2023 MYLR Delivery Day - Bad Panel Gaps

[thearcherian]

Today was delivery day for my 2023 MYLR. I waited 8 months. It was a Austin build. It had a really bad panel gap where the hatch met the left side. It was so bad that the left tail light was also not flush and you could see behind it. The front left headlight had a pretty bad gap too. After finding two quick bad gaps I kind of shut down and just rejected it. I will go into hold and wait for a new VIN.

My MYLR was parked next to a Fremont build that was pretty immaculate. I was able to compare my gaps to the Fremont which made my Austin look even worse. The Fremont car was a great reference.

Does anybody have any experience taking delivery of a car with a bad panel gap or two and getting them successfully fixed? I saw some minor gaps on other cars at the delivery center that I would have been fine with.

I guess I only get one more chance. Is it possible that the next car I get could be one that was previously rejected by somebody else?

Thanks for any info.

 

[240vPlug]

It's a Tesla so inconsistent panel gaps are par for the course. Mine isn't perfect. Door handle wasn't flush with body and interior door panel scratched. Those were repaired but the doors aren't perfect. One door was actually latching in too far. I adjusted the striker myself to fix it.

If these kind of things bother you then Tesla probably isn't the right car for you. Some do get lucky and get a really good example but Tesla is not known for quality. They won't bother addressing it either until it starts affecting demand.

 

[thearcherian]

It's a Tesla so inconsistent panel gaps are par for the course. Mine isn't perfect. Door handle wasn't flush with body and interior door panel scratched. Those were repaired but the doors aren't perfect. One door was actually latching in too far. I adjusted the striker myself to fix it.

If these kind of things bother you then Tesla probably isn't the right car for you. Some do get lucky and get a really good example but Tesla is not known for quality. They won't bother addressing it either until it starts affecting demand.

I hear you. Thanks for the info. Ironically I already got a new VIN. Got matched to a car that didn’t go to the person who ordered it because he was unresponsive.
I’m cool with the car not being perfect. That gap was just pretty bad.

 

[RavenYZF-R6]

I hear you. Thanks for the info. Ironically I already got a new VIN. Got matched to a car that didn’t go to the person who ordered it because he was unresponsive.
I’m cool with the car not being perfect. That gap was just pretty bad.

Or they just said he was unresponsive and they actually rejected it lol.

 

[thearcherian]

Or they just said he was unresponsive and they actually rejected it lol.

Regardless…I will inspect it and decide whether I’m okay with it.
The customer service fella who gave me the info over the phone said whoever dealt with my account after I rejected it, did it in a manner that doesn’t show I’m on my 2nd VIN. The account has me back to square one so I can reject again.

 

[Kokukenji]

It's all the luck of the draw. Literally saw another thread where folks are saying that Austin builds are better with their panel gaps compare to Fremont and your experience is the other way. Expectations should be janky panel gaps and do a full inspection until it meets your standard. We went and accepted our delivery + decided to deal with the service center and honestly, I should have just rejected it. Car is still in the body shop since the 9th. Will likely be there for another 2 weeks...

 

[240vPlug]

Certainly don't accept a car you aren't happy with. The SC are overloaded with cars. The Tesla initial quality means that it falls on the SC staff to correct all these issues. Add to that a growing fleet of cars.

With panel gaps there is always the risk...and some would even say it's likely the SC will come back and tell you it's "within spec".

 

[JimmyPb]

Today was delivery day for my 2023 MYLR. I waited 8 months. It was a Austin build. It had a really bad panel gap where the hatch met the left side. It was so bad that the left tail light was also not flush and you could see behind it. The front left headlight had a pretty bad gap too. After finding two quick bad gaps I kind of shut down and just rejected it. I will go into hold and wait for a new VIN.

My MYLR was parked next to a Fremont build that was pretty immaculate. I was able to compare my gaps to the Fremont which made my Austin look even worse. The Fremont car was a great reference.

Does anybody have any experience taking delivery of a car with a bad panel gap or two and getting them successfully fixed? I saw some minor gaps on other cars at the delivery center that I would have been fine with.

I guess I only get one more chance. Is it possible that the next car I get could be one that was previously rejected by somebody else?
View attachment 876330
Thanks for any info.

I just got a model Y from Fremont. Very well put together. there is one panel on the left front side at the headlight that is sticking up about a quarter of an inch, which we have a service call to repair. Other than that the car is well put together.

 

[RichAZ/CapeCod]

I don't know what to say. Have two Teslas, both Fremont, both beautiful cars (MY LR 2020 and M3 SR 2022). My MY is a lease and we plan on buying the replacement MY LR (11/23). Fingers crossed.

Rich

 

[Yelobird]

Today was delivery day for my 2023 MYLR. I waited 8 months. It was a Austin build. It had a really bad panel gap where the hatch met the left side. It was so bad that the left tail light was also not flush and you could see behind it. The front left headlight had a pretty bad gap too. After finding two quick bad gaps I kind of shut down and just rejected it. I will go into hold and wait for a new VIN.

My MYLR was parked next to a Fremont build that was pretty immaculate. I was able to compare my gaps to the Fremont which made my Austin look even worse. The Fremont car was a great reference.

Does anybody have any experience taking delivery of a car with a bad panel gap or two and getting them successfully fixed? I saw some minor gaps on other cars at the delivery center that I would have been fine with.

I guess I only get one more chance. Is it possible that the next car I get could be one that was previously rejected by somebody else?
View attachment 876330
Thanks for any info.

Honestly hard to judge based on the photo. Is that like 90x zoom?

 

[Kokukenji]

Certainly don't accept a car you aren't happy with. The SC are overloaded with cars. The Tesla initial quality means that it falls on the SC staff to correct all these issues. Add to that a growing fleet of cars.

With panel gaps there is always the risk...and some would even say it's likely the SC will come back and tell you it's "within spec".

Agreed, still a gamble since there's no guarantee that the next car will be any better, could be worse, lol. We personally accepted ours because it had everything right minus the paint chips. Panel gaps were minimal, if any, maybe just the hood but only slightly, not enough to bother us unless it creates further issues down the line.

 

[thearcherian]

Honestly hard to judge based on the photo. Is that like 90x zoom?

No. Here’s a little further back.
That gap is so bad you’d rip your sponge every time you washed your car.

 

[Leeclanual]

No. Here’s a little further back.
That gap is so bad you’d rip your sponge every time you washed your car.

Definitely unacceptable … however the fix is really just loosening some bolts and realigning them. This QC should be done as cars leave the factory line… but Tesla found it more beneficial to fix at the SCs… only option is refuse and gamble or don’t buy it.

 

[rosinhound]

So still no tesla for you geez long time.

 

[thearcherian]

So still no tesla for you geez long time.

Yup. New delivery date is this Wednesday 11/23.

 

[thearcherian]

The new VIN MYLR arrived today via touchless home delivery. I had about an hour before it got dark and couldn’t find any build issues. Phew. Will spend tomorrow going over everything with a fine tooth comb.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Congrats - hope you have a good report for us tomorrow.

 

[thearcherian]

Gave it a thorough going over today. The only issue I could find was that it was delivered pretty dirty. Otherwise I’m glad I rejected that first VIN. I ended up with a solid build.

 

[LINewOwner]

Today was delivery day for my 2023 MYLR. I waited 8 months. It was a Austin build. It had a really bad panel gap where the hatch met the left side. It was so bad that the left tail light was also not flush and you could see behind it. The front left headlight had a pretty bad gap too. After finding two quick bad gaps I kind of shut down and just rejected it. I will go into hold and wait for a new VIN.

My MYLR was parked next to a Fremont build that was pretty immaculate. I was able to compare my gaps to the Fremont which made my Austin look even worse. The Fremont car was a great reference.

Does anybody have any experience taking delivery of a car with a bad panel gap or two and getting them successfully fixed? I saw some minor gaps on other cars at the delivery center that I would have been fine with.

I guess I only get one more chance. Is it possible that the next car I get could be one that was previously rejected by somebody else?
View attachment 876330
Thanks for any info.

I’m expecting delivery on my MYLR in the next two weeks - was there any financial penalty for rejecting delivery? And did they indicate how long until the replacement would be available? I don’t expect problems but after reading about your issues I want to be prepared. Thanks!

 

[thearcherian]

I’m expecting delivery on my MYLR in the next two weeks - was there any financial penalty for rejecting delivery? And did they indicate how long until the replacement would be available? I don’t expect problems but after reading about your issues I want to be prepared. Thanks!

When I rejected the first VIN Tesla was vague about how long it would take to match me to a new one. I was told I wouldn’t go to the back of the line but it could still be several weeks or months. It ended up being a few days. There was no financial penalty. The only complication was due to the fact that I used my own financing. Tesla was fine with using the original check from my credit union for the second car, but my credit union decided to reissue a new one because their loans are VIN specific.