Tesla plans to triple service capacity with 1,400 new techs, 350 new service vans, and in-car scheduling

As it prepares to expand all its services and infrastructure to support its growing fleet with the arrival of the Model 3, Tesla announced today that it is expanding its service capacity by a factor of 3.

They have announced a series of new actions in order to achieve that goal.

First, they will be adding 100 new service locations to their more than 150 existing service centers. The company says that they are opening those based on the concentration of Model 3 reservations in certain markets.

Tesla also says that those shops will be bigger and more efficient with as many as 40 service lanes. The company claims that Tesla’s service will be 4 times faster than conventional shop while operating in a space 3 times smaller.

They say that more lanes will enable service techs to focus specific lanes on performing specific services in order to optimize their efficiency. As we previously reported, Tesla hired Kenny Handkammer, 25-year F1 veteran and former Red Bull Racing chief mechanic, to lead new service programs as Global Director of Service Innovation. They have since been working on F1-inspired methods to make service faster, like introducing those ‘fast lanes’ and make service centers use fewer lift-based workstations.

Furthermore, the company is also expanding its fleet of mobile service vans by adding over 350 by the end of the year. Tesla says that 90% of the issues on its vehicles can be diagnosed remotely and then fixed by a technician coming to the owner’s home or work without interfering with their schedule.

Here’s our recent report on Tesla’s mobile service: Tesla’s Rangers get a new look, now called ‘Tesla Mobile Service’ – First Look

Speaking of schedule, Tesla says that they are soon introducing a new feature that will enable owners to schedule a service appointment directly in their car. Here’s a new video that they released today:

In order to support all those changes, Tesla plans to hire as many as 1,400 new service technicians this year alone.

As we recently reported, Tesla has been restructuring some stores with service areas in order to focus only on service and delivery ahead of the Model 3 coming to market.