General Motors dealers have repaired thousands of Tesla electric cars, GM announced during its annual investment day presentation.
First discovered by Barron’sone slide in the presentation reads only “11,180 repairs on Teslas” without detailed explanation.
Some level of context emerged in the corresponding talk from GM president Mark Reuss, who emphasized that “about 90% of the US population lives within a 10-mile radius of a GM dealership, which gives giving us a near-unprecedented network of customer sales and service experiences…superior service enabled in a reseller model not easily duplicated by direct sellers.
Tesla has in the past made it difficult for third parties to repair their vehicles, but their grip is being loosened thanks to repair rights legislation.
Tesla Charger (Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.)
Right to correct invoice aims to allow access to detailed repair instructions and some software to allow more independent shops to operate on EVs. Biden administration advocated this as a positive for electric vehicles in general, but it could have a particularly big impact on Tesla repairs.
Tesla previously hobbled the cars it got big rebuild—or things like battery implants—anywhere but at its service centers, such as limiting their charging speed at the Supercharger. However, it recently started testing “salvaged” EVs to re-enable features.
Without repair rights legislation, even car owners who don’t need major repairs could be at risk depending on whether the company is willing to continue to support older models. Owner of the original Tesla convertible had to resort to some workarounds with private stores before Tesla started assisting them again.
Chevrolet Blazer EV 2024
Now, it looks like some of the same protections in place for independent repair shops could also benefit GM – one of the world’s largest automakers – and the network. company’s dealer network.
Furthermore, GM acknowledges that it is up to their dealers to deal with Tesla repairs.
“We don’t have to approve dealers to do this,” said Shad Balch, Chevrolet’s communications director. “Agents will obviously try to help any customer they can.”
GM’s dealer network is currently undergoing its own transition to an electric-vehicle-intensive future. It reached out to its agents to Deploy target charger in the community and ask dealers to install chargers and make other changes to prepare for more electric vehicle sales. The automaker offered to buy Cadillac and Buick dealers who didn’t want to go through with the plan, though didn’t offer them. its Chevy dealers.
—
With additional reporting by Bengt Halvorson
