We have a tesla dealership here locally but a friend told me the other day there are NO cars there. apparently you must put down a considerable sum as a down payment( none refundable no doubt) and then wait on the vehicle to be built? Has anyone else heard similar??
The article states $1000 refundable.
Yup, that’s how it works. Just like ordering a computer: specify what you want, pay, they build to order and deliver.
The head of Tesla, Elon Musk, _hates_ the negotiation model. Like most products, he just wants customers to visit a web page, see the price, and order. Like Apple, a showroom may be available but most real sales are “build to order”. He’s actually extended this beyond Tesla (as we discussed): occurred to me to tell you he’s doing the same with SpaceX.com - you can literally go to a website, see the sticker price for launching rockets into orbit, and order a launch via email ... that the price is in the tens of millions of $ doesn’t faze him. No more protracted negotiation designed to squeeze the customer by sheer exhaustion & ignorance & misdirection.
See SpaceX.com