We’ve been patiently waiting for the release of Tesla’s most affordable electric vehicle — Model 3, ever since CEO Elon Musk took the wraps off it last year. The automaker has now amassed about 400,000 pre-orders to date and is gearing up to kick off production in a couple months. It is expected to start shipping by end of 2017, but wouldn’t it create a ruckus when people line up at delivery centers?
Well, you may not have to face any delays or awkward crowds when going out to receive your Tesla Model 3 electric vehicles. Heck, it is also possible that you may not even be required to spend hours filling paperwork at the delivery center. You will just have to walk in and walk out with your brand spanking new Model 3 in just five minutes. At least, that’s what Elon Musk has in mind.
As reported by Electrek, Musk has expressed his displeasure with the current delivery process on a private call with the investors. He believes that Tesla needs to invest in streamlining the said process for the ease of its customers – who’ll all come racing when Model 3 finally starts shipping. This is expected to create three or four times the strain on its current infrastructure and the Tesla CEO wants themselves to be completely prepared for the same.
In his conversation with the investors, Musk said,
The delivery of the cars is where the investment is needed. We need to deliver three or four times as many cars. But we don’t want to have three or four times as many delivery centers. How do we make that delivery process more streamlined, less paperwork, less bureaucracy and get people really ahead of time with really well-produced instruction videos for how to use their car.
He further continued to add that the idea of streamlining the delivery process is to reduce this hour-long affair into a quick 5-minute session. Musk is reportedly not planning to dole out capital, which it raised recently, on infrastructure i.e on setting up an extensive network of delivery centers across the globe. But instead, he is planning to pre-process the paperwork by sending it out to the people who’ve purchased any new Tesla electric vehicle — be it the Model 3.
By sending out the documents, the automaker is providing customers a chance to fill out the paperwork at their own leisure, ahead of the delivery time. This will be accompanied by a set of instructional videos, which will enable a customer to get better acquainted with the vehicle beforehand. Then, the customer will be expected to just present the correctly filled documents and take the possession of his Model 3 (or any other Model) in just minutes. He continues to say,
And well, of course, the best instruction is like not having instructions. And you will actually be able to play all of the instructions needed for your car on your car.
If Elon Musk comes up with a streamlined procedure, then this could be a significant change not only for Tesla but for the automobile industry as a whole. It will help get rid of the current tiring experience of buying a new vehicle and make it a whole lot better. Also, the company is not completely opposed to the idea of building new delivery centers. More dedicated centers are expected to pop in urban areas with high demand for the upcoming Model 3. These locations won’t necessarily offer service or maintenance, but will only focus on the timely delivery of said vehicles.
This sounds exciting and stuff and expected from a visionary such as Elon Musk. But, what’s even more exciting, Tesla Model 3 is also expected to make its India debut sometime this summer — only if there are no delays. Fingers crossed.
