%, now at the lowest levels since 1888.

Britain has cut its carbon emissions faster than any other major economy.

It will be interesting to see if we also become a major BEV market, hopefully buying a lot of Tesla, in the near term.

Regards,

[odysseus2000]

Tesla has highest owner satisfaction:

https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmani ... ion-survey

Regards,