Tesla owners go on hunger strike
A spokesman for a group of Norwegian Tesla owners who staged a hunger-strike told RT on Thursday that the stunt was intended to get the attention of car-maker Elon Musk, who they believe is the only man who can solve their long list of grievances with the car company.
“We don’t think that Elon would allow this, if he was made aware of our issues. We feel like it’s our responsibility to make him aware, and we figure a hunger strike would be effective,” Erlend Morch told RT in an interview.
“We hope that he will reach out to us in one way or another and maybe resolve our issues, because we think he’s the only one that can do it,” Morch added. “Elon Musk, please help us.”
Morch, 27, spoke for a group of Tesla owners that took part in a hunger strike on Saturday and Sunday. According to their website, Norway has the most Teslas per capita in the world, yet the company’s customer service can’t seem to keep up with the problems.
One of the owners experienced his car alarm going off “continuously, for days,” said Morch, eventually having to disable it completely. Another had to drive from Berlin to Oslo with his windows down, in the winter, and got pneumonia as a result.
The top four complaints listed on the website include the cars refusing to start in cold – or hot – weather, door handles not working in the cold weather, and an “intense squeaking noise” while driving.
Lights, doors, air conditioners and the on-board computers also don’t work properly sometimes, the cars have a problem charging, and the newer models have issues with rust and poor paint quality.
For all that, Norwegian Tesla owners are committed to their cars – and to Musk, whom they seem to regard as more than just a CEO. Before starting the hunger strike, they arranged their cars to spell out “HELP” in an Oslo parking lot. Announcing the start of the strike, Morch said the owners would “reach our hands to the skies, and hope that the one who looks down on us – with his satellites – will hear our prayers.”
“I still want Tesla to be number one, I just want Tesla to listen to their customers when they complain and hear our cry for help,” Morch told RT.
It remains unclear whether Musk, who was due in Oslo for an energy conference on Monday, had taken notice of the action. On Wednesday, he tweeted about “fasting periodically” and feeling healthier as a result.
