Service options in the middle of nowhere on road trips...

[TheRFMan]

I’m considering getting a 3 Before net summer rolls around (my 2012 Chevy Volt won’t last forever), but I was wondering what happens in case the car requires service on a road trip while far away from a Tesla service centre.

I live in Ottawa, Canada, and one of the first things I’d probably do after getting a 3 would be a road trip to the west coast to visit family and friends. The Supercharger network along the Trans-Canada is now complete and would make that 2700 mile trip possible. We now have a service centre here in Ottawa, but heading west, the next one is 2175 miles away in Calgary, Alberta. What happens if something goes wrong with the car in halfway in Winnipeg?

With my Volt, I know I’m never too far from a GM dealer that can fix a problem, but what’s happens with a Tesla when the nearest SC is 1000 miles away?

 

[camalaio]

You pay for a very, very expensive tow bill. No joke. Roadside Assistance

They'll tow up to 800km at their cost, and I think just for in-warranty failures based on other posts in this forum.

I hadn't even thought of that to be honest, I didn't realise there was no service centre between Calgary and Ottawa/Toronto. Jeez. Between the middle of SK and the middle on ON, you're just out of luck. No one would've really made this trip before because the Superchargers weren't there. I'd really hate to be the first person to test this theory.

I'm not sure if the border being open would change this. I don't think they'd pull your car across the border, because they can't guarantee you'd be able to come get it either. Besides, that would only only help you within a couple hundred clicks from Thunder Bay.

P.S. Not sure others would've even caught it, but kudos on being mindful that most people here are going to think in miles

 

[RayK]

A Premier membership with CAA. Friends along the way. And a credit card with a large line of credit .

 

[RayK]

P.S. Not sure others would've even caught it, but kudos on being mindful that most people here are going to think in miles

OP misspelled "centre".

 

[funkright]

OP misspelled "centre".

Actually, he was totally correct, eh! Just a more colourful way to go...

 

[Akikiki]

Or come visit us. Drive south so you can drive thru northern U.S., more superchargers too. Sort of the opposite of driving north where its even less resources.

 

[dmurphy]

Or come visit us. Drive south so you can drive thru northern U.S., more superchargers too. Sort of the opposite of driving north where its even less resources.

Can’t do that right now ... Country’s closed. Moose out front should’ve told ya.

 

[SMAlset]

We maintained our AAA roadside membership for this reason but of course now we’re not driving far from home. Do Canadians have a similar service? I know people here have reported they saved quite a lot of money on longer distance tows having the premium membership. We have their Plus membership which still gives us reasonable coverage for our current driving. If we were planning long distance trips we’d upgrade for the year.

 

[Akikiki]

Can’t do that right now ... Country’s closed. Moose out front should’ve told ya.

Closed? I'm in Hawaii. One the beach. Stopped listening to the news. Didn't know.

 

[RayK]

We maintained our AAA roadside membership for this reason but of course now we’re not driving far from home. Do Canadians have a similar service?

That's what my post above was about. Premier level membership in Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) North and East Ontario grants 320 km tow service. It's about equivalent to USA AAA Premier coverage.

 

[ElectricIAC]

Closed? I'm in Hawaii. One the beach. Stopped listening to the news. Didn't know.

I miss Hawaii.

 

[Akikiki]

For anyone keep letter count. One above should be On.

I understand. Plenty of room at the beach these days. Visitor count is down. Annually 12 million is off by 98% right now. Beaches are actually closed.

 

[ElectricIAC]

For anyone keep letter count. One above should be On.

I understand. Plenty of room at the beach these days. Visitor count is down. Annually 12 million is off by 98% right now. Beaches are actually closed.

It should be a crime to let a natural (and beautiful) resource go to waste like that.

 

[dmurphy]

I miss Hawaii.

Amen to that! It’s just too far of a swim for me; a man’s gotta know his limits.

In all seriousness, it’s a 12-hr flight from here. Once we’re all flying again, a trip to Maui sure sounds great ....

 

[toolman335]

Last year I hopped on the Boston to Honolulu direct flight. I sure am glad to have gotten that trip in!

 

[camalaio]

So after a lot more digging, I only arrived at the conclusion I did before: You'd be stuck with massive tow fees.

Using Tesla Roadside Assistance is probably better. Their 800km allowance would hopefully be extended, but at your cost. You'd likely avoid some extra fees regarding flat deck towing and/or dollies, but I'm not certain.

Using CAA (BCAA as my reference), they only have a 320km allowance.

Using any ol' towing company and skipping those options, you're definitely looking in the thousands of dollars to tow 1000+km. If you have an AWD that requires flat-bedding, many places I checked will have the price skyrocket due to additional per-hour or per-km fees.

And of course, BCAA is very good at having rules that don't led you add the 800km Tesla Roadside plus the 320 of their own. There would be no way to do this.

Unfortunately this is all par for the course. You've basically bought a car with the service availability of a Ferrari, but actually worse because it's an EV and Joe's garage on the corner of middle-of-nowhere and plains-for-days won't touch your fancy high voltage parts. And that's despite the fact Tesla sells many more vehicles.

I cannot wait for the day that the traditional manufacturers get competent long-distance travel EVs in Canada. Even the charging networks are starting to look promising.

 

[crikescrikes]

Amen to that! It’s just too far of a swim for me; a man’s gotta know his limits.

In all seriousness, it’s a 12-hr flight from here. Once we’re all flying again, a trip to Maui sure sounds great ....

 

[crikescrikes]

Who needs to fly or swim to/from Maui...
Simply order a modified Cybertruck from Munro...he plans to convert 1 of the 5 they preordered - into a boat lol

 

[crikescrikes]

I’m considering getting a 3 Before net summer rolls around (my 2012 Chevy Volt won’t last forever), but I was wondering what happens in case the car requires service on a road trip while far away from a Tesla service centre.

I live in Ottawa, Canada, and one of the first things I’d probably do after getting a 3 would be a road trip to the west coast to visit family and friends. The Supercharger network along the Trans-Canada is now complete and would make that 2700 mile trip possible. We now have a service centre here in Ottawa, but heading west, the next one is 2175 miles away in Calgary, Alberta. What happens if something goes wrong with the car in halfway in Winnipeg?

With my Volt, I know I’m never too far from a GM dealer that can fix a problem, but what’s happens with a Tesla when the nearest SC is 1000 miles away?

 

[crikescrikes]

I returned to Maui a year ago after completing a 4-month 50 state 33,000 mile drive in my 2015 P85”D”.

One of the many reasons I ordered a “D“ is because it lessened the chance of not being able to get to my next destination if one of the motors broke down as I crossed each of the 50 states. Fortunately I did not have any major problems. I considered carrying a spare tire which I have at my house, but I decided to bring tire plugs and a battery operated air pump on my trip instead. I started with 4 brand new tires from the Seattle Service center and never had any flats on the journey.

if you haven’t yet configured your M3 yet, I suggest you get a Dual Motor model, and bring along tire plugs and a battery operated air pump as a back-up in case the Tesla air pump fails in the middle of nowhere.
I also suggest you install a fridge in your car. Comes in handy on long drives. Message me if you have questions about preparing for your cross country journey. I will gladly share tips that might benefit you.

Aloha