SAN CARLOS, California — Saying it's "just what the doctor ordered," Tesla Motors announced on Monday that it will kick off a mobile service program featuring house calls for customers in the U.S. and Canada. The service is expensive, however, with a minimum charge of $100.
Customers will pay $1 per round-trip mile from the nearest Tesla service center — and there are just four of them in North America, with none in the heartland. Tesla has service centers in California's Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Seattle and New York City. Stores are slated to open later this year in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Toronto and South Florida. The electric-car startup says it plans to have at least 20 regional sales and service locations in the U.S. in about two years.
Tesla said in a statement that the charge of $1 per round-trip mile is "less than Tesla's actual cost," but providing a mobile service means that Tesla does not have to maintain an extensive bricks-and-mortar retail network.
The automaker appears to be taking a page from the playbook of big-box stores such as Best Buy with its Geek Squad. It also follows on the heels of Tesla's response to a recall of the Tesla Roadster in May to fix a steering problem. Rather than tell owners to bring the vehicle back to the showroom, it sent technicians out to repair the cars.
The Model S is scheduled to go on sale in 2011.
Inside Line says: If you're considering a Tesla Roadster, you'll have to factor the price of house calls into the mix, especially if you live in a place like Vermont or Idaho. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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