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> finished goods vehicle inventory of $579 million as a result of the timing of deliveries. AKA, we delayed delivering a lot of cars to not trigger the tax cre

> finished goods vehicle inventory of $579 million as a result of the timing of deliveries. AKA, we delayed delivering a lot of cars to not trigger the tax credit expiration in Q2.

_Microft 8y ago
I interpret it like that as well, yes.
rconti 8y ago
Exactly. And this is a 'problem' they'll never again face, because now the clock is ticking. Of course, it's been replaced with the 'problem' of selling incremental Model 3s as the effective price goes up quarter by quarter in the near term, but the issue has ALWAYS been whether they'll be able to sustain demand and sales as the vehicle goes through pent-up demand and then has to rely on incremental sales, year after year after year (or until they start dumping huge amounts of cash into ramping the NEXT car). That said, I'm VERY impressed with our new 3; more so than I expected, and I suspect others will be similarly delighted and new sales will follow. Their next challenge will be ramping maintenance/service of the rapidly expanding installed base.
- radicalbyte 8y ago
  There's a massive amount of demand here in Europe: the car is the right size, the right price qualifies for all of the tax benefits. They also have 0 competition. I expect there to be a waiting list for the next couple of years unless they keep boosting production..
  - rconti 8y ago
    Good point, I was totally ignoring Europe with this car -- and I shouldn't be, because I need to buy your left driver's side convex mirror mirror (so I can actually see what's in the lane to my left, unlike in the "flat" US mirrors) and your proper taillights with amber turn signals (please be plug-and-play).
- marvin 8y ago
  > Their next challenge will be ramping maintenance/service of the rapidly expanding installed base. I agree that this will be the next obvious challenge. "Thankfully", they're already seeing how this plays out in Norway, where they're really struggling to service the Model S fleet as it ages and repairs are required more frequently. I consider this a good thing, because certainly there's someone in the service department thinking about what will happen in 3 years when the amount of Model 3s requiring service starts increasing further. Norway is the canary in the coal mine, which should be completely obvious to someone who does this full-time.
- sunstone 8y ago
  I am also much more impressed than I expected to be with the Model3's I see on the street lately. It looks a lot better in real life than in the photos.

> finished goods vehicle inventory of $579 million as a result of the timing of deliveries. AKA, we delayed delivering a lot of cars to not trigger the tax credit expiration in Q2.

_Microft 8y ago

I interpret it like that as well, yes.

rconti 8y ago

Exactly. And this is a 'problem' they'll never again face, because now the clock is ticking. Of course, it's been replaced with the 'problem' of selling incremental Model 3s as the effective price goes up quarter by quarter in the near term, but the issue has ALWAYS been whether they'll be able to sustain demand and sales as the vehicle goes through pent-up demand and then has to rely on incremental sales, year after year after year (or until they start dumping huge amounts of cash into ramping the NEXT car). That said, I'm VERY impressed with our new 3; more so than I expected, and I suspect others will be similarly delighted and new sales will follow. Their next challenge will be ramping maintenance/service of the rapidly expanding installed base.

radicalbyte 8y ago
There's a massive amount of demand here in Europe: the car is the right size, the right price qualifies for all of the tax benefits. They also have 0 competition. I expect there to be a waiting list for the next couple of years unless they keep boosting production..
- rconti 8y ago
  Good point, I was totally ignoring Europe with this car -- and I shouldn't be, because I need to buy your left driver's side convex mirror mirror (so I can actually see what's in the lane to my left, unlike in the "flat" US mirrors) and your proper taillights with amber turn signals (please be plug-and-play).
marvin 8y ago
> Their next challenge will be ramping maintenance/service of the rapidly expanding installed base. I agree that this will be the next obvious challenge. "Thankfully", they're already seeing how this plays out in Norway, where they're really struggling to service the Model S fleet as it ages and repairs are required more frequently. I consider this a good thing, because certainly there's someone in the service department thinking about what will happen in 3 years when the amount of Model 3s requiring service starts increasing further. Norway is the canary in the coal mine, which should be completely obvious to someone who does this full-time.
sunstone 8y ago
I am also much more impressed than I expected to be with the Model3's I see on the street lately. It looks a lot better in real life than in the photos.