Called Tesla many time to change Beast to AWD…112763xxx

[Jethro]

The automated system hung up every time, sometimes putting me on hold first.

I’m a current owner and stock holder. As a lone time supporter, I am very curious and would like to be enlightened:

!. Did Tesla also lay off the “customer support“ department?
2. Is there some great difficulty building the Beast…is it more than just the two motor rear drive from the AWD?
3. Is region a big factor in delivery?
4. Is it just friends, celebrities and employees getting deliveries?
5. How many Beasts have actually been delivered and are they working properly?
6. Are many others changing Beast to AWD?
7. Will Tesla loan me an AWD CT until my Beast comes in (yes, a joke)

So ready for enlightenment!

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[Jethro]

Why are you changing you’re Beast reservation to an AWD?

Ah, yes…should have clarified, thanks!

BECAUSE it’s taking so long and I keep seeing Cybertrucks rolling around town. I’m wondering if Kimbal got a fleet. Just jelly!

 

[Alan]

When I mistakenly ordered all wheel drive, I called their phone number and asked for sales, you get someone right away when you do that and they had it changed within 20 minutes to a cyber beast.

 

[rbalkun]

You can change it online if you log in on a web browser.

 

[Balthezor]

Like others said, you can change the config online now. On the Tesla website, go to manage order. This option happened Monday night. Monday during the day, I drove to a Tesla store and ask them if they could change my AWD to Beast. They said, they dont know if they can do that, but they will give my RN to their supervisor to call Tesla support?? He said CT is last on their mind, so may take 72 hours. On my drive home, I got the email already that my design was updated. Beats calling if you had a store nearby. But now, you can do it online.

 

[M0unt41nm4n]

The automated system hung up every time, sometimes putting me on hold first.

I’m a current owner and stock holder. As a lone time supporter, I am very curious and would like to be enlightened:

!. Did Tesla also lay off the “customer support“ department?
2. Is there some great difficulty building the Beast…is it more than just the two motor rear drive from the AWD?
3. Is region a big factor in delivery?
4. Is it just friends, celebrities and employees getting deliveries?
5. How many Beasts have actually been delivered and are they working properly?
6. Are many others changing Beast to AWD?
7. Will Tesla loan me an AWD CT until my Beast comes in (yes, a joke)

So ready for enlightenment!

Great post because I just went through this today. TL;DR - I switched to AWD from a Beast.

On 1/23 I ordered a CB. I was quote Feb-Apr (yes... I double checked it was for that time for the Beast.. it wasn't a mistake). Recently, I found out that there is a pretty good chance I won't be eligible for the Powershare only because there are no installers in my area. That meant I would lose the value of the free installation and the Powershare gateway itself. So I had to weigh what I am going to get out of a Cyberbeast vs an AWD.

Well now that you can edit the order, I decided to look at maybe switching to the grey interior. But without doing a thing, my Beast showed an Oct-Dec delivery time. I thought "Wow... this may end up slipping into 2025". I looked at the AWD and it showed a June-Aug delivery time.

I had to weigh the CB vs AWD. CB has the front hardware locker and software back wheel lockers where the AWD is opposite. The CB will be much faster than AWD, but honestly, how often are you going to use it? The CB has lower range than a AWD and I already am in a cold climate so range is going to impact me. The lightbar is cool... but its another one of those "How often are you going to use it" questions. This thing is not likely to go offroad much (and when I say offroad, I mean Moab offroad, not a dirt road) just because its limited in its capabilities when compared to a Jeep or ICE pickup that has been altered to go offeroad with specialized lift/suspension, etc). These are my reasons, and may not apply to others... but they are what is important to me.

So I decided to call Tesla. I called several times and could not get a human. It would say something about their hours and then hang up. I was getting pissed. I would text and not get a response. I finally texted them a "Is there any way to get a response or talk to a human?" No response. So I decided to backdoor it and I called for "service" on their phone number. It gave me to a service manager and I begged him to let me talk to someone in sales. He did it! Transferred me to the exact person who I have been trying to get ahold of for a couple of months (rated one of the best sales people managers at Tesla in Gypsum). I even said to him "Dude... I have been trying to specifically get ahold of you for a long time."

So I asked him these questions and he gave me the following answers:

1 - Are the dates correct on line?
A - Probably as they haven't seen any Beasts in Gypsum. However people have been dropping orders like flies due to financing, not being able to get the cash, or insurance. So they go down the line and hand out VINs (those are the quick turn arounds we all see) to the next person. I could grab onto a Beast when they are released and more of them get dropped.

2 - With my RN number, am I going to come up before Oct?
A - Its possible, but they haven't really moved in Beasts yet and don't expect a huge amount yet. He liked my number and said conversion to AWD may happens soon due to people dropping orders.

3 - There is no installer in my area for the Powershare. To me its valued at $4000 + $1200-$1800 or whatever the cost of the Powershare. Not finding an installer is not my problem, its Tesla's. Is there a chance I will get the Powershare?
A - If he was a betting man, I won't be eligible for the Powershare because the certified installer thing Tesla is standing on. The reason is its not that they need special certified dealers is that they have a contract with them where they get a killer deal on installation and product. So what is $4K to us at retail is maybe $1-$1.5k discounted installation to Tesla directly and of course the Powershare gateway is super cheap coming from Tesla because they eat their own cost as a direct shipment. This is why the consolence price is relatively cheap. The gateway cost is negligible ($700?) and the installation is cheap based on the contract volume (another $700 or so?). Anyways, he said its a lot closer to the consolation price due to the contract arrangements with the installers.

He agreed with my reasoning on the value and it was going to come down to accepting that I will likely be disappointed that I probably won't get powershare and that I will have to wait until Q4 as a minimum. He said based on what I said, I am probably best off converting my order to AWD. He said I will stay in line and its very possible I will see a VIN a lot sooner than expected.

So, I changed my order to AWD. What is cool is it kept my order date as 1/23. I got an email from Tesla confirming the change with a new order sheet... and $20K cheaper.

Then about 20 minutes later I got a text back form Tesla... with the person who I spoke to's Direct number and extension. That was awesome.

I have to say I feel a bit relieved and it seemed like the smart decision. I guess if I could have gotten everything (Powershare included) and if I could get it this summer, then the value porposition would have been there and I was ok with waiting bit longer. but when I started weighing it all out, the answer came to me along with the help of the Tesla manager letting me know he thought it was a good decision as well.

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