News
Tesla Australia shop debunks misconceptions about parts and repairs
Over the years, Teslas have garnered an unfortunate reputation for being a carmaker whose vehicle repairs are unreasonably expensive and whose parts availability is a nightmare. As per a Tesla repair shop in Australia, however, the electric vehicle maker’s repair costs and parts availability have reached parity with industry players.
As per Luxury Auto Body, a Tesla-certified repair shop in Melbourne, Teslas are actually not ridiculously expensive to repair. In comments to Drive, Danny, one of the shop’s panel beaters who has over 30 years of automotive experience, stated that with the exclusion of major outliers, Teslas typically cost about AU$4500 (US$3000) to AU$5000 (US$3300) per repair. In fact, some Tesla spare parts are actually very affordable.
“Some of the parts on Teslas are unbelievably cheap. Something like a bumper bar – those parts are cheap. When we talk about airbags and suspension, they’re (a bit pricier) but still considerably cheaper than a BMW or a Mercedes-Benz,” the panel beater noted.
Repairs, if needed, are much less costly than you thinkhttps://t.co/ntX7T9D0NR— Tesla Australia & New Zealand (@TeslaAUNZ) July 1, 2024
Interestingly enough, the auto repair veteran stated that front impacts on Teslas are significantly easier to repair than rear impacts. As per Drive, a vehicle with significant frontal impact in the shop costs about AU$25000 (US$16600) to repair even if it needs a new dash and both its airbags have deployed, but a Tesla that needs repairs in the rear could result in charges of about AUS45000 (US$30000). Despite this, the panel beater noted that similar repairs for a BMW or Mercedes-Benz vehicle would still be more expensive at about AU$50000 (US$33200) to AU$60000 (US$39800).
“If we talk about a rear impact, it’s definitely more involving because Teslas – depending on the model – are glued and riveted on when you’re replacing a quarter panel, for example. So they’d be more on par with repairing a BMW or a Mercedes. They’re pretty basic at the front, but the back is definitely more involving,” the panel beater said. He also noted that “a lot of the sensors and cameras can be calibrated in-house” so Teslas do not really pose any particular challenges compared to other vehicles.
Last year, Tesla Australia put some effort into supporting its customers by opening a sales, service, and delivery parts hub in Auckland with the goal of expediting the repairs of damaged vehicles. Tesla-certified repair shops also have access to the company’s electronic parts catalog, which includes all the necessary information needed to repair a Tesla. And while there are still wait times for some parts, the availability of spare parts for damaged Teslas has become generally good.
“The availability of parts and strike rate are really good, and there’s only been a couple of occasions where you have to wait for parts. On one occasion we had to wait six weeks,” Danny said. The panel beater also mentioned that so far,Tesla’s build quality has generally become comparable to mass market automakers. “Build quality is in line with a mass-produced car – not that that’s a bad thing. They’re a good all-rounder for everyday use,” he said.
Electric vehicle fires tend to spread like wildfire in the news, but the panel beater explained that so far, the shop has not experienced a single battery fire. This is quite impressive as the shop deals with damaged Teslas. “We haven’t had experience with (batteries catching fire). The way the cars come in, (even when) they’ve been in major collisions, there’s been no risk. With the Model Y, they’ve actually got a first responders’ wiring harness that (you can) cut for safety reasons… They go into a shutdown mode in the event of an accident,” he said.
Watch Drive’s video about Tesla repairs below.
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Elon Musk
Elon Musk hints Tesla investors will be rewarded heavily
“Hold onto your Tesla stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet,” Musk said.
Elon Musk recently hinted that he believes Tesla investors will be rewarded heavily if they continue to hold onto their shares, and he reiterated that in a new interview that the company released on its social accounts this week.
Musk is one of the most successful CEOs in the modern era and has mammothed competitors on the Forbes Net Worth List over the past year as his holdings in his various companies have continued to swell.
Tesla investors, especially those who have been holding shares for several years, have also felt substantial gains in their portfolios. Over the past five years, the stock is up over 78 percent. Since February 2019, nearly seven years ago to the day, the stock is up over 1,800 percent.
Musk said in the interview:
“Hold onto your Tesla stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet.”
Elon Musk in new interview: “Hold on to your $TSLA stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet.” pic.twitter.com/cucirBuhq0
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 26, 2026
It’s no secret Musk has been extremely bullish on his own companies, but Tesla in particular, because it is publicly traded.
However, the company has so many amazing projects that have an opportunity to revolutionize their respective industries. There is certainly a path to major growth on Wall Street for Tesla through its various future projects, including Optimus, Cybercab, Semi, and Unsupervised FSD.
- Optimus (Tesla’s humanoid robot): Musk has discussed its potential for tasks like childcare, walking dogs, or assisting elderly parents, positioning it as a massive long-term driver of company value.
- Cybercab (Tesla’s robotaxi/autonomous ride-hailing vehicle): a fully autonomous vehicle geared specifically for Tesla’s ride-sharing ambitions.
- Semi (Tesla’s electric truck, with mentions of expansion, like in Europe): brings Tesla into the commercial logistics sector.
- Unsupervised FSD (Full Self-Driving software achieving full autonomy without human supervision): turns every Tesla owner’s vehicle into a fully-autonomous vehicle upon release
These projects specifically are some of the highest-growth pillars Tesla has ever attempted to develop, especially in Musk’s eyes, as he has said Optimus will be the best-selling product of all-time.
Many analysts agree, but the bullish ones, like Cathie Wood of ARK Invest, are perhaps the one who believes Tesla has incredible potential on Wall Street, predicting a $2,600 price target for 2030, but this is not even including Optimus.
She told Bloomberg last March that she believes that the project will present a potential additive if Tesla can scale faster than anticipated.
Cybertruck
Tesla drops latest hint that new Cybertruck trim is selling like hotcakes
According to Tesla’s Online Design Studio, the new All-Wheel-Drive Cybertruck will now be delivered in April 2027. Earlier orders are still slated for early this Summer, but orders from here on forward are now officially pushed into next year:
Tesla’s new Cybertruck offering has had its delivery date pushed back once again. This is now the second time, and deliveries for the newest orders are now pushed well into 2027.
According to Tesla’s Online Design Studio, the new All-Wheel-Drive Cybertruck will now be delivered in April 2027. Earlier orders are still slated for early this Summer, but orders from here on forward are now officially pushed into next year:
🚨 Tesla has updated the $59,990 Cybertruck Dual Motor AWD’s estimated delivery date to April 2027.
First deliveries are still slated for June, but if you order it now, you’ll be waiting over a year.
Demand appears to be off the charts for the new Cybertruck and consumers are… pic.twitter.com/raDCCeC0zP
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 26, 2026
Just three days ago, the initial delivery date of June 2026 was pushed back to early Fall, and now, that date has officially moved to April 2027.
The fact that Tesla has had to push back deliveries once again proves one of two things: either Tesla has slow production plans for the new Cybertruck trim, or demand is off the charts.
Judging by how Tesla is already planning to raise the price based on demand in just a few days, it seems like the company knows it is giving a tremendous deal on this spec of Cybertruck, and units are moving quickly.
That points more toward demand and not necessarily to slower production plans, but it is not confirmed.
Tesla Cybertruck’s newest trim will undergo massive change in ten days, Musk says
Tesla is set to hike the price on March 1, so tomorrow will be the final day to grab the new Cybertruck trim for just $59,990.
It features:
- Dual Motor AWD w/ est. 325 mi of range
- Powered tonneau cover
- Bed outlets (2x 120V + 1x 240V) & Powershare capability
- Coil springs w/ adaptive damping
- Heated first-row seats w/ textile material that is easy to clean
- Steer-by-wire & Four Wheel Steering
- 6’ x 4’ composite bed
- Towing capacity of up to 7,500 lbs
- Powered frunk
Interestingly, the price offering is fairly close to what Tesla unveiled back in late 2019.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk outlines plan for first Starship tower catch attempt
Musk confirmed that Starship V3 Ship 1 (SN1) is headed for ground tests and expressed strong confidence in the updated vehicle design.
Elon Musk has clarified when SpaceX will first attempt to catch Starship’s upper stage with its launch tower. The CEO’s update provides the clearest teaser yet for the spacecraft’s recovery roadmap.
Musk shared the details in recent posts on X. In his initial post, Musk confirmed that Starship V3 Ship 1 (SN1) is headed for ground tests and expressed strong confidence in the updated vehicle design.
“Starship V3 SN1 headed for ground tests. I am highly confident that the V3 design will achieve full reusability,” Musk wrote.
In a follow-up post, Musk addressed when SpaceX would attempt to catch the upper stage using the launch tower’s robotic arms.
“Should note that SpaceX will only try to catch the ship with the tower after two perfect soft landings in the ocean. The risk of the ship breaking up over land needs to be very low,” Musk clarified.
His remarks suggest that SpaceX is deliberately reducing risk before attempting a tower catch of Starship’s upper stage. Such a milestone would mark a major step towards the full reuse of the Starship system.
SpaceX is currently targeting the first Starship V3 flight of 2026 this coming March. The spacecraft’s V3 iteration is widely viewed as a key milestone in SpaceX’s long-term strategy to make Starship fully reusable.
Starship V3 features a number of key upgrades over its previous iterations. The vehicle is equipped with SpaceX’s Raptor V3 engines, which are designed to deliver significantly higher thrust than earlier versions while reducing cost and weight.
The V3 design is also expected to be optimized for manufacturability, a critical step if SpaceX intends to scale the spacecraft’s production toward frequent launches for Starlink, lunar missions, and eventually Mars.
Elon Musk hints Tesla investors will be rewarded heavily
Tesla drops latest hint that new Cybertruck trim is selling like hotcakes
