Elon Musk wants to fix your banged-up Tesla in under an hour
It's all part of an audacious plan to bring in-house all of the automaker's bodywork.
Taking a car to the body shop is usually an exercise in patience and metered expectations. But Elon Musk wants to turn the whole experience into a turbocharged hustle that results in as little downtime as possible.
As the Tesla CEO is wont to do, Musk took to Twitter Sunday to publicize his desire to make bodywork repairs easier for owners. According to his tweets, Musk wants to bring Tesla bodywork under Tesla's roof, instead of relying on third-party shops that have to wait on things like part shipments.
Tesla is bringing most collision repairs in-house, as outside firms take weeks to months for repairs, driving Tesla owners (and us) crazy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 16, 2018
While that plan is plenty lofty as it stands, a follow-up tweet contains one incredible promise: Musk eventually wants certain collision repairs to take "under an hour." Musk says in the same tweet that certain Tesla collision centers are already finishing jobs in less than a day.
Exciting to see some Tesla collision repair operations already completing within 24 hrs. Aiming for same day soon, then under an hour.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 16, 2018
According to a follow-up tweet, Musk believes that the company's expertise with its own limited lineup will result in better, faster repairs, as opposed to third-party shops, which must work on "[thousands] of makes [and] models."
Outside repair shops are jack of all trades, which means supporting 1000’s of makes & models. Tesla collision repair specializes in three. Having all parts in stock & not waiting for insurance approval also make a world of difference.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 16, 2018
That's a very audacious plan, one that will likely take some time to complete. If it happens, though, it could mean Tesla owners spend very little time waiting for repairs to complete, whether they're related to damage during delivery or your average fender-bender.
But not everybody believes Musk's reasoning, which places the blame entirely on third-party body shops. Bozi Tatarevic, an auto journalist with a wealth of automotive repair experience, discussed current bodywork-related logistical issues in his own Twitter thread. He pointed out, using Tesla's own repair documents, the struggles that third-party body shops face when repairing Teslas. Tatarevic says he personally has "more access to buy a Ferrari panel than a Tesla Certified body shop has to buy a Tesla panel."
Body shops like to make money and most delays appear to be caused by the requirements that are put in place by Tesla. https://t.co/dp4O93Tuem
— Bozi Tatarevic (@hoonable) September 16, 2018
It appears Tesla has finally found a way out of its self-described "production hell," but many issues still linger at the American automaker. The company must now smooth out the delivery process, which is currently a bit of a mess, as owners take to Twitter, Reddit and other corners of social media to discuss delayed vehicle pick-up dates and other logistical missteps.
