Photo: YouTube screenshot
Tesla is getting ready to venture into the mass-market segment for the first time, something that will change things dramatically for the company, and not all for the better.
Given its recent activity, you'd think Tesla is well aware of that and is taking the necessary precautions. For instance, in order to prevent long waiting lines at its Superchargers, it will remove the right to life-long free usage of its charging network for clients who purchase their cars after January 1, 2017. Instead, the company is going to use a Supercharger Credit system that's meant to persuade users to charge their vehicles more at home or at work.
But making sure the Superchargers don't get overcrowded is just half of the problem. The other one is represented by service access, and this is struggling even ahead of the Model 3 launch.
Right now, Tesla has 61 service centers operating throughout the USA, with 10 more on the way, according to the Tesla website. However, that wasn't enough for some of its clients who have had to wait days and sometimes even as long as five weeks for a service appointment with problems of varying severity.
Automotive News recounts the woes of a man in Miami, Florida, who was forced to drive around for ten days with a faulty electric window that did not close properly on his Model X before the service center was able to do anything about it. "That's a long time for a $130,000 car," he said.
Citing the complexity of its vehicles, Tesla does not recommend having any work done at independent service centers, but that may have to change once Model 3 arrives. The smaller sedan is scheduled for a mid-2017 release, so the first cars should hit the streets toward the end of next year.
When production hits full stride, Tesla will be putting more cars on the road in one year than it has since the company was created, meaning the need for servicing will also increase exponentially. That's a problem Tesla needs to tackle, and it needs to do it sooner rather than later.
But making sure the Superchargers don't get overcrowded is just half of the problem. The other one is represented by service access, and this is struggling even ahead of the Model 3 launch.
Right now, Tesla has 61 service centers operating throughout the USA, with 10 more on the way, according to the Tesla website. However, that wasn't enough for some of its clients who have had to wait days and sometimes even as long as five weeks for a service appointment with problems of varying severity.
Automotive News recounts the woes of a man in Miami, Florida, who was forced to drive around for ten days with a faulty electric window that did not close properly on his Model X before the service center was able to do anything about it. "That's a long time for a $130,000 car," he said.
Citing the complexity of its vehicles, Tesla does not recommend having any work done at independent service centers, but that may have to change once Model 3 arrives. The smaller sedan is scheduled for a mid-2017 release, so the first cars should hit the streets toward the end of next year.
When production hits full stride, Tesla will be putting more cars on the road in one year than it has since the company was created, meaning the need for servicing will also increase exponentially. That's a problem Tesla needs to tackle, and it needs to do it sooner rather than later.
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