So, been a fan of Tesla going on 9 years. I took over the lease of a S P90D which convinced me I really only needed a M3. I love the car but I have to say the "service" provided has degraded over the years. Somebody backed into our car while it was parked (without insurance of course) and cracked the right front headlight and barely gouged though the skin of the bumper. I chose to replace the bumper as somebody had already previously bumped into it enough to crack the paint on the nose. I will recount the hassle and annoyances I went through to get the damage fixed (and is still not done to my satisfaction; and if you're going to flame my post, realize I spent over $2,300 at Tesla to get this done)
1. I scheduled a repair for 2 weeks out, through the lauded Tesla app, got a confirmation email...only to have Tesla cancel it hours later.
2. I scheduled another appointment for a day later than the previous one, which again was cancelled by Tesla hours later.
3. I scheduled a 3rd appointment with a note saying they better call me if they are needing to cancel the appointment...this one took. I included pics of the damage and got an estimate of +$2,300, which I approved.
4. I took the car in on the scheduled day only to find that they are not providing loaner Teslas anymore (they had in my previous 3 visits over 3 years) and are providing a $200 Uber credit...which would not work. The service manager had to generate another Uber voucher which did work, and I got a ride home. I was told the car would likely be finished the same day.
5. I got a text telling me the car was ready for pickup around 2PM and I caught an Uber back to the service center.
6. I attempted to pay for the service through the app with 3 different payment methods (AMEX, Chase and Apple)...all 3 methods failed. I called AMEX and they told me the charge did not even show up as requesting authorization. I ended up calling the service center and paying over the phone with AMEX so that I could just pick up my car, with the key in it.
7. Upon arrival, I inspected the car and noticed that the right front fender and the bumper did not align properly (physically touching, cannot even run a piece of paper between them). As they are both painted surfaces, they will eventually rub each other bare so I talked to a tech about it and was told that the Tesla Service Center "is not a body shop" and there is nothing they can do. I spoke with the service manager and said I was not going to take the car and leave it for them to finish the work. I requested an Uber and while waiting, the service manager came back out to me with a tech manager. He said it was brought to his attention "after" the car was put back together and the only way to fix it would be to go to a body shop, have them remove both the headlight and bumper, adjust the right front fender panel and put it back together again....and please take your car as the Tesla Service Center "is not a body shop".
So, I'm pretty irritated. They do all this work, "notice" that it is not right after they finish and then say it is all on me to go to a body shop and get it resolved, at my own cost (oh, ...and here's a pamphlet for a body shop you can go to, I will call ahead and let them know you're coming"). After all the previous service I have had done (at another service center), my car always came back washed (almost "detailed")...this time, they didn't even bother to wash the car. I know this seems like small potatoes, but after spending $2,300 to get something done and then to be told I have to go elsewhere and spend more money to make it right does not ring right with me.
On top of all this, the service rep emails me letting me know a survey will likely be coming my way and to reach out to him and his service manager to "rate his performance"! Apart from the texts he sent me, we had no contact as the service manager is the one who arranged for my new Uber voucher, met with the techs, etc. I sent him and the service rep an email describing the above complaints and have yet to hear back from either of them. Anybody else having these kinds of experiences with Tesla?
1. I scheduled a repair for 2 weeks out, through the lauded Tesla app, got a confirmation email...only to have Tesla cancel it hours later.
2. I scheduled another appointment for a day later than the previous one, which again was cancelled by Tesla hours later.
3. I scheduled a 3rd appointment with a note saying they better call me if they are needing to cancel the appointment...this one took. I included pics of the damage and got an estimate of +$2,300, which I approved.
4. I took the car in on the scheduled day only to find that they are not providing loaner Teslas anymore (they had in my previous 3 visits over 3 years) and are providing a $200 Uber credit...which would not work. The service manager had to generate another Uber voucher which did work, and I got a ride home. I was told the car would likely be finished the same day.
5. I got a text telling me the car was ready for pickup around 2PM and I caught an Uber back to the service center.
6. I attempted to pay for the service through the app with 3 different payment methods (AMEX, Chase and Apple)...all 3 methods failed. I called AMEX and they told me the charge did not even show up as requesting authorization. I ended up calling the service center and paying over the phone with AMEX so that I could just pick up my car, with the key in it.
7. Upon arrival, I inspected the car and noticed that the right front fender and the bumper did not align properly (physically touching, cannot even run a piece of paper between them). As they are both painted surfaces, they will eventually rub each other bare so I talked to a tech about it and was told that the Tesla Service Center "is not a body shop" and there is nothing they can do. I spoke with the service manager and said I was not going to take the car and leave it for them to finish the work. I requested an Uber and while waiting, the service manager came back out to me with a tech manager. He said it was brought to his attention "after" the car was put back together and the only way to fix it would be to go to a body shop, have them remove both the headlight and bumper, adjust the right front fender panel and put it back together again....and please take your car as the Tesla Service Center "is not a body shop".
So, I'm pretty irritated. They do all this work, "notice" that it is not right after they finish and then say it is all on me to go to a body shop and get it resolved, at my own cost (oh, ...and here's a pamphlet for a body shop you can go to, I will call ahead and let them know you're coming"). After all the previous service I have had done (at another service center), my car always came back washed (almost "detailed")...this time, they didn't even bother to wash the car. I know this seems like small potatoes, but after spending $2,300 to get something done and then to be told I have to go elsewhere and spend more money to make it right does not ring right with me.
On top of all this, the service rep emails me letting me know a survey will likely be coming my way and to reach out to him and his service manager to "rate his performance"! Apart from the texts he sent me, we had no contact as the service manager is the one who arranged for my new Uber voucher, met with the techs, etc. I sent him and the service rep an email describing the above complaints and have yet to hear back from either of them. Anybody else having these kinds of experiences with Tesla?
