Delivery / Service Issues (panel gaps, delivery delays / issues / Service problems etc)

[holeydonut]

I absolutely get your point and agree that the customer shouldn’t be the one having to worry about catching issues that should have been addressed before the vehicle ever got out of the factory.

I think the point I was trying to make is that the visible defects will be somewhat obvious, and people shouldn’t necessarily be worried about having some ultra-detailed checklist. After I brought up my “observations” with the SA, I realized how goofy I was being. Like yeah, the paint isn’t 100% perfect in a couple of the panel gaps, but it’s a ****ing car and no one is ever going to look there except my dumbass. I was overreacting to the thought of taking delivery of a complete lemon that I was looking for literally anything to complain about.

But yeah, in short, these issues shouldn’t even be making it to the customer, but I don’t think people need to go in thinking it’s a military inspection.

Yeah I agree eyeballs should be enough for normal customers.

A measured checklist would only be helpful if we wanted to formally document and track progress over time. Since Tesla isn’t doing QA on their own, it stands to reason they’re also not documenting and assessing for process improvement on their own.

 

[Guppy]

Delivery day today at Clarkston, MI for my LR.

Missing front usb charge ports, and wireless charging. The delivery center employee I talked to about it seemed completely caught off guard. Went back to the service area to verify the condition, came back and said, yes, I should have been notified in advance. Will be corrected in about a week via mobile service. Not a big deal for me, knew about the issue due to reading these forums.

Paint looks good. Interior trim looks good (have white/white). Slight defect in trunk weatherstripping, added it to the usb ports service appt.

Panel gaps...I got to experience the legendary Tesla panel gaps today. I agree with both sides of the conversation here. On one hand, it's a car, not a priceless work of art. No car is 100% perfect. Enjoy it as long as no major problems. On the other hand, the panel gaps just seem slightly off. On most panels. 1 mm here, a half a mm there. Slight asymmetries between sides of some of the panels. I found myself wondering "am I being too nitpicky?" But the imperfections are there. Coming from BMW, the difference is clear, and Tesla has more imperfections than you'd like on a brand new car. I decided to settle on the "10 foot eye test", and with that, the car looks fine overall. One door doesn't pass the 10 foot test, so I'm bringing it up during the mobile service visit.

The car drives amazingly well, what a wonderful experience. But these final QA issues seem to not be causing enough problems for Tesla to force them to make meaningful improvement. Right now the product is clearly the best available. I'll enjoy this car, but will also keep my eye out for competitors for my next purchase, in 2025-27.

 

[heavyD]

Yeah I agree eyeballs should be enough for normal customers.

A measured checklist would only be helpful if we wanted to formally document and track progress over time. Since Tesla isn’t doing QA on their own, it stands to reason they’re also not documenting and assessing for process improvement on their own.

Delivery day today at Clarkston, MI for my LR.

Missing front usb charge ports, and wireless charging. The delivery center employee I talked to about it seemed completely caught off guard. Went back to the service area to verify the condition, came back and said, yes, I should have been notified in advance. Will be corrected in about a week via mobile service. Not a big deal for me, knew about the issue due to reading these forums.

Paint looks good. Interior trim looks good (have white/white). Slight defect in trunk weatherstripping, added it to the usb ports service appt.

Panel gaps...I got to experience the legendary Tesla panel gaps today. I agree with both sides of the conversation here. On one hand, it's a car, not a priceless work of art. No car is 100% perfect. Enjoy it as long as no major problems. On the other hand, the panel gaps just seem slightly off. On most panels. 1 mm here, a half a mm there. Slight asymmetries between sides of some of the panels. I found myself wondering "am I being too nitpicky?" But the imperfections are there. Coming from BMW, the difference is clear, and Tesla has more imperfections than you'd like on a brand new car. I decided to settle on the "10 foot eye test", and with that, the car looks fine overall. One door doesn't pass the 10 foot test, so I'm bringing it up during the mobile service visit.

The car drives amazingly well, what a wonderful experience. But these final QA issues seem to not be causing enough problems for Tesla to force them to make meaningful improvement. Right now the product is clearly the best available. I'll enjoy this car, but will also keep my eye out for competitors for my next purchase, in 2025-27.

This is what worries me. I have gone through a lot of vehicles over the decades and my last two BMW's have been flawless at delivery and during ownership. I just don't know if I can stomach some of the issues I see in this thread as a person that's purchased new Fords, Mitsubishi's, Subaru's, VW (my 2016 Golf R had a clear coat run on the drivers door), etc I have been really lucky to not really have much in the way off delivery issues. I feel I'm sensible enough to not obsess over a few minor panel gaps or any paint issues that can be corrected but some of the photos here make it look like these cars are being assembled in a garage not a modern manufacturing facility. That said I have a 2022 Ford Bronco on order and it appears Ford also has some major QC issues as there are photos of unpainted tailgaits, mismatching seats, wire looms not secured and contacting driveshafts, etc. Seems like my good luck at delivery will probably run out between a M3P and a Bronco ha ha ha.

 

[holeydonut]

This is what worries me. I have gone through a lot of vehicles over the decades and my last two BMW's have been flawless at delivery and during ownership. I just don't know if I can stomach some of the issues I see in this thread as a person that's purchased new Fords, Mitsubishi's, Subaru's, VW (my 2016 Golf R had a clear coat run on the drivers door), etc I have been really lucky to not really have much in the way off delivery issues. I feel I'm sensible enough to not obsess over a few minor panel gaps or any paint issues that can be corrected but some of the photos here make it look like these cars are being assembled in a garage not a modern manufacturing facility. That said I have a 2022 Ford Bronco on order and it appears Ford also has some major QC issues as there are photos of unpainted tailgaits, mismatching seats, wire looms not secured and contacting driveshafts, etc. Seems like my good luck at delivery will probably run out between a M3P and a Bronco ha ha ha.

Haha yeah, I think the forum probably creates a platform for people to air issues... so someone reading the forum could start to think that every model 3 has gap issues etc. But for the most part the people who are taking measurements on the 2020/2021 builds seem to find that most Model 3s look ok. I'd say Tesla's North American builds are currently are on par with most budget autos (Honda, Hyundai, Ford, etc).

Having measured the gaps on my Performance 3 with an older-style auto production gap measuring tool, Tesla's panel/IP fit is sub-standard to my Volvo XC60 which was assembled in China. But Tesla is about on par with my MIL's Civic.

Naturally every person is different and every build is different. So some people are fine using eye balls while others may actually want to measure things. You should do whatever you think is appropriate to be comfortable with your purchase. However, keep your expectations realistic.

The Tesla techs who have seen the Performance 3 said the doors look as "right as any they've seen of the recent builds." But even so, my passenger side front door is rotated slightly where the gap at one end of the door to the rocker panel is 3mm; but this gap expands to 4mm on the other end of the driver door. I'm not going to ask Tesla to fix this since it seems "within spec" and difficult to see.

Tesla seems willing to fix an issue if it's 0mm (kissing) going to 7mm... but that's a pretty low bar by modern automotive standards.

So your personal decision should be whether you'd be fine if a gap on a door at delivery is 2mm expanding to 6mm. You shouldn't expect Tesla to fix a door rotation causing a 2mm to 6mm issue simply because the mobile techs don't have the shims and tools to make such an adjustment. Same goes for a trunk lid that is offset where it's 2mm to one brake light but 6mm to the other. Most people could eye-ball such a gap issue; but some people may not be happy with it.

If you feel these potential type of gap issues will hurt your enjoyment of the Tesla tech/powertrain, you may want to consider a different brand. Because as you've seen here on TMC, many think the sacrifice to get access to the best tech is worth a tradeoff to some gaps. But that's them with their money. You should decide what makes sense for your money.

FWIW, Bob Lutz thinks Tesla's build quality is world-class... while Munro thinks it's better than a 90's Kia; but still not thrilled. And my comments are just one opinion out of many. That's why I wish more people just took measurements and documented what they are getting. Gathering data would help to solve the problem of guessing at the builds.

 

[Red Rocket 3]

I picked up my first Tesla (model 3) a week and a half ago. I used a mental checklist as well based on all the delivery experience YouTube videos I watched while waiting for my delivery day. Body panels and fixtures are with great fit. They left the protective film on one B pillar by accident. I didn’t get wireless charging and two USB-C ports due to chip shortage. I have not heard from Tesla yet on when that will be available for a service call. Overall, an A grade on the delivery experience to include taking in my trade and completing my bank financing.

 

[CanadaBill]

I picked up my first Tesla (model 3) a week and a half ago. I used a mental checklist as well based on all the delivery experience YouTube videos I watched while waiting for my delivery day. Body panels and fixtures are with great fit. They left the protective film on one B pillar by accident. I didn’t get wireless charging and two USB-C ports due to chip shortage. I have not heard from Tesla yet on when that will be available for a service call. Overall, an A grade on the delivery experience to include taking in my trade and completing my bank financing.

Congratulations!! And good to hear about the build/delivery experience. I pick up M3LR/Red/White/Aero on Tuesday so encouraging to hear about a good delivery with trade-in. Does this mean I'll be Red Rocket 4?

 

[potam]

Scheduled a service appointment for creaky driver seat that appeared after about 1000 miles. Hopefully it’s a simple fix

 

[BigNick]

I picked up my new M3P this past Saturday 2021:12/04. The door gaps are generally consistent and frunk/trunk appear straight. Drive home was just about 100 miles and seems everything mechanically sound.

There is one paint flaw which IMO should not exist on a $60K car, but it is tiny enough I’m not sure it’s worth the time and effort to get fixed.


Under the “L” of the license frame is a small fisheye. This was confirmed at delivery time to be under the clear coat, there’s no edge to catch a fingernail, so it isn’t a chip that occurred in transportation.

I don’t want to have this take days to fix, or have an entire panel repainted. I figure I can get a red Sharpie that is a close match to the paint and cover it up.

I have a mobile service appointment in two weeks to get Homelink installed. Obviously Tesla mobile techs aren’t likely to be body shop experts.

Anyone think this is more trouble than it’s worth to get fixed?

 

[heavyD]

If it's under the clear coat the only fix is to refinish and I just don't think it's worth it to re-spray as then you have to worry about paint match, durability (if the body shop doesn't put the time in to properly prep), etc. I'm pretty anal about things and I would just leave it alone. What you could to is get some touch up paint and with a fine tipped brush just dot that very lightly. You will always be able to polish it off as it's on top of the clear coat.

 

[RipVanFinkle]

I just picked up my new M3 and I noticed the gap between the passenger door and fender is about 2x the size as the drivers side. I can see the inter workings of the door in the gap. Is this something that can be adjusted? Service center said they’d take a look at it but no guarantees. I think it looks bad and I worry about the elements.

Including two photos of passenger side and one of drivers side for reference.

Thoughts?

 

[brkaus]

The elements are always going to get in that space. So no need to worry about it for that reason.

 

[T3slaM0del3]

Well, today was the day! I got my new Tesla Model 3 LR! The delivery process was pretty smooth -- They brought the car to me -- I felt a little rushed to just sign for it so the delivery lady could just move on (I didn't love that) Also they put it on the street (there's side parking) But I live on a corner, and I know other cars have been side swiped so unfortunately, I didn't really want to take a few minutes to walk it. I just wanted to get it in my driveway. I'll say I inspected it about 60% (i'll do more tomorrow when the sun is up) BUT everything looked mostly good. Few things (really one) I have issues with.

1. There's this scuff on right below my hood by my front headline, it looks almost like my car rocked forward on the truck and hit another car. This not only scuffed the paint but it slightly pushed it in.
2. There's a cap on the hood hinge, when I opened the hood / closed it a few times I heard a clicking sound. Then the clicking stopped (the cap came off) I think it was just loose, I thought I broke it, but after looking at the other side -- I figured out how it was put on and just re-attached, no more clicking (i'll keep an eye on it) but it seems to be fine now.
3. SMALL dark spot on the top of the car interior. Not even worth creating a service appointment, i'll lookup what solution to use and just do it myself. Or combine it with the above #1.


My Driver side mat was put on up-side down. I thought it was both funny and annoying. How did I figure this out? Well, I went in the car with just socks on and my feet stuck to the velcro . I corrected it with a slight eye roll. Like really... nobody noticed that?

All panel's seems to be reasonable to me most perfect, a handful maybe slightly off but nothing that will bother me. i'll make an update once I can dedicate an hour or so to really look the car over.

Communication between tesla and me was pretty non-existent outside of delivery day. They called be Just before they left the service center to confirm i'd be home. They showed up 15min later. And the lady didn't even really speak to me, she just handed me an iphone to sign for the car. I wish maybe she would have explained how to get in the car (since she left it locked). I fumbled around a bit on the app and figured it out. Weird because I watched like a million videos of this same issue and somehow it was still a problem for me, I recommend closing the app by swiping up and re-opening it. Not sure if that was the issue OR I literally just had to wait a few minutes for everything to connect, I think it was the latter that did it.

To those who have order and are waiting for that delivery day, STAY STRONG! And try not to spoil it with watching too many videos like I did But let's be real, that is prob not going to happen.

Now, I need to start to work on getting a Tesla Wave going in my town...

 

[T3slaM0del3]

Well, today was the day! I got my new Tesla Model 3 LR! The delivery process was pretty smooth -- They brought the car to me -- I felt a little rushed to just sign for it so the delivery lady could just move on (I didn't love that) Also they put it on the street (there's side parking) But I live on a corner, and I know other cars have been side swiped so unfortunately, I didn't really want to take a few minutes to walk it. I just wanted to get it in my driveway. I'll say I inspected it about 60% (i'll do more tomorrow when the sun is up) BUT everything looked mostly good. Few things (really one) I have issues with.

1. There's this scuff on right below my hood by my front headline, it looks almost like my car rocked forward on the truck and hit another car. This not only scuffed the paint but it slightly pushed it in.
2. There's a cap on the hood hinge, when I opened the hood / closed it a few times I heard a clicking sound. Then the clicking stopped (the cap came off) I think it was just loose, I thought I broke it, but after looking at the other side -- I figured out how it was put on and just re-attached, no more clicking (i'll keep an eye on it) but it seems to be fine now.
3. SMALL dark spot on the top of the car interior. Not even worth creating a service appointment, i'll lookup what solution to use and just do it myself. Or combine it with the above #1.


My Driver side mat was put on up-side down. I thought it was both funny and annoying. How did I figure this out? Well, I went in the car with just socks on and my feet stuck to the velcro . I corrected it with a slight eye roll. Like really... nobody noticed that?

All panel's seems to be reasonable to me most perfect, a handful maybe slightly off but nothing that will bother me. i'll make an update once I can dedicate an hour or so to really look the car over.

Communication between tesla and me was pretty non-existent outside of delivery day. They called be Just before they left the service center to confirm i'd be home. They showed up 15min later. And the lady didn't even really speak to me, she just handed me an iphone to sign for the car. I wish maybe she would have explained how to get in the car (since she left it locked). I fumbled around a bit on the app and figured it out. Weird because I watched like a million videos of this same issue and somehow it was still a problem for me, I recommend closing the app by swiping up and re-opening it. Not sure if that was the issue OR I literally just had to wait a few minutes for everything to connect, I think it was the latter that did it.

To those who have order and are waiting for that delivery day, STAY STRONG! And try not to spoil it with watching too many videos like I did But let's be real, that is prob not going to happen.

Now, I need to start to work on getting a Tesla Wave going in my town...

View attachment 743367

Also funny note, I didn't realize the interior TOP parts were white / light when I selected black seats. Kinda funny I never noticed that before when I test drove it. Or maybe that's new for the 2022? I doubt it...

Also - plan on wrapping it in Stealth PPF so i'll make an update on that in a more appropriate channel once my repairs are done.

 

[enemji]

I think the only way this would be possible at this point is if Tesla happens to have an inventory car or a car already being built that matches your order. Tesla does build a good amount of cars on spec to try to match with custom orders for faster delivery. You could also place the order and if they don't meet the EOY deadline, cancel.

Annual SOP often meets much of the actual demand.

 

[enemji]

Also funny note, I didn't realize the interior TOP parts were white / light when I selected black seats. Kinda funny I never noticed that before when I test drove it. Or maybe that's new for the 2022? I doubt it...

Also - plan on wrapping it in Stealth PPF so i'll make an update on that in a more appropriate channel once my repairs are done.

That’s the way Lexus has been. Black interior still comes with white pillars and headliner.

 

[holeydonut]

I just picked up my new M3 and I noticed the gap between the passenger door and fender is about 2x the size as the drivers side. I can see the inter workings of the door in the gap. Is this something that can be adjusted? Service center said they’d take a look at it but no guarantees. I think it looks bad and I worry about the elements.

Including two photos of passenger side and one of drivers side for reference.

Thoughts?

What does the gap look like between the passenger side front door and rear door? Normally if there's a big gap on one edge of a door, the gap has to be smaller/distorted on another edge of the door.

Edit, after looking at your door it appears more of a flushness issue than a gap issue. It appears your door sticks out on a plane that is 1 or 2 mm different than the fender. Any chance you can take a photo that goes straight down toward the ground so you can see the flushness of the door vs fender?

That does seem off. It would help if you actually had a measurement. But since the "gaps don't matter crew" brigade and denigrate any post about measuring gaps, this forum doesn't have much in the way of helping you.

I don't think the elements are going to be a huge concern; it's more a wind noise thing you'll have to put up with if there's an issue with gap and flushness.

PS, when I had a Tesla service person at my house, he implied what your door looks like is normal for the stuff coming out of Freemont now-a-days. And that having it look uniform all-around is actually a rarity. I hope Tesla tries to fix your situation but it may be "spec enough" for them not to care.

 

[T3slaM0del3]

steering wheel off-center by 1-2 degrees as you can see from the picture. what should I do? also what is the steering wheel icon on the screen for (the icon also off-center)
Thank you!


View attachment 733531View attachment 733532?

Thats your auto pilot calibrating. Nothing to do with your actual stearing wheel. Think of that blue line like a "load wheel" it started with no blue 0% and it goes to 100%. Looks like you're at 99%. Take your car for a 20Min mile ride and the cameras should finish calibrating and you should get to 100% and then you can use auto pilot.

 

[T3slaM0del3]

Random question -- why dont I have Sentry mode camera live view?! I'm in a 2022 M3 LR. And it is up to date on software... but no option for that in security settings. Am I missing something or is this just no available yet in my car current config?

 

[T3slaM0del3]

Yeah I agree eyeballs should be enough for normal customers.

A measured checklist would only be helpful if we wanted to formally document and track progress over time. Since Tesla isn’t doing QA on their own, it stands to reason they’re also not documenting and assessing for process improvement on their own.

I’m glad I did a good inspection, literally almost everything was fine, but I found on the front bumper it looks like my car rocked forward into another and it dented my front bumper and scuffed the paint.

If I didn’t go into getting this far with a totally paranoid view I probably would have over looked that. And it’s clearly not something that came from the factory. Over reacting? Maybe… but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask to fix it.

 

[holeydonut]

I’m glad I did a good inspection, literally almost everything was fine, but I found on the front bumper it looks like my car rocked forward into another and it dented my front bumper and scuffed the paint.

If I didn’t go into getting this far with a totally paranoid view I probably would have over looked that. And it’s clearly not something that came from the factory. Over reacting? Maybe… but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask to fix it.

IMO, you spent your money, and it doesn't cost anyone anything for you to request a repair. The only reason you may even have a tinge of guilt asking is because people on TMC are bullies about guilting people into just accepting whatever they are handed at delivery.

Instead you should feel that this is a major life purchase, and Tesla should look into this and respond whether they think it's ok.

Source: I used to work at a major Detroit automaker. If a car looked like that at delivery the dealer would get dinged hard for letting it go without disclosing the issue to the buyer. Just because Tesla lacks dealerships shouldn't mean they get a free pass.