While it’s been slow to cut the umbilical cord from gas (and diesel) powered cars, Big Auto is starting to open up to vehicle electrification. This has sparked speculation, especially from financial pundits, that Tesla’s days are numbered. Would Big Auto’s newfound interest in clean cars squash the Silicon Valley upstart? Or, would their impact draw more attention to the electric car innovator.
Studies demonstrate that Tesla has forged a unique bond with its customers. Last year, Consumer Reports found that Tesla has the highest rate of customer satisfaction of all car brands. Now, according to more recent research conducted by Experian, it turns out these high levels of satisfaction are translating into exceptionally high rates of customer loyalty as well.
Buying a car can be a grueling process. Keith Barry writes in Consumer Reports, “In an era of online shopping and instant gratification, the traditional way of buying a car can seem like a painful throwback. Some dealers are still doing business the old-school way: insisting buyers haggle over the price, hiding fees and charges until the last minute, and making customers wait hours to sign form after form.”
A survey of 1200 Americans conducted by GfK for Consumer Reports finds the vast majority of Americans want more renewable energy and less power plant pollution. The survey also reveals that plenty of utilities seem to have a credibility issue with their customers.
Building a car that drives itself in all circumstances is really, really hard. So why are so many autonomous cars testing on public roads?
Tesla released a new quarterly safety report for Q3 2018 that hints at a desire to make the safety of its vehicles a more visible differentiator versus the competition. The decision to increase the visibility of vehicle safety data was made earlier this year when certain news prompted Tesla to design and implement a new vehicle data system to provide more meaningful safety data from customer vehicles.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed on Twitter approximately an hour ago that the braking issues identified by Consumer Reports have been addressed by an over-the-air software update. His post shows that he has toned down his responses to the trusted firm, which Tesla butted heads with back in October.
All the Tesla news from this weekend. Tesla has begun updating the software that controls Model 3 emergency braking. Two fanbois set a Model 3 mileage record. And Model X sales soar in Shanghai after price cut.
Fiat Chrysler is recalling 4.8 million vehicles because of a possible short circuit that could preventing cruise control from shutting off when required. How good a job is the press doing at getting the word out? How would the press have responded if Tesla was in these shoes?
Consumer Reports gives the Tesla Model 3 a “Not Recommended” rating. More than anything else, it found inconsistent braking performance to be a problem.
