Elon Musk saidTesla made "significant mistakes" calculating installation costs for itsSolar Roof product.- Tesla hiked the prices of
Solar Roofs for customers awaiting installation by as much as 70% this month. - Musk said the company had underestimated the complexity of roof installations.
On Monday, CEO Elon Musk answered a question about why Tesla $4 for customers awaiting installation.
"We did find that we basically made some significant mistakes in assessment of difficulty of certain roofs," he said, adding that the "complexity of roofs varies dramatically."
"Some roofs are literally two times or three times easier than other roofs. So, you just can't have a one size fits all situation," he said during $4 on Monday.
"If a roof has a lot of protuberances or if the roof sort of the core structure of the roof is rotted out or is not strong enough to hold the Solar Roof, then the cost can be double, sometimes three times what our initial quotes were," he added.
Musk confirmed, as previously reported by $4, that customers who weren't happy with the new quote could get their deposits refunded.
He said that despite the price hikes, demand remained "strong" for the Solar Roof - although he did not clarify whether this was from new customers, or from customers awaiting installation who had agreed to the increased prices.
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Musk also praised the company's decision to $4, saying it would make installations less complex.
"It will be much easier, because the power from the Solar Roof, the Solar Glass Roof, or the solar panels, will only ever go directly into the Powerwall.
"And the Powerwall will only ever go between the utility mains, right, between the utility and the main power panel of the house, which means you never need to touch the main circuit breakers of the house. You never need to touch the house circuit breakers," he said.
Are you a Tesla Solar Roof customer? Contact this reporter at ihamilton@insider.com or iahamilton@protonmail.com.