Customer Service remains something Tesla can definitely improve upon. Given Tesla was a relatively new company, I gave Tesla a lot more slack when I first purchased my MS than I tend to today. I've had more than one poor Tesla service experience that I won't rant about here. I always strive to stay calm and keep my cool with personnel trying to help me, but decided to share my latest rather extraordinary experience here for your consideration: a seemingly simple warranty problem with my leather seat that from my experience was resolved the same-day at Lexus on my former RX450h using a subcontracted expert, but took 14 months for Tesla to complete on my MS involving more than a dozen customer interactions, untold hours of Tesla employee involvement, and likely huge Tesla warranty costs:
March 2017
- I made an appt at my SvC which is 45-75 mins away one-way. Amongst other warranty items, I reported that the stitching on my nextgen driver's seat was coming apart where the side airbag deploys from. I fully expected Tesla would have a 3rd-party leather expert come and repair the problem on-the-spot, just as Lexus and BMW did for me in the past with similar leather seat stitching issues.
- ...but no. I was told the entire seat would need to be replaced. It's a special order and should take 4-6 weeks to arrive. OK.
May 2017
- After 8 weeks, I called Tesla and politely inquired with a SA. I was told that we missed the original cutoff date for the order, so it's going to take more time. OK.
August 2017
- I received a call that my new seat was in, and made an appt at my SvC
- The Techs said they could get right on it, and they should be done within 90 mins. GREAT. That's a win for us all. I wait.
- 60 mins in, a SA came up to me very apologetically. They had the right seat, but the wiring connector to my MS was wrong as Tesla had changed the physical mating connectors between the two as part of their "constant improvement". Another seat needed to be ordered as it was not something the SvC could resolve. He took pictures of both to show me and to send in to ensure we got the right seat and connector the next time around. Again, we missed the special order cutoff by just a day, so it was going to take longer, but he appreciated my patience.
- My original seat with the stitching problem was put back into my MS and I drove home.
October 2017
- After making an appt, I went in to the SvC for my annual service, and politely asked if they could also check on status of my replacement seat
March 2018
- I called the SvC on day 355 since originally reporting this problem. The (new-to-me) Call Center answers; I explained; The agent talks with a couple of people at the SvC and tells me an SA with the Parts people are researching and will call me within the hour.
April 2018
- I called the SvC again; Get the Call Center, and after explaining all this again, was connected to a local SA.
May 2018
- It took more than a month since the last ETA, but I received an email from the SvC that my new seat back was in and to contact the SvC, as the Tesla Mobile Service can come out and do the replacement at my home or work, or I can come to the SvC -- whichever I prefer. Great.
- Tech calls on the scheduled day, a little early and says he can come now if convenient. GREAT.
For me, Tesla SvC Techs remain the best part of Tesla's Customer Service. In my experience, they always try to do what they can taking a customer POV, but are many times hindered by lacking HQ processes and things beyond their control. That being said, overall Tesla Customer Service remains not even close to my expectation compared to other premium auto brands I've owned and loved, or even close to the mass-market brands my family owns today. This poorly handled and elongated experience is not my first with Tesla. Instead, I'll just say that IMO, today's Tesla Service experience is likely a result of Tesla's business model of not desiring to make money off of service, combined with Tesla Execs not caring as much about creating and ensuring extraordinary customer service experiences each and every time. I don't believe Tesla will change until they loose money on warranty service, problematic service experiences like this get negative Press, or it more directly impacts new car sales.
I appreciate not all existing or potential Tesla owners have the same expectations I do. Some may see this example as a one-off, or something that is almost a comedy of errors if it were not so sad. For me though, as much as I love my MS and want Tesla to succeed, my multiple uneven Tesla Customer Service experiences, combined with Tesla's lack of demonstrated ability to resolve long-standing firmware bugs such as those in Media Player, are why I no longer recommend Tesla without always first taking a deep breath, then saying how technically great my MS is, how wonderful the SuperCharger network and not using dino-fuel in 2+ years is, then caveats about Tesla having no excuse for aggravatingly buggy firmware and that you may encounter challenging Customer Service when you need it. YMMV of course!
March 2017
- I made an appt at my SvC which is 45-75 mins away one-way. Amongst other warranty items, I reported that the stitching on my nextgen driver's seat was coming apart where the side airbag deploys from. I fully expected Tesla would have a 3rd-party leather expert come and repair the problem on-the-spot, just as Lexus and BMW did for me in the past with similar leather seat stitching issues.
- ...but no. I was told the entire seat would need to be replaced. It's a special order and should take 4-6 weeks to arrive. OK.
May 2017
- After 8 weeks, I called Tesla and politely inquired with a SA. I was told that we missed the original cutoff date for the order, so it's going to take more time. OK.
August 2017
- I received a call that my new seat was in, and made an appt at my SvC
- The Techs said they could get right on it, and they should be done within 90 mins. GREAT. That's a win for us all. I wait.
- 60 mins in, a SA came up to me very apologetically. They had the right seat, but the wiring connector to my MS was wrong as Tesla had changed the physical mating connectors between the two as part of their "constant improvement". Another seat needed to be ordered as it was not something the SvC could resolve. He took pictures of both to show me and to send in to ensure we got the right seat and connector the next time around. Again, we missed the special order cutoff by just a day, so it was going to take longer, but he appreciated my patience.
- My original seat with the stitching problem was put back into my MS and I drove home.
October 2017
- After making an appt, I went in to the SvC for my annual service, and politely asked if they could also check on status of my replacement seat
- Upon pick-up of my MS, I was told the 2nd replacement seat was still in the queue
March 2018
- I called the SvC on day 355 since originally reporting this problem. The (new-to-me) Call Center answers; I explained; The agent talks with a couple of people at the SvC and tells me an SA with the Parts people are researching and will call me within the hour.
- No call back
April 2018
- I called the SvC again; Get the Call Center, and after explaining all this again, was connected to a local SA.
- The SA told me there is no record in their system of my replacement seat being ordered, and there is no open service invoice against my VIN. I point him at my invoice numbers from last March and August with what I was verbally told each time about the seat being ordered. I was additionally told that Tesla no longer replaced full seats, and only separate bottoms or backs. It seemed to me, regardless of internal "improvements", Tesla must have dropped the ball with outstanding full-seat special orders like mine. Anyway, the SA said they would look into it and call me within an hour. I additionally took and sent a photo of the problem to try and get this right at last.
- 2 days later, I called the SvC again; The Call Center answered and I pushed to talk directly to the same SA I was dealing with since I am never provided with anyone's direct extension.- No call back
- Oops, as has happened before, the SA says he TEXTed status to me, but it for some reason must not have arrived. I explained that my experience is Tesla does not receive an error with whatever texting service they use -- as I have my home landline listed as the contact number in my Tesla Profile -- which of course does not accept TEXTs. A test TEXT was sent to my cellphone that I never give out the number to, and I keep it plastered to my body around home just-in-case a new TEXT comes through.
- ...and yes, months ago I sent Tesla an email suggestion to add an indicator in our Tesla profiles if the contact phone is a landline or mobile, so this problem does not happen to me or other customers in the future. So much for that. 
- The SA said the seat back was on order when he last checked a few days earlier, but he will research and get back to me within an hour.- I got a call!
- There are seat backs of my type and color in Fremont stock. A new seat back is on order, but for an unknown reason has not yet been picked for shipment, but it should be at the SvC it in the next couple of days.
- There are seat backs of my type and color in Fremont stock. A new seat back is on order, but for an unknown reason has not yet been picked for shipment, but it should be at the SvC it in the next couple of days.
May 2018
- It took more than a month since the last ETA, but I received an email from the SvC that my new seat back was in and to contact the SvC, as the Tesla Mobile Service can come out and do the replacement at my home or work, or I can come to the SvC -- whichever I prefer. Great.
- I call the SvC asking for the individual that emailed me, but get the infamous Call Center.
- I explain; The Call Center agent says she needs to check with the person at the SvC that contacted me via email, but she can make the appt. She does that while I'm on hold.
- I'm told all is OK with the guy that told me to call him, and she has placed the Mobile request. The Mobile team will now call me back in the next 2-3 days to make an appt to have the work done. (That seems like a very inefficient process especially from a customer POV. Oh well.)
- Two days later I get a call -- get this -- from the original person that sent me the email and who the Call Center talked to, that a Mobile Tech can come out at 2PM the next afternoon. Great.- I explain; The Call Center agent says she needs to check with the person at the SvC that contacted me via email, but she can make the appt. She does that while I'm on hold.
- I'm told all is OK with the guy that told me to call him, and she has placed the Mobile request. The Mobile team will now call me back in the next 2-3 days to make an appt to have the work done. (That seems like a very inefficient process especially from a customer POV. Oh well.)
- Tech calls on the scheduled day, a little early and says he can come now if convenient. GREAT.
- He arrives and gets started. What a nice fella -- IMHO all the Tesla Tech's are.
- A little later: Oops, an over-tightened bolt broke off upon removal, so a tool will have to be brought out from the SvC to deal with it (it's an hour+ away with afternoon traffic). Note: Apparently Tesla doesn't use that type of bolt any more because of this sort of problem.
- The tool arrives via another Tesla guy.
- A little later while they are both at my home: Oops, they can't get the broken bolt out, so the seat will have to go back to the SvC to have it removed.
- The next day, the Tech calls a little early and says he has my seat and can come now if convenient. GREAT.- A little later: Oops, an over-tightened bolt broke off upon removal, so a tool will have to be brought out from the SvC to deal with it (it's an hour+ away with afternoon traffic). Note: Apparently Tesla doesn't use that type of bolt any more because of this sort of problem.
- The tool arrives via another Tesla guy.
- A little later while they are both at my home: Oops, they can't get the broken bolt out, so the seat will have to go back to the SvC to have it removed.
- We can leave your MS here, but it won't be drivable without the seat. Do you need a loaner? Yes, as my MS is my only transportation and there could be an emergency. No problem, we'll have one delivered.
- A loaner MS arrives via a 3rd Tesla employee after the Tech has left with my seat, while the other guy stayed waiting in his truck to take the driver back. I won't complain too much as this was my first Tesla loaner (always Hertz or Enterprise rentals), but it didn't have AP2 enabled to play with. Shucks!
Do you need a loaner? Yes, as my MS is my only transportation and there could be an emergency. No problem, we'll have one delivered.- A loaner MS arrives via a 3rd Tesla employee after the Tech has left with my seat, while the other guy stayed waiting in his truck to take the driver back. I won't complain too much as this was my first Tesla loaner (always Hertz or Enterprise rentals), but it didn't have AP2 enabled to play with. Shucks!
- He arrives; I give him the loaner key and he calls to have it picked-up, then begins work.
- A little later: Oops, it will be best to have new bolts put in to tie-down the seat to the floor, so those have been ordered and will be delivered with the two other guys already on the way to pick up my loaner. OK.
- Bolts arrive; Loaner is taken away; My seat with new seat back is installed.
- All appears good again with the new seat back, and this interaction is finally closed after nearly 14 months.
- Interior MS cleanliness was even better than what I have received from former SvC visits. Thank you.
My point with all this?- A little later: Oops, it will be best to have new bolts put in to tie-down the seat to the floor, so those have been ordered and will be delivered with the two other guys already on the way to pick up my loaner. OK.
- Bolts arrive; Loaner is taken away; My seat with new seat back is installed.
- All appears good again with the new seat back, and this interaction is finally closed after nearly 14 months.
- Interior MS cleanliness was even better than what I have received from former SvC visits. Thank you.
For me, Tesla SvC Techs remain the best part of Tesla's Customer Service. In my experience, they always try to do what they can taking a customer POV, but are many times hindered by lacking HQ processes and things beyond their control. That being said, overall Tesla Customer Service remains not even close to my expectation compared to other premium auto brands I've owned and loved, or even close to the mass-market brands my family owns today. This poorly handled and elongated experience is not my first with Tesla. Instead, I'll just say that IMO, today's Tesla Service experience is likely a result of Tesla's business model of not desiring to make money off of service, combined with Tesla Execs not caring as much about creating and ensuring extraordinary customer service experiences each and every time. I don't believe Tesla will change until they loose money on warranty service, problematic service experiences like this get negative Press, or it more directly impacts new car sales.
I appreciate not all existing or potential Tesla owners have the same expectations I do. Some may see this example as a one-off, or something that is almost a comedy of errors if it were not so sad. For me though, as much as I love my MS and want Tesla to succeed, my multiple uneven Tesla Customer Service experiences, combined with Tesla's lack of demonstrated ability to resolve long-standing firmware bugs such as those in Media Player, are why I no longer recommend Tesla without always first taking a deep breath, then saying how technically great my MS is, how wonderful the SuperCharger network and not using dino-fuel in 2+ years is, then caveats about Tesla having no excuse for aggravatingly buggy firmware and that you may encounter challenging Customer Service when you need it. YMMV of course!
