For a car that has only been seen a handful of times in public, demand and expectations for the Tesla Model X are at an all time high. But don’t blame Tesla; as Business Insider reports, the company is actively trying to get would-be Model X buyers into the Model S instead. Why would Elon Musk do that?
On the record, Musk said that the reason he doesn’t want to build demand for the upcoming Model X is that customers were “upset” at waiting too long, going so far as to make a public spectacle of themselves. The Tesla CEO wants to avoid another such public car bashing over delayed deliveries.
Another reason for the lack of Model X hype is that Musk already has about a year’s worth of production in reservations. At last tally, there were more than 12,000 Tesla Model X reservations, and that number has grown everyday despite the fact that there are no test drives and little information available on the electric SUV. Tesla-mania is at an all-time high, and Musk brazenly claims he can create demand for his product “at will.”
To his credit, Musk has built an incredible electric car brand without investing a single dollar into marketing or advertising, but Musk has also delayed production of the Model X at least once. While the retooling of the Fremont plant is underway, there have lately been questions about Tesla’s drivetrain reliability. Hopefully these issues have been ironed out in time for the Model X rollout.
If not? Well the hype train might just come to a screeching halt.
Source: http://cleantechnica.com/2014/08/08/tesla-tries-slow-model-x-reservations/
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