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Car manufacturers with worse service than Tesla

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Has anyone dealt with a company with worse service than Tesla?
By service, I define it both as the readiness to deal with & rectify vehicle faults, as well as the customer service approachability, responsiveness & contactability

I’ve never dealt with a worse company, which includes Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai, General Motors Holden, Ford , Mitsubishi & Subaru
 
Sadly it’s service center dependent. I’ve had great experience here in Portland, OR. Much better than I ever had with BMW over multiple dealerships. Lexus was the best I’ve experienced.

Agreed, and even SC's can change as great employees leave and new less so experienced staff start.....but I do think some SC's have a fundamental issue right through to the SC Manager.

Without a doubt, at the moment Tesla in Richmond Melbourne as the worst service experience I have ever had to deal with. Mulitple issues, back many times for the same issues....it feels like a broken down record.

Note:
The mobile service is excellent.
 
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Canberra (Beard) is fantastic. It's recently got a mobile service guy (who is often also there, not much call for mobile service around here just yet). I've visited the service centre frequently. Such things happen when you've driven 82,000km in less than one year of ownership. The techie there knows his stuff. He'll head outside and troubleshoot stuff with you. In a few cases he fixed niggles on the spot, including:

That time the bodgy clips holding the interior of the B-Pillar together (he tried a simple fix one time & replaced the clips the 2nd time, each time it was fixed a few minutes after I showed up).

The fault with my charging port (he replicated the issue, partly disassembled my boot, tried a simple fix on the port, failed, disassembled the rest of my boot, and replaced the entire charging setup and high-voltage cable). Fixed about 10 minutes after I showed up.

Some puddle-jumping damage to the felt liner on the undercarriage (he violently ripped off the offending piece & immediately ordered a replacement, which arrived a few days later, and he SMS'd me immediately once it arrived, and fixed it on the spot an hour later) - unfortunately not a warranty issue.

That time where my frunk popped open half a dozen times before I had left my car park and got onto the street. Before I had even arrived he was ordering replacement parts. And before I got there, I realised it was my J1772 adapter in the frunk pushing itself into the emergency release button. Normally my sleeping bag (read: on-road AC charging nap time equipment) fills up 2/3rds of the frunk, preventing stuff from shifting around, but I had taken it out that week to air it out, so...)

And that time I couldn't get the car to activate or cancel indicators properly (he couldn't replicate the issue, but I saw his hand movements on the stalks were slower and more deliberate than mine, so I accepted that it was user error on my part).

And an issue with condensation filling up in one of my indicator modules, a year ago when my car first arrived. He saw the issue, but no parts were available, so he emptied it out, and SMS'd me to come back the minute the replacement module arrived.
 
I’ve always had excellent service from Tesla. Courteous and efficient and often will not charge for things I felt they could have. When the Supercharging capability failed on my trip to Tasmania the Melbourne service went above and beyond to get a tech to do the work for us on a Saturday.
My only criticism is around Company policy that declines to supply a home link module for my car and until recently said that there was nothing wrong with the e-mmc in my MCU.
In contrast City Ford can’t even tighten an oil filter after an oil change which left a bunch of dirty lines on my brick driveway a few days later when it rained. Then there were the $3,500 clutch jobs on a my first generation Mercedes A Class as it was a drivetrain out job.
I think your experience will vary depending on the service centre and the nature of the problem.
 
I only had a problem once, when I brought my care for a scheduled service and realised that they had forgotten to arrange a loaner. Had to reschedule, wasn't really a big deal. Other than that I would say Tesla service is above average
 
Threads such as this one are quite depressing, since they posit a situation that is obviously not in evidence.
Were Tesla to be really bad it would be impossible to have such high owner satisfaction.
That said, there is equally obviously room for substantial improvement. In my ~50 new car purchases I have had good, bad and ugly. My single worst experience was with a BMW dealer and BMW direct also. I also have had outstanding service from another BMW dealer. I cannot list all of them but I will say that Tesla has been, on balance, the best of the lot because there was no dealer in the middle.

In a Tesla accident repair I had lousy results with parts availability, but that was an early P3D. Still I was unhappy. In other situations I have waited months for a transmission replacement when the one in my new BMW failed a month after delivery. The list of warranty repair problems with Porsche and Mercedes is pretty long. However, every one of those involved new models with new technology. Frankly, cars, boats and airplanes have had similar issues.

So, what is different about Tesla? Continuous improvement, OTA updates for almost everything and hardware upgrades too. A Tesla is a complex beast and many people are ill-equipped to cope with a supercomputer on wheels. Fewer are comforted by communication via electronic communication while finding a human being with whom to talk is rather difficult.

It seems to me that most of the 'Tesla has the worst service' rhetoric stems from culture shock. Many people still think about driving to a dealer, talking with a service writer then waiting. It's not easy coping with a mobile service vehicle, a problem resolved via an OTA diagnosis and repair,etc.

As for me I accept the odd quirk because the total experience is magnificent.
 
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I am lucky to have the best service center on the planet. Dedham MA. awesome every time. They have helped me out even if things might be my fault. They are the best.
 
It seems to me that most of the 'Tesla has the worst service' rhetoric stems from culture shock. Many people still think about driving to a dealer, talking with a service writer then waiting. It's not easy coping with a mobile service vehicle, a problem resolved via an OTA diagnosis and repair,etc.

As for me I accept the odd quirk because the total experience is magnificent.
Heck, I just want something as simple as them answering the phone
Or if you are lucky enough to get through, someone available to answer some exceedingly basic questions
 
Heck, I just want something as simple as them answering the phone
Or if you are lucky enough to get through, someone available to answer some exceedingly basic questions
I have no problem calling road service using the number on my MCU for basic tech support.

They troubleshot an issue where I had a dragging noise under the car. Where it'd drag when driving forward but not reversing, or vice-versa. They didn't actually suggest I get out & look under & see that a piece of felt had ripped apart after I drove straight through a large puddle at speed, and it was flipping over at times and dragged on the road in one direction but not the other. But they certainly spent time troubleshooting stuff with me.

In the past they've also helped with arranging help for a puncture. It included jumping through a few unnecessary hoops. I should have just driven straight to a tyre shop. It was very driveable.

Are you calling their support number, or one of their specific service centres?

Toll Free: 1 800 64 6952 | Local: + 61 2 8015 2834
 
Heck, I just want something as simple as them answering the phone
Or if you are lucky enough to get through, someone available to answer some exceedingly basic questions
I can no longer make direct contact to my service centre. Initially I didnt like it, but have found that they react quickly if I simply log a fault. I think its a bit like bank branches. You think you need them, but in reality you dont.
 
Heck, I just want something as simple as them answering the phone
Or if you are lucky enough to get through, someone available to answer some exceedingly basic questions

Yep, or not have to go back repeatedly to have the same problem fixed....not once, not twice, not three times but four times and the problem still remains!
  • My S, had some issues but I had access to an excellent SC mechanic (no longer with Tesla), not sure how I would have faired if he wasn't about....however it was an early model Tesla so I guess that's okay.
  • My 3, has been excellent...the only issue I have is an oddly marked white interior (again, more frustrated at the SC than the issue itself):
    • My seat rest, not base, seems to have some odd looking black marks that does not clean off no matter what I do....I am a tad OCD and stopped wearing blue jeans the day I got my Model 3 so to find black marks on the seat back rest was an utter surprise.
    • Tesla bought in an so called expert, to which admitted that he had no experience with vegan leather. He requested a sample to work with as he did not want to go at my mark before knowing how far he can "push" it with his available solvents...Tesla to date (has been over 6 months) has not delivered on this simple request.
    • In the meantime I have taken my car to an expert and he has confirmed that the vegan leather marks is a factory issue. He said the white vegan leather is essentially painted white and Tesla has stuffed up during the manufacturing process.....manufacturing issues aside the SC has handled this case shockingly...I still have black marks and proof that it is a manufacturing issue (considering my legal options if I get no traction from Tesla...like you know doing what they said they would do and send samples to the so called leather expert!).
  • My wife's Model X, has been back to Tesla for too many issues to list...but to list a few (really, only listing a few!):
    • Leaking falcon wing doors - attempted fix no less than 4 times by Tesla...still an issue as we found out in the rain the other day. Tesla's solution - only open the doors part way when in the rain! They say this rather than actually fix the problem, hmmm....last time it was in for a fix I ensured the car was spotless so I could see signs of a water test (I left specific marks so I knew it would show if Tesla SC conducted a water test...nothing...so they did not even check their work, and this ladies and gentement is one of the reasons for repeat visit back to Tesla. My employees must always do what I call "fit for purpose testing", if they are caught not doing this then a written warning is issued (we are playing with people's data so we take no risks)....I think fit for purpose testing is not in Tesla's vocabulary.
    • Left hand falcon wing door that hits things, right hand door does not but Tesla say it's in design spec, meanwhile the left hand falcon wing door has dented 2x of my other Tesla's and nearly pushed a young child in to oncoming traffic....but yet SC says it is within design spec...been back 3-4 times...again, one door is fine and the other isn't...best way to describe it is the right door does the whole falcon thing correctly whereas the left door decides it doesn't want to use it's elbow and just flies out without as many checks
    • Deformed drivers seat, base replaced with one worse than was already fitted....been back twice and still waiting to be fixed or even updated on what the heck is going to be done about it
Tesla Mobile Service: excellent, SC that I have been going to: bad....nearly bought a Porsche Taycan the other day but unfortunately Tesla is still a better EV overall....I just wish my SC's would lift their game.

Someone wrote earlier that if Tesla's service is so bad why do they get repeat business? Pure and simply - there is no compelling other EVs to pick from, yet...once you go EV it's hard to go back to ICE....the old saying goes, "Sales sells the first car and service sells the rest"...the exception to this old adage is when you fundamentally have limited other choices, this is rapidly changing and I would hope that Tesla SC's lift their game! Are you listening Tesla?
 
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I can no longer make direct contact to my service centre. Initially I didnt like it, but have found that they react quickly if I simply log a fault. I think its a bit like bank branches. You think you need them, but in reality you dont.
The analogy works: Back in 1977 John Reed installed ATM's everywhere in NYC and promoted them heavily. People complained. Reed said, my paraphrase, "which would you rather do, wait in line for 20 minutes to talk with a Citibank teller or walk up to a machine and get your cash in less than one minute?". He got huge flak for that. Elon with FSD is clearly analogous, even to the name. Reed was heavily criticized for calling the 'automatic teller machines' when they only handled a tiny fraction of what human tellers did.

Adapting to the future is never easy... for many people. Some of them aren't even Luddites.

Complaining about Tesla service when there is zero required maintenance seems odd. Still, when you DO need service you'd like to have it be better than the proverbial Citibank teller of 1977, would you not?
 
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The analogy works: Back in 1977 John Reed installed ATM's everywhere in NYC and promoted them heavily. People complained. Reed said, my paraphrase, "which would you rather do, wait in line for 20 minutes to talk with a Citibank teller or walk up to a machine and get your cash in less than one minute?". He got huge flak for that. Elon with FSD is clearly analogous, even to the name. Reed was heavily criticized for calling the 'automatic teller machines' when they only handled a tiny fraction of what human tellers did.

Adapting to the future is never easy... for many people. Some of them aren't even Luddites.

Complaining about Tesla service when there is zero required maintenance seems odd. Still, when you DO need service you'd like to have it be better than the proverbial Citibank teller of 1977, would you not?

Maintenance is required, at least for me and I hardly think I am the only one. Your lining up for 20min or using the ATM analogy is flawed, for example I could have called Telsa yesterday but I know they never answer etc etc. so I used the app to make an appointment to essentially ask for a simple update on an outstanding issue (which is counter intuitive) and of course I am still waiting to get an answer...I would have rather waited for 20mins on the call and found out than the alternative.

Let’s clarify this, SOME Service Centres need to lift their game....and as always Tesla lack of communication skills need some work.
 
Threads such as this one are quite depressing, since they posit a situation that is obviously not in evidence.
Were Tesla to be really bad it would be impossible to have such high owner satisfaction.
Actually, it would not be impossible.

Let’s say that only 1% of Tesla owners experience significant issues that require a SC visit.

The 99% are mostly absolutely thrilled with their Tesla and overall give it 95% satisfaction rating.

Of the 1%, let’s say 10% of those have really really bad SC experience. So bad, they rate Tesla overall at 0. The other 90% have mixed experiences, ranging from good to poor, and overall rate Tesla 50%.

The overall Tesla rating = 0.99 * 0.95 + 0.009 * 0.5 + 0.001 * 0 = 94.05%.

So really high owner satisfaction, but a small number of people having a truly horrible experience.
 
The analogy works: Back in 1977 John Reed installed ATM's everywhere in NYC and promoted them heavily. People complained. Reed said, my paraphrase, "which would you rather do, wait in line for 20 minutes to talk with a Citibank teller or walk up to a machine and get your cash in less than one minute?". He got huge flak for that. Elon with FSD is clearly analogous, even to the name. Reed was heavily criticized for calling the 'automatic teller machines' when they only handled a tiny fraction of what human tellers did.

Adapting to the future is never easy... for many people. Some of them aren't even Luddites.

Complaining about Tesla service when there is zero required maintenance seems odd. Still, when you DO need service you'd like to have it be better than the proverbial Citibank teller of 1977, would you not?
What would be the difference between messaging Tesla & calling them, when 2 days later I haven’t received a call back (as no one could answer my basic question at the time)?
 
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