Any nightmares buying preowned from Tesla?

[Baxterdown]

I've been having this recurring dream every night for the past week (not kidding). I go to pick up my car and it's all scratched and there's curb rash on the wheels and I look through the window and the interior is filthy and full of tears and I start to freak out and there's nobody around (the place is deserted--like in the movies) and I sit there looking at the app and thinking I'm not hitting "Accept Delivery." No way!

This is what's on the Tesla website regarding cosmetic condition of their used cars:

Cosmetic Condition
Cosmetic wear and tear is typical of a used car and does not affect the functionality of the car. Your car will exhibit cosmetic wear and tear that includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Painted Panels

• Scratches up to 1”
• Dents up to 0.5”
• Rock chips

Unpainted Panels or Exterior Trim

• Scratches up to 3”

Glass

• Rock chips up to 1”
• Scratches

Wheels

• Rash up to 0.5”

Interior

• Signs of usage on upholstery and interior panels such as markings, discoloration, small tears or stains up to 1”
• Signs of usage on entry and exit points

Rubber Seals and Trim

• Damage of rubber not affecting function

For those of you who've bought pre-owned from Tesla, what has been your experience with cosmetic condition?

Jose

P.S. I'm not worried about mechanical condition. The car is under warranty.

 

[njhtran]

My biggest two issues were:

1. the mobile charger was defective and i didn't know about it until i got home, so they wouldn't replace it.
2. tires - they gave me tires that were mostly bald on the outside corners and only had good tread in the direct center of the tire. Since they measure from the center, they deemed this "legally" a good tire. I had to fight them pretty hard on that

 

[TigerTan]

When my X arrived there was a small dent on the trunk, rear rim had a significant gash and rocker panel also had a gash. I also had chips in the windshield. All signaled transport damage. My sales person was terrific and had everything replaced, even the windshield. I still took it because the price was very competitive (2 years ago) and the car was in terrific condition inside and out.

Good luck, hopefully Tesla will take care of you.

 

[glide]

I think your question should be, “Has anyone had a positive experience buying pre-owned from Tesla”

 

[TespaceX]

Does Tesla still send pictures of the specific used car you are looking at these days?

Our used car purchase experience couple years ago was better than our new car purchase experience.

 

[cobra]

In a similar boat, order is in and expected arrival here in PA is today, with delivery 'expected to schedule within 72 hours'. Since it's used, it sounds like our options are to accept or reject the car on first inspection. Hopefully the condition isn't as bad as some of those 'standards', as rips in the seats of those sizes might be a deal breaker, but really just have to go and look at it.

@TespaceX I haven't seen any, but didn't ask either. The one question I mailed back to the sales advisor went unanswered, so I've just been waiting until I can inspect the car.

 

[Baxterdown]

@TespaceX They don't. That was the first thing I asked when I submitted my "request more information" query. The sales advisor said they don't provide pictures of individual cars because "everything is standardized."

@cobra Good luck! I just spoke with my local Tesla store and the lady said my car should be "in the region" and that I should be getting a text to schedule delivery in the next day or so.

@everyone-else it doesn't sound very encouraging... BUT! I can be VERY (ready veeeeerrryyy) persuasive! LOL!

Jose

 

[TigerTan]

Does Tesla still send pictures of the specific used car you are looking at these days?

Our used car purchase experience couple years ago was better than our new car purchase experience.

that’s a good point, We reviewed the pictures and any damage not captures was covered. So that helped the situation. Also you can always reject the car and keep searching.

 

[cobra]

@Baxterdown 'Standardized' used cars, that's a good one! Good luck to you as well! Sounds like we are on the same schedule this week. I'm excited to check it out. Let's hope for low damage cars with minor flaws...

Have you heard anything about low contact vs. no-contact pickup at your center? Waiting for their first appointment contact to see what they offer. It's nice you have a couple centers down there. We only have one service center in the area and a small mall sales office one the general area. Next closest is probably NJ.

 

[KentuckyX]

I've been having this recurring dream every night for the past week (not kidding). I go to pick up my car and it's all scratched and there's curb rash on the wheels and I look through the window and the interior is filthy and full of tears and I start to freak out and there's nobody around (the place is deserted--like in the movies) and I sit there looking at the app and thinking I'm not hitting "Accept Delivery." No way!

This is what's on the Tesla website regarding cosmetic condition of their used cars:

Cosmetic Condition
Cosmetic wear and tear is typical of a used car and does not affect the functionality of the car. Your car will exhibit cosmetic wear and tear that includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Painted Panels

• Scratches up to 1”
• Dents up to 0.5”
• Rock chips

Unpainted Panels or Exterior Trim

• Scratches up to 3”

Glass

• Rock chips up to 1”
• Scratches

Wheels

• Rash up to 0.5”

Interior

• Signs of usage on upholstery and interior panels such as markings, discoloration, small tears or stains up to 1”
• Signs of usage on entry and exit points

Rubber Seals and Trim

• Damage of rubber not affecting function

For those of you who've bought pre-owned from Tesla, what has been your experience with cosmetic condition?

Jose

P.S. I'm not worried about mechanical condition. The car is under warranty.

Ha. I had the exact same experience before I picked up mine. Dreams and nightmares. Last spring, when I bought mine, Tesla was putting actual pictures of their used cars online. Now, it's all just stock pics. The pics of my car weren't very good. In fact, my white X actually looked yellow. So I didn't really know what to expect. When my car arrived at the local (100 miles away) service center for pick up, the staff there were nice enough to send me more pics. On delivery day, my biggest disappointment was the fact that the tires were right on the limit (4/32) of needing replacement. There was also evidence of paint work being done. I went ahead and accepted the car because the battery was in great shape (100% = 287). Later, however, I found out my front brake pads were down to 2mm. I was flabbergasted that I was going to have to have a brake job done on a 3-year old Tesla with less than 30k miles. For peace of mind, I had it done and Tesla knocked some $$$ off as a goodwill thing. The interior and seats were in great shape. I'm happy with my purchase, though, and absolutely love this car.

 

[RichardD]

Here was my experience.. I bought my first CPO Model S in 2017. It was better than buying a new car.. I'm in Houston, I flew one way to Denver to pick it up and drove it home.. Had it for 3 years and then sold it to Carvana. I was out of town in Feb of 2020 and bought my X while I was in France. I was lucky it still had photos at the time.. I saw a dent that i couldnt put to scale, but thought ok it was on the rear end, looks like previous owner backed into the charging sign at a supercharger.. It lines up perfectly. The car was in New Jersey.. I flew home to Houston and caught a 1 way flight to New York and a uber to New Jersey.. Damage was more than I expected but couldnt really back out considering. Tires were new, and the rest of the car was what I expected. Put. few layers of saran wrap on the leading edges of the car, and drove home.. Took it to John Gray at Gulf Coast AutoShield and had it paint corrected and PPF film applied. It can really lead to some bad thoughts. I had two issues one the mats werent in the car.. but Tesla made it right. 2 the window above the falcon wing cracked when I got home.. The sales person in CA told me that was my fault but luckily it was brought up that window was replaced right before i picked the car up.. It was installed with too much tension and the local SC rep went to bat for me and took care of it.. PS thats a 1800 replacement.

Hope that helps.

 

[cobra]

It's great to hear the SC will work with you on used / CPO cars. Hopefully any issues will be addressed are some goodwill thrown in as you guys experienced!

 

[njhtran]

It's great to hear the SC will work with you on used / CPO cars. Hopefully any issues will be addressed are some goodwill thrown in as you guys experienced!

honestly I wouldn’t count on it. Sc wouldn’t budge in any of my cases I had to escalate each and every issue to corporate

 

[MikeScarne]

I bought my 2017 Model X (39K miles) 3-ish weeks ago. Still happy with the purchase, but here are the issues I ran into:

1) Car wasn't ready to even be viewed when I arrived for my appointment. Apparently, they tried to update the MCU firmware, but it didn't take, so I couldn't even test out any functions controlled by MCU or open the FWD. Had to spend the night and miss another day of work (6 hour drive to delivery center).

2) Previous owner must have installed PPF (entire front of car), but the hood looked super-rough. Service center removed the PPF and now the hood looks almost new. I'm now a believer in PPF and am about to install new PPF on the hood.

3) There were several scuffs that they fixed on the spot. I only walked away with 2 items on the Due Bill (a ~1" radius hole underneath rear license plate and a 1.5" scratch on FWD). Everything else (not a lot, but typical small scratches/dings here and there) fell within the reasonable cosmetic conditions Tesla listed.

4) Doesn't sound like it applies to you, but I foolishly traded in my Gen2 mobile charger and received a Gen1 with the purchase. I shoulda checked.

5) Hitch mount receiver missing pigtail wire.

Interesting sidenote: the Delivery Center's sole used "Operations Advisor" literally wasn't familiar with the used condition standards listed on Tesla's website until I showed them to him. He said he had been working for Tesla for 5 years, but yikes.

Cosmetic is 100% what I was worried about (although my car has the dreaded acceleration shudder), but I'm very happy overall with the cosmetics. BTW, zero issues with the interior.

Good luck!

 

[njhtran]

I bought my 2017 Model X (39K miles) 3-ish weeks ago. Still happy with the purchase, but here are the issues I ran into:

1) Car wasn't ready to even be viewed when I arrived for my appointment. Apparently, they tried to update the MCU firmware, but it didn't take, so I couldn't even test out any functions controlled by MCU or open the FWD. Had to spend the night and miss another day of work (6 hour drive to delivery center).

2) Previous owner must have installed PPF (entire front of car), but the hood looked super-rough. Service center removed the PPF and now the hood looks almost new. I'm now a believer in PPF and am about to install new PPF on the hood.

3) There were several scuffs that they fixed on the spot. I only walked away with 2 items on the Due Bill (a ~1" radius hole underneath rear license plate and a 1.5" scratch on FWD). Everything else (not a lot, but typical small scratches/dings here and there) fell within the reasonable cosmetic conditions Tesla listed.

4) Doesn't sound like it applies to you, but I foolishly traded in my Gen2 mobile charger and received a Gen1 with the purchase. I shoulda checked.

5) Hitch mount receiver missing pigtail wire.

Interesting sidenote: the Delivery Center's sole used "Operations Advisor" literally wasn't familiar with the used condition standards listed on Tesla's website until I showed them to him. He said he had been working for Tesla for 5 years, but yikes.

Cosmetic is 100% what I was worried about (although my car has the dreaded acceleration shudder), but I'm very happy overall with the cosmetics. BTW, zero issues with the interior.

Good luck!

gen1 mobile charger is better. Handles higher amperage

 

[Cleo-n-Company]

gen1 mobile charger is better. Handles higher amperage

Be careful with that Gen1 charger. Gen2 has a lower amperage for a good reason - particularly for older vehicles.

My Gen1 melted - and did the same to my outlet. Am lucky other things did not melt, such as my garage and my home.

 

[cobra]

Cosmetic is 100% what I was worried about (although my car has the dreaded acceleration shudder), but I'm very happy overall with the cosmetics. BTW, zero issues with the interior.

Good luck!

Ugh on the shudder. How's that going? Have you set to low / very low? Is it bad enough you are going to push for warranty replacement of the shafts? I'm considering adding the warranty extension for shudder repairs for an additional 4 years. Kind of debating that.

Good to hear interior was clean.

Be careful with that Gen1 charger. Gen2 has a lower amperage for a good reason - particularly for older vehicles.

My Gen1 melted - and did the same to my outlet. Am lucky other things did not melt, such as my garage and my home.

Yike, no fuse blow? Glad there was no fire then!

 

[MikeScarne]

Be careful with that Gen1 charger. Gen2 has a lower amperage for a good reason - particularly for older vehicles.

My Gen1 melted - and did the same to my outlet. Am lucky other things did not melt, such as my garage and my home.

No joke. I forgot to mention: the very first night I got back home with the car and went to charge, this happened. I had it set on 40A, which is the max for my setup, but now I'm back to playing it safe with 32A. The electrician said I'd be good with 40A, but fool me once, shame on you, "fool me, you can't get fooled again." (George W. Quote)

 

[MikeScarne]

Ugh on the shudder. How's that going? Have you set to low / very low? Is it bad enough you are going to push for warranty replacement of the shafts? I'm considering adding the warranty extension for shudder repairs for an additional 4 years. Kind of debating that.

Well, I've only owned it for a few weeks, but the acceleration is significantly "rougher" (less smooth) compared to my 2015 Model S that I traded in. I've added it to the handful of things I'm getting checked out this week (that is, if the FSD parts arrive on time). I'm definitely going to push the issue for repair.

Curious on extended warranty: I'm good through Sep 2022. Have you received any quotes? I very likely will pull the trigger on an extended warranty. I've only looked into X-care, but I'm not sure if it's the best company to go with.

Edit to add: Forgot to mention, I haven't really messed with going low on the suspension because to me, that's a weak work around. Low suspension = faster tire wear (so I read). I feel I should be able to drive at normal suspension without enduring that kind of shuddering.

 

[cobra]

Yeah, there are whole threads on here about the shudder. My used is a 2017 at 40k miles as well, so curious how it behaves. From recent posts in the shudder thread, sounds like Tesla is advising set to low or lower and then aligning/adjusting the car at that height to remove tire wear problems.

The Tesla extended service agreement is available until 30 days/1000mi after your warranty expires also, in case you want to go factory: Extended Service Agreement . How is X-care pricing? Tesla is 4yr/$5300 on the X.