Tesla zero-servicing plan a ‘danger to fleets’

A Tesla job advert for a senior manager to be in charge of a new programme called ‘Zero Service’ should ring alarm bells for fleets.

That’s according to FleetCheck, which says the idea of vehicles never having to visit workshops unless a fault was detected, presents huge dangers for vehicle operators.

The battery electric vehicle (BEV) manufacturer recently published an advert looking for a senior manager for ‘Zero Service’ in the US, who would be tasked with identifying and eliminating the reasons for cars requiring a service.

“At Tesla we believe that the best service is no service,” said the job posting. “We are looking for a highly motivated senior manager to join our service operations organisation and lead the team responsible to identify and eliminate the reasons for our cars to require service.” 

It explained that the role will be both strategic and tactical, and will include designing solutions and managing individual campaigns to be executed with field teams and partners.

“The candidate will work closely with hardware and software engineering, service engineering, quality and service programmes and field teams to prioritise, launch, and track demand reduction and efficiency efforts,” it added.

Tesla does not operate a traditional franchised dealership, instead preferring to carry out servicing through its team of mobile technicians.

Peter Golding, managing director of FleetCheck, said: “All competent fleet operators know employers are responsible for the safety of their employers behind the wheel of any vehicle being used on business.

“If Tesla says that its cars don’t need proactive servicing, where does the liability lie in the event of an accident caused by a mechanical fault? I’m guessing that they won’t want to admit cause.”

Golding suggests that precedents exist in the motor industry that could serve as a warning of lengthening the time spent out of workshops.

He explained: “Some years ago, when manufacturers introduced synthetic oils, they started to extend servicing intervals to 30-40,000 miles. However, most eventually moved them back to an annual servicing model and intervals of around 20,000 miles.

“A key reason was that this proved just too long for a vehicle to be out of a workshop because all kinds of other faults would develop in that time, some of them dangerous. Those cars and vans needed to be seen by technicians more regularly.”

A recent review of the MOT test decided to retain the status quo, something that was very much a recognition of the need for regular checks, says Golding.

“Even with good diagnostic systems, you could have a largely unpredictable issue arise, such as the current pothole crisis,” he continued.

“Cars with low profile tyres and sporty suspensions are crashing into sizeable holes in the road, sending shocks through the entire structure.

“Now, that might knock out the tracking but also the castor and camber, and affect wheel balance. There are a whole series of variables potentially affected.

“Any one of those issues could cause a car to mishandle or for potentially dangerous tyre wear to occur over time of a kind that it’s not easy for lay person to spot. How good would a fault tracking system be at spotting those errors?”

Golding acknowledged: “It is, of course, entirely possible that the rise of EVs means that vehicles start spending less time in workshops, but I don’t yet see any evidence yet to suggest that there should be fewer actual workshop visits.

“Safety should remain the number priority for fleets and that still involves vehicles being regularly checked by experts.”