Help, A-Pillar Defect Found

[Sawyer8888]

I'm not sure this repair is as bad as most everyone thinks. The hood and windshield need to be removed, the small area around the crack needs to cut out, a patch can be made out of a new panel (98% wasted) and butted welded in. It should be nearly structurally identical to a new car and you might lose some sound deadening material in the process. The car should be devalued by about half of the cost of the repair.

This is a good picture of the that part of the unibody. Photo Gallery | Car and Driver

This is a good observation, however it is secondary to what I believe is the issue at hand.

The point is that a relatively major body repair is needed on a brand new vehicle due to a manufacturer's error. Whether it be a $20K car or a $2M car, the individual making the purchase should not have to settle for this negligence and be required to accept a repaired vehicle.

Could the option be given to take the lease once the repair is complete, along with the full value reduction included? (Not just reducing the value by half the cost of the work, but by the true value after major body work on a luxury vehicle) Sure, seems fair. However paying full price for any refurbished product is unacceptable.

 

[timvracer]

I think it is also critical that this be much more "painful" for Tesla than for the buyer. We need them to experience the cost of low quality, and improve it!! If they can "get away" with it with some sort of repair, then they are more likely to think "oh don't worry, if something's wrong we'll just fix it after delivery... and we still get to count it in the quarter".

 

[Swift]

This is a good observation, however it is secondary to what I believe is the issue at hand.

The point is that a relatively major body repair is needed on a brand new vehicle due to a manufacturer's error. Whether it be a $20K car or a $2M car, the individual making the purchase should not have to settle for this negligence and be required to accept a repaired vehicle.

Could the option be given to take the lease once the repair is complete, along with the full value reduction included? (Not just reducing the value by half the cost of the work, but by the true value after major body work on a luxury vehicle) Sure, seems fair. However paying full price for any refurbished product is unacceptable.

I agree. If he wasn't leasing the vehicle then there would be a significant diminished value claim accompanying the repair debate.

That said, I wonder what happens if Tesla gives the OP a new vehicle and takes this one back. Is it repaired and moved back into the sales stream as a CPO (maybe after some use as a loaner?) Does the downstream CPO buyer ever know that they are buying the "A-pillar" car?

OP - I'm thinking we need you to post the VIN when they take the car back....

 

[Tam]

...MULTIPLE places in the factory where people saw that and passed it on. Inspection after stamping...

For my own personal experience, I just got Model X in March and the delivery went perfectly.

For this case, it could be that the panel was perfect at first. It could experience some fitting problems as it was assembled to the rest of the car. It could be that the robot just forced the panel and made it cracked.

If that's the case, the robots need to be reprogrammed.

On the other hand, what's the Quality Assurance philosophy in Tesla?

It has been sounding like Tesla shifts the job of Quality Assurance to buyers.

An advantage for doing so is good production numbers for quarterly reports. Numbers produced regardless of quality which prevent slowing down the assembly line.

I hope Tesla would improve in this area for its customers.

 

[VanX]

I am going to ask them to build me a new car. It is not fair to be paying full price, waiting a few month, only to get a significantly repaired vehicle. A couple mis-aligned cosmetic trims to be fixed on next service appointment is maybe tolerable, but not a car with a crack like that.

At this point, I feel they are acting in good faith to help. When I spoke to Kevin (local service manager), he said he is working with the Dustin (regional service manager) to look at potential options regarding building a new car. However, even when they agree to that , there is going to be a lot of headache invovled. Least of which is the build time. This is on a lease so I don't know how the logistics of the down payment (paid 25%), current payments, insurance and government incentive application in progress would work. Hopefully, they had experience with this kind of thing in the past and would make it as smooth as possible.

Snowstorm: You should just be firm with them that you want a new car period. But interested in the full investigation of how the QC failed. Don't give them any reason to believe you would consider anything else like a repair. I'm guessing the delay in Tesla moving forward with ordering a new car might be a possibility that a repair is still on the table. Clear that confusion.

I just took delivery of a Model X 90D on March 29 with a dent on hood. SC has been super wonderful in helping me sort things out and loaner car for the time my X is in body shop for inspection/repair.

I'm sure once you make it clear you want a new car Tesla will get you on a comparable Model S loaner until New one arrives. They should sort out all paperwork for you and just have you keep paying the lease. If they give priority to your new build it shouldn't take longer than a month to deliver. Driving a loaner for the time being might not be a bad thing since you can get used to the Model S. Where the buttons/switches/tab is, how it parks/fit into spaces, how it drives etc.

Having said that, they will most likely tell you they need to escalate to higher ups for approval of new car. Just tell them to go as high as they need to get a YES. If they can't get a YES, tell them that Elon would need to call and explain why.

For Tesla they should just take the car back to the factory for a complete investigation into how this slipped through. Then have the car placed in the factory in a very conspicuous place as a display/reminder of what happened and never to have it happen again.

Hope things work out for you soon.

 

[VanX]

For my own personal experience, I just got Model X in March and the delivery went perfectly.

For this case, it could be that the panel was perfect at first. It could experience some fitting problems as it was assembled to the rest of the car. It could be that the robot just forced the panel and made it cracked.

If that's the case, the robots need to be reprogrammed.

On the other hand, what's the Quality Assurance philosophy in Tesla?

It has been sounding like Tesla shifts the job of Quality Assurance to buyers.

An advantage for doing so is good production numbers for quarterly reports. Numbers produced regardless of quality which prevent slowing down the assembly line.

I hope Tesla would improve in this area for its customers.

I just took delivery in March as well. Hope nothing got missed on any other cars during the push for the quarterly reports especially since safety is impacted. Wonder what can be done for delivered vehicles as a retro QC to ease our minds???

 

[AmpedRealtor]

This is seriously messed up. If this were me, I would not settle for less than a new car. I have every expectation that Tesla will step up and make this right.

 

[JasJ]

I had less of an issue than OP and they rebuilt my car. Talk to California if you want a rebuild.

 

[Snowstorm]

I'm not sure this repair is as bad as most everyone thinks. The hood and windshield need to be removed, the small area around the crack needs to cut out, a patch can be made out of a new panel (98% wasted) and butted welded in. It should be nearly structurally identical to a new car and you might lose some sound deadening material in the process. The car should be devalued by about half of the cost of the repair.

This is a good picture of the that part of the unibody. Photo Gallery | Car and Driver

Patch, weld, lose and devalued are not words anyone would want to have associated with their brand new car. Yes, I have no doubt it can be repaired at whatever cost and time, but I would want a new one built at this point. I just hope the process will not be too painful.

 

[jschwefel]

Patch, weld, lose and devalued are not words anyone would want to have associated with their brand new car. Yes, I have no doubt it can be repaired at whatever cost and time, but I would want a new one built at this point. I just hope the process will not be too painful.

Snowstorm, I really admire the way you're handling this. You have every right to be upset, but yet you are patient and willing to give the company time to assess the problem and make it right. Also, thank you for posting and sharing the experience; it is helpful to everyone on this forum interested in how issues are resolved.

FWIW, I went and looked at that area on my 2012 P85 and noticed what I'll call "stretch marks" in the metal. See the photos of both the left and right side. These are obviously the result of the stamping process, and while mine are not torn, the metal is very thin in those areas as evidenced by the sound when I tap on the metal. I'd invite others reading this to do the same and report back. That said, I would not be surprised if this can be fixed without issue, but whatever the outcome, you are the one that has to be satisfied.

BTW, after driving an ICE vehicle (rental car) while on vacation last week, being without a Model S is becoming cruel and unusual punishment.

Best of luck with getting this resolved. My experience with Tesla has been fantastic so far, and I truly hope yours will be as well.

 

[timvracer]

I checked out mine as well, and noticed the same thing... it shows some "stretch" marks as you say, and I also noticed the foam from inside the pillar when you pull up that small black rubber end piece.

 

[somnambule]

FWIW, I went and looked at that area on my 2012 P85 and noticed what I'll call "stretch marks" in the metal. See the photos of both the left and right side. These are obviously the result of the stamping process, and while mine are not torn, the metal is very thin in those areas as evidenced by the sound when I tap on the metal. I'd invite others reading this to do the same and report back.

Let's not get too carried away here. I doubt the surface of this piece has much impact on structural safety. I'm not a mechanical engineer, but looking at the following picture (image credit: Car & Driver), I would be surprised if the surface of the uppermost part of the unibody (the part that we are discussing here) has much relevance for structural rigidity at all. To my untrained eye, the part in question looks "appended" (for the lack of a better word) on top of the structurally relevant part:

Just to be clear, I think Snowstorm has every right to expect a new build. I also applaud the reasonable manner Snowstorm is going through this, and I hope Tesla does the right thing here. I'm just saying the rest of us probably don't need to panic over what may appear to be stretch marks on surface metal in a rather inconspicuous spot.

 

[JonG]

It's only by chance that this defect is somewhere you can see. What about the rest of the car where you can't? Very serious problem they need an answer too.

 

[jschwefel]

Let's not get too carried away here. I doubt the surface of this piece has much impact on structural safety. I'm not a mechanical engineer, but looking at the following picture (image credit: Car & Driver), I would be surprised if the surface of the uppermost part of the unibody (the part that we are discussing here) has much relevance for structural rigidity at all. To my untrained eye, the part in question looks "appended" (for the lack of a better word) on top of the structurally relevant part:

Just to be clear, I think Snowstorm has every right to expect a new build. I also applaud the reasonable manner Snowstorm is going through this, and I hope Tesla does the right thing here. I'm just saying the rest of us probably don't need to panic over what may appear to be stretch marks on surface metal in a rather inconspicuous spot.

I apologize if my post was misleading; my car is fine, and I suspect every other car is as well. My point is this is likely not structural; it's probably happened before and been fixed at the factory, and that is ok. It is perfectly normal to have in process repairs; it is not normal for such defects to escape through QC, but it does happen occasionally.

 

[JRP3]

It's only by chance that this defect is somewhere you can see. What about the rest of the car where you can't? Very serious problem they need an answer too.

Since no one can see the other parts of the car that can't be seen, on any car, how can any answer be given? Any vehicle could have a hidden defect.

 

[cbdream99]

From what I read in other aluminum body vehicle, they usually do not weld for body work and simply replaced the parts (Are Aluminum Vehicles Really More Expensive to Repair? » AutoGuide.com News) and I suspect they may have to replace the whole section, but only Tesla can recommend. I hope this is a one off human error rather than parts defects (i.e. potential recall ). It puzzles me this problem escaped so many pairs of eyes, may be it's not noticeable in the beginning such as a hair line crack but once on the road, the stress causing it to crack more.

 

[JRP3]

It puzzles me this problem escaped so many pairs of eyes, may be it's not noticeable in the beginning such as a hair line crack but once on the road, the stress causing it to crack more.

Since it appears to have been painted inside the crack that means it had to have happened before paint.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

If this doesn't prove non-existant QC at Tesla, I don't know what does. This should give pause to every single Tesla customer. I would certainly reconsider my order if I saw this thread, and rightfully so. For Tesla to even suggest having this repaired by a body shop on a brand new delivery is shameful. OP should have received a personal apology from Elon Musk, a suspension of all lease payments, and a top-of-the-line loaner vehicle until Tesla builds him a new car.

 

[Snowstorm]

Yes, something must have gone really wrong with this build for it to happen and no one to see it along the way. The body shop does agree that he crack must have occurred early in the process as it is painted after it was cracked. I sincerely hope his is a one off. Fixing or replacing a part on the line during assembly in the factory is one thing, taking apart a new car to repair/replace a part in a collision repair shop days after delivery is totally another, and is not acceptable for a new purchase.

At this point, the Tesla team have been supportive and provided me with a Model S loaner. I do hope and expect them to offer me the option for a new build, and do not take offence that they take a few days to get to the bottom of this and secure the authorization to do so. I do hope they will make the replacement process as painless as possible (and maybe allow me to make some config / color changes now that I have a better idea after driving the model S for the 1st time)

Will call them to get and update and let us here know how things are panning out.

 

[NikeWings]

Elon needs to either roll out his sleeping bag again, or move it to the end of the production line.
Musk Sleeps Near Factory Floor to Spur Tesla Manufacturing

I like your class and style @Snowstorm . It will work out fine for you, I am certain.