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The Model S does not need to be brought to our service center by the owner. Tesla will pick up the car at a location of the owner’s convenience, pro
by cloudwalking 13y ago
The Model S does not need to be brought to our
service center by the owner. Tesla will pick up
the car at a location of the owner’s convenience,
provide a Model S loaner if needed, perform the
work and bring the car back to the owner a few
hours later.
Does anybody else offer service like this?
- adamtulinius 13y agoThat paragraph just made me want a Model S even more. :-)
- Ygg2 13y agoNo? And not just in the automotive industry. Apple comes close, but from stories like smoke being considered a biohazard, I'd say no (they did offer replacement if you broke your screen on iPad IIRC). That said I don't consider that Tesla won't ever have a gaffe, but they are doing things perfectly so far.
- merijnv 13y agoIIyama, twice I've had an IIyama screen die on me, once within warranty (due to the high volume of electric devices dying I installed a surge protector, since then no problems) and once outside of warranty. Both times they send a courier service to pick up the screen at my house and deliver me a replacement one at no charge.
- masklinn 13y agoLogitech will also do that, had a mouse die, call them: > Yeah so my mouse doesn't work anymore, it's a <whatever model> >> Ok do you have a serial number? > Sure it's <serial number> >> Could I have your address to send a replacement? > <address> >> OK thanks a lot, we'll get the new one send right away > How do I send the old one back? >> It's broken yeah? > Yeah >> Then you just throw it out or whatever, try to repair it if you enjoy that No charge, no fuss, no bother. Love it when companies do that.
- mseebach 13y agoAmazon has replaced my Kindle like that twice. Once I definitely broke it myself, once I don't think I did (but had no evidence). They did ask me to return the broken one through.
- tomku 13y agoHad roughly the same experience with Logitech when my MX518 died. They asked me to email a phone camera pic of the label with the serial number and shipped out a brand new G500 right away. No hassle over troubleshooting, no wasted postage mailing back a broken mouse and waiting two weeks. It's nice to be treated like a customer rather than a fraudster, and I definitely factor in warranty claim friendliness when I buy new hardware nowadays.
- shriphani 13y agoHaven't owned a high-end car but friends in college owned maseratis who offered service of this level.
- rdouble 13y agoIn small towns any car dealer will do that.
- MichaelApproved 13y agoI live in Hollywood, CA. My local BMW dealership won't pick up my car but they'll give me a round trip complimentary shuttle service. I'll get a loaner if the service will take a few days.
- fragmede 13y agoHigh-end luxury car dealerships frequently offer loaner cars, often times nicer than the car that needed servicing, and some of them definitely do pick-ups.
- Already__Taken 13y agoIt makes people buy new cars. Exact thing just happened to my boss. Chucked in his workhorse of 13 years to buy the new model he got loaned.
- 3825 13y agoNow that is smart business.
- timthorn 13y agoNot just high-end, at least in the UK. All the dealers I've used from Vauxhall (ie the old Saturn in the US) through to Saab offer courtesy cars, the option for the dealer to pick the car up for service, or to give a lift from the dealer to work.
- schreiaj 13y agoNot just high end in the US either. My old Mini had some issues and they handed me keys to the closest thing they had available on the lot (another Mini). I wouldn't consider Mini to be a high end brand... and I didn't exactly have the nicest car they made. But the dealers always seemed to go out of their way to ensure that any downtime was as pleasurable as possible.
- chiph 13y agoThe Mercedes dealer I used to go to would give out Mercedes as loaners to owners of E & S classes. M & C class owners got Hondas from their other dealership. While I was there numerous times for problems with my ML (something broke on average every 8.5 weeks), the dealer always took care of me. And that's the only reason why I'd consider having another Mercedes. Hopefully Tesla is able to maintain their customer goodwill through this by doing similar.
- arethuza 13y agoWhen I had a high end BMW the dealer did that on a couple of occasions.
- tlrobinson 13y agoHeh, you must not have gone to the BMW dealership in SF then. The most I've gotten out of them is a one way shuttle, which is only available until about noon each day.
- digz 13y agoHah those guys are the worst. My next car was an Infiniti and the closest dealer was in Marin. I was always given at least as good of a loaner and they'd even reimburse me for bridge tolls.
- joezydeco 13y agoHigh end. I had a lower-end BMW model from a dealer that also sold other luxury brands (and Honda). Whenever I needed a loaner from the service department, I got a Honda. When I had the car in for service and the service rep could see I had more than 100,000 miles on the car, I still got a Honda. When I sold the car I bought...a Toyota. A perfect sales opportunity completely lost.
- Fuxy 13y agoVery cool. I doubt they can keep it up when they start producing cars in high volume though. Here's hoping I'm wrong :)
- pablobm 13y agoI have had two similar experiences with my Amazon Kindle. (This is in the UK, in case it's relevant). The first time, it broke. I called on a Tuesday at 6pm, they acknowledged the problem, and the day after I had a new one at 10am. I can't remember exactly how I returned the broken one, but I think I did it myself on the following days, to their freepost address. The second time, I lost it. A couple of days later, they contacted me saying somebody had found it and called them. They shipped it back to me for free.
- nicholassmith 13y agoI had a similar experience. The screen had been cracked in my bag, they ran me through a number of questions to determine whether it was my fault or just simple bad luck, determined bad luck and had a new one with me in 2 days (only day I could be in to swap the broken one). Great customer experience, it's one of the reasons I recommend people to buy Kindles over the competition.
- rdl 13y agoCanon, if you're a pro photographer. I assume Nikon has a similar support system for professionals. It's pretty amazing. Test/Evaluation loans on $15k lenses for weeks, emergency equipment loaners, dedicated support at major events (Superbowl, etc.). The high end models of "regular" high end car manufacturers also get service like this -- at the Audi dealer I use for dealer service (Stevens Creek), they have 2 dedicated mechanics for R8s. If you have an R8, you get essentially the Tesla service -- it's picked up at your home or office, you're chauffeured in an A8L if necessary, etc. For my 7 year old used A4, I just get a free loaner A4, TT, or Q5 for as long as service takes, which is fine too. I still go to an indy shop (Advanced Autowerks in SF) for non-warranty stuff now that I'm out of Audi Care service period, though, where they just give you $4 for the 3rd St Muni roundtrip. I assume MB SLS and other similar cars get similar treatment. Although, outside of San Francisco (parking), it seems unlikely anyone who owns a $200-300k car only owns that one car.
- chli 13y agoStrange that you mention the Audi A8L since I saw one for the first time a week ago in Monte Carlo. It's very rare even in Europe. "The Audi A8 L is the first automobile in the world to be available with an integrated WLAN hotspot. A UMTS module provides the connection to the Internet."
- arethuza 13y agoIs that really a big deal? I have a MiFi device that cost £70 or so that does that and works a treat in cars.
- nrivadeneira 13y agoIt's worth mentioning since it's integrated. It's the same reason something like Pandora integration would be worth mentioning despite the fact that many people could use Pandora with an FM tuner or 3.5mm to aux input (not to say the Audi A8L has Pandora).
- encoderer 13y ago
- dan1234 13y agoMaybe. I've never had to deal with a recall but, when my Alfa was serviced the dealership collected it from my workplace, dropping off a courtesy car (a better model than mine) for me to use. I did need to drive to the dealership to collect it again, but I also had to be there to pay for the work done (giving me a chance to talk to the mechanic at the time).
- kriro 13y agoYou're most likely to find this service if the company in question is dealing with 1) Innovators/Early Adopters (their goodwill, word of mouth etc. is highly desired as is the feedback you can get) 2) High end stuff that is bought because it is high end (some level of service similar to this is standard for Porsche etc...also a good chance to sell you a new car :P) 3) Equipment that professionals use, it's basically an implicit insurance policy (cameras, lab equipment)
- kenrikm 13y agoPorsche is actually known for NOT being helpful to owners when they screw up. They deny fault for many major recall worthy issues, go visit some Porsche forums and see for yourself.
- rodgerd 13y agoLexus did exactly the same thing when their first US model required a recall. There were stories of them flying mechanics by helicopter to do work with customers. It was a very effective stunt for covering for the cock-up, and establishing them in peoples' minds as a genuine luxury brand rather than a badge-engineering exercise.
- huhtenberg 13y agoSome of the BMW and Audi dealerships do, even for routine service visits. It's typically called a "Valet service".
- frogpelt 13y agoActually you'll find that most dealers that sell cars at a similar price to the Model S offer these kinds of services. $70-100K cars are a most definitely a luxury item.
- spullara 13y agoI've bought a couple others (BMW & Porsche) and neither of them would dream of offering the service I get with Tesla. My guess it is because in the bay area there are far too many BMWs and Porsches to offer that level of service.
- Domenic_S 13y agoOnce there are as many Teslas on the road as there are 328/335's and Boxsters, service will be different from Tesla.
- codex 13y agoOther manufacturers have a dealer network. Presumably the official Tesla service center is in California; a bit unreasonable to expect every owner in the world to be able to drive there. Likely they will have a local contractor do the work in various countries and far-flung states.
- reaganing 13y agoJaguar does (or did when my parents had one). I think other luxury car dealers typically do as well.
- scragg 13y agoUnfortunately they currently have 2 loaners, a p85 and 60, in the entire DFW metroplex. I took mine in for service and they gave me a Yaris from enterprise because the loaners were being used. I'm just glad I got something for free, although a p85 would of been fun. :)
- msh 13y agoWell, the loaner part is not that uncommon I think. I get a loaner if there is anything that needs to be fixed on my not high end Nissan. But the fact they do it at a place of your convenience seems really good.
- chris_mahan 13y agoLast summer a friend of my wife's was visiting from Japan. She spent a few days in Vegas, staying at the Bellagio hotel. Then she came to spend a week with us in Los Angeles. We went to eat one night, and she noticed she didn't have her sweater. "Oh, no, I left it at the hotel in Vegas" she said (in Japanese). From the parking lot at the restaurant, I called the hotel, gave my friend's name, room number, and dates of stay, and asked about the sweater, not hoping much. They had it. I asked if they could ship it to LA. They said yes, that it would take 3 days. My wife's friend was leaving for Japan in 3 days. I asked if they could ship to Japan instead, and that I would pay for the cost. They replied: "We'll ship it to Japan. There's no charge." We were all very, very impressed. That's service!
- kbenson 13y agoAnd most likely you all have a very positive impression of the hotel now, which will most likely come to mind the next time you need to plan a visit, or possibly even if you have a random conversation about Vegas, in which you have a chance to impress someone else. Here, you've recalled it from just a good customer service discussion. Considering a Casino can make many times the cost of the room on a visit depending on the customer, this is very, very good business.
- chris_mahan 13y agoIndeed!
- redsymbol 13y agoWhat hotel was it?
- Timothee 13y ago"She spent a few days in Vegas, staying at the Bellagio hotel"
- mikeash 13y agoHotels seem to be the last remaining bastion of the true service industry. You can ask most of them very nearly anything and they will get it done, possibly for a price.
- larrys 13y agoPorsche has done that.
- joshAg 13y agoany high end car dealer will offer something like this, especially if you have one of the nicer models. when hyundai launched the equus, they specifically offered this feature as a selling point to people who couldn't afford a 7 series, and would other wise get a 5 series.