Elon Musk (Credit: Getty)
Tesla is closing down its dealerships and will sells its cars solely online, the company said this week.
The decision was made to cut costs in order to release its mass-market vehicle, the $35,000 Model 3, according to TechCrunch. The move is among several cost saving measures that will allow the company to lower all of its vehicle prices by 6 percent.
“There’s no other way for us to achieve the savings required to provide this car and be financially sustainable,” CEO Elon Musk said.
Musk did not disclose how many of its dealerships would close, but said that some would remain open as showrooms or information centers. All vehicles will now be sold online, and test drives have been scrapped. Instead the company said customers can return the vehicle within seven days or 1,000 miles for a full refund.
“We’re going to make it super easy to get a refund, like one-clickrefund,” Musk said.
The announcement comes after the company opened 27 new dealerships across the country in the last quarter of 2018, according to The New York Times. [TechCrunch, NYT] — David Jeans