Tesla repairs experience

jon1981

Hi,

Looking around for my next purchase in 2020 and exploring the idea of a Tesla. One concern i have is the ability to get it repaired within a reasonble time frame should something happen.

Whats peoples experience been like with Tesla service and repairs so far? I noticed they only have one repair location in Dublin. Are they scaling to demand ?

J

Gumbo

jon1981 wrote: »

Hi,

Looking around for my next purchase in 2020 and exploring the idea of a Tesla. One concern i have is the ability to get it repaired within a reasonble time frame should something happen.

Whats peoples experience been like with Tesla service and repairs so far? I noticed they only have one repair location in Dublin. Are they scaling to demand ?

J

I don’t think there’s that much experience just yet with repairs here in Ireland giving that they are only here a year at most.

Model 3 only started being delivered last month too. Model s and x deliveries already, but nothing jumping out because not many people mentioning it on here.

Also, the Tesla owners Facebook group is a closed group so the average joe can’t see what they talk about.

One or 2 members are Tesla owners so they may have heard more in the circle

The only thing about Tesla is, if your car is in for repair, they usually give you a loaner of a similar car or better spec’d / performance car.

jon1981

Yeah i searched around and the horror stories i found were mostly in the US and in that mostly from areas with high concentrations of Tesla such as San Francisco.

Sabre Man

They have a ranger who will come to you if possible. I'm very happy with the service I have received so far.

After owning a Model S for a little over 2 years, I had to go to Sandyford for a misaligned door handle early on (no ranger service at the time) I chose to go to Sandyford for a new tire due to a slow puncture. I had a HEPA filter installed at my home, as well as an interior light bulb replacement.

zilog_jones

Is there a "ranger" technician available in Ireland? Is there a standard annual service with Teslas at all?

It's one of the things that would put me off buying in their current state (if I won the Lotto ), as their only dealer is 260 km away from Cork - compared to the likes of Toyota, Nissan, VW, etc. who have multiple dealers within 20 km of me.

Something else to consider: The Model S has an aluminium body, so any bodywork repairs could be very costly, and potentially slow due to lack of skill in this area (it's not the same as working with steel). Not sure about the X, the 3 is mostly steel though.

unkel

zilog_jones wrote: »

Something else to consider: The Model S has an aluminium body, so any bodywork repairs could be very costly.

Yes indeed. That's why so many of them in the USA (where repair bills are far higher than here) with relatively minor accident damage are written off.

The battery vultures (using the modules for their homes, their RV, EV conversion, etc.) are always happy when the first snow hits Colorado

hwr5ytu356

jon1981 wrote: »

Hi,

Looking around for my next purchase in 2020 and exploring the idea of a Tesla. One concern i have is the ability to get it repaired within a reasonble time frame should something happen.

Whats peoples experience been like with Tesla service and repairs so far? I noticed they only have one repair location in Dublin. Are they scaling to demand ?

J

Depends on your definition of a reasonable time frame, a used Tesla out of the 4 year warranty will mean that you won't get a "loaner", their workshop even for minor items is on top of it's head lately so I would factor in the potential need to have your own back up vehicle (ie. could you cope with your wife's / partners car between 2 of you for a few weeks if need be?). It doesn't put me off owning one but I have been without the car for approx. 6 weeks in 18 months of ownership.

jon1981

I learned something new here. I thought most modern cars had aluminium bodies.

0lddog

jon1981 wrote: »

I learned something new here. I thought most modern cars had aluminium bodies.

Some body panel on the S and X are carbon fiber ?


Ditto I3 ?

zilog_jones

jon1981 wrote: »

I learned something new here. I thought most modern cars had aluminium bodies.

Some use aluminium panels, like the Ioniq and Prius (bonnet and boot hatch only for both, I think), but full aluminium bodied cars are quite rare. Audi A8 (all generations) and Jaguar XJ (2002 onwards) are the few that come to mind.

Things like Land Rovers have used aluminium bodies for much longer, but they're body-on-frame constructions (and steel frames at that), not unibody like most normal passenger cars from the past 50 years or so.

Just getting a dent out of an aluminium panel is much more complicated and labour-intensive compared to steel. Traditional panel beating doesn't work. At least it's not as bad as carbon fibre! :eek: