Got M3P, 4XXK VIN, some build issues. Need advice

[Oreo100]

Hi,

Came from a Model-S (2015) with the usual build quality issues (mine not too bad though) so was very surprised when I got my 415K VIN M3P that it was actually much much worse. I would appreciate some advice on what to do.

Pictures attached, but basically the below. Some were seen during delivery but most when I got home in good lighting:

# Paint chip on rear fender. Not too worried, should be fixable
# Insect under clear coat. Same, fixable I think
# Passenger door seal with bubbles (rather large). Window also not aligned. Concerned
# Some dirt inside on headliner
# Headlights not aligned. Different spacing between the two
# Taillights not fully aligned.
# The a-piller seems misaligned on the driver side. Ie its sticking out a bit over where the side mirror attaches. Passenger side fine.

Have scheduled service. I asked Tesla about returning the car and they said 'sure, but then you cannot buy another tesla in 12 months'. What?

Can it be fixed? Most important are the paint chip and the window seal bubbles (as its very visible).

Pictures:

 

[OCR1]

I’ve never heard of Tesla telling a customer they can’t buy another vehicle for 12 months if they return a car. Maybe that’s a local policy in your country.

As for the issues, I’m sure they are all fixable if Tesla is agreeable to doing so. But this is why I always tell people to inspect their car thoroughly before they accept it and pay for it, and consider rejecting it and asking for a different one if there are too many issues that need to be addressed. It’s much easier to reject a car before you pay for it then to return it after delivery.

Returning a Tesla is not like returning a toaster to your local department store. You will wait around for at least 60 days to get your money back and you may have no other car to drive while waiting and not have the funds required to buy another one.

 

[gobble]

I popped on this forum again to see if there were any discounts in light of Musk's announcement today to get inventory cars in the right hands.

These cars are such a hack job though.... It's probably best to pass.

 

[Oreo100]

Thanks. Yes I think its local now I read the fine print.

Yeah end of quarter things are a bit hectic, delivery room a bit dark, being stressed out, etc. I have no reason to believe they won't fix it. I was just concerned that the fix is not good (just based on a bad experience with a model s years ago). Love the car though. Its what they have going for them. I'll likely take the chance and have them fix it.

 

[raptor5244]

The biggest issue I see is the window is way out of alignment. The are all fixable issues, it is just super annoying when dropping a lot of money on a new car. Just about every Tesla M3 I see seems to have that bubble somewhere in the weatherstripping. I think they need to heat it up better when they install it or something.

I hate to say it but we all know these cars are rushed and they don't do a good job of protecting them from damage while in transport. I had a bumper scratch and my scuff plates/rocker panels had to be replaced as they were damaged loading on and off the transporter, missing a bolt in the rear trim cover, weatherstripping that is wrinkle up in the trunk, etc. At $40k+ we all should expect Lexus build quality but the car is so good in other ways that many of us are willing to overlook a lot of the imperfections as Tesla works through their growing pains as a company.

 

[T3SLAROD]

Nothing to see here. Enjoy the ride and ICE cars have these same issues with bigger bugs under the clear coat.......

I was planning on picking one up this weekend but might wait. Seems like these bad boys are being rushed

 

[gobble]

I've had both my detailer/paint protection film guy and my paintless dent removal guy tell me how terrible Tesla's paint quality is compared to other cars they see. I don't get how a company that thinks they're so smart can do such a hack job on assembling these cars.

 

[SMAlset]

Thanks. Yes I think its local now I read the fine print.

Yeah end of quarter things are a bit hectic, delivery room a bit dark, being stressed out, etc. I have no reason to believe they won't fix it. I was just concerned that the fix is not good (just based on a bad experience with a model s years ago). Love the car though. Its what they have going for them. I'll likely take the chance and have them fix it.

I think all of the issues are fixable as well and for the most part minor, especially seals and dirt on the headliner. The panel alignments would probably take the most time. Buying/delivery at end of quarter I think is probably the most stressful time to do a sale because all of these guys are trying their best to move a lot of cars to customers, and don't know about overseas, but here there will be employees working long hours during these last few weeks. BTW I had 3 minor paint/dust spots and a fender panel that stood out from the surrounding headlight/bumper area--all fixed. Can't tell where the issues were. My hood also sat closer to the front edge of the car so the gap was closer there than on the sides of the hood and they were able to adjust that to make the spacing more even. Don't know about the service centers there but based on my experience I think it's all doable. I wouldn't trade my car for another manufacturers at all. To me these are just small bumps for the majority of people and they get fixed and you just enjoy the car from that point onward.

 

[quikshifter]

I didnt have any paint chips but I have all those issues around the mirror and door seals but they don't really bother me.

 

[tangerine]

Hi @Oreo100 I had all these issues and they were all fixable:

The bubbles in the seals are super common. The SC was able to fix this for me in 15mins
The SC was also able to align the headlights better. This is super common on all Model 3s, I think its the way the body panels are molded. The headlights aren't perfect but they can be aligned better. What the SC does is basically unplug the headlights and re-plug them back in-alignment as best they can. Its not perfect but looks better than out of factory.

Detailer was able to fix the paint chips and dust nibs (or insect in your case). I had my car PPF and its hardly noticeable unless you looked really closely.

The dirt in the headliner is super easy fix with some all purpose cleaner diluted. Use a soft brush to agitate and rub off with a microfiber and wait for it to dry. A detailer would be able to fix this for you as well

Hope this helps. It really comes down to what bothers you the most and if you're able to live it. I've come to accept a lot of the imperfections and to help bring some context to where I'm coming from, I've owned both a mid-100xxx VIN and traded that in for a M3P 408xxx VIN and the quality is much better and improved. Tesla is getting better over time and I give them the benefit of the doubt since they are a young car company in a David and Goliath scenario against the other bigger/older American, Japanese and European automakers.

 

[WilliamG]

I've had both my detailer/paint protection film guy and my paintless dent removal guy tell me how terrible Tesla's paint quality is compared to other cars they see. I don't get how a company that thinks they're so smart can do such a hack job on assembling these cars.

I'd suggest getting a different dealer/ppf guy. This has already been PROVEN to be baloney.

 

[jebinc]

Thankfully, I had zero of these issues on my M3D+, it left the factory on 6/21/19.

 

[101iT]

I just had my Model 3 delivered on 6/24/19 and it had some minor issues like plastic moldings on the bottom of the car weren't completely in place and there a little chip on the paint of hood, but nothing crucial or nothing Tesla service wouldn't agree on fixing.

 

[cbaaz]

......Have scheduled service. I asked Tesla about returning the car and they said 'sure, but then you cannot buy another tesla in 12 months'. What?

Wow - Nice customer service attitude there, eh ? Where do they find these people ?

My opinion: From the pictures, it all seems quite fixable and reasonable to have fixed. Hard to tell exactly which item(s) are out of alignment on the A-pillar/door/fender, though.

 

[Oreo100]

Thanks for all the replies. Yes I feel confident they can fix it. The a-pillar thing is more the panel below it, but its not that bad and looking at other cars at the SC, most have a small alignment issue there.

Service is already scheduled (11th) and they told me they need the car for at least a day. But a loaner would be available during the time. Thats good. I'm not super picky but I don't want a car thats significantly worse than others that can't be fixed (ie resale value).