> a test drive prior to purchase isn’t needed. You can now return a car within 7 days or 1,000 miles for a full refund
Call me old fashioned, but that is in no way a better alternative to a test drive prior to commitment.
Call me old fashioned, but that is in no way a better alternative to a test drive prior to commitment.
While helping someone pick a car recently, we test drove two different models of car from the same company multiple times as well, to decide which one was the right one. It's not like Tesla's going to send out a Model 3, a Model S, and a Model X and let me try all three.
You're trying to optimize for buying the cheapest Tesla that will work for you. Tesla is trying to optimize for making the most money they can from you. If you can not only afford a Model X but are seriously considering it, why would they put effort into possibly selling you a Model 3?
Why not let me pay to rent a car, like a normal rental car place, and pay per day.
Would be cool to do anyway, but I bet a lot of people would end up falling in love with the car that way and become owners shortly after.
There are a lot of people who just want a Tesla. They're not shopping around to find the best car. Offering a refund means those people can buy with confidence, knowing they can return it if it's not all they expected.
In Europe, cars are pretty personal items, and typically only insured for one or a few drivers. Lending your car to a friend for a day would typically involve hours on the phone to the insurance company and a few hundred euros of fees. There are apps (cuvva) which try to reduce this, but even so it'll probably be cheaper and less effort to call an Uber rather than borrow a friend's car.
In the USA, loaning a car to a friend or neighbor seems far more common.
Here in Italy insurance isn't particularly cheap, but there is normally no limitation whatever about "insured driver(s)", as long as the driver has a valid driving license the insurance covers accidents. (and yes you can lend your car to a friend without calling the insurance) and though I have no direct experience (as car owner), France and Spain afaik work the same.
It's almost always third party only - legal requirement - cover, unless you have notified the insurance and got approval first. That would usually need you as registered owner, and paying a premium, or even higher fee for not being keeper.
So I can borrow a car, get home legally, and if I cause an accident the other parties have cover against which they can claim. That's it. If it's stolen while in my care or I drive into a tree, no cover. If it catches fire, no cover. If I bash the door on a bollard or seize the engine, no cover. No cover for any of the things that might normally happen lending the thing to a friend.
I would be very surprised to learn you get full comprehensive insurance on any borrowed vehicle. That would make insurance premiums trivial to game.
Yes, we are talking different things.
The one you just described is a kind of "all risk" (which is commonly called "KASKO" here), it is actually rather "rare", only some firms/businesses use it for their fleet and - sometimes - private citizens for "high range" cars (such as a Tesla or a Porsche 911 might be) that are more susceptible to vandalism or theft.
But there is still a difference seemingly.
If a car is insured for fire, it is insured for fire.
If a car is insured for theft, it is insured for theft.
The above two are NOT connected in any way to the driver.
If a car is insured for "own damages" (such as running the car into a tree) , it is insured for "own damages" and in this case there might be limitations on the drivers (or an even steeper insurance tariff/rate for a "anyone driving is covered anyway").
Yet it's those policies that tend to cover driving other vehicles. The Third Party, Fire and Theft only policies are usually named vehicle only.
Sounds like there's quite different standard ways of doing it. :)
I think this is a smart idea. They can focus this money on creating more superchargers. That sells a lot more than a 20 minute test drive.
No, they expect you to buy all of them in parallel and return all but the one you want.
I mean, it’s the model lots of people have been using with clothing since online discount retailers with generous return policy started undercutting brick-and-mortar.
Buying a new car for $$$ (I keep them for at least 10 years, currently 14) is a pretty big commitment for a 10-20 minute test drive.
Imagine getting married after a 20 minute date.
I rented a model S for 2 days, I was still learning things about it when I returned it.
All 3 cars were pretty hot at the time, all 3 won car of the year or similar awards in the year I got them. I suspect if cars are in demand (and don't spend many days on the dealer lot) they minimize the test drives. If they spend months on the lot they are more generous with the test drives.
The policy is about giving more time to return the car if the customer didn't do a test drive before.
At Model 3's early days, a lot of people bought the car without having the option to take one out for a test drive.