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Tesla: It's high time you upped your game!

4K views 22 replies 12 participants last post by  Misanthropic Mike 
#1 ·
IMHO, Tesla has done a fantastic job of producing unique and exceptional vehicles. But, it is quickly becoming imperative, for the survival of TSLA, that the customer service side of the business get the kind of attention that the manufacturing side has gotten to this point. Soon, Tesla will begin to sell more to the mainstream consumer and less to fanboys. I don't believe that mainstream purchasers will put up with the poor level of customer service that Tesla has provided to this point. Below is what I hope is a mid-term report card for the organization.

Production
Not many of us, excluding FUDsters, have an issue with the quality of the product at this time. The cars are simply amazing and continue to improve even post-
delivery. Early issues seem to have be corrected and current production appears to be spot on.
GRADE: A

Sales and Marketing
Tesla has to date been quite wishy-washy about how to accomplish sales objectives, but with the back-log of Model3 pre=orders, sales hasn't been a priority to
date. This is likely to change after ModelY back-log is caught up, so hopefully the company has a sales and marketing plan in development to meet their future
needs.
GRADE: Incomplete

Delivery
While early delivery short-comings have improved, deliveries still appear to be less than completely trust-worthy. Tesla must aspire to deliver the product as and when promised at a rate approaching 100%.
GRADE: C-

Post Sales Service:
The single biggest area of concern at present. Tesla seems unwilling or unable to service loyal customers after the sale. This ineptitude must change, and
soon, if the business model is to survive. IMHO, this area is now more critical to Tesla development of the ModelY, the Semi. the Pick-up or any thing else.
Drastic improvement is needed. If the disillusionment of the Fanboy base continues (and make no mistake, it has begun), Tesla will find themselves on a
very rocky road.
GRADE: F

Supercharging Network
Certainly one of the companies strongest assets. However, Tesla must be sure to continue development at a pace that is not outstripped by demand.
GRADE: B+

Promises:
The company continues to issues promises it cannot delivery upon. While this seems to have quieted lately, it needs to end forever. Under-promise, and
over-deliver. A simple business concept really.
GRADE: D-

How would your report card look?
 
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#2 ·
I try to look at this relatively.

I transitioned to a Model 3 from a Mitsubishi. Mitsubishi is pretty typical for Japanese car service trying to adapt to a U.S. market: They want to do the right thing by the customer post-sales, but the costs and legal obligations push them to crack down on things like warranty claims from time to time. They would like to offer A+ service, but they often have to partner with dealers that sell multiple kinds of cars, and Mitsubishi is low-volume enough that those dealers don't really care - so they hire just one Mitsubishi service rep and mechanic, and it gets really difficult to schedule appointments.

And yet in all of the years owning a Mitsubishi, I never really had any solid complaints about it. The service was still way better than with my dad's Chevrolet, and the car was way more reliable, and held up really well for 8 years.

So if Tesla can do at least that well for its first mass-market model, I'll be happy with it. I'm not going to expect the hand-holding personal concierge treatment that the Model S and X had before the 3 existed, because it's cost prohibitive for the 3. And so far, Tesla is doing better. I've never had anything as convenient as mobile service. It can be a pain to schedule sometimes, but so was calling the Mitsubishi dealer every day for a week or more to catch the one service rep. The car is solid and reliable (so far), and the upgrades are a great bonus - my car is almost a year old, and still not obsolete yet.

I guess a lot depends on which car you came from as to what your opinion might be. If you came from a Bentley or Rolls Royce, you're going to be disappointed. If you came from a Honda or Toyota, Tesla's service is a dream.
 
#3 ·
I came from a Honda. Tesla service is abysmal compared to them.
 
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#5 ·
I wouldn’t consider not being lied to or hiding damage a “high expectation”. For all the faults Honda had when I was negotiating the purchase of the car, it was mostly 5-star service after I became an owner.
 
#6 ·
I wouldn't consider not being lied to or hiding damage a "high expectation". For all the faults Honda had when I was negotiating the purchase of the car, it was mostly 5-star service after I became an owner.
Toyota was not like that for me. It was just run-of-the-mill dealership service, and it went downhill in the nearly 13 years I owned the car (Prius). I think Honda is an outlier, certainly in quality, but maybe also in service.
 
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#7 ·
Best example I could think of was when I bought my 2018 Accord. A week after I took the car home I hit a pot hole and damaged the tire (wheel was fine). Took it back to them to buy a new tire and they didn't charge me (they genuinely felt bad that I got a flat on a new car). That's how you get a repeat customer (wound up buying my wife's CRV from them). Tesla on the other hand makes me feel like I'm inconveniencing them by asking updates on fixes that should of occurred before I picked up the car.
 
#10 ·
Biggest concern here is when the non fanboys & non fangirls start buying the cars and not being as forgiving as we are.

Pain points include:
1. Poor service experience
2. Poor delivery experience
3. Sticker price fluctuations
4. Overcrowded superchargers
5. Software glitches

Let’s hope Tesla gets these addressed very soon.
 
#11 ·
Biggest concern here is when the non fanboys & non fangirls start buying the cars and not being as forgiving as we are.

Pain points include:
1. Poor service experience
2. Poor delivery experience
3. Sticker price fluctuations
4. Overcrowded superchargers
5. Software glitches

Let's hope Tesla gets these addressed very soon.
Agreed. Think the model why can live through these pain points as well. Though the pickup/semi are a different breed all together. There won't be much room for poor service when it comes to vehicles people rely on to earn a living.
 
#17 ·
A Report Card is a great idea.

  • Production
    • They still seem to have issues. Part of it is transportation issues that damage cars. Stress cracks in roof glass, paint issues of every type imaginable, leaks, water in bumper and vulnerable under car liner. But the fundamental cars look solid.
    • GRADE: B+
  • Sales and Marketing
    • They still seem to be trying to figure things out. Wishy-Washy is pretty accurate.
    • GRADE: C
  • Delivery
    • I think there have been so many good deliveries it's unfair to give to low a rating here. Part of the issues is transportation. And in some cases customers that are to nitpicky and they go to fix something and make it worse.
    • GRADE: B
  • Post Sales Service:
    • I've had excellent service and so have the bulk of their customers. One of the biggest issues is part shortages though. And some overstressed SCs. They are also pushing back on some services like paint and even stress cracks in glass.
    • GRADE: B
  • Spare Parts:
    • Parts shortages this is one of their biggest issues. It makes service look bad, cars subject to more damage while waiting, and is/will cause insurance rates to go up (rental fees alone). Also ease of cars getting totaled.
    • GRADE: C-
  • Supercharging Network
    • I don't think they could be doing a whole lot better here. I think the 80% limit is great idea to help control it.
    • GRADE: A-
  • Promises:
    • I knew FSD would be a long ways off when I got it. And I don't mind things being late (with in reason). What bothers me most is Elon thinks what we have now "works" and moving on to next steps. Hello !!
    • GRADE: B-
 
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