Tesla owners lash out at Elon Musk after he slashes car prices by thousands of dollars

Marianne Simmons, a self-professed “Tesla fan girl,” bought her second electric vehicle from the company in September: a white, high-performance Model Y ringing in at more than $77,000. Then the company slashed prices on Thursday and she realized she could have bought the same car today at $13,000 less.

“I feel like I got duped. I feel like a got taken advantage of as a consumer,” said Simmons, 32, a web designer in Naples, Florida. “Right off the bat, I’m out $13,306. It’s such a large reduction that it’s going to affect a lot of people who just bought a vehicle.”

That’s the reality facing owners of Tesla Inc. vehicles after the company cut the price of its cars as much as 20%, part of a push from Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk to increase sales volume in the face of weakening demand. For existing customers, the resale value of the cars they own will take a hit along with the drop in prices of new models.

“For any existing owner it’s a kick to the teeth,” said Ivan Drury, director of insights for research website Edmunds.com. “Anyone who bought a Tesla recently will feel an immediate impact wish they leased it.”

Drury said the new-vehicle price cuts will hit used cars immediately and could lower values even further. New-car buyers want new-car smell, he said, so pre-owned prices could fall more.

 
 
 
 
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Article URL : https://fortune.com/2023/01/13/tesla-price-cut-elon-musk-owners-resale-value-2023/