• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Tesla Slaps Down Model 3 Speculators, Cancelling Excess Reservations

By
David Z. Morris
David Z. Morris
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
David Z. Morris
David Z. Morris
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 30, 2016, 4:17 PM ET
Courtesy of Tesla

On Friday, skeptical analyst Anton Wahlman announced that he had successfully placed 20 reservations for a Tesla Model 3, apparently defeating the 2-per-customer maximum set by the company. Yahoo! Finance found they, too, were able to order more than the limit, simply by submitting multiple orders on separate forms.

This suggested, according to Wahlman, that some of the 400,000 refundable deposits reported by the company could have been made by speculators, possibly inflating the impression of huge demand for the car.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Elon Musk leapt to action quickly, taking to Twitter to reassure everyone that a system scan showed only 0.2% of orders indicated duplicates over the limit, and that excess preorders would be cancelled.

@MrBoylan System scan detected only 0.2% of orders with same email and physical address. Those have been purged.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 30, 2016

That should help reassure observers of the integrity of Tesla’s preorder numbers, which are being widely interpreted as a huge win for the company. Tesla (TSLA) stock jumped nearly 10% in the week after preorders opened, and it’s up nearly 70% since February.

For more on Model 3 preorders, watch our video.

Of course, there’s something a little funny about the idea that speculators piling in to the Model 3 preorder should be a cause for skepticism in the first place. It’s a great sign for a company, after all, that mere spots in line for a product are considered to have value.

If anything, it seems Tesla’s big problem is not too little demand, but too much. The company says it won’t start shipping Model 3s until late 2017, and between likely-inevitable delays and a still-growing backlog, some preorder customers could lose patience.

About the Author
By David Z. Morris
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
Fortune Secondary Logo
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

PoliticsTariffs and trade
The Supreme Court’s landmark tariff decision is the latest defeat ‘piercing President Trump’s seeming invincibility’
By Jason MaFebruary 21, 2026
2 hours ago
blizzard
North AmericaWeather and forecasting
New York City-area blizzard warning suddenly upgraded, 2 feet of snow possible
By The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
3 hours ago
new mexico
Politicsnative americans
Why did the U.S. government sterilize thousands of Native American women in the 1970s? New Mexico is investigating
By Savannah Peters and The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
3 hours ago
utah
LawCrime
Utah mother who self-published a children’s book about husband’s death now on trial for his murder
By Hannah Schoenbaum and The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
3 hours ago
wildfire
Lawwildfires
PacifiCorp settles wildfire claims for over half a billion dollars
By Claire Rush and The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
3 hours ago
zizian
LawCrime
‘Zizian’ cult member marked by beliefs about veganism, animal rights, gender identity and AI bailed out of jail
By Mark Scolforo, Patrick Whittle and The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Innovation
The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 21, 2026
12 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Fed confirms it obeyed U.S. Treasury request for an unusual ‘rate check,’ weakening the dollar against foreign currencies
By Jim EdwardsFebruary 19, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Big Tech
Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezFebruary 21, 2026
12 hours ago
placeholder alt text
AI
‘I’m deeply uncomfortable’: Anthropic CEO warns that a cadre of AI leaders, including himself, should not be in charge of the technology’s future
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 19, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Arts & Entertainment
Gen Zers and millennials flock to so-called analog islands 'because so little of their life feels tangible'
By Michael Liedtke and The Associated PressFebruary 20, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
AI
Sam Altman says the quiet part out loud, confirming some companies are ‘AI washing’ by blaming unrelated layoffs on the technology
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 19, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.