Months of bad news has battered Tesla’s image with customers, poll finds

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It's no exaggeration to say that Tesla is a remarkable car company. Founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, the company now run by Elon Musk did what many thought impossible-it made the electric vehicle desirable.

Don't believe me? Consider the astounding demand for the Model 3. Even at the height of his powers, Steve Jobs could never have persuaded more than 400,000 people to cough up a $1,000 deposit for a product more than a year in advance. Or just look at the company's valuation-at today's share price, Tesla is worth $48.3 billion, making it worth more than companies that sell millions more cars each year.

But the past few months have been rough. The final quarter of 2017 saw Tesla's biggest loss ever. In March, the company had its debt downgraded. Production of the Model 3 has been mired in difficulties. On top of that, there have been weeks of bad publicity following a third death linked to the company's Autopilot system, resulting in a a spat with the National Transportation Safety Board. And if that wasn't enough, there have been claims that Tesla has failed to adequately report serious injuries at its factory in Fremont, California.

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