Service in Michigan

[RGloverii]

Mid-michigan here. Don't have a tesla yet, but am very interested. One of my biggest concerns is service as well. I'm well beyond 50 miles from any service center at this point. Would I be able to use their mobile support? Or would I have to drive to Detroit, or Toledo? Haven't ruled out the Model 3 yet, but am looking at the S. I'll probably be buying used, at least with the S, but possibly new with the 3.

I'm in Fenton, and have always used the mobile Ranger service, which I think works extremely well. Highly recommended.

That being said, I believe that nowadays, things that can't be fixed via Ranger will require us to drive to Toledo now. Fortunately, I haven't had any issues requiring service recently, so can't state that as fact.

You'll love either the S or the 3. Personally, I like larger 'luxury' cars, so I went with the S, but either way, you can't go wrong. Go to Somerset Mall and get a test drive in both, to see what you think in terms of size and features.

 

[IT Geek]

Mid-michigan here. Don't have a tesla yet, but am very interested. One of my biggest concerns is service as well. I'm well beyond 50 miles from any service center at this point. Would I be able to use their mobile support? Or would I have to drive to Detroit, or Toledo? Haven't ruled out the Model 3 yet, but am looking at the S. I'll probably be buying used, at least with the S, but possibly new with the 3.

Tesla's are not like traditional cars. There's no oil to change, no need for tune ups, timing belts, transmission checks, mufflers, etc. They just don't have anywhere near the same service schedule as a traditional ICE car. So it would only be the big things (which seem to be less and less likely) that would require you to take the car into the service center.

When I got my car in 2017 you would hear all these stories about people needing to get the motor on their car replaced (under warranty) now, not so much. In fact they're saying that they want to get to the point where the motor in the 3 can go a million miles. Battery packs seem to easily last 200,000 miles (and that's the ones that were built in 2012) and those keep getting better too. The ones in the 3 are also much better than what I got with my S.

At this point, I certainly would not expect someone to need to take their car to the service center with any frequency. Nor would I even expect the Ranger to be visiting anyone all that often. I talk to several Michigan Tesla owners on a regular basis (I belong to a Detroit area meetup group) and service rarely ever comes up. People usually are talking about the mods that they've done to their cars or the last road trip they took. I'm not saying service is never needed....but they just don't wear like a gas car and the build quality has been steadily increasing. Both good things.

But you don't have to just take my word for it... Come out to National Drive Electric Week - Ann Arbor this Saturday and ask other owners yourself. Looks like there will be 22 Model 3 owners there and another bunch of X and S owners as well (including me).

 

[Thp3]

Basically there are 2,000 moving parts in an ICE car which might require service. There are 200 in an Electric vehicle. So a rough estimate is that you might need service one tenth of the time you are used to.

Basically service issues are rare. It does help to consider what you mean get do if service is required? It could be a day to a few months. Unlikely, but you can plan for the small possibility

;Where the 200 number came from... (

)

 

[TZLAFAN85]

According to the Ohio service center (Cleveland), corporate stopped doing all valet service/trailer for services to Ohio and you are required to drive to a service center regardless of where you live in Michigan now. Some of us spent a ton of money for a car that can't be serviced with the promise of the valet service - I'm pretty annoyed that's not a thing anymore and now I'll have to burn essentially a full day to get the car there and back over a couple of trips with no guarantee of a loaner either.

 

[DCGOO]

According to the Ohio service center (Cleveland), corporate stopped doing all valet service/trailer for services to Ohio and you are required to drive to a service center regardless of where you live in Michigan now. Some of us spent a ton of money for a car that can't be serviced with the promise of the valet service - I'm pretty annoyed that's not a thing anymore and now I'll have to burn essentially a full day to get the car there and back over a couple of trips with no guarantee of a loaner either.

You need to be talking with your State Legislators. They are reason Tesla is illegal in Michigan. That was almost the case here in Indiana, but the Tesla community here raised up such a stink, and was able to pull out a win at the very last minute. Unfortunately the legislation here is Tesla specific. The next EV manufacturer will have to go through the same mess.

 

[Thp3]

... Some of us spent a ton of money for a car that can't be serviced with the promise of the valet service - I'm pretty annoyed that's not a thing anymore and now I'll have to burn essentially a full day to get the car there and back over a couple of trips with no guarantee of a loaner either.

That’s unpleasant. What is your repair issue that you need service? I’m just trying to understand repair issues in Teslas.

 

[SunCharged]

I wonder if this has anything to do with Tesla opening “Tesla Centers” soon???? If so, better communication to those of us in Michigan would help.

The lawsuit is scheduled for February in Grand Rapids last time I checked.

That’s unpleasant. What is your repair issue that you need service? I’m just trying to understand repair issues in Teslas.

 

[stuart_ev]

So I spoke with the one of the mobile technicans. I want to get the yellowing on main display fixed (long exposure to UV lamp apparently) and my upgrade to AP HW 3.0. Both of these are capable of being done by mobile, but he hasn't been equipped with the part for the disaply fix and HW3.0 is not certified for mobile install in Michigan. Tols I have to drive 3+ hours to either Chicago or Toledo as I live in West Michigan. This sucks, I spent $100k on a car and I have to spend 6 hours of my time when it needs servicing because Tesla have changed their policy.

 

[DCGOO]

So I spoke with the one of the mobile technicans. I want to get the yellowing on main display fixed (long exposure to UV lamp apparently) and my upgrade to AP HW 3.0. Both of these are capable of being done by mobile, but he hasn't been equipped with the part for the disaply fix and HW3.0 is not certified for mobile install in Michigan. Tols I have to drive 3+ hours to either Chicago or Toledo as I live in West Michigan. This sucks, I spent $100k on a car and I have to spend 6 hours of my time when it needs servicing because Tesla have changed their policy.

You could get to Indianapolis as well. But what policy changed? Tesla has never been allowed to sell or service anything in Michigan. You need to talk to your legislators.

 

[outdoors]

You could get to Indianapolis as well. But what policy changed? Tesla has never been allowed to sell or service anything in Michigan. You need to talk to your legislators.

Sell and physical service center no. Mobile service yes. Just replaced a busted out louver door and new 12v. Right from inside my garage at home via mobile service.

Legislation or courts.

 

[dwalme]

You could get to Indianapolis as well. But what policy changed? Tesla has never been allowed to sell or service anything in Michigan. You need to talk to your legislators.

This has nothing to do with legislators.

Tesla offered a concierge service where they would bring you a car, pick up your car, take it to a staging location (Farmington Hills in my area), then truck your car to Cleveland where the repairs would take place. Then bring it back to you. It was great and was a driving factor for me to purchase a Tesla in Michigan.

They no longer offer this service. You are now on your own to get your car to and from Toledo service center (which is a couple hours away for me). This is why people are mad. Has nothing to do with legislators. Has to do with Tesla stopping a great service before having the infrastructure in place to service vehicles.


I bought two Teslas. Had I known they were going to stop this service I definitely would not have bought the second one. Perhaps I still would have risked the first one.

Everyone talks to me about my Tesla at work and friends. It gets talked about A LOT. Prior to this change I was recommending Tesla to everyone. Not anymore. I tell them all to wait until you have a service center closer to you in case you need it. I am now talking everyone OUT of buying a Tesla.

Mobile service is good, but they cannot fix everything and it will require you to go to the service center.

 

[DCGOO]

This has nothing to do with legislators.

Tesla offered a concierge service where they would bring you a car, pick up your car, take it to a staging location (Farmington Hills in my area), then truck your car to Cleveland where the repairs would take place. Then bring it back to you. It was great and was a driving factor for me to purchase a Tesla in Michigan.

They no longer offer this service. You are now on your own to get your car to and from Toledo service center (which is a couple hours away for me). This is why people are mad. Has nothing to do with legislators. Has to do with Tesla stopping a great service before having the infrastructure in place to service vehicles.

Your state laws prohibiting Tesla to sell or service in your state is the problem. It is up to your legislature to fix that. Michigan is not the only state where Teslas are illegal. it was that way for a while here in Indiana, but Tesla, along with the help of a large group of angry owners, finally got the job done.

 

[dwalme]

Your state laws prohibiting Tesla to sell or service in your state is the problem. It is up to your legislature to fix that. Michigan is not the only state where Teslas are illegal. it was that way for a while here in Indiana, but Tesla, along with the help of a large group of angry owners, finally got the job done.

That is irrelevant.

Tesla shut down the concierge service. Why?

Many bought their cars with this in mind and then out of the blue it stopped. That is Tesla's doing. Nothing to do with legislators or laws.

Tesla took away a value added service.

 

[Ryephile]

That is irrelevant.

Tesla shut down the concierge service. Why?

Many bought their cars with this in mind and then out of the blue it stopped. That is Tesla's doing. Nothing to do with legislators or laws.

Tesla took away a value added service.

Would you need concierge service if we had local service centers? I bought my M3P after the concierge service was cancelled, so my expectations aren't there like yours are. In my eyes our state government blocking Tesla in this state is the main crux of the issue.

 

[dwalme]

Would you need concierge service if we had local service centers? I bought my M3P after the concierge service was cancelled, so my expectations aren't there like yours are. In my eyes our state government blocking Tesla in this state is the main crux of the issue.

I came from a Cadillac ATS-V and they also offered a similar concierge service.

I never once took my ATS-V to the dealership. The dealership picked up my car, left a loaner, and then swapped back after service was compete.

When you are crazy busy and time is money these value added services are very important factors in car purchasing decisions.

 

[Tribaltech]

Just had my car serviced. Made an appointment for the Toledo SC. I was expecting to drive it to Toledo and received a call the night before from an employee who said he would be there the next day to get my car. Dropped off a loaner and took my car to Farmington Hills where it then got trucked to Cleveland. Live in Lansing.

He made a comment that if you’re more than 50 miles by the bird flies away from a service center, they will pick up your car. He said it’s always changing though. They also mentioned my visit would’ve been a ranger visit if I didn’t have a concern about my AC.

Lucky you! I live about 70 miles away from the Toledo SC...and Tesla has essentially put their foot down and pulled the rug from under the feet of Michigan Tesla owners. Its awful, they refuse to pick and drop the car for the S and X owners and are being very adamant about the same. A couple people at the Toledo SC have also told me that even if you're in Traverse City you're going to have to drive over to a Tesla out of state SC. Idk whats gone wrong with Tesla but if they think they will be OK while offending an entire state's customer base, they are badly mistaken.

 

[Tribaltech]

Would you need concierge service if we had local service centers? I bought my M3P after the concierge service was cancelled, so my expectations aren't there like yours are. In my eyes our state government blocking Tesla in this state is the main crux of the issue.

THe concierge service was never meant for the M3 but they always committed toward providing the same for the S and X owners. Them going back on their word is whats downright fraudulent and obnoxious.

 

[Tribaltech]

Mid-michigan here. Don't have a tesla yet, but am very interested. One of my biggest concerns is service as well. I'm well beyond 50 miles from any service center at this point. Would I be able to use their mobile support? Or would I have to drive to Detroit, or Toledo? Haven't ruled out the Model 3 yet, but am looking at the S. I'll probably be buying used, at least with the S, but possibly new with the 3.

DO NOT BUY a Tesla! I am a Model S owner and I have been a huge Tesla fan and LOVE my Tesla...but given how Tesla is treating its MI based customers...and how its gone back on its word on providing valet service to its S and X customers, it signals to me that the company has moved onto bigger things and that MI isn't an area of focus that they're willing to support anymore. People at their Toledo SC are non-committal and obnoxious. They simply refuse to work with you and keep saying garbage like "whether you're in Marshall or Traverse City you now have to drive your Tesla to us, we will not valet anymore".

I legit had plans on buying a Model X long range and with this sort of lack of customer care, I am never going to touch a Tesla again. Everytime I have to get something fixed or serviced in my car I am expected to waste 2 full days over it and my time is more precious than slaving away for a car like this. I went from loving Tesla to downright hating it. No matter how good the car is their horrid customer service makes this a terrible idea to buy a Tesla if you're in MI.

 

[Ryephile]

THe concierge service was never meant for the M3 but they always committed toward providing the same for the S and X owners. Them going back on their word is whats downright fraudulent and obnoxious.

Fraudulent? You're confusing revocable perks with contractual obligation. You're also confusing Michigan's legal ban on Tesla operations with Telsa intentionally discouraging customers. Contact your Representative and tell them their lobbying susceptibility is impacting your freedom as a consumer.

 

[Tribaltech]

Fraudulent? You're confusing revocable perks with contractual obligation. You're also confusing Michigan's legal ban on Tesla operations with Telsa intentionally discouraging customers. Contact your Representative and tell them their lobbying susceptibility is impacting your freedom as a consumer.

You know I am so sick of each and everyone of rabid, blind Tesla fanatics coming out of the woodworks every time someone tries to point out flaws with the company. Who says the "perk" was "revocable"? Did someone say that to you? Or Did you just conveniently assume that they stated this was a revocable perk to me just to try to prove a point?

Let me get one thing straight to you.... while purchasing a car almost worth $95,000 if Tesla sales had told me this was a "revocable perk", I'd have dropped this car like a hot brick and walked away. As much as I am a huge fan of the company and all that its trying to accomplish I am also disgusted and deeply disappointed in how its treating its MI customers. Tesla's customer service is horrendous and has gone from bad to worse in the past 4 years.

This was NOT supposed to be a revocable perk for the Model S and X owners.

And Tesla IS intentionally discouraging customers. I was at a supercharger today and happened to approach two owners who were also supercharging at the same time. One a Performance Long Range X owner and the other a long range dual motor M3 owner. I simply asked them what was their experience like being a Tesla owner. Both of them separately told me they LOVE the product (as do I) but absolutely hate its personnel and especially service department. The Model X owner expressed deep disappointment on the removal of valet service and how he is done ever purchasing a Tesla again until they get their act together. I am in the exact same boat. Yes this is a sample size of 3 but if you think this notion is limited to us then you're badly mistaken. Tesla has begun to lose loyal early adapting customers like me and I can't imagine its a good thing for them in the long run.