Advice on paint issues with car on delivery

[packeted]

Hey folks,

I was wondering if people out there might be able to give some advice. We had delivery of our our red SR+ organized for today but I'm currently traveling with work so had a friend inspect it for me. The car showed up at home and my friend found several imperfections in the paint with bubbles and lips on the edge of a couple of panels. Also several areas where panels were not fully aligned. Finally, clips missing from both rear wheel wells. I've attached some photos here for clarity.

We ended up refusing delivery and the car has gone back to the factory to be fixed up (apparently with a very short 1-day turn around).

Are these kind of issues common? Any advice on how to handle it from here on? Are they likely to be able to fix these issues in a day? Should I be asking for a new car?

Cheers!

 

[Uncle Paul]

Look like small imperfections. Imagine that they can be fixed pretty quickly.

If you look close enough you can always find imperfections on a mass produced car. They do not have show quality paint jobs.

 

[justinchu77]

knowing that this is the most expensive colour option... im surprised.

 

[sandiegogreg]

I rejected my first pearl white performance model 3 because of paint defects, but to be honest I had worse paint issues that this. The panel gaps are easily addressed at service center. I had a few trim/panel adjustments on my second delivery and they were easily dealt with. IMO if the paint issues require re-painting an area I would reject it. If they can be paint corrected I say take delivery. I’ve been reading on these forums that the fender well fasteners are intentionally omitted as unnecessary on recent builds. But then again, if you want them I’m sure SC will comply with the request. For what it’s worth, my replacement had VERY MINOR defects and the OCD in me was able to let those pass. Overall very happy with my car and you will be too.

 

[Federico]

Now it make me wonder if I should complain with Tesla because I can see a little different color between the bumper and hood, the bumper is not as dark as the hood. My Model 3 came with 20 miles on it and I found a light scratch from the front to the back after delivery, but since I didn't make a deep check when I went to pick up my car, I decided not to complain after reading here so many times once you sign you are on you own.

 

[The Outrage]

Look like small imperfections. Imagine that they can be fixed pretty quickly.

If you look close enough you can always find imperfections on a mass produced car. They do not have show quality paint jobs.

That's a low quality paint job, even for a mass-produced vehicle. It's indicative of a dirty paint environment (debris under the paint) or unclean paint sprayers (bubbles in the paint).

 

[The Outrage]

Now it make me wonder if I should complain with Tesla because I can see a little different color between the bumper and hood, the bumper is not as dark as the hood. My Model 3 came with 20 miles on it and I found a light scratch from the front to the back after delivery, but since I didn't make a deep check when I went to pick up my car, I decided not to complain after reading here so many times once you sign you are on you own.

The difference in color between the bumper covers and the sheet metal may be down to the differences in the paint used for those parts. The urethane bumper covers require a paint with a flexible additive. Some manufacturers do a better job matching the differing paints than others do. It's also more noticable with certain paint colors.

 

[jbrady3324]

Now it make me wonder if I should complain with Tesla because I can see a little different color between the bumper and hood, the bumper is not as dark as the hood. My Model 3 came with 20 miles on it and I found a light scratch from the front to the back after delivery, but since I didn't make a deep check when I went to pick up my car, I decided not to complain after reading here so many times once you sign you are on you own.

This could be due to repainting after damage (car moving around on the lot, delivery damage, etc). A BMW owner won a huge case when this happened to his car but did not notice until after delivery. Also recently happed with a Volvo XC90. Not saying this is your case, but keep that in mind. Dealers don't disclose repairs pre-delivery