At least they were not sitting in it trying to go somewhere...
Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Catastrophic Failure While Parked — Car and Driver
Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Catastrophic Failure While Parked — Car and Driver
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Car and Driver suffers Model 3 failure on 12/25, but car told them about it remotely
- Thread starter e-FTW
- Start date
Tesla fan-boy's response: "Wow, this is so cool, your Tesla messaged you over the air to get service. And dispatched a tow-truck on top. Tesla rocks!"
Everyone else: "WTF - your $50+K car left you stranded after only 5K miles on the odometer! And no loaner on top. Tesla sucks!"
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Yup. One would hope there is something in between those two positions. I tried not to fan the flames...
My first reaction was: “Oh crap.”
C141medic
Active Member
Anything mechanical is prone to breakdown at any point in time. Although, unfortunate that this breakdown occurred so early, at least the software in the Tesla is sophisticated enough to alert of a breakdown such as this and the road service was responsive. According to the article, it’s an issue with the rear drive unit, pyro fuse, and 12V battery. I’m sure Tesla will resolve it expeditiously.
This is compounded by it happening to a car mag. That had it happen to their S.
But the audience for that magazine is not exactly a core Tesla market today. Or maybe it is... I read it all the time as a kid, and I am a car nut.
But the audience for that magazine is not exactly a core Tesla market today. Or maybe it is... I read it all the time as a kid, and I am a car nut.
That sucks. I like the notification thing, but still, that would really piss me off.
For me, the breaking down would be inconvenience but wouldn't upset me too much. Warranty will cover any repairs.
What WOULD upset me is that they didn't come with another vehicle or get them situated in another loaner. That is unacceptable to me. Thankfully that hasn't been my experience with my Tesla's so far (although the last time I was stranded like this was a few years back in my Model S where they came with a loaner to my house). Maybe like the article says, the level of service isn't what it used to be...
What WOULD upset me is that they didn't come with another vehicle or get them situated in another loaner. That is unacceptable to me. Thankfully that hasn't been my experience with my Tesla's so far (although the last time I was stranded like this was a few years back in my Model S where they came with a loaner to my house). Maybe like the article says, the level of service isn't what it used to be...
Can someone compile a list of incidents of other cars with 5k miles on them that broke down? I'm very confident that those incidents also get their own articles. 
I'm not defending it, because it sucks. It's just that these anecdotes are not worthy of attention.
I'm not defending it, because it sucks. It's just that these anecdotes are not worthy of attention.
insaneoctane
Well-Known Member
This will not result in positive opinions towards reliability. Great that the vehicle was so preemptive towards warning of the failure, but it's a failure nonetheless. Sh!t happens, I get it, but happening like this to a car magazine is bum luck...particularly when it's a rarity. Hopefully Tesla can offer some facts and data to show C&D the frequency of this issue- I suspect it's less than 1/10 of 1%...
I read Dennis publishing's evo magazine, and all their long-term vehicles get written about good and bad. Problems are not obscured.Can someone compile a list of incidents of other cars with 5k miles on them that broke down? I'm very confident that those incidents also get their own articles.
I'm not defending it, because it sucks. It's just that these anecdotes are not worthy of attention.
C&D wrote extensively about the problems with their Alfa Romeo.
Sometimes the truth is apparent, without conspiracy.
I'm not talking about a car magazine documenting their experience. I'm talking about the total cars out there that have defects. In this case, it's just bad luck that it's a car magazine that experienced the problem. Cars are physical items made up of many other physical items. Sometimes, there are just defects. Extrapolating a single incident - especially because it happened to get completely documented by a magazine - into a bigger issue is the absolute definition of an anecdote. Unless someone is arguing there's a systemic problem with Model 3s.
Msjulie
Active Member
Had an Audi that suffered a defective camshaft at 2k miles, disabled the car of course and Audi gave me a (really crappy) local rental to continue the trip home. Took 30days (just under Lemon law buyback I guess) to rebuild the engine as they claimed no crate engines available etc etc
I'm not famous so of course no one knew but me and some forums I complained to at the time. Stuff breaks sadly; the Audi left me on the Garden State parkway vs telling me in the comfort of my own home
I'm not famous so of course no one knew but me and some forums I complained to at the time. Stuff breaks sadly; the Audi left me on the Garden State parkway vs telling me in the comfort of my own home
The interpretation is up to every reader. It's not the responsibility of C&D to teach statistical analysis and sampling methods. Neither should they hold back on publishing about an issue of their test vehicle because they received 1, instead 100
mtndrew1
Active Member
Car and Driver had a recent Corvette completely blow an engine and their Alfa had a considerable string of repair needs. Their Pacifica Hybrid needed an entire new battery pack. So these things aren’t totally out in left field for their long term cars.
Still, this is an ugly look for a car right in the thick of Tesla’s mass production. Hard to excuse such a failure with 400,000 units under their belt.
Still, this is an ugly look for a car right in the thick of Tesla’s mass production. Hard to excuse such a failure with 400,000 units under their belt.
gcmak
Member
afty
Member
I'm also a car nut, and I still read C/D. If this article had come out before I bought my Model 3, it would certainly have given me pause.
Every brand has issues with early failure units. It's part of a normal distribution. Shitty that they got a dud, but someone was bound to get it.
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