Does the car notify you of maintenance intervals?

[MrMime2]

I picked up a 2023 Model 3 RWD LFP and I've already put about 3k miles on it. Does the car notify you when maintenance is required like having a maintenance light like in a ICE car? I saw the owners manual recommends bringing it in at 6,250 miles for a tire rotation so that is the only thing I am keeping a look out for manually, any other maintenance suggestions to keep the car lasting for a long time?

As far as tire rotations and new tires goes, is it best to schedule service with Tesla? I did all the tire maintenance with my last car at Discount Tire and I saw they also have a webpage about Tesla tires. Is Discount Tire a good place to get a Tesla serviced? Do I need to buy the pucks to lift the car if I do bring the vehicle to a 3rd party shop? I would assume Tesla would charge a lot more for maintenance similar to a dealership.

 

[XPsionic]

You could get mobile service to come out to you for tire rotations. You could also get it roasted at discount tires, they'll have pucks.

The car would notify you if the tires are rotating at different rates front to rear, but it's better to just regularly rotate the tires than to wait for the most even wear rates.

Change the interior ac air filters once a year and wiper blades as you need, that's about all the maintenance you need to do.

 

[MrMime2]

You could get mobile service to come out to you for tire rotations. You could also get it roasted at discount tires, they'll have pucks.

The car would notify you if the tires are rotating at different rates front to rear, but it's better to just regularly rotate the tires than to wait for the most even wear rates.

Change the interior ac air filters once a year and wiper blades as you need, that's about all the maintenance you need to do.

I’m loving this maintenance plan already . I definitely want to rotate the tires regularly since it’s RWD also. Does the mobile Tesla maintenance cost a lot? Discount tire is fairly cheap and I’m glad they have their own pucks. If you also buy tires from Discount Tire you also get free tire rotations, I’m guessing Tesla probably doesn’t have something like this?

 

[Heckraiser]

No maintenance required Or you could do the traditional RWD tire rotation strategy of roasting your rear tires, buy a new pair and then replace all 4 when the fronts finally wear out. I got 60k+ miles out of my front stock michellins and about 30k out of the rears, so this worked out about the same money-wise as regular rotations without the hassle.

 

[XPsionic]

It's like $40-50 for mobile service to rotate tires. Some shops do it for free, most don't.

 

[ATPMSD]

Denfinitely take it to Discount Tire! Many will do the rotation for free and will also do it as specified by the tire manufacturer e.g. a cross-rotation. Tesla mobile service only does a front to back rotation principally because they do not bring enough equipment to it right.

 

[MacO512]

Brake fluid needs to be replaced every 2 years at the latest. That fluid pulls in moisture from the air and will go bad even if never used. Probably need to inspect the brakes then if not annually, especially if you have salt or rust on cars in your climate. Brakes need caliper pins and other items to slide smoothly. They might wear extremely little with regen but you want them working 100% for an emergency stop if ever needed. Might be best to try and use the brakes moderately once a month just to help them staying clean, moving all the parts, as well as get rust off the rotors.

I think Tesla should have a reminder for brake inspection/fluid flush. Maybe let the user set reminders for that as well as tire rotations, etc.

 

[PianoAl]

Brake fluid needs to be replaced every 2 years at the latest.

I tested Nick's (see sig) with strips and with a reader. Both showed it to be in excellent condition. Should I replace it anyway?

 

[ATPMSD]

I tested Nick's (see sig) with strips and with a reader. Both showed it to be in excellent condition. Should I replace it anyway?

I am of the opinion there is no need to automatically replace brake fluid every two years provided you take the time to test it and then replace if needed,

 

[MacO512]

I tested Nick's (see sig) with strips and with a reader. Both showed it to be in excellent condition. Should I replace it anyway?

Props to you for testing. If you know all of the fluid is in good shape then there would be no need to change it.

I'd personally probably just change it every two years as I've done it enough its pretty easy.

To be very thorough I'd imagine perhaps you could bleed some from a front caliper and test there as well? I believe it can be ruined at the caliper but look fine up in the reservoir.

But I would still want to have the brakes inspected to see if any parts look rusted/worn/not smooth or such. If you've replaced brakes you can probably inspect yourself.

If it was a friend that didn't know about cars I'd probably just recommend they have a shop change the fluid and inspect the brakes.

 

[afadeev]

I picked up a 2023 Model 3 RWD LFP and I've already put about 3k miles on it. Does the car notify you when maintenance is required like having a maintenance light like in a ICE car?

No, it does not.
Teslas are not as smart as BMWs or Mercedes.

I saw the owners manual recommends bringing it in at 6,250 miles for a tire rotation so that is the only thing I am keeping a look out for manually

You can track tire wear yourself (with a penny, or one of these inexpensive tools), and rotate wheels front<->back yourself when the tread depth starts varying by more than 2/32nds. Personally, I do that twice a year when I switch between summer and winter sets of wheels+ tires.
Its FAR easier to DIY wheels rotation in your driveways (30 minutes all around, not counting beer brakes), then scheduling services anywhere.
Time savings are priceless!

As far as tire rotations and new tires goes, is it best to schedule service with Tesla? I did all the tire maintenance with my last car at Discount Tire and I saw they also have a webpage about Tesla tires. Is Discount Tire a good place to get a Tesla serviced?

Use the same places you used for suspension and tire + wheel maintenance as you did with your prior cars.
Discount Tire will work great.
Dealer service centers, including Tesla's, are just about the most expensive and the least experienced places you can find for wheel and suspension work. Around here, appointments with a Tesla SC is a 4+ weeks out scheduling gauntlet. Don't run it, unless absolutely necessary.

Do I need to buy the pucks to lift the car if I do bring the vehicle to a 3rd party shop?

Absolutely unnecessary. If it was, Tesla would be selling them to you directly!
Although, there is a significant volume of fear mongering on that subject by those who are selling those aftermarket scam artists.

I look at it this way:

• No car is designed to be lifted at random places. Every car shop that lifts cars, knows how to place a jack / lift point under the easily identifiable lifting points.
• If you found an idiot who doesn't know how to find a jacking point under a car, they certainly will not figure out how to use the pucks anyway ;-).

I would assume Tesla would charge a lot more for maintenance similar to a dealership.
[...]any other maintenance suggestions to keep the car lasting for a long time?

Yes, Tesla out-of-warranty labor rates are obnoxiously above regular regional dealer service labor rates.
The larger challenge is that Tesla significantly under-specifies the required maintenance to later claim that their cars are cheaper to maintain. It's a bit of a scam.

For example, all brake fluids are hygroscopic, and need to be flushed every 2-3 years. That's physics. It also costs money.
Tesla declares that physics don't apply to its brake fluid, and you don't need to flush old fluid out. That saves money in the short term, and will earn your a brake caliper rebuild and ABS pump swap in the longer term, by which point you will be out of warranty.

Other regular maintenance items:

• Brake fluid flush - every 2 years (every year if you track your car). Clean calipers and guide pins while you are there.
• Cabin-air (HVAC) filter replacement every 1-2 years. Varies by climate. If you start getting musky smell when you turn AC on/off, it's time. Spray Lysol into the air intakes to kill off the bacteria while you are there.
• 12V battery - every 4-6 years, as you would with any other car. Varies by climate.
• Coolant system flush- every 3-4 years, as you would with any other car.
• Minor things:
  • wipers every year, or 2x / year, or as needed on your climate and the amount of driving that you do in heavy winter ice and slush.
  • change wiper fluid seasonally (if you ambient temps drop below freezing)
  • wax and polish the paint thoroughly at least annually, or more often if you want the car to look great.

HTH,
a