Nope. They've stopped guaranteeing that they'll do that for new owners. That's a key to the service worries.
Back when they guaranteed that they'd do that, that solved the service worry.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Why People Do Not Want Tesla Cars
- Thread starter tonybelding
- Start date
Nope. They've stopped guaranteeing that they'll do that for new owners. That's a key to the service worries.
Back when they guaranteed that they'd do that, that solved the service worry.
It depends on how much you drive. For someone who needs to be on the road a lot, the cost of gas and maintenance difference can be big. However, for someone like me who works at home, it's a bit tougher to justify the purchase on the difference in fuel cost alone. I calculated that if I don't change my driving patterns, it will take me in the ballpark of 30 years to make up the difference based on the price of gas and maintenance. I think we will be driving my car a bit more and take some trips, so we might reduce that time span a bit, but I doubt it's going to get below 10 years.
I've kept my current car for 23 years, so unless something catastrophic happens to the car, I'm going to keep it a long time and I might see a point where the price difference in fuel is justifiable.
This does cause me a worry now; it is over 200 miles from my house to nearest Tesla service shop. Will this work?
That argument really only holds water in the US. At least compared to Europe where we tend to drive smaller cars with smaller engines. The cost savings of the typical family car vs a Model S here is negligible.
Then to add insult to injury remember that many countries in the EU have a higher tax on electrical power than gasoline.
Still the Model S is cheaper to run than most cars, even with the deck stacked against it. There is just not enough savings to justify a 3-4 times higher price-tag.
Jaff
Active Member
Nope. Don't buy a Tesla. I can say this unequivocally. If you do, expect a budget of $1500 in the first year or two for hauling the car to the service center alone, just for warranty issues. That might not be so bad, but it could be a lot higher if you get unlucky and get a car with a lot of problems.
If Tesla restores one of:
(1) low-priced Ranger service,
(2) prepaid unlimited Ranger service (this can be priced pretty high, since the point is that it has 'insurance' value, it doesn't go up if you have to make more service calls),
(3) a local service center,
then you can buy a Tesla. Until then, don't.
Well, I will be semi-retired next year (when I plan to get Tesla), so I will have the time; although, obviously, if the problem is one of these issues where the car is non-driveable, that will be bad...
It is hard for me to imagine that Tesla will ever open a service center in Alabama. (But then I'm surprised all the time). I gather that you (neroden) have been bitten by this? (Even though your signature says "Happy Tesla Owner") - it is 200 m from Ithaca to Mt Kisco, like from my place to Atlanta. How do you cope?
If the car is non drivable I believe they pick it up for free under warranty. Not sure about that so get that in writing. It is a fantastic car so if that's the only issue holding you back and you'll be retired next year that makes the long drive to service a little easier. Good luck.
ratsbew
Active Member
Yep. I really need to get around to investing in TSLA. It's going to hit 1000 eventually.
According to the Roadside Assistance document, this applies only to within 50 miles of a service center.
ThosEM
Space Weatherman
Isn't it *beyond* 50 miles of a service center? I live about 45 miles away and they aren't picking mine up or dropping it off. I thought that was a way to extend the reach of the service centers. Am I dreaming?
Also, perhaps relevant to the original post, I noticed a used Tesla for sale at our local M-B Dealership last night. So I guess some are not quite weaned of luxury ICE by a Tesla experience. Go figure...
Here is the language from the online info about roadside assistance:
For vehicle malfunctions, transportation services are free-of-charge to the nearest Tesla Service Center, or toyour home, provided these locations are within 50 miles (80 km) of the vehicle location. You are responsible fortransportation costs beyond this distance or from such locations to any additional location.
The way I read this, the Tesla flatbed will charge you for extra miles beyond 50. As far as your own situation - you may have different language in your contract (this seems to have been in flux lately) - or perhaps your car hasn't been transported by Tesla at their expense simply because you have never requested this.
Well, that's asinine on the part of Tesla. More reason for people to NOT buy Teslas. It's very easy to be a huge distance from a service center, with Tesla's anemic, minimalist network of service centers.
I have the old contract which will tow you, for free, from anywhere, for a warranty issue which makes the car undriveable.
There have actually been very very few cases where Teslas have become undriveable due to warranty issues -- less than 10 that I've heard of -- but they were big issues. Excluding flat tires (which can be fixed anywhere) and collisions (where towing is normally covered by insurance and Tesla can't do the body repairs in-house anyway), Tesla should pay at its own expense to tow undriveable cars from anywhere in the lower 48 to the nearest service center. They'll probably have to do it less than 10 times a year.
- - - Updated - - -
I haven't been bitten by it *directly* because I bought the prepaid "8 year unlimited ranger service" contract. Back when it was a mere $4800. (Plus a mere $2500 for the 'extended service contract').
Having sent the car down for service, IIRC (this might be off slightly) 4 times plus 2 ranger visits, at the "new" $3/mile each way I would have paid $8136 in transportation costs alone by now -- but I prepaid, so I pay nothing more.
I have been bitten by it *indirectly* because Tesla aren't selling that contract any more. Which means I can never buy another Tesla, at least not until they open a local service center. I was considering buying a second one. I was recommending it to friends, family, and strangers who have the means to buy Teslas. Now I'm telling them not to buy the car, and solely because of this.
The service center network will have to expand when they release the Model 3. Right now they are supporting less than 200,000 cars worldwide. They are planning to ramp up Model 3 production to 500,000 a year in a rather short time. Within a few years of the Model 3's introduction they will have 10X more cars on the road than they have now.
Seems to depend on where you ask that question:
In Switzerland I hear most often:
(1) Too large (wide and long)
(2) Uninformed (who is Tesla, all electrics have short range, take long to charge, no local service)
As a large car it sells well here and is very successful in that group. It appears that the marketing efforts of others, with their anemic batteries and very short ranges, damage the reputation of electric vehicles in general.
Similar threads
