Extended bumper to bumper warranty.

[Jayc]

I think just like Tesla made use of the EV advantage by offering class leading cabin space relative to external dimensions, class leading wind-drag compared to non-EV rivals, class leading performance compared to non-EV eco rivals, class leading technology compared to rivals, class leading safety compared to rivals, Tesla now has the opportunity to offer a class leading warranty compared to rivals.

EV technology and in particular Tesla's implementation of DSP combined AC motors and reliable battery tech is a unique advantage only available to Tesla. However, to make use of this advantage, Tesla will have to design from ground up for reliability just as they are now designing for production scaling. If they can pull it off and offer a class leading warranty I can tell you their competition will be in serious trouble.

 

[JoRey]

I think just like Tesla made use of the EV advantage by offering class leading cabin space relative to external dimensions, class leading wind-drag compared to non-EV rivals, class leading performance compared to non-EV eco rivals, class leading technology compared to rivals, class leading safety compared to rivals, Tesla now has the opportunity to offer a class leading warranty compared to rivals.

EV technology and in particular Tesla's implementation of DSP combined AC motors and reliable battery tech is a unique advantage only available to Tesla. However, to make use of this advantage, Tesla will have to design from ground up for reliability just as they are now designing for production scaling. If they can pull it off and offer a class leading warranty I can tell you their competition will be in serious trouble.

I wish Tesla would offer a ten year, Unlimited Warranty mile on the battery, inverter and electric motor. These components should easily be able to outlast the life of the car. Assuming the battery is charged to 80-90% and not completely discharged on a daily bases. Elon has previously stated that Tesla wants their cars to last a million miles.

 

[nexsuperne101]

even the standard 8 years unlimited plus 8 years, 100,000 miles on everything else would be good. Is there any option to extend the 4 year/50,000 mile warranty? I know 2 or 3 year old cars get the CPO warranty of a further 4 years/50K, so it must be an option. It can't just get to 4 years old and then no one wants to cover it.

 

[JoRey]

Ya, i'd be happy with the warranty on the original 85. On another hand, perhaps california should require that electric cars must have 80% of the original capacity after 10years or 150,000 miles inorder to get carpool stickers.

 

[zenmaster]

What reason would Tesla have now to limit warranty? Why would it not be due to the anticipated expense? Aren't they the most familiar with the vehicle. Isn't it that simple?

 

[eisbock]

The 3 will not be perfect when it comes out. For any other car, I would agree with the whole "don't buy a warranty, it'll cost more in the long run", but for Tesla?

The S drivetrain is pretty much sh¡t and several owners have reported getting new units multiple times, sometimes over 5 different replacements. In what, four years?! And the thing is, we don't actually know how much the drivetrain has improved because it was just "fixed" in the past couple years and there isn't enough data!

I am fully anticipating the 3 to have a LOT of reliability problems. Problems that likely won't be completely smoothed out after four years of warranty coverage. Hell, there may even be niggling first gen problems that crop up 5-6 years later that have already been fixed or shouldn't have happened in the first place.

This coupled with the inability to repair the car yourself means you're seriously playing with fire if you don't get the ESA. Think about the car's reliability for the first four years, then think about it for the subsequent four years. It will not improve. Cars deteriorate over time, and a car that's already poorly built (mostly due to lack of experience) will only have more problems the next four years. I'm banking on having most of my 3's defective parts swapped out for reliable ones over the course of these eight years. If I don't feel comfortable by then, I'm gonna sell it.

A car built by a company known to build cars requiring an alarming number of warranty repairs over any other car manufacturer is not something to gamble on. You're an idiot to get the first generation of a budget car from a company that has only been around for 10 years and not expect there to be problems left and right. Be smart: pony up the extra $4k and enjoy the next eight years.

 

[JeffK]

I am fully anticipating the 3 to have a LOT of reliability problems.

I'm hoping you're wrong and that they've learned from the Model S and the Model X.

 

[eisbock]

I'm hoping you're wrong and that they've learned from the Model S and the Model X.

I'm hoping I'm wrong too, but I'm also trying to be realistic. Car manufacturers that have been around for a hundred years are still having problems with reliability. How can we expect a decade-old car company who is on the cutting edge of technology that hasn't been used in cars before to be even close to the reliability of current cars on the road?