NEW YORK — Taking a cue from house-call services like Best Buy's Geek Squad, electric carmaker Tesla Motors is launching a maintenance plan where mechanics travel to owners' homes or offices to perform repairs and tuneups.
Tesla, which makes the $109,000 Roadster electric car, said the plan is convenient for customers who won't have to bring their vehicle to a showroom, while cutting costs by making a large network of Tesla service locations unnecessary.
"You know how there's a Chevy dealer on every block or strip mall? We don't intend to have a footprint like this," spokeswoman Rachel Konrad said.
But the service won't be cheap. The carmaker will charge vehicle owners $1 for every roundtrip mile its technicians travel, from showroom to garage, with a minimum charge of $100 per trip.
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