Tesla has made a significant change to operations in Ontario that will have an impact on the majority of new owners in the province. All vehicle deliveries in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) will now be centralized out of the Etobicoke location at 5500 Dundas Street West.
This change marks the end of delivery services at Tesla’s other sites in the area, including Oakville, Kitchener, Brampton, Vaughan, Innsifil, and Toronto. These locations are not closing down, but will now only serve as showrooms and provide service to new and existing owners.
However, these locations are still listed as Delivery Centers on Tesla’s website because they will still deliver Model S and Model X vehicles to customers, and when the time comes later next month, the Cybertruck. This is due to the lower volumes of these vehicles compared to the Model 3 and Model Y.
For owners in eastern Ontario, Ottawa will remain as a Delivery Center.
According to a source familiar with the change, this centralization of deliveries in Etobicoke is primarily a cost-cutting measure by Tesla. By reducing the number of delivery sites and concentrating deliveries into one location, the company can minimize overhead costs related to staffing and vehicle storage.
While the move to Etobicoke may simplify delivery logistics for Tesla, it brings with it drawbacks for customers. Since the change, the Etobicoke location has become exceptionally busy, especially on weekends, since it now caters to the entire Greater Toronto Area (GTA). This doesn’t include customers from surrounding areas, who will now also have to travel to Etobicoke to take delivery of their new vehicle.
All of this means that customers can expect long wait times, sometimes of up to two to three hours, when taking delivery of their new vehicle, translating into a poor delivery experience for many. This is not entirely the fault of the staff on hand as many of them of doing the best they can, but there is currently not enough employees to deal with the surge in customers.
Will you be affected by this change in Tesla’s delivery logistics for Ontario? Let us know in the comments below.
