Couldn't stand the suspense so I called Tesla

[Old Pro]

At 67 years old, all of us "old guys" hoping to have our trucks before we're too old to enjoy them. I remember back in 2012 when I ordered my first Tesla Model S, there was a fellow 88 years old and in poor health. Tesla kindly moved him to the head of the line.

I haven't driven anything but Tesla since 2012. Thankfully I bought the stock back then. I have 2 ex wives with Teslas, my girlfriend has a Tesla, a son with a Tesla, brother, step daughter, sister, many of my friends. My short street of 2 short blocks has 5 Model 3's and 3 Model Y's on it. jeez!!! There's a lot of Tesla's in most Californian's lives.

Reservation first day, 45,000. I'll take whatever configuration comes first and gladly pick up in Texas.

At age 70 and counting, maybe I'll try the "Age Card" and see if that works for me!

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[Old Pro]

I understand that one can change their configuration at some point and thereby hopefully advance a potential delivery date?

 

[DrDefore]

I’m 92, a broken arm, a broken leg, blind in one eye, live and breath Tesla.. maybe I can be bumped up in line .. lol oh I’m also a New Yorker..

 

[Old Pro]

I’m 92, a broken arm, a broken leg, blind in one eye, live and breath Tesla.. maybe I can be bumped up in line .. lol oh I’m also a New Yorker..

Being from N.Y. shouldn't be a factor against you.!

 

[PilotPete]

I'm 71, and no where near the front of the line. I'm thinking I have too much mileage on me to make it to delivery... B-(

Chuck,

When I met my (now) mother-in-law, she used to say “I’m 88 and I could go tomorrow. I don’t have time left for…” She lived alone. Tried to get her to get a dog, nope, she could go any day. Tried to get her to do lots of stuff, nope, she could go any day now. Well, it’s more than 10 years later. She hasn’t gone anywhere. She’s 98, still lives alone, still drives, still spends an hour on the southern California freeways every week going out to the Indian Casino to play slots and hang with her casino friends. She still won’t get a dog, go on a big vacation, get a new car, you name it because, well, she could go any day now.

My point is, you’ll be fine. Post your pic here when you get your CT and let us know how you like it! I’ll be here waiting for it.

 

[Newton]

believing some 1 selling u an expensive product... I have some stuff to sell u

 

[Old Pro]

Chuck,

When I met my (now) mother-in-law, she used to say “I’m 88 and I could go tomorrow. I don’t have time left for…” She lived alone. Tried to get her to get a dog, nope, she could go any day. Tried to get her to do lots of stuff, nope, she could go any day now. Well, it’s more than 10 years later. She hasn’t gone anywhere. She’s 98, still lives alone, still drives, still spends an hour on the southern California freeways every week going out to the Indian Casino to play slots and hang with her casino friends. She still won’t get a dog, go on a big vacation, get a new car, you name it because, well, she could go any day now.

My point is, you’ll be fine. Post your pic here when you get your CT and let us know how you like it! I’ll be here waiting for it.

Thanks, will do with great joy!

 

[E-CarGo]

I'm 71, and no where near the front of the line. I'm thinking I have too much mileage on me to make it to delivery... B-(

I’m 79 and have a similar concern @ res 142,000

 

[Coolbreeze704]

Could that be the mysterious prince that emails about giving millions away if you give him your bank details.

Cr@p. He just emailed me last week. Do you think the estate will forward payment to my account?

 

[HaulingAss]

yeah, 60-90 days till the first delivery. Singular. I agree with above..

I expect them to take several months to ramp up to the point where 1k+ models are coming off the line every month. I have a minute one reservation (#5000) , and i don't expect to see my truck till around valentines day (half a year). with that said, i think your taco will last until then! maybe put it on ice

It's impossible to guess when the first deliveries will happen, but probably late in the 3rd quarter. The date is not all that important because it doesn't determine the ramp speed.

I think there will be a trickle of deliveries early in the 4th quarter, followed by a pause of a few weeks, and then a slow but steady stream of deliveries, with a week or two thrown in here or there with no new Cybertrucks being made. But, at some point, without advance warning, it will be noticed that real numbers are coming off the line. Then sometime in Q2 of next year things will pick up dramatically and it will be a delivery free-for-all. It will resemble the slow and erratic ramp speed of the Model 3 more than the quick and steady ramp of the Model Y.

The exact timing of the ramp will not be predictable to anyone, it will go at the fastest pace allowed by the slowest part of the line and the problems that crop up. Just when everyone is complaining louder than a fleet of 747's taking off at the same time, the pace will suddenly surprise and delight. But most still will not have confirmed orders with delivery estimates yet. I think sometime by mid next year the pace of the ramp will surprise the pessimists and the reservation backlog will start to burn through at a pace quicker than most expected (due to both the number of cancellations and the pace of production).

In any case, the speed of the ramp is beyond the control of everyone except for the people who work at Tesla or their suppliers. If don't fall into either category, you have no standing to complain, considering that you have done nothing to speed it along beyond putting down a measly $100 deposit (which is nothing more than a show of demand interest).

I expect the Cybertruck to be far better of a product than most people currently expect and that belief makes it difficult to wait patiently, But that anticipation can be tempered by the knowledge that no matter how good it is, even if it smashes all expectations, it's still just a truck and can only be a truck. Meaning that, even after you have one in your sweaty little palms, it's still just a truck, perhaps an exceptional one at that, but just a truck. You still have to wake up each day and live your life, it will not magically make everything in your world right. It will not increase your IQ one bit, it will not make you more attractive to the opposite sex (or the same sex as the case may be), it will not make you more sociable or more popular. In fact, it will probably throw new social challenges your way. Most of the challenges you faced before delivery will still be there.

Having said all that, accepting delivery of an early Model 3, followed shortly by another, did improve my life simply by showing me how good a car could be and opening my mind to new possibilities. It made each day considerably better and more enjoyable being able to drive a breakthrough product. For me, that was going from ICE to EV. If you already have a great EV, the difference will likely be less dramatic. The more you need the unique capabilities of the Cybertruck, the more it will improve your life. Even if you don't need a truck hardly at all, I think the Cybertruck will change people's lives for the better. And just seeing that awesome and radically different vehicle on the road will change the lives of bystanders for the better too. Of course, the haters will always hate. I see the Cybertruck as standing for the belief that rapid change is not only possible, but also a reality. It gives people permission to think outside the box and figure out new possibilites, better ways of carrying out the same functions.

We think new technology has been with us since the first computers or the first smartphones. And that was not long ago in the bigger picture. I think the Cybertruck ushers in the age of technology, a fundemental change that will be more impactful, and happen more quickly, than most realize. We are leaving the age of oil and old school industry behind, and the ramification run deep and wide. It's a slow process but we are on the cusp of an acceleration into the age the technology few are prepared for. The Cybertruck is not the cause, its more of a symptom. But it's a visible enough symptom that its radical brashness will further accelerate change and the way people think about the future and this will feed upon itself and accelerate. For 40 years we have seen the way technology has changed the world but it has been slow and non-dramatic, but I think that is about to change. The next 10 years will be one of technological disruption that exceeds anything anyone has seen to date. And the Cybertruck will become the most visible manifestation of that.

 

[HaulingAss]

I'm 71, and no where near the front of the line. I'm thinking I have too much mileage on me to make it to delivery... B-(

I think you'll probably make it to delivery. Further, even if you make it to 80 years or beyond, still driving, or being driven around by FSD, your Cybertruck will still look and drive much like the day you accepted delivery and will be passed on to be appreciated by someone who will be blown away by how good a truck from 2024 could be.

 

[HaulingAss]

I'm pretty confident that Tesla will deliver a lot of 300+ mile range Cybertrucks before the first 500+ mile range version comes off the factory lines. Those who are adamant they want nothing less than 500 miles can wait, and be amongst the first to take delivery a 500+ mile Cybertruck. But the wait is unknown, it could be as long as a year or more.

 

[HaulingAss]

At age 70 and counting, maybe I'll try the "Age Card" and see if that works for me!

I suspect those days are long gone!

 

[charliemagpie]

With such a long waiting list, my vote is to move the over 60's to the top.

 

[PilotPete]

We are leaving the age of oil and old school industry behind, and the ramification run deep and wide. It's a slow process but we are on the cusp of an acceleration into the age the technology few are prepared for. The Cybertruck is not the cause, its more of a symptom. But it's a visible enough symptom that its radical brashness will further accelerate change and the way people think about the future and this will feed upon itself and accelerate. For 40 years we have seen the way technology has changed the world but it has been slow and non-dramatic, but I think that is about to change. The next 10 years will be one of technological disruption that exceeds anything anyone has seen to date. And the Cybertruck will become the most visible manifestation of that.

I think the change is a slightly different one, but you are right, it is a significant change. I’m not in the “I hate big oil“ camp (not that you are). I’m not buying an EV because of any carbon issues. I am buying 2 (maybe 3) Teslas because I see performance and tech here that the old school has completely ignored.

As an example, just look at Nav systems. Before I knew about how the Teslas work, I said “Why would anyone spend $1 on a Nav system in their car? Just put in Apple Play. The apps and maps are constantly updated, get real time traffic conditions, and you don’t have to pay $100/year to find a street that was opened 9 months ago.” Well, here goes Tesla, taking the best of what your phone can do, making it better by building all those OTA benefits into the display, and it’s bigger and easier to read than your phone. Oh, and they don’t charge you extra for the Nav. Oh, and they know the real time status of the entire charging network. (I wish I could see from home or the road how bad the gas lines are at Costco from my car!) And by adding Solar to my house, it‘s a double benefit. The solar eliminates my electric bill, and the car helps shorten my ROI on the purchase. And I never will leave the house, jump in the car and say “Oh crap, I forgot to get gas last night!” on my way to work. I just don’t see a downside here. (Except tires, I might be going through those a touch faster than before!)

I’ve never bought an American car, the US automakers left the customers behind 50+ years ago and since them have been serving us what they want, not what we want. And as for Tesla, They are going at this completely different. It’s like my phone. As a company, I really dislike Apple. I don’t like many of their policies toward the users among a few other things. However, their stuff just plain works! Interoperability, their updates, their performance, it just all works, seamlessly and I don’t have to constantly screw with it to “make” it work. Tesla is a lot like that. After renting quite a few of them, I see that they just plain work. Fun to drive, easy to drive, great tech, and I see them doing everything different. From design, to construction, to sales, to operation, to support, everything. And although different isn’t always better, they are making a difference in a forward direction. As soon as the 3 refresh is out, I’ll order it. As soon as my number comes up for the CT, I’ll trade my 3 for it. My wife may get a Y or an X. She’s not 100% convinced yet. But I have a feeling after I’ve had the 3 for a while, she will be.

The Tesla business story is a lot like the Apple story. Design a new product that is designed around what works for most people, forget how it’s “always been done”, and change the industry. I’ll gladly spend my money and support a product like that.

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