So I took my delivery last Friday I think on 9/11 and at the time of delivery I told the sales person about this issue. She told me just to take as is and then make an appointment. I really don't know how come they don't look before delivery that door and Panels are not aligned right. There are some scratches on the car as well which I reported as well. The inside ceiling liner is dirty and some marks on it too. Is this how the new car should be. Shame
The reason why this is a common problem is because Tesla doesn't work the way a traditional manufacturer does. If you buy a car from another company, you go through a dealer that will place the order for you and inspect the vehicle when it is delivered to make sure everything is right. This is more of a check for cosmetics and to make sure everything that a mechanic can easily checked is up to standards. As a mechanic myself, I have found things in my car that a regular customer wouldn't have noticed and had to take it back to the dealership to have them fixed.
With Tesla, you order a car, Tesla sends it to where you are picking it up, and unless there is something that sticks out immediately to everyone that makes them delay your pickup, it's what you will see when you pick it up.
I prefer the way Tesla does things. I don't have a Tesla yet but I will be getting a Cybertruck and I'm glad I am not going through a dealership for a few good reasons.
1. Stupid fees - The fees are stupid and you are stupid if you pay them. You basically need to be an expert of car sales before going into a dealership to actually get the price you are supposed to. They tried to charge me $600 for a provincial fee that is only $6 in Alberta. Dealerships are constantly after more money because car sales aren't their biggest revenue generator.
2. Service - I've heard every excuse from dealerships about why my car needs service. Now I worked as a mechanic for years, so I know when they are making stuff up, but a lot of people don't and it's a huge scam. The biggest part of this scam is their dealership maintenance schedule that depending on the dealership, could require maintenance for the same things as the manufacturer maintenance schedule but much earlier and more frequent. Always follow the manufacturer maintenance schedule.
3. Inconsistent - When you order a Tesla, you get the same thing that everyone else got, it might not be perfect at first which is why a checklist is very handy to go over, but they will fix it and in the end it's fair. At a dealership, due to reasons that i've already discussed, you could get same car as someone and pay a different price or pay the same price but they got heated seats thrown in. It's not always about how good of a negotiator you are but it also depends which dealership you go to and who you speak to.
When I get my Cybertruck, I am going to love to not have to worry about any of these things. Am I worried about a panel gap? no, because they will fix it and it's not even a big deal for the few weeks it takes before they do it. It's not like I'm some car magazine and I need my Tesla looking pretty for the centerfold.