Tesla Referral Program Not Ending, Just Paused, Says Elon Musk

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Earlier this week, I railed against Tesla’s decision to discontinue its referral program and the apparent cancellation (instead of expansion) of its fledgling advertising program. Well, Tesla’s advertising program looks like it is dead in the water, since they laid off the entire 40-person growth marketing team charged with that task earlier this month, but the Tesla referral program should live on in some new form, at some point in the future.

The Tesla referral program has been a popular way for existing owners to refer friends and family (and followers, readers, and viewers) to the Tesla brand. Any new buyer of a Tesla car, solar power system, or Powerwall battery could get benefits like a cash discount, free supercharging miles, or a free trial of FSD (Full Self-Driving) if they used an existing Tesla owner’s referral code or referral link for purchase. And the referrer could get reward credits good toward the purchase of accessories, free Supercharging miles, or even “collectible” tchotchkes like the Cyber Hammer: a steel sledge hammer, signed by designer Franz von Holzhausen, not intended for actual hammering purposes.

What other car company allows its customers to earn free Supercharging, free accessories, or even car upgrades just by spreading the word about the company to prospective car and solar power system buyers?

The company announced that all referral program benefits would be ending on April 30, but CEO Elon Musk later clarified on X that a revised version of the program would be launched at a later date. No details or timeline were provided, but Musk assured owners that referral credits would not automatically expire on April 30.

No, just that new credits would not be earned until we launch a future referral program, which is a few months away

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2024

Order by April 30, 2024, to Get Current Referral Perks

Those who are considering a new Tesla vehicle purchase can still get the current referral reward of a three-month trial of FSD (Full Self-Driving) “Supervised” by using a referral code or Tesla referral link before April 30, 2024. Buyers of a Tesla solar system or Powerwall battery get a $500 cash discount on the purchase by using a referral link (again, only until April 30, 2024). After this date, referral rewards and bonuses for both the buyer and referrer will be suspended until the revamped version of the referral program is launched at a later date.

If you are in the market for a Tesla car or solar power system, and have a friend or family member who is a Tesla owner, be sure to ask them for their code or link so you can get these benefits. If you need a code, feel free to use mine:

> Tesla referral link 

While FSD has gotten no shortage of negative press, it continues to lead the pack in driver assistance features, having recently graduated from “beta” to “supervised” status. Yes, you do still have to pay attention to the road when using FSD (and if you don’t, the feature will be disabled), but the AI engine behind FSD has now learned from over 1.3 billion miles driven, and the software has gotten very good at dealing with real-world driving challenges.

Stay tuned for details when (if?) the new referral program launches.

Related Reading:

Tesla’s FSD Supervised 12.3.3 — Intervention-Free Driving (Almost!)

Tesla Referral Program: How Does it Work?

Updated Tesla Referral Program Lets Tesla Owners Earn Points for Tesla Merch and Upgrades