A Tesla owner in Europe shared his experience with the company’s newest “touchless delivery” process that’s aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.
Tesla implemented the new delivery process amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in its efforts to eliminate contact between a car buyer and Tesla delivery employees.
The new process will ensure social distancing between the buyer and the Tesla staff from start to finish. The vehicles are to be unlocked by using the Tesla phone application, and paperwork is placed in the owner’s new car. The new process will keep the possibility of the transfer of COVID-19 to a minimum by making human-to-human contact nonexistent during the customer’s visit to the store.
A recent video from a new Tesla owner in Belgium by the name of Matthias Vlogt shared his experience with the new touchless delivery system on YouTube. Vlogt was prompted first to visit an automated locker system to retrieve his key card. The paperwork required to accept delivery of the vehicle was left in the car for the new owner to sign and Vlogt was needed to drop the paperwork off at an on-site location. This eliminates any human interaction, not allowing for the transfer of the highly-contagious virus.
Buyers of any Tesla vehicle that requires delivery from the company directly will have to accept their car at one of the many Tesla stores across the country. Over-the-Air connectivity allows a Tesla advisor to safely introduce buyers to their new vehicles without ever physically contacting each other. Tesla addressed the new process via an Operational Update communication.
“In many locations, we are in the process of implementing “touchless deliveries,” so customers can continue to take delivery of their vehicle in a seamless and safe way. Due to the unique over-the-air connectivity of our vehicles, customers are able to unlock their new cars at a delivery parking lot via the Tesla App, sign any remaining relevant paperwork that has been placed in their car, and return that paperwork to an on-site drop-off location prior to leaving. This method provides additional convenience and comfort.”
Tesla decided to make this change in its delivery process as a result of a temporary suspension in production at the Fremont and New York production facilities on March 23. The company also included information about the halting production lines in the March 19 communication.
“As such, we have decided to temporarily suspend production at our factory in Fremont, from end of day March 23, which will allow an orderly shutdown. Basic operations will continue in order to support our vehicle and energy service operations and charging infrastructure, as directed by the local, state and federal authorities. Our factory in New York will temporarily suspend production as well, except for those parts and supplies necessary for service, infrastructure and critical supply chains. Operations of our others facilities will continue, including Nevada and our service and Supercharging network.”
Tesla has made efforts to help, including the manufacturing of 1,200 ventilators that were delivered to Los Angeles. The additional efforts in-house ensure that owners will be able to obtain their new electric cars without risking the possible exposure to the pandemic that has changed life for all of us.
Mattias Vlogt’s video of the new contactless delivery is below.
