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Dealing with Apple Store level service for a car that needs regular maintenance isn't going to fly. Imagine waiting 2+ hours for an oil change entry three month

Dealing with Apple Store level service for a car that needs regular maintenance isn't going to fly. Imagine waiting 2+ hours for an oil change entry three months.

tehwebguy 9y ago
Is Apple Store service not the gold standard?
- megablast 9y ago
  It is for electronic devices. Why someone would think they would do exactly the same model for a car division is very strange.
  - APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
    Their service may be good for hardware, but from personal experience it has been far from great if you're an app developer. We're in the top 100 grossing apps and can't even get a callback from them, let alone a point of contact if there are issues.
uptown 9y ago
Surely their vehicle would be electric. Likely some occasional maintenance but you wouldn't be getting your oil changed.
- wtvanhest 9y ago
  Not to mention that it would drive itself to the maintenance....
- APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
  Disclaimer: If it wasn't clear from the username, this is a throwaway. I don't want to endanger my business by associating my rant with my >7 year old HN account :-( There is a 0% chance that I would ever purchase a car from Apple with their self driving functionality in it. We recently had issues with a whole bunch of rejections of our app for reasons that are not clearly defined in their guidelines (allegedly they were "new terms" [not documented]... they pointed me to official documents that didn't match what they were telling me). The functionality that they were rejecting our app for initially wasn't new, followed by several rejections for functionality that had been in the app for nearly 2 1/2 years and had approved numerous times over that span. I've been waiting almost a month for a phone call that they promised me "within 3 business days" to discuss the App Review issues, and have yet to receive it. While I think that Apple creates some great hardware, and their end user support is likely better than their B2B support (which is IMHO atrocious, unless you're buying more hardware from them), there is no chance I would put my life in the hands of their product or expect them to provide me with safe travel.
  - ianamartin 9y ago
    You . . . argue that you wouldn't trust an apple car on the basis that they make good hardware, but you have a software dispute with apple? I'm sure you are very frustrated, but this comment really doesn't make sense to me. I would tend to think of an apple car as hardware, which you admit is good. And it's probably being driven by apple software, which is sometimes iffy and buggy and downright crappy. I can't imagine a world where your argument makes sense because 3rd party/app story complaints really have nothing to do with this. It feels like a total non sequitur to me. I'm not going to flag you, but I am going to downvote.
    - APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
      While looking back at it, my comment was a rather vague as to the target... Apple's customer support is spotty if you factor in their B2B (?assuming being an app developer puts you in that position?). I don't want to trust my mode of transportation to them as a result of my experiences. In this situation, a self driving car is a combination of hardware and software. As you said: > it's probably being driven by apple software, which is sometimes iffy and buggy and downright crappy Whether it rolls well is one thing, but I question the consistency of the software from them, as well as their consistency on policies (app rejections)
      - millstone 9y ago
        Apple's software would be a huge improvement over what traditional automakers produce. See Toyota's pile of spaghetti topped with 10,000 global variables, Jeep's "remotely disable brakes through the entertainment unit", etc. Meanwhile iOS, while not perfect, still has the best security architecture of any mobile platform. It sounds like you have a beef with Apple, but frankly, I want my automaker to be overly cautious with 3rd party apps. Can you imagine the Android model applied to self driving cars?
    - marklubi 9y ago
      It looks like the comment you were replying to was trying to equate dealing with oil changes/maintenance to poor customer support in an ongoing relationship. I don't know that I can fault them for feeling frustrated with Apple's support. The number of times that things have been made obsolete by Apple after just a couple of years doesn't lend a lot of confidence to the thought of a vehicle purchase that you may wish to own for 10+ years.
mikestew 9y ago
Dude, the car is self-driving, why are you waiting for it to get its oil changed?
- gregpilling 9y ago
  Agreed, also why would it need oil changes since it would most likely be electric? Scheduled maintenance is a very occasional thing in electric vehicles.
  - konradb 9y ago
    I don't know much about engines nor cars but I am guessing that even with electric motors one needs gears? If so then there would be a need for gearbox oil.
    - eigenvalue 9y ago
      No you don't need a gearbox.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - jsmthrowaway 9y ago
      There isn't a transmission/gearbox, but Teslas undoubtedly have differentials in some form which is where you would definitely find oil. I change the axle oil about once a millennium in my Jeep, so Tesla owners probably don't even think about it. To your point, though, there is probably a single reduction gear to lower the rotation speed of the motor and it might need oil. (Reverse does not require reconfiguring anything in an electric system, given that one just flips polarity. Electric motors have different torque characteristics which obviate the need for traditional gearing.) I'm guessing service on Teslas is the usual: brake pads every century given that regenerative braking does most of the work, greasing bearings every now and then, coolant, tires, wipers. Internal combustion is extremely complicated in comparison.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
derrickdirge 9y ago
I have a hard time imagining how Apple Store level service wouldn't be a big improvement over what I currently receive. Also there's nothing routine I do at the Apple Store that requires me to wait any significant amount of time. Anytime I have a question, or want to buy something, or pick up an online order the service could hardly be any more prompt. The only thing I have to wait for is the Genius Bar, and if I schedule in advance I don't usually wait very long. And I only have to do that when something actually breaks. When my car breaks I generally have to schedule something in advance as well.
Bud 9y ago
This user clearly is a troll and has basically no experience with actual service at the Apple Store, which consistently has the highest marks for service among all retail stores.

Dealing with Apple Store level service for a car that needs regular maintenance isn't going to fly. Imagine waiting 2+ hours for an oil change entry three months.

tehwebguy 9y ago

Is Apple Store service not the gold standard?

megablast 9y ago
It is for electronic devices. Why someone would think they would do exactly the same model for a car division is very strange.
- APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
  Their service may be good for hardware, but from personal experience it has been far from great if you're an app developer. We're in the top 100 grossing apps and can't even get a callback from them, let alone a point of contact if there are issues.

uptown 9y ago

Surely their vehicle would be electric. Likely some occasional maintenance but you wouldn't be getting your oil changed.

wtvanhest 9y ago
Not to mention that it would drive itself to the maintenance....
APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
Disclaimer: If it wasn't clear from the username, this is a throwaway. I don't want to endanger my business by associating my rant with my >7 year old HN account :-( There is a 0% chance that I would ever purchase a car from Apple with their self driving functionality in it. We recently had issues with a whole bunch of rejections of our app for reasons that are not clearly defined in their guidelines (allegedly they were "new terms" [not documented]... they pointed me to official documents that didn't match what they were telling me). The functionality that they were rejecting our app for initially wasn't new, followed by several rejections for functionality that had been in the app for nearly 2 1/2 years and had approved numerous times over that span. I've been waiting almost a month for a phone call that they promised me "within 3 business days" to discuss the App Review issues, and have yet to receive it. While I think that Apple creates some great hardware, and their end user support is likely better than their B2B support (which is IMHO atrocious, unless you're buying more hardware from them), there is no chance I would put my life in the hands of their product or expect them to provide me with safe travel.
- ianamartin 9y ago
  You . . . argue that you wouldn't trust an apple car on the basis that they make good hardware, but you have a software dispute with apple? I'm sure you are very frustrated, but this comment really doesn't make sense to me. I would tend to think of an apple car as hardware, which you admit is good. And it's probably being driven by apple software, which is sometimes iffy and buggy and downright crappy. I can't imagine a world where your argument makes sense because 3rd party/app story complaints really have nothing to do with this. It feels like a total non sequitur to me. I'm not going to flag you, but I am going to downvote.
  - APPLthrowaway99 9y ago
    While looking back at it, my comment was a rather vague as to the target... Apple's customer support is spotty if you factor in their B2B (?assuming being an app developer puts you in that position?). I don't want to trust my mode of transportation to them as a result of my experiences. In this situation, a self driving car is a combination of hardware and software. As you said: > it's probably being driven by apple software, which is sometimes iffy and buggy and downright crappy Whether it rolls well is one thing, but I question the consistency of the software from them, as well as their consistency on policies (app rejections)
    - millstone 9y ago
      Apple's software would be a huge improvement over what traditional automakers produce. See Toyota's pile of spaghetti topped with 10,000 global variables, Jeep's "remotely disable brakes through the entertainment unit", etc. Meanwhile iOS, while not perfect, still has the best security architecture of any mobile platform. It sounds like you have a beef with Apple, but frankly, I want my automaker to be overly cautious with 3rd party apps. Can you imagine the Android model applied to self driving cars?
  - marklubi 9y ago
    It looks like the comment you were replying to was trying to equate dealing with oil changes/maintenance to poor customer support in an ongoing relationship. I don't know that I can fault them for feeling frustrated with Apple's support. The number of times that things have been made obsolete by Apple after just a couple of years doesn't lend a lot of confidence to the thought of a vehicle purchase that you may wish to own for 10+ years.

mikestew 9y ago

Dude, the car is self-driving, why are you waiting for it to get its oil changed?

gregpilling 9y ago
Agreed, also why would it need oil changes since it would most likely be electric? Scheduled maintenance is a very occasional thing in electric vehicles.
- konradb 9y ago
  I don't know much about engines nor cars but I am guessing that even with electric motors one needs gears? If so then there would be a need for gearbox oil.
  - eigenvalue 9y ago
    No you don't need a gearbox.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - jsmthrowaway 9y ago
    There isn't a transmission/gearbox, but Teslas undoubtedly have differentials in some form which is where you would definitely find oil. I change the axle oil about once a millennium in my Jeep, so Tesla owners probably don't even think about it. To your point, though, there is probably a single reduction gear to lower the rotation speed of the motor and it might need oil. (Reverse does not require reconfiguring anything in an electric system, given that one just flips polarity. Electric motors have different torque characteristics which obviate the need for traditional gearing.) I'm guessing service on Teslas is the usual: brake pads every century given that regenerative braking does most of the work, greasing bearings every now and then, coolant, tires, wipers. Internal combustion is extremely complicated in comparison.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]

derrickdirge 9y ago

I have a hard time imagining how Apple Store level service wouldn't be a big improvement over what I currently receive. Also there's nothing routine I do at the Apple Store that requires me to wait any significant amount of time. Anytime I have a question, or want to buy something, or pick up an online order the service could hardly be any more prompt. The only thing I have to wait for is the Genius Bar, and if I schedule in advance I don't usually wait very long. And I only have to do that when something actually breaks. When my car breaks I generally have to schedule something in advance as well.

Bud 9y ago

This user clearly is a troll and has basically no experience with actual service at the Apple Store, which consistently has the highest marks for service among all retail stores.