r/technology • u/ClappyKillmore • 17h ago

Transportation Tesla 'Cannot Guarantee' Roadster Reservation Holders Will Ever Get a Car

https://www.thedrive.com/news/tesla-cannot-guarantee-roadster-reservation-holders-will-ever-get-a-car
3.9k Upvotes

96% Upvoted

455 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/rupert1920 16h ago

I get a huge PR event like the one Tesla did will drive engagement, from both sides of the spectrum, with various degrees of automotive knowledge. What I detest is clickbait headlines like this from people who should know better, such as automotive journalists.

Should we be skeptical about Tesla's promises and their timelines? Yes. History has repeatedly shown them overpromising things, time and time again.

Is the wording in the preorder agreement evidence for that? No. The article quotes the preorder agreement: "You understand that Roadster is still under development at the time you entered into this Agreement and so we cannot guarantee when your vehicle will actually be delivered or if it will be delivered." That, on its surface, seems like damning evidence right? Especially for us who don't regularly read pre-order agreements. It sounds like Tesla is plain telling us they have no confidence they can deliver.

However, all it takes is a cursory look at other manufacturers' preorder agreements, and you will find similar wording - regardless of how trustworthy or how much of a vaporware their upcoming product is. For example, this is a generic wording for Ford's preorder agreement:

By completing the Reservation Process, you are not ordering or purchasing a vehicle... Participation in the Program does not guarantee you vehicle delivery... Ford, at its sole discretion, may decline or cancel your Reservation at any time, for any reason... Ford reserves the right to change, update, improve, correct, modify, suspend, discontinue or cancel all or part of the Program...

Here is one from Rivian:

Each Reservation you submit for a Vehicle acts as a deposit for a future purchase of the Vehicle. You are under no obligation to purchase a Vehicle from us, and we are under no obligation to supply you with a Vehicle.

This is standard boilerplate legal phrasing because companies understand there is always a possibility of changing production plans. Is Tesla more at risk of not delivering than these other two manufacturers? Possibly. But the inclusion of this type of phrasing is not evidence of that.

1

u/meneldal2 7h ago

There's also basically no FOMO with a Ford tbh. Rivian not sure, are they sold out that much?