We will need a lot more Service Centers

[ModelNforNerd]

I've stated this in another thread (can't remember which one now...)

Tesla's Service Center strategy has the capability to alleviate 3 main areas of concern:

1. Service Center coverage. Not only in currently unserved areas, but in areas that will likely become crowded with Teslas, like Boston and its suburbs.

2. Supercharger rollout. If they can manage to place Service Centers strategically based on both Supercharger need and Tesla ownership in a given area, the rollout of both can be streamlined. Not to mention, it's probably much easier in many cities/towns/states to get SC permitting added on to a few parking spots on your Service Center footprint than it is to negotiate that real estate separately.

3. By putting new Superchargers at Service Centers, Tesla will have the ability to "police" Supercharger abuse by some users, as well as eliminating "ICE"ing during business hours.

 

[Az_Rael]

Nope. I want a car that does not require a dealership or service center.

Twelve years and 3 Toyota Prius (Lexus, wagon and classic) later, I have been to the dealership for one recall and one stalled car that required a software update. I figure Tesla can update OTA, so I look forward to around one SC visit a decade.

+1, although I don't think Tesla is there yet (and may not be there for the first Model 3's rolling out). As an early adopter, I expect to spend some time in my service center.

 

[neroden]

Nope. I want a car that does not require a dealership or service center.

You're fantasizing. Everything needs occasional repairs. The way this is handled in consumer electronics is either "throw it out and buy a new one" or small indpendent repair shops. The former does not work for expensive items. The latter does not work if Tesla won't release its manuals.

I look forward to around one SC visit a decade.

Yeah, that sounds like a reasonable rate, and Tesla STILL needs full geographic coverage. Even with one visit a decade, I need a service center which is an hour or two away, not 4 hours away.

 

[SageBrush]

You're fantasizing.

Let's see ..

1. Honda Fit is two years old and has never seen a dealership
2. Toyota Prius (v)agon is 3.5 years old and has never seen a dealerhip
3. Now deceased Toyota Prius Gen2 was with us 11 years and was at the dealership twice.

EM wants Tesla cars to be the best, period. He starts from a simpler platform mechanically, and Tesla has OTA updates. I think he would agree with me.

I do however very much agree with you that shop manuals be made available.

 

[Luke42]

Let's see ..

1. Honda Fit is two years old and has never seen a dealership
2. Toyota Prius (v)agon is 3.5 years old and has never seen a dealerhip
3. Now deceased Toyota Prius Gen2 was with us 11 years and was at the dealership twice.

EM wants Tesla cars to be the best, period. He starts from a simpler platform mechanically, and Tesla has OTA updates. I think he would agree with me.

I do however very much agree with you that shop manuals be made available.

Toyota owners are a tough crowd!

I'm incredulous when someone suggests I should considet a BMW, because Toyotas are higher quality (on the aspects of quality that I care about) - and cost about half as much (when similarly equipped).

Toyota just sent me a letter offering to replace the dashboard in my 2004 Sienna for free, because they're seeing dashboard cracks in 12 year old vehicles. That's a commitment to long-term quality that I haven't seen elsewhere.

I'm willing to give the Model 3 the benefit of the doubt, because I really want a top-tier EV. Toyota's dragging their feet on EVs and bigger hybrids (such as the Sienna), and so it's time to try something else.

 

[voip-ninja]

Let's see ..

1. Honda Fit is two years old and has never seen a dealership
2. Toyota Prius (v)agon is 3.5 years old and has never seen a dealerhip
3. Now deceased Toyota Prius Gen2 was with us 11 years and was at the dealership twice.

EM wants Tesla cars to be the best, period. He starts from a simpler platform mechanically, and Tesla has OTA updates. I think he would agree with me.

I do however very much agree with you that shop manuals be made available.

You will have to flush the brakes and replace the fluid every 2-3 years whether the pads are worn or not so I assume you are planning on doing things like that and 12V battery replacement yourself.

I agree that it is a fantasy to think your bleeding edge car will only need to see a service bay once every 10 years.

 

[SageBrush]

Toyota owners are a tough crowd!

I'm incredulous when someone suggests I should considet a BMW, because Toyotas are higher quality (on the aspects of quality that I care about) - and cost about half as much (when similarly equipped).

Toyota just sent me a letter offering to replace the dashboard in my 2004 Sienna for free, because they're seeing dashboard cracks in 12 year old vehicles. That's a commitment to long-term quality that I haven't seen elsewhere.

I'm willing to give the Model 3 the benefit of the doubt, because I really want a top-tier EV. Toyota's dragging their feet on EVs and bigger hybrids (such as the Sienna), and so it's time to try something else.

My thoughts to a tee.

A lot has to do with expectations based on prior car ownership. Owners of German luxury or (horrors!) VW accept high maintenance and frequent repairs as part of the car experience.

 

[contaygious]

A month is nothing. i had to wait 3 months in the bay area. And they never ever have tesla loaners.

 

[S'toon]

You're fantasizing. Everything needs occasional repairs. The way this is handled in consumer electronics is either "throw it out and buy a new one" or small indpendent repair shops. The former does not work for expensive items. The latter does not work if Tesla won't release its manuals.


Yeah, that sounds like a reasonable rate, and Tesla STILL needs full geographic coverage. Even with one visit a decade, I need a service center which is an hour or two away, not 4 hours away.

4 hours? Lucky. The nearest service centre is over 980 miles away from me.

 

[Snerruc]

How about 200 miles by boat?

 

[zenmaster]

3. By putting new Superchargers at Service Centers, Tesla will have the ability to "police" Supercharger abuse by some users, as well as eliminating "ICE"ing during business hours.

The most useful location for super chargers is always going to be right off interstate highways. My local area service centers are not conveniently located - not right off interstate nor by some walkable shopping or rest area.

 

[ratsbew]

Tesla should partner with an existing car maintenance chain to perform basic services. Some company that has shops across the country already. Actual Tesla Service Centers could be reserved for major maintenance.

 

[JeffK]

Tesla should partner with an existing car maintenance chain to perform basic services. Some company that has shops across the country already. Actual Tesla Service Centers could be reserved for major maintenance.

Would you trust them to provide the quality of service that the Tesla service centers are known for or would they try to rip you off?
I think if I had a choice I'd probably rather have more Tesla service centers than go through a third party.

 

[bkp_duke]

Would you trust them to provide the quality of service that the Tesla service centers are known for or would they try to rip you off?
I think if I had a choice I'd probably rather have more Tesla service centers than go through a third party.

Valid argument, but I will toss this out for discussion:
The guys that worked on my car post-collision said that Teslas are built well, designed logically and "just simple to work on, it all is put together so it makes sense".

I might not trust someone with anything related to the battery pack and the software controls, but the rest of the car does not appear difficult at all to perform maintenance on.

 

[ModelNforNerd]

The most useful location for super chargers is always going to be right off interstate highways. My local area service centers are not conveniently located - not right off interstate nor by some walkable shopping or rest area.

Up here, there is still some prime real estate near highways. Plus, I had read somewhere that MA didn't want to sign a deal with Tesla to put SC's at state-owned rest areas, because of the "exclusivity" of their use (up to this point).

I likely won't be using any SC's in MA, unless I've been on a long road trip, and I need the juice to get home.

 

[NOLA_Mike]

Considering how closely tied Customer Service Satisfaction is with the Tesla Brand I don't foresee them ever handing over control of Service to a third party.

In a sense, that is the dealer network they fight so hard against.

 

[SW2Fiddler]

...each service center of a nationwide facility or two (e.g., PepBoys) would be much cheaper and could be put in place relatively quickly. Most of the basic repair needs (lifts, tire equipment, warehousing etc.) would already exist.

Tesla should partner with an existing car maintenance chain to perform basic services. Some company that has shops across the country already. Actual Tesla Service Centers could be reserved for major maintenance.

Interesting thought.
Like if the Model 3 Drive Unit was even easier to swap out than on the S...
Costco (for example) could probably do those. Set them up with stock replacements and training.

 

[bkp_duke]

Considering how closely tied Customer Service Satisfaction is with the Tesla Brand I don't foresee them ever handing over control of Service to a third party.

In a sense, that is the dealer network they fight so hard against.

Possible, but we should also all understand the "flip side" to this coin.

Because there are so few service centers, and so few qualified Tesla shops to do body work, repair costs post-collision are astronomical. There are many many threads on this subject in this forum.

All add my own experience here as a case in point. The previous owner of my 2013 P85 with 30k miles was rear-ended, not severely enough so that airbags deployed or any frame damage occurred. The hatchback was damaged, and the drivers quaterpanel, but nothing else. Because the car was owned in Michigan, where Tesla is still in a legal scuff and there are ZERO service centers and ZERO validated repair facilities, the insurance totaled the car (90k value on the car at the time), for what was approximately on 10k of body work. The insurance literally had no where to take the car for repair, except to ship it out of state. So they decided to total it and put the car up for auction.

BTW, I'm perfectly fine with the above scenario because I picked up this car super cheap and it is now restored 100%, but you bet scenarios like this are affecting insurance rates for Tesla owners, since there is a severe limit of shops "qualified" by Tesla to work on the cars. If you see my previous post, these are not difficult cars to work one. My guy, who is qualified for BMW and Mercedes work, said they were far easier than either of those two brands to repair "back to factory spec."

Supply and demand.

 

[182RG]

Interesting thought.
Like if the Model 3 Drive Unit was even easier to swap out than on the S...
Costco (for example) could probably do those. Set them up with stock replacements and training.

Farming out service support would be the kiss of death for a car manufacturer. It screams "Cheap", "Not read for prime time", Don't care about Customer Service". It also doesn't make sense to only farm out the Model 3.

Competing with a 3-series, and being serviced at Pep-boys and Costco? It would take the likes of BMW, and the automobile press about 2 seconds to make it the laughing stock of the Internet.

Tesla has to figure this out. All of this is part of the ramp up, including Superchargers and Service Centers. It's not just manufacturing and supplier capacity.

Mercedes sells just under ~400K cars in the US per year. They have ~388 dealerships in the US. Granted, it's not evenly distributed, but to make the math simple, it's 1,000 cars per dealer coverage. If you expect a customer service experience similar to Mercedes from a broad range of vehicles from $40K - $140K, it's not a bad comparison.

Tesla currently has ~70 Service Centers in the US. You can see the scale of the ramp up, depending on the numbers that you believe and when.

 

[neroden]

4 hours? Lucky. The nearest service centre is over 980 miles away from me.

How about 200 miles by boat?

Thanks for supporting my assertion that Tesla needs geographic coverage for their service centers!

Because there are so few service centers, and so few qualified Tesla shops to do body work, repair costs post-collision are astronomical. There are many many threads on this subject in this forum.

All add my own experience here as a case in point. The previous owner of my 2013 P85 with 30k miles was rear-ended, not severely enough so that airbags deployed or any frame damage occurred. The hatchback was damaged, and the drivers quaterpanel, but nothing else. Because the car was owned in Michigan, where Tesla is still in a legal scuff and there are ZERO service centers and ZERO validated repair facilities, the insurance totaled the car (90k value on the car at the time), for what was approximately on 10k of body work. The insurance literally had no where to take the car for repair, except to ship it out of state. So they decided to total it and put the car up for auction.

BTW, I'm perfectly fine with the above scenario because I picked up this car super cheap and it is now restored 100%, but you bet scenarios like this are affecting insurance rates for Tesla owners, since there is a severe limit of shops "qualified" by Tesla to work on the cars. If you see my previous post, these are not difficult cars to work one. My guy, who is qualified for BMW and Mercedes work, said they were far easier than either of those two brands to repair "back to factory spec."

Either Tesla massively expands the number of service centers to ensure geographic coverage, or Tesla releases manuals so a lot more work can be done by independent shops, or both. I recommend both.

Tesla currently has ~70 Service Centers in the US. You can see the scale of the ramp up, depending on the numbers that you believe and when.

Tesla needs to build a minimum of 40 more in the US for minimalistic geographic coverage alone (probably more like 60), and at least 20 more in Canada. And that doesn't count the ones which are already listed as "coming soon" -- I mean 40 more beyond that.