LONDON, May 20 (Reuters) - Tesla is working to appease some European leasing companies after the automaker’s repeated retail price cuts tanked their fleets’ value and its slow service and expensive repairs alienated their corporate customers.
The efforts include unofficial discounts on purchases of new cars if they are in stock and efforts to address widespread service, repair and ordering complaints after years in which fleet managers and leasing firms say Tesla has ignored those problems, according to Reuters interviews with nine executives from major leasing and rental-car firms, along with about a dozen corporate fleet managers.
You’re not supposed to be shitty to your corporate customers until after you’ve captured their business and they’re dependent on you. Elon can’t even enshittify properly.
slow service and expensive repairs alienated their corporate customers.
I see statements like this often, especially about Tesla, but I’ve never seen or heard reviewers mention it as a problem compared to other cars.
Originally low maintenance cost was pushed as a huge advantage for electric cars, because an EV has fewer components that are likely to break.But particularly Tesla has been criticized for often very expensive repairs, but also other EV’s where a new battery that may be harmed driving over something, can cost as much as a new car. Where on an ICE car it would be a minor repair.
The reason their repair service is expensive and slow is because it is mobile.
We are used to bringing our cars to the repair shop when they need service.
With Tesla the repair shop comes to you and that is much more expensive and time consuming to do.
They also refuse to replace individual battery cells which may need service, and they insist you buy an entirely new battery altogether.
I feel like I usually hear this in the context of bodywork or collision repair, which is just as likely as any other car to be needed. Like the lead time on replacement body panels is months long because no dealers so sucks if you get in a wreck. That may have changed since however many years ago though.
The battery is typically covered under the warranty or lease agreement, in some manner, so the cost usually isn’t a problem for most people. But, as you said, the parts availability can be a massive issue.
True yeah. Downtime has gotta be especially problematic for fleet usage.
Their mobile service numbers are a tiny fraction of their service appointments. Mobile service isn’t why it’s slow and expensive, Elon is.
You don’t see reviewers complaining because they have a financial and social interest in keeping the lies going. Tesla service centers are shitty, their management is shitty, and Tesla refuses to fix the problem because it costs money.
Yes it’s a common problem with reviewers that they depend on makers to allow them free and early access to review products, if they lose their privileges they are finished as reviewers.
This is not just for cars, mostly everything in reviews is corrupted by dependencies if not outright bribes.
Funny thing is I once saw a review of a USB microscope, that was very critical to the product. Yet the review caused sales to shoot through the roof, because although the criticism was true, the product was very cheap, and the problems could be worked around. So even bad reviews can be good, if the price is right and the basic functions work.
I hope everyone who can cancels their Tesla contracts and gets another fleet vehicle. Tesla fired enough people to signify they are getting out of both the car and battery business. So like, their whole fucking business. Elon destroyed Tesla’s future in a fit of pique.
