First, I have been happy with my Model Y for the most part - I took delivery of it in July and have racked up over 4000 miles on it. When I took delivery there were some paint issues - which I documented for Tesla on delivery day. A lot of the issues that seemed to plague other model Y's were not present, or at the very least I am not picky enough to notice them, but the paint definitely needed work.
Some of the problems I previously posted here were about automation/online service with my purchase experience seem to have followed into ownership as Tesla appears to rely too much on automation with their customer service. My experience when getting to talk to an actual person in my area (ie. local sales local service) has been good enough, however, my experience getting to that point has been terrible. Problems like getting no responses to emails or texts, contradictory responses, or getting stuck in automated phone call loops are too common. I've now learned just the right numbers to hit to get to a person in service, even if its not regarding what I am hitting the numbers for, and coincidentally I was given that combination by a Tesla employee because obviously its an issue for them too.
For the paint, I have had to make several trips to the service center to get it handled. Each time I stated I needed a loaner, and each time I was told they can not guarantee loaners... This in and of itself is pretty insane and nothing I would have every assumed. I have purchased 7 new cars in my life, I drive a lot so often trade in every 3-4 years, this car is by FAR the most expensive car I have owned, double what I have paid for any other vehicle. I have purchased $15k cars before which had no problems providing a loaner when it needed service, I've never had a problem getting a loaner for any car I've previously purchased. For a $70k car, not to mention one that needed fixed from day one, it should not be hard to provide a loaner or rental. Their offer of 'Uber credits' may work for a few, but I can not wait for Uber to pick me up between appointments, and I am on call at times so have to leave ASAP.
Now I learn Tesla doesn't guarantee loaners, they might have one, but they apparently also have no real way to reserve a loaner for your service appointment you just have to get lucky that one is available when you go to service. This really wouldn't be much of a problem for me - I told them I don't care if I have to wait 6 months to get the car paint fixed, as long as it gets fixed and I have a car to drive during that time. I am really not that hard to work with and probably far less picky than most here with what they consider a 'problem'. The issue here is that they could not tell me if there would or wouldn't be a loaner available even the day before my appointment, which means every appointment I have to schedule time off in advance with work to deal with the appointment and make a trip to the service center, and each time they couldn't help it was a good chunk of the day wasted. Unfortunately, because of their internal automation, there doesn't seem to be much of a way for them to notify you, and if you try respond to the text notifications you get the company response about 'Uber credit, no loaner' was be sent to me, probably coming from someone at National Tesla and not local. Additionally, if within 24 hours you try to change of modify your service appointment on the app you are told you can not and to call the service center, but when you call the service system it repeats several times "We can not modify or make changes to your service appointment, you must use the app".... endless loop until you learn how to get a person by lying to the automated system (hint, tell it your car is already in service). What a mess.
So on the third scheduled trip to the service center they had a loaner (fourth really, I had to reschedule one because of a hurricane the same day which is how I learned about not being able to change of modify service within 24 hours) . It was a Model X, and it only had about 200 miles range at 90% charge - but it was something so I didn't complain (I returned home with less than 30 miles left on the first day, where my Y usually has over 100 on my busiest days). Its been a bit over week and last night while driving I heard a pop and the suspension dropped on the Model X they loaned me. I was not far from home to made it there, but there were air suspension error messages popping up, I could hear air leaking and the car was leaning significantly to one side. There were no road side stickers in the loaner, when I clicked on my app it just stated 'your car in is service, click for estimate date of completion' etc. I responded to my service text and asked them to call in the morning. I ended up calling Tesla when they opened. They told me to call roadside, so I did. The roadside said number said several times, 'this is for emergency roadside only, if this is not an emergency , press X'. I press X, and get transferred back to service, who tells me to call roadside again and just say its an emergency.... yet another confusing automated system issue...
Roadside was friendly enough, though they wanted the nickname to my Model Y and the month I purchased it as security questions. I didn't spend much time making a nickname for my Model Y, I certainly was never told it could be used as a security question, it was luck that I managed to guess what it was named as I never bothered remembering its nickname and my Tesla App is stuck in a 'car is in service appointment' screen. I asked what other security information can be used she said that was it, I might have been stuck in yet another automation dead end had I not remembered the nickname correctly. I asked them about loaner and of course they don't handle that, its up to service. They schedule to pick up the car, and right as they were hanging up Tesla called in response to the text I had sent the night before. I told them they were picking up the loaner and asked if I should drive back to the service center to get another, they said they have none and, of course, could offer Uber credits. I had 3 appointments this morning - I knew just dealing with getting roadside etc would mess some of it up, but there is no way I can rely on Uber to get me around. Now I have no car to drive - they won't reimburse a rental, I can't rely on Uber, I've spent over $70k on a new car that had a paint job that looked like it was done at Macco, and I have no idea if or when I will get another loaner from Tesla, or when my car is going to be done. To be fair, Tesla service have been in good communication since they took my car into service, although its been over a week now and they haven't started work, they had to send it to a third party paint shop, get estimates, send those to Tesla to approve, etc. I don't have an ETA for my car yet, I would imagine it will be at least a week once they actually start the paint work, but who knows at this point.
So now I am not sure what to do, I have responded to the 'service text' asking how I will be notified when another loaner becomes available (I fear there is no system in place to do this, so I won't). I am probably just going to get the 'Uber credit' offer from them. The last service guy I spoke with on the phone said they have no loaners, didn't make it clear if I will get this one back if they fix it, and offered uber credits...
I am going to have to pay for a rental in the meantime out of pocket - and I don't know for how long. This is really, really crappy service for a car this expensive, it needs to be fixed for them to go mainstream and will be their downfall if they don't as EV competition really starts to ramp up. The Model Y, aside from paint, has been a great car to drive, its so much more relaxing just letting it do its thing in stop in go rush hour traffic etc, I am happy with it otherwise.
Some of the problems I previously posted here were about automation/online service with my purchase experience seem to have followed into ownership as Tesla appears to rely too much on automation with their customer service. My experience when getting to talk to an actual person in my area (ie. local sales local service) has been good enough, however, my experience getting to that point has been terrible. Problems like getting no responses to emails or texts, contradictory responses, or getting stuck in automated phone call loops are too common. I've now learned just the right numbers to hit to get to a person in service, even if its not regarding what I am hitting the numbers for, and coincidentally I was given that combination by a Tesla employee because obviously its an issue for them too.
For the paint, I have had to make several trips to the service center to get it handled. Each time I stated I needed a loaner, and each time I was told they can not guarantee loaners... This in and of itself is pretty insane and nothing I would have every assumed. I have purchased 7 new cars in my life, I drive a lot so often trade in every 3-4 years, this car is by FAR the most expensive car I have owned, double what I have paid for any other vehicle. I have purchased $15k cars before which had no problems providing a loaner when it needed service, I've never had a problem getting a loaner for any car I've previously purchased. For a $70k car, not to mention one that needed fixed from day one, it should not be hard to provide a loaner or rental. Their offer of 'Uber credits' may work for a few, but I can not wait for Uber to pick me up between appointments, and I am on call at times so have to leave ASAP.
Now I learn Tesla doesn't guarantee loaners, they might have one, but they apparently also have no real way to reserve a loaner for your service appointment you just have to get lucky that one is available when you go to service. This really wouldn't be much of a problem for me - I told them I don't care if I have to wait 6 months to get the car paint fixed, as long as it gets fixed and I have a car to drive during that time. I am really not that hard to work with and probably far less picky than most here with what they consider a 'problem'. The issue here is that they could not tell me if there would or wouldn't be a loaner available even the day before my appointment, which means every appointment I have to schedule time off in advance with work to deal with the appointment and make a trip to the service center, and each time they couldn't help it was a good chunk of the day wasted. Unfortunately, because of their internal automation, there doesn't seem to be much of a way for them to notify you, and if you try respond to the text notifications you get the company response about 'Uber credit, no loaner' was be sent to me, probably coming from someone at National Tesla and not local. Additionally, if within 24 hours you try to change of modify your service appointment on the app you are told you can not and to call the service center, but when you call the service system it repeats several times "We can not modify or make changes to your service appointment, you must use the app".... endless loop until you learn how to get a person by lying to the automated system (hint, tell it your car is already in service). What a mess.
So on the third scheduled trip to the service center they had a loaner (fourth really, I had to reschedule one because of a hurricane the same day which is how I learned about not being able to change of modify service within 24 hours) . It was a Model X, and it only had about 200 miles range at 90% charge - but it was something so I didn't complain (I returned home with less than 30 miles left on the first day, where my Y usually has over 100 on my busiest days). Its been a bit over week and last night while driving I heard a pop and the suspension dropped on the Model X they loaned me. I was not far from home to made it there, but there were air suspension error messages popping up, I could hear air leaking and the car was leaning significantly to one side. There were no road side stickers in the loaner, when I clicked on my app it just stated 'your car in is service, click for estimate date of completion' etc. I responded to my service text and asked them to call in the morning. I ended up calling Tesla when they opened. They told me to call roadside, so I did. The roadside said number said several times, 'this is for emergency roadside only, if this is not an emergency , press X'. I press X, and get transferred back to service, who tells me to call roadside again and just say its an emergency.... yet another confusing automated system issue...
Roadside was friendly enough, though they wanted the nickname to my Model Y and the month I purchased it as security questions. I didn't spend much time making a nickname for my Model Y, I certainly was never told it could be used as a security question, it was luck that I managed to guess what it was named as I never bothered remembering its nickname and my Tesla App is stuck in a 'car is in service appointment' screen. I asked what other security information can be used she said that was it, I might have been stuck in yet another automation dead end had I not remembered the nickname correctly. I asked them about loaner and of course they don't handle that, its up to service. They schedule to pick up the car, and right as they were hanging up Tesla called in response to the text I had sent the night before. I told them they were picking up the loaner and asked if I should drive back to the service center to get another, they said they have none and, of course, could offer Uber credits. I had 3 appointments this morning - I knew just dealing with getting roadside etc would mess some of it up, but there is no way I can rely on Uber to get me around. Now I have no car to drive - they won't reimburse a rental, I can't rely on Uber, I've spent over $70k on a new car that had a paint job that looked like it was done at Macco, and I have no idea if or when I will get another loaner from Tesla, or when my car is going to be done. To be fair, Tesla service have been in good communication since they took my car into service, although its been over a week now and they haven't started work, they had to send it to a third party paint shop, get estimates, send those to Tesla to approve, etc. I don't have an ETA for my car yet, I would imagine it will be at least a week once they actually start the paint work, but who knows at this point.
So now I am not sure what to do, I have responded to the 'service text' asking how I will be notified when another loaner becomes available (I fear there is no system in place to do this, so I won't). I am probably just going to get the 'Uber credit' offer from them. The last service guy I spoke with on the phone said they have no loaners, didn't make it clear if I will get this one back if they fix it, and offered uber credits...
I am going to have to pay for a rental in the meantime out of pocket - and I don't know for how long. This is really, really crappy service for a car this expensive, it needs to be fixed for them to go mainstream and will be their downfall if they don't as EV competition really starts to ramp up. The Model Y, aside from paint, has been a great car to drive, its so much more relaxing just letting it do its thing in stop in go rush hour traffic etc, I am happy with it otherwise.
