We do advance diagnostics for free. (you would have to cover shipping or drop it off to me.) We can tell you if the eMMC is bad or not. The free diagnostics does not cover removal of the MCU from car though as it takes a couple hours to do.
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I think they're replacing our MCU1 in our 2015 S with a MCU2! [Update: Not MCU2]
- Thread starter dskillz
- Start date
We do advance diagnostics for free. (you would have to cover shipping or drop it off to me.) We can tell you if the eMMC is bad or not. The free diagnostics does not cover removal of the MCU from car though as it takes a couple hours to do.
Uncle Paul
Well-Known Member
In the future, Tesla might be having a bunch of 2.0 and 2.5's in stock from when they are being upgraded to 3.0 for those with FSD.
If the sockets etc. are compatible, they might begin using those who need to replace their earlier CPUs.
If the sockets etc. are compatible, they might begin using those who need to replace their earlier CPUs.
It's a shame that Tesla turned out to be worse than many older manufacturers. The "no dealers" thing was supposed to signal a better attitude towards not ripping the customer off. In reality as soon as big liabilities like every car needing a new MCU due to eMMC failure cropped up they started to be asshats about it.
Ostrichsak
Well-Known Member
I fail to connect the dots between Tesla pulling shenanigans in terms of software updates and having a dealership also making tons of profit on us over the lifespan of ownership.
It's not a software update, part of the car that should last its lifetime wears out prematurely.
whitex
Well-Known Member
Dealerships are mostly on customer side, especially during the warranty coverage. They make money on every warranty fix, so they want to do them (dealer performs the work and bills the manufacturer). Tesla loses money on every warranty fix, so they avoid them, so much more so recently when they decided to be profitable. I've had a Lexus dealer tell me they would assist me in a lemon law claim for my Lexus which has BT noise problems (they ended up fixing it on 3rd visit, but the manufacturer knew it was their last chance so they actually put an engineer on a flight from Japan, funny result, it was a single bent ground pin in one of the wiring harnesses) - no way a service center will fight Tesla for you to lemon a car (heck, I heard an advisor tell a customer that they will charge them diagnostic fee if they bring their Model 3 in again with a problem they cannot reproduce, even though the customer provided them with a video of a problem occurring). A yellow screen like Tesla refused to cover would have been a no-brainer warranty fix by a dealer and a bill to Tesla. Are there dealerships which will cheat customers, sure, mostly in post warranty work, but there is also competition between the dealers, if you don't like one dealer's price, you can go to another (price fixing is illegal). With Tesla, your only choice is Tesla service center which are the same company, so can't accuse them of price-fixing. Service centers are Tesla owned, which means they have a conflict of interest too, as every warranty is costing the company money.
I used to think the direct sales model of Tesla was great, until recently when I see what happened to service and warranty.
Ostrichsak
Well-Known Member
Again, I fail to see how you make the jump of "no dealerships" and these software "downgrades" as it's not like dealerships every protected the consumer previously at the expense of biting the hand that feeds it.
This issue isn't connected to direct sales. Traditional dealerships are quite good at making you feel like they were on your "side" whenever issues came up. That's pure BS. I know because I worked at them decades ago and they're allllll the same. They wear two faces to make the customer feel like they're acting in their best interests all while making the manufacturer also think they had their best interests in mind. Bottom line, they worship the almighty dollar and both the customer as well as the manufacturer represents income so they have perfected making both feel good about continuing to give them money. If you genuinely think that dealerships truly offer any sort of protection to consumers from the manufacturer you're not seeing the whole picture. This issue is completely removed from the fact that they sell direct to the consumer and even if we each spent tens of thousands of dollars more (which is what you work through a dealer on a car at this price point via commission and service) on each car it wouldn't "buy" us anymore service or protections from the manufacturer. If you think that Ford, Kia or GM won't pull the same software shenanigans once they have OTAs... well... we'll all find out soon enough, won't we?
You didn't read WhiteX's post even though you quoted it. "Worshiping the almighty dollar" is WHY dealerships work for you to fix warranty problems - they get paid. And Tesls's recent change to not covering warranty any more is the same problem - they worship money and throw away the warranty with any excuse they can fabricate. Regularly,Tesla's problems are rooted in that worship of $1.
OTA downgrades like Tesla is doing won't happen from other manufacturers. Tesla's punishments and settlements will probably be harsh enough to make them afraid to try.
OTA downgrades like Tesla is doing won't happen from other manufacturers. Tesla's punishments and settlements will probably be harsh enough to make them afraid to try.
CBPfromTN
Member
I am still waiting on Tesla to contact me for the MCU2 infotainment upgrade....I got an email a while ago stating that IF I had FSD (I do,) that I would be eligible for purchase of the infotainment upgrade for $2500. My Model S was delivered on Feb. 23, 2018 and I see older cars getting it and newer cars getting it. I have requested it via my app for scheduling service but no word. It might be because of the Covid outbreak but it would be nice to get some type of response besides the usual crickets.
How did you get your upgrade?
Ostrichsak
Well-Known Member
whitex
Well-Known Member
Of course it does. Let me see if I can break it down to simpler terms. Traditional automakers manufacture the product, provide spare parts and service manuals, plus pay for the warranty work done by dealers. Dealers sell the cars and service them. When a dealer fixes something under warranty, they bill the manufacturer, and MAKE money, therefore they have plenty of financial motivation to fix things under warranty. Tesla on the other hand does everything themselves, which means whenever I go to Tesla to fix something, that costs them money, therefore the financial motivation is to NOT FIX things. There is more, dealers compete with each other, so they know if they don't take care of me, I will find another dealer who will (which I have done in the past), while Tesla SC will laugh at you "where else are you going to take your business, all service centers are the same company". This monopoly also allows them to charge $3K for a new refurb MCU after the $8 part fails (and they force you to leave your failed MCU so they can replace that part and sell it to the next customer).
Of course they look out for both sides, as they should, but I'll take my Lexus "BS" service where they always provided me with a brand new loaners EVERY TIME vs. tell me enterprise has ran out of even ICE cars and all I can have is $100 Uber credits which won't even cover my round trip home, schedule appointments within days vs. weeks, get parts within days vs. weeks, and don't refuse to fix obvious warranty issues like a yellowing infotainment screen (which Tesla not only refused to fix, they even removed it from my appointment record that I even asked for it as I was already fixing something else, when I asked they put it on the invoice so I have a record that I did ask for the yellow screen fix, they firmly refused). Lexus "BS experience" is so much more pleasant than Tesla's "true believer" experience (or whatever you want to call it). Also, none of the other manufactures have ever sold me a car which would require a 50% power boost to reach the advertised horsepower.
That commission they earn is what keeps them motivated to keep you happy, so you come back buy more cars from them, and let them do any warranty fixed for you for which the manufacturer pays them. You gotta give them an incentive, or you end up with Tesla like service - "we don't want to talk to you, reserve your place in an app, if we won't cancel it show up but arrange for your own transportation for up to 4 days while your car sits in the parking lot queue to get looked at - don't like it, don't come, we don't care, it saves us money if you don't come to service your car". Btw, I never paid MSRP for a car from a dealer, from Tesla I did. While I can negotiate good prices, I always dreaded that aspect. However, compared to dreading servicing or repairing a Tesla, the purchase negotiation occurs much less often is it only takes a day or so, vs. days to months of dealing with Tesla.
Bottom line is that the dealership model enables competition for your money, direct sales and service does not. Direct sales model might work one day once there are other manufacturers with comparable cars and there are strong enough consumer protection laws (since cars are expensive purchases). So far Tesla has had an advantage in the EV arena. To be honest, I love the way Teslas drive, but if I had to buy a car today, I would probably spend a $100K on a nice ICE car, not another Tesla. I'm hoping that a competitive EV is on the market by the time my 2015 MS dies, or Tesla gets its act together and provides service like they used to. If not, I would most likely go ICE, despite @TSLA Pilot screaming in horror that it is a crime against humanity (or mother nature, or Earth, I forget).
There are advantages and disadvantages of Tesla's business model, which has evolved considerably over the last few years with production of the higher volume Model 3 (and now Y) and the push to achieve and sustain profitability.
Dealerships can provide value to customers - but they also need to make money. As mentioned, dealerships have considerable incentive to perform warranty work and post-sales service. While they'll be an advocate ford warranty work, they may also encourage unnecessary service costs.
Tesla is shifting towards a more scalable business model than the other manufacturers have with dealerships (which they are required to use by law in the US). Tesla vehicles are simple to configure to order through the website at a pre-set price, eliminating the need to deal with sales people or haggle on price. Tesla believes 80% of service items can be performed through mobile service - bringing the service to the customer. And for service that has to be done at a Service Center, they are trying to use Uber credits as an alternative to managing a relatively expensive fleet of loaner vehicles. And across the board, they are trying to use electronic communication (app, website, text messaging) as an alternative to personal interactions.
Will Tesla be successful in this strategy? Still too early to tell (and the current virus crisis doesn't help). We should expect they will continue to evolve this business model as they learn what does and doesn't work well. And once they do have this working effectively for customers, they will have made it even more difficult for the other manufacturers to compete, who are required to go through dealerships - who may have difficulty matching Tesla's strategy (if it works).
As an early Tesla owner (S P85 VIN 3xxx), Tesla provided fantastic service and support in those early days. The service centers weren't very busy - and always got a Tesla loaner. Was able to get immediate connection to phone support to address any issues while driving. At that time, it was a step up from the service we had with our Lexus vehicles. And despite complaints from some customers recently, our experience with our local service center has continued to be great - getting more service done using their mobile service and when we do use the service center - other than dealing with the Uber credits, we haven't noticed any difference in the quality of their service.
My only current frustration is with the lack of radio after the Infotainment Upgrade. We won't purchase the MCU2 upgrade for our 2017 S (MCU1/AP2 with FSD) unless Tesla provides an option for providing FM/HD/XM radio - for a vehicle that cost us over $100K, doesn't make sense to require us to lose all radio to get access to the new MCU2 features (which are mostly for use while the vehicle is parked).
Dealerships can provide value to customers - but they also need to make money. As mentioned, dealerships have considerable incentive to perform warranty work and post-sales service. While they'll be an advocate ford warranty work, they may also encourage unnecessary service costs.
Tesla is shifting towards a more scalable business model than the other manufacturers have with dealerships (which they are required to use by law in the US). Tesla vehicles are simple to configure to order through the website at a pre-set price, eliminating the need to deal with sales people or haggle on price. Tesla believes 80% of service items can be performed through mobile service - bringing the service to the customer. And for service that has to be done at a Service Center, they are trying to use Uber credits as an alternative to managing a relatively expensive fleet of loaner vehicles. And across the board, they are trying to use electronic communication (app, website, text messaging) as an alternative to personal interactions.
Will Tesla be successful in this strategy? Still too early to tell (and the current virus crisis doesn't help). We should expect they will continue to evolve this business model as they learn what does and doesn't work well. And once they do have this working effectively for customers, they will have made it even more difficult for the other manufacturers to compete, who are required to go through dealerships - who may have difficulty matching Tesla's strategy (if it works).
As an early Tesla owner (S P85 VIN 3xxx), Tesla provided fantastic service and support in those early days. The service centers weren't very busy - and always got a Tesla loaner. Was able to get immediate connection to phone support to address any issues while driving. At that time, it was a step up from the service we had with our Lexus vehicles. And despite complaints from some customers recently, our experience with our local service center has continued to be great - getting more service done using their mobile service and when we do use the service center - other than dealing with the Uber credits, we haven't noticed any difference in the quality of their service.
My only current frustration is with the lack of radio after the Infotainment Upgrade. We won't purchase the MCU2 upgrade for our 2017 S (MCU1/AP2 with FSD) unless Tesla provides an option for providing FM/HD/XM radio - for a vehicle that cost us over $100K, doesn't make sense to require us to lose all radio to get access to the new MCU2 features (which are mostly for use while the vehicle is parked).
I recently traded my 2015 MS on a Lexus LS500. Only regret in hindsight was I didn't do it sooner. Teslas the car are really quite awesome but imagine how bad I must have been treated by Tesla the company to go back to ICE...
We are talking about the MCU bricking itself when the flash memory inevitably wears out.
whitex
Well-Known Member
I wish Polestar Precept was a production car, rather than only a concept today. It will probably take my Model S dying (or becoming a service nightmare) to jump to ICE, but a great EV option would get me switch right away. A great EV option would be a new P100D today if Tesla had its act together on customer ownership experience.
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