FWIW - My service advisor in Seattle told me about two months ago that I would not have to pay for ranger fees, as there is a service center planned for Anchorage. I am on my second Model S, and so far, I have had excellent service visits here without any fees.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
FWIW - My service advisor in Seattle told me about two months ago that I would not have to pay for ranger fees, as there is a service center planned for Anchorage. I am on my second Model S, and so far, I have had excellent service visits here without any fees.
Andyw2100
Well-Known Member
Is is different depending on where you live? I though I read something about $1 somewhere.
I interpreted that to mean $3 pays for 1 mile in one direction. But the car does have to be driven back to my home after service. However I have never used the service so I don't know how Tesla interprets it.
From what I could gather, it's $1 per mile under a certain distance. Tesla really should issue a clear communication to owners re: the policy.
bmanke
Member
A bit like bait and switch? I would say the policy change is a complete bait and switch! While I am sure the problem is minor - our car only has 11k so it's under warranty so Tesla needs to diagnose and replace the bad parts.
mknox
Well-Known Member
With a large percentage of the Canadian population lying along the border with the US, it occurred to me that one's closest Service Center might be in a different country. If I lived in Windsor, ON my closest center would be about 4 hours away in Toronto, but if something opened up across the river in Detroit, could a Canadian owner get servicing there? I know my previous ICE cars all stated that I could get warranty service anywhere I was travelling in North America, but I haven't seen any discussion about this wrt Tesla.
Andyw2100
Well-Known Member
I and others have been told explicitly that it is $3 per mile, based on the one-way distance, to bring the car to the service center and back. So since the poster I was responding to lived 245 miles away, the charge would be $735 for the round trip.
This is the issue that I am most unhappy with Tesla about. I see no problem with changing the policy going forward, but it is very poor form to change the policy retroactively for people who already bought the car. In late 2014, they had done away with the prepaid Ranger/Valet program and I was told that it was a flat $100 per service if they had to get the car. I bought the car after asking numerous questions about that. Now the new policy is significantly more expensive and I've already prepaid for 8 years of service that I bought under a completely different understanding.
Andyw2100
Well-Known Member
It's called changing the rules of the game after the game has started. It's not exactly a fair way to play the game.
This is a good example of one area where the traditional dealership model is currently superior - more locations. Due to Tesla's limited ability to service its cars, Tesla either needs to make the cars more reliable so they don't require much service, build more service centers, or continue offering a flat-fee Ranger option. It seems like whoever is making the decisions in the service area is not concerned with prior promises and representations. If Jerome were still in charge of service, I very much doubt this would have happened.
My question: Who is the head of the service division? That is the person who needs to be asked these questions, or perhaps Elon himself. Nobody is saying that Tesla shouldn't change its policies if it needs to re-price something, but those who bought prior to that decision should be grandfathered in. I would be livid if I was in the position of some here, who were promised $100 ranger visits only to find out it's going to cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. That's completely unacceptable.
I don't have a horse in this race - my service center is excellent and 50 miles away - but I feel for those who took the risk, only to find that Tesla doesn't have their back. Borrowing Elon's own term, this is "uncool" by Tesla.
rogbmw
Member
I just scheduled my service yesterday. We have had our Model S for almost 2 years and 7 months, and have started seeing some changes that seem to be contrary to what TESLA originally put out regarding service. I understand that they have to make changes based on their business model, but to change the way they do business, especially for those who have supported them over the long haul just does not sit right.
I have had very good service by the TESLA service departments I have had to utilize, and it is not their fault. But - when I first purchased my TESLA, everyone here at work was most impressed about their service. A coworker who owns a Mercedes S Class sedan was most impressed. BUT - during his most recent service, they came to him, picked up his car and gave him a Mercedes loaner, took it to be serviced, brought it back cleaned and washed, dropped off his car and picked up the loaner------with NO CHARGE to him.
For my scheduled service, TESLA said that the new policy was $3 per mile, and that the annual service does not include an alignment (which it originally did). If the car needs an alignment, it will be an additional $225 as it has air suspension. I am not going to let my coworker who owns the Mercedes know about this - as I am sure he will rib me to no end that he does not have to pay for the service, and now I do......
It just does not sit well when TESLA changes the rules - especially to those of us who have supported them longterm. I still have a copy of the paperwork saying TESLA would provide alignments at their annual service appointments that I received when I purchased the car.
Just my 2 cents worth......
I have had very good service by the TESLA service departments I have had to utilize, and it is not their fault. But - when I first purchased my TESLA, everyone here at work was most impressed about their service. A coworker who owns a Mercedes S Class sedan was most impressed. BUT - during his most recent service, they came to him, picked up his car and gave him a Mercedes loaner, took it to be serviced, brought it back cleaned and washed, dropped off his car and picked up the loaner------with NO CHARGE to him.
For my scheduled service, TESLA said that the new policy was $3 per mile, and that the annual service does not include an alignment (which it originally did). If the car needs an alignment, it will be an additional $225 as it has air suspension. I am not going to let my coworker who owns the Mercedes know about this - as I am sure he will rib me to no end that he does not have to pay for the service, and now I do......
It just does not sit well when TESLA changes the rules - especially to those of us who have supported them longterm. I still have a copy of the paperwork saying TESLA would provide alignments at their annual service appointments that I received when I purchased the car.
Just my 2 cents worth......
And an alignment at my service center costs $150 regardless of suspension type. This is getting ridiculous.
rxlawdude
Active Member
Once more, the issue of CONSISTENCY between Service Centers (and even individual advisers within a Service Center, in word and deed, rears its ugly head.
And this is not to mention the inconsistency in interpretation of prepaid service and ESA terms that everyone gets different answers about. OK, I mentioned it.
Honestly, I'm glad this is being echoed by others. As a forum member here knows who lent me an ear the other day, I was pretty put off by what appeared to be sudden changes made to the policies with no formal notification (in my case anyway - I was discussing the extended warranty and how much of a ripoff it seemed), and how it put a negative spin on my thoughts of Tesla ownership going forward. I didn't know how to put my thoughts together or even where/who to send them to at Tesla.
Seeing the discussion here puts me at ease knowing I'm not alone, but also makes me more concerned that the issue seems to have been brought up already, but not addressed.
Seeing the discussion here puts me at ease knowing I'm not alone, but also makes me more concerned that the issue seems to have been brought up already, but not addressed.
Once more, the issue of CONSISTENCY between Service Centers (and even individual advisers within a Service Center, in word and deed, rears its ugly head.
And this is not to mention the inconsistency in interpretation of prepaid service and ESA terms that everyone gets different answers about. OK, I mentioned it.
Touché
I think this is more an issue of the small nature of Tesla rather than the dealership model. If you look at automakers of similar scale to Tesla, say Maserati or Jaguar, they have a similar number of locations. However the big difference is that you can take you Maserati or Jag to an indy shop to get every thing done if you want to. Not so with Tesla.
I found an unusual loophole in the policy. I had reported a problem with my TACC and I had a service visit scheduled for which I was expecting to pay the $450 or whatever it was to get someone to pick up the car. Before the day my visit was scheduled, I managed to get a flat tire and they were happy to tow my car to the service center for free as part of the roadside assistance plan. I assume they would wise up if I somehow happened to get a nail through my tire tread every time I need service, but maybe not.
rxlawdude
Active Member
beeeerock
Active Member
I think it's safe to say he paid for it somehow... buried in the purchase price of the car or included in some sort of service package... or maybe they thought he was ready to trade up and wanted to suck up a little. FWIW, I never had Mercedes do *anything* that made me feel warm and fuzzy (and un-gouged)! I would take consolation in knowing you shouldn't have to require as much service as he will, over the life of the car! :biggrin:
Similar threads
