I just got my Y in October and have heard and read about Tesla Roadside Assistance being a “mixed bag.” I was wondering if it pays to add AAA Roadside Assistance in the hopes of getting quicker, more reliable help with issues requiring towing, particularly when when ”out in the boondocks,” far from civilization? AJK
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howardnj
Member
I've been a AAA member for over fifty years. Although my MY is not expected until July I intend to continue my AAA membership. It affords me with 200 mile flatbed towing in an emergency as well as tire service if needed. What many do not know is if you have an issue on many toll roads and need a tow, without AAA membership you will be forced to use a contracted tow service for that toll road that will only tow you to the nearest exit and you'll have to pay them. Then you'll be required to obtain another tow service to get you to a repair location.
With a AAA membership all of the charges are taken care of.
Who wants to have to change a tire on a dark and stormy night?
I have only been a AAA member for about 30 years, so you got me by quite a lot there. I have kept my AAA membership, for the same reason you mention. I also have 200 mile towing, and AAA really "saved my bacon" when I was a young man driving really old, non reliable cars.
With that being said, at least where I am, Tesla roadside and AAA would send the same towing service (same tow companies are contracted with both). Tesla does not have "tesla tow trucks" at least not to my knowledge. They contact contracted towing companies in the area, just like AAA does. Now, SLAs (service level agreements) on response times might be different, etc.
TL ; DR -- if you are not already a AAA member, that would be up to you, but I find comfort in continuing my AAA membership and have done so for a long time, with no intention of canceling it.
What tire?
I have been a AAA member for the past several years because I have two in college with 7 and 14 hour drives. It has paid for itself. Curious if you have any experience with AAA and a flat on a Telsa?
What tire?
I have been a AAA member for the past several years because I have two in college with 7 and 14 hour drives. It has paid for itself. Curious if you have any experience with AAA and a flat on a Telsa?
I dont have experience with AAA and my tesla for flat tires but (unfortunately) have had 3 separate occasions to use Tesla roadside assistance for Flat tires / bent rims on my Model 3 Performance. I called (once) and used the app (the other 2 times) Tesla for those as my car is still under warranty.
In all three cases, the towtruck that arrived was from the "prominant" tow comapny in the area I was in, and it displayed (in large font) "AAA" logos on the towtruck. Meaning, had I called AAA, the same company would have sent the same towtruck, most likely.
In two of the three cases they had a loaner wheel, and in the third case I was actually close enough to home that I had my wife drive over with a spare wheel I had in my garage (because I have zero g referral wheels on my model 3, and still have the factory wheels / tires in my garage).
My opinion is, its better to contact tesla during your warranty period, since even though it may be the same towing companies, the services they offer (like loaner wheels for example) could be different.
I have AAA and I will still keep them since I have other vehicles and we drive a lot. I used them to tow my Tahoe and open a locked door a couple times.
On the note of flat tires and no spare I am considering (and maybe you would as well) getting the green slime that comes with the 12V pump. Sometimes I am in areas with no reception or it is late at night and it would be nice to be able to do a quick fix to get me home or to the hotel. Don't really want to wait on help for a couple hours on the middle of the night.
On the note of flat tires and no spare I am considering (and maybe you would as well) getting the green slime that comes with the 12V pump. Sometimes I am in areas with no reception or it is late at night and it would be nice to be able to do a quick fix to get me home or to the hotel. Don't really want to wait on help for a couple hours on the middle of the night.
In exactly zero of my 3 times would that have helped me. Now, this is a model 3 performance, not a model Y, but it has 20 inch, stiff sidewall tires / rims. Anyway, 1 time i had 2 bent rims along with 2 flat tires. 1 time I had 1 bent rim with 1 flat tire. 1 time I had a bolt go completely through the tire and rim.
Having an actual spare would have helped me in 2 of those cases, but a slime kit / flat repair kit would not have.