Tesla is facing accusations that it is trying to suppress complaints about its performance. According to Reuters, the company allegedly set up a secret Diversion Team in the Las Vegas, with the aim of canceling performance service appointments related to that area.
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The electric car manufacturer headquartered in Austin, Texas, grew its team because its service centers were flooded with appointments from owners expecting better performance based on the company's advertised estimates and the projections displayed by the cars' autonomy meters.
If a customer complains that the product doesn’t live up to its marketing hype, the team’s consultants will point out to the owner that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) statements were merely predictions and that battery discharge reduces range. A decade ago, Tesla seems to have started focusing on range estimates to exaggerate the potential of an electric vehicle fully charged.
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The cars would only show more accurate range estimates when the battery was up to 50 percent charged. The company also used a temporary storage area with a range of 15 miles when the battery reached zero. This is because cars with engines usually have fuel in the tank even when the gauge shows empty.
Tesla isn't the only electric vehicle company accused of misrepresenting its range estimates, but it may be worse than most. Standards organization SAE International recently published a study showing that electric vehicles typically have a range reduction of 12.5 percent compared to their official highway range.
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One of the co-authors, Gregory Pannone, told Reuters that Tesla's deficit was 26%, more than double the average. It has also faced accusations in the past of overstating range .
