Elon Musk’s electric car company informed customers on Friday that the Tesla Service Center is now offering collision repair, something the company has been talking about since 2018.
In a message to customers entitled “Collision Repair is Here,” the company demonstrated its ability to fix everything from dents and scratches to “suspension and axle damage” in its own service centers as an “alternative option to a body shop.”
Tesla’s Services Revenue
Services, including collision repairs, should represent a significant portion of Tesla’s revenue over time as its vehicles become obsolete and the company brings more of them to and around the world. While Tesla reported $ 678 million from the Combined Services segment in the fourth quarter of 2020, the company does not disburse revenue for services separately. Overall, that share grew by 17% from $ 580 million in the last quarter.
Tesla operates 140 service centers in North America. The company aims to open more, including 46 in the first half of 2021, Tesla’s automotive president Jerome Guillen revealed on Wednesday.
Service has been a sore point for many Tesla customers in recent months, to the point where investors asked executives on the Q4 2020 earnings call, “What is Tesla doing to improve service experience? Tesla had a reputation for outstanding customer service. Now it’s impossible to even call a service center and appointments are scheduled weeks out.”
‘Best Service Is No Service’
Guillen answered, “For us best service is no service. So we spent a lot of effort trying to improve the quality and the reliability of our cars. In the last two years the frequency of service visits are reduced by one-third, so customers have to come less frequently into service, which is really the goal, no service.”
He emphasized that Tesla also provided “mobile service,” when Tesla’s service car and car mechanics went to the customer’s car to repair it. Mobile visits now represent 40% of all service visits in North America and Tesla wants that number to rise to 50% by 2021, according to Guillen.
But not all adjustments can be made on mobile visits. For example, installing a new or replacing the existing panoramic glass roof on a Tesla car should be done in a store.
Guillen also said Tesla is pushing all customer communications about service through the Tesla app— meaning Tesla Service Centers now prefer not to or simply won’t take phone calls.
“The app is much better than the phone,” explains Guillen. “It can spot alerts directly from the car and schedule a service appointment. There is a written record of all communication between the customer and the service team. You can have pictures in there. You can take care of your payment without entering the credit card and doing all that stuff. You get updates on the service.”
Guillen predicted that other car companies would follow.
Official Notice To Tesla Owners
Collision Repair is Here
January 28, 2021
Fix minor dents, scuffs, scratches and more now at your local Tesla Service Center as an alternative option to a body shop. Our optimized repair flow enables a fast and seamless experience when you need it most.
Collision repair services may include: suspension and axle damage, front and rear bumpers, hoods, liftgates and side mirror caps, along with doors, wheels and all glass repairs.
To schedule an appointment select “Collision & Glass Repair” from the Service menu in your Tesla app and track your service experience with step-by-step notifications.
Synopsis
Tesla informed customers on Friday that the company’s service centers would now offer collision repairs, something CEO Elon Musk had been talking about since 2018.
Tesla reported $678 million from a combined Services and Other segment during the fourth quarter of 2020, but the company does not break out services revenue discretely.
The service has been a painful point for many Tesla owners and th investors in recent months, until a retail investor asked management on their earnings call Wednesday what the company plans to do to improve the service experience.
