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ASW Conversations: The cost gap in EV repair
Teslas are far more expensive to repair than their EV counterparts and even internal combustion engines.
Why? Kevin FitzPatrick, a senior vice president at OPUS IVS, explains.
“The scarcity of talent, which means that you can charge a premium, and I think people are going to take advantage of that for better or for worse,” he tells host Peter Bulmer in this episode of Auto Service World Conversations.
That’s not it. For example, there are tires and suspension components that will need replacement far more often — and come with a heavier price tag for the work.
Another issue is the lack of shops unwilling to get into the game.
“The biggest issue right now, I think, is the willingness of the aftermarket to get involved. You know, if you take 100 shops, you’re probably going to find about 85 of them that are unwilling right now to work on EVs,” FitzPatrick said. “And that’s, that’s just a stark reality. It’s a bit of dedication, you have to get trained — I mean, these vehicles are no joke. They can hurt you. You have to, you have to take some extensive training in order in order to work on them. You have to tool your shop to work on them, you have to have a technician that spent multiple days in training, and it’s a bit of a commitment.
Tune into the whole conversation by clicking the banner above or tuning in at any of these links for the full library:
The real reason we don’t want to work on Teslas? The owners. They’re insufferable.
In the 70s We didn’t want to work on Asian built vehicles
Times change and we with times
Our shop has almost 40 EV clients
There is no doubt EVs are here to stay
Unfortunately our industry is always resistant to change. These vehicles present great opportunities, that is the way shop owners need to look at it and get on board. The ones that do will prosper.