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2022 Model S Plaid interior panel gap

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Took delivery of a 2022 Model S Plaid a few months ago, had multiple issues on delivery, car was filthy inside and out, rubber window trim was hanging off, there was hair gel all over the driver's head rest that left a permanent mark, interior door trim was scratched, and there was an ugly gap between the interior rear pillar panel and the headliner. I've attached a tweet showing the gap, it's on the rear driver's side above where the seatbelt comes out.

I tried to show the tech at the service center these issues on delivery but he refused to even look. He said "I have 50 cars to deliver today" and told me I should accept delivery and make a service appointment in the app. A few days later mobile service comes out and works on the car in my driveway for over two hours. The mobile tech was great, he explained what he was going to do and did his best to address our concerns. He dissembled much of the rear including the seats, parts of the trunk, and the pillar panels, did some adjustments, and replaced the panel in question with a new one. Unfortunately though, he was not able to resolve the panel gap, and in fact after his attempts the gap was even wider than before.

He explained that, in his opinion, it was an issue with the headliner, which would require significant disassembly because the headliner attaches to multiple panels all around the interior of the car, and has multiple speakers and lights in it. It wasn't something he could do in my driveway, it would have to go to the service center, but he expressed concern that further attempts to fix the gap may cause gaps or other issues to come up elsewhere. He apologized profusely for not being able to do more.

After mobile service I received an email survey, I responded by stating my dissatisfaction with the delivery condition of their $132,000 flagship sedan, and how I was not happy with the outcome of the mobile service appointment. I received no response or followup of any kind,

I was wondering if anyone that has had a similar experience with something like has any advice on how to proceed. Im kind of at a loss, I'm really irritated by the panel gap, but I'm also concerned about taking it into the service center and having them make it worse or cause other problems in the process of trying to fix it. The service centers in my area are very busy, and I dont trust them to take any time or care in repairing this expensive car.

Thank you.
 
E5A45D8F-E2DC-4D9D-B2D9-511436A231E3.jpeg

Sorry I'm new to TMC, meant to attach a tweet to show the hap but it didnt work. Was going to delete and repost but I dont see a way to do that. Here's the pic of the panel gap.
 
Took delivery of a 2022 Model S Plaid a few months ago, had multiple issues on delivery, car was filthy inside and out, rubber window trim was hanging off, there was hair gel all over the driver's head rest that left a permanent mark, interior door trim was scratched, and there was an ugly gap between the interior rear pillar panel and the headliner. I've attached a tweet showing the gap, it's on the rear driver's side above where the seatbelt comes out.

I tried to show the tech at the service center these issues on delivery but he refused to even look. He said "I have 50 cars to deliver today" and told me I should accept delivery and make a service appointment in the app. A few days later mobile service comes out and works on the car in my driveway for over two hours. The mobile tech was great, he explained what he was going to do and did his best to address our concerns. He dissembled much of the rear including the seats, parts of the trunk, and the pillar panels, did some adjustments, and replaced the panel in question with a new one. Unfortunately though, he was not able to resolve the panel gap, and in fact after his attempts the gap was even wider than before.

He explained that, in his opinion, it was an issue with the headliner, which would require significant disassembly because the headliner attaches to multiple panels all around the interior of the car, and has multiple speakers and lights in it. It wasn't something he could do in my driveway, it would have to go to the service center, but he expressed concern that further attempts to fix the gap may cause gaps or other issues to come up elsewhere. He apologized profusely for not being able to do more.

After mobile service I received an email survey, I responded by stating my dissatisfaction with the delivery condition of their $132,000 flagship sedan, and how I was not happy with the outcome of the mobile service appointment. I received no response or followup of any kind,

I was wondering if anyone that has had a similar experience with something like has any advice on how to proceed. Im kind of at a loss, I'm really irritated by the panel gap, but I'm also concerned about taking it into the service center and having them make it worse or cause other problems in the process of trying to fix it. The service centers in my area are very busy, and I dont trust them to take any time or care in repairing this expensive car.

Thank you.
Yes. Plenty have had similar experiences.

The only advice I can give is to never accept a vehicle from Tesla you are not 100% satisfied with.

After delivery (when they have your money) you basically cease to be a customer to them.
 
There are a couple of retention clips on the back of this panel that are very easy to break. As a matter of fact, I found that one of these clips was broken on my MS straight from the factory. I had very similar looking gap. So, I ordered new and stronger retention clips from Amazon for $9, removed this panel and reattached it with new clips in place. It now looks my better and the bag is practically gone. It's still not perfect compared to the passenger side but it was a major improvement.
 
There are a couple of retention clips on the back of this panel that are very easy to break. As a matter of fact, I found that one of these clips was broken on my MS straight from the factory. I had very similar looking gap. So, I ordered new and stronger retention clips from Amazon for $9, removed this panel and reattached it with new clips in place. It now looks my better and the bag is practically gone. It's still not perfect compared to the passenger side but it was a major improvement.
The mobile tech took the entire thing apart, inspected, replaced the panel, but didn’t mention anything about clips.

Do you have a link to the exact clips you’re talking about? How do you access to inside in order to replace the clip? Thanks.
 
Here is the link to the retention clips that you need:


As far as removing the panel - it's super easy. The only tool you may need is a plastic wedge to help you with prying the panel. Start removing it from the back in the trunk area. Put the rear seats down, remove cargo cover/shelf. Lift rubber weather seals slightly and you'll be able to get your fingers under the panner. Pull slightly and it should come undone. It's a very easy procedure and there is nothing that you are going to break or mess up.
 
Here is the link to the retention clips that you need:


As far as removing the panel - it's super easy. The only tool you may need is a plastic wedge to help you with prying the panel. Start removing it from the back in the trunk area. Put the rear seats down, remove cargo cover/shelf. Lift rubber weather seals slightly and you'll be able to get your fingers under the panner. Pull slightly and it should come undone. It's a very easy procedure and there is nothing that you are going to break or mess up.
Thanks so much for the info, much appreciated.
 
Not sure what you expected.

Haha!!!! Since when does a customer have to lower his expectations for quality of a brand new vehicle when he's just paid $140k for it? To the OP -- there is such a think as "Lemon Law" that give you certain protection. If the dealer is not able to fix the issue to your satisfaction after a certain number of tries, you should be able to return the car back to the manufacturer. It's always an option to keep in the back of your mind.
 
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Not sure what you expected. You took delivery, hopefully they will fix it to your satisfaction. But I wouldn’t hold my breath.
I'm aware of the fact that these issues are extremely common, I'm simply asking for other people to share their experiences on how they best went about getting them resolved. Yes, perhaps I should not have accepted delivery, but that was months ago and there nothing I can do about that now, so you responding with "you should not have accepted delivery" accomplishes what? Yeah, no *sugar*, but that ship has sailed.

As I said, mobile service already attempted to fix it once, I'm just trying to figure out what the best course forward is at this point. Thank you for your useless condescending input, its been a warm welcome to the TMC community.
 
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Reactions: glide
I'm aware of the fact that these issues are extremely common, I'm simply asking for other people to share their experiences on how they best went about getting them resolved. Yes, perhaps I should not have accepted delivery, but that was months ago and there nothing I can do about that now, so you responding with "you should not have accepted delivery" accomplishes what? Yeah, no *sugar*, but that ship has sailed.

As I said, mobile service already attempted to fix it once, I'm just trying to figure out what the best course forward is at this point. Thank you for your useless condescending input, its been a warm welcome to the TMC community.
Sorry you don’t like the answer but your beef is with Tesla, not me.

The “course forward” is to keep scheduling service appointments and hope they eventually fix it. Which they probably won’t. Outside of that, you have no recourse.

If you think you’re getting the “I bought a $130K vehicle!” treatment, you’re in for a rude awakening.
 
Outside of that, you have no recourse.
Why you so mad bro? Others have already given me helpful tips on how to potentially resolve it or at least lessen the appearance myself, so apparently there is a potential course of action other than dealing with Tesla service. This is the kind of info I came here for.

And no, I dont expect special treatment because I bought a Plaid, I'm not a stranger to what dealing with Tesla service is like.
 
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Reactions: glide
Why you so mad bro? Others have already given me helpful tips on how to potentially resolve it or at least lessen the appearance myself, so apparently there is a potential course of action other than dealing with Tesla service.
I’m not.

Good luck fixing your $140K purchase on your own. With no support from Tesla.

Like I said, you have no recourse with them.