Help, A-Pillar Defect Found

[dhanson865]

If this doesn't prove non-existent 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.

Agree in spirit but I'd settle for a VP. I don't have to talk to or receive communication from Elon himself. I'm good with the lease payments, loaner, and new car method no matter who tells me its happening.

 

[wdolson]

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.

It doesn't prove QC is non-existent at Tesla, but it is an indication they are rushing too much at the end of every quarter. I have seen here a number of quality stories told by people who got cars built in the end of the quarter rush. I deliberately ordered my car so it would be delivered before the end of quarter rush and the quality of it has been excellent.

Tesla needs to tell investors to stuff it. If they miss their target for cars built in a quarter, let it be.

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.

If it was a more common problem, we would have heard about it by now.

It looks to me that the aluminum sheet had a defect from the supplier and when it was formed into the A pillar, that defect caused the part to crack. The crack should have been caught and fixed, that's bad QC on Tesla's part.

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.

Tesla support is very good. When I took delivery, the only defect I saw was some small spots of red paint mixed into the white under the hood. They weren't big and I wanted them fixed, but since it was cosmetic and in a place where most people won't see, I would have been happy to deal with it later. They took the car right into the service center and fixed the problem while I waited (about 1/2 hour). I even learned my father met Ansel Adams while I waited (there was a book about Ansel Adams in the waiting room and I found out he was teaching at Art Center when my father was a student there).

They apologized for not being able to get all the spots completely, but I can't find where they were now. The car had fewer defects than my 1992 Buick did. That car was in the shop several times during the warranty period to fix minor things that weren't right and they never did fix the squeaky brake pedal. Overall that car was fantastic, I drove it 24 years.

 

[Tampaukfan]

Wow, there is no QC at Tesla , all that matters is getting the car delivered and hitting a sales # so the stock goes up.

What frightens me is what you CANT see.. if the people putting trim, panels and paint are doing such a poor job then how about the mechanicals, suspension etc...
They are selling a 100k car with piss poor quality, I wonder what the 40K Model 3 is going to be like?

Do not settle for a repair, they should be ashamed to have delivered a car in that condition.

 

[Super_Popular]

The fact that your car passed inspection at Tesla and then again at your local SC is pretty sad.

 

[jelloslug]

Wow, there is no QC at Tesla , all that matters is getting the car delivered and hitting a sales # so the stock goes up.

What frightens me is what you CANT see.. if the people putting trim, panels and paint are doing such a poor job then how about the mechanicals, suspension etc...
They are selling a 100k car with piss poor quality, I wonder what the 40K Model 3 is going to be like?

Do not settle for a repair, they should be ashamed to have delivered a car in that condition.

Every manufacture puts cars out that should have never left the factory. It not a Tesla thing.

 

[IanR(forRover)]

My S has a slightly mis-aligned near-side door, as did around half of the cars I saw being delivered the day I collected mine. I presume it's because these cars are built by robots, not people; but there was no argument about getting it fixed.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Every manufacture puts cars out that should have never left the factory. It not a Tesla thing.

Can you point to any other $100k+ car that made it into an owner's hands with such a serious defect?

 

[JonG]

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.

Of course that's true which is why we rely on the manufacturing quality control as it's built. If they can't see this even though it's still visible every time the car is inspected, then it shows their controls aren't worth the paper they're written on.
On the other hand..
If Tesla turn round and say that's acceptable build quality as it's none structural, then it shows a different kind of problem, one where that type of finish is deemed fine on a very expensive car.

 

[Pecos Bill]

Want to update us here on what's happening.

Mark, the manager at Excellence Auto (the asked whether this is structural or not, and he gave me a pretty long answer on how most parts of a unibody car is structural, but he doesn't feel this part is "very important" when it applies to the structural strength.

I disagree. Watch this YouTube video —starting at 20 seconds if it doesn't automatically. You can see that the S is slowed some by the wall (tearing )-': and ripping through the crush zone until it hits that part preventing cabin incursion. It's definitely important.

As to welding, my understanding is any weld has risk of creating a weaker finished product due to the stresses and potentially incomplete fusing throughout. Even with a complete fuse, what's to prevent buckling? Any M.E. or other is welcome to correct me with proof

 

[Jays200]

I'm having a grizzle with Tesla ATM because I can't get a square 2" receiver for my MX here in Australia. Pales in to insignificance compared to your A-pillar "problem. I hope you get a satisfactory to you outcome in a reasonable period of time. New car would be my preference.

QA/QC still needs to step up a dozen or so notches even looking at the first of the MX's to get delivered to Perth, Western Australia recently. My MX is due to enter propduction in the next week or two and I'm glad it's at the start of the next quarter.

 

[jelloslug]

Can you point to any other $100k+ car that made it into an owner's hands with such a serious defect?

Last year every 2016 7 series BMW was recalled and a stop sale was placed because of a serious airbag issue (completely unrelated to the Takata recalls). Go to any forum specific to a manufacturer and you will find numerous cars with all kind of problems that you would assume could have never gotten out of the factory. The simple fact is that "stuff happens". While something like this should have been caught in a number of different locations, people are not looking for a crack at the bottom of the A pillar when they are inspecting a car. Even the owner did not notice it until someone else pointed it out.

 

[smac]

My S has a slightly mis-aligned near-side door, as did around half of the cars I saw being delivered the day I collected mine. I presume it's because these cars are built by robots, not people; but there was no argument about getting it fixed.

Mine did too, and while it did get fixed, the inconvenience of getting it done was avoidable if QC had been better. This isn't only factory QC, but the PDI process before handover, and given the way Tesla UK rush out cars near quarter ends, swamping the SC's.

The longer a fault takes to recognise (Fremont factory -> Tilburg -> SC -> Customer), the more expensive it is to rectify.

In the case of the OP, I echo what many others have said. IMHO The only acceptable fix for this is a replacement vehicle.

 

[somnambule]

I disagree. Watch this YouTube video —starting at 20 seconds if it doesn't automatically. You can see that the S is slowed some by the wall (tearing )-': and ripping through the crush zone until it hits that part preventing cabin incursion. It's definitely important.

As to welding, my understanding is any weld has risk of creating a weaker finished product due to the stresses and potentially incomplete fusing throughout. Even with a complete fuse, what's to prevent buckling? Any M.E. or other is welcome to correct me with proof

The overall shell of the cabin certainly is important for safety. But here, we are talking about surface metal of the uppermost piece. Keep in mind this surface metal layer ends without even connecting to anything (the end is covered by an overlapping plastic/rubber piece). I doubt that surface piece lends much strength to the structure, if any at all.

It's still something that should never have left the factory. But I don't think that video says anything about how important this specific piece of metal is. See the Car & Driver picture I posted earlier in this thread that shows the much structurally-relevant part of front parts of the cabin unibody.

 

[Raddoc]

Mine did too, and while it did get fixed, the inconvenience of getting it done was avoidable if QC had been better. This isn't only factory QC, but the PDI process before handover, and given the way Tesla UK rush out cars near quarter ends, swamping the SC's.

The longer a fault takes to recognise (Fremont factory -> Tilburg -> SC -> Customer), the more expensive it is to rectify.

In the case of the OP, I echo what many others have said. IMHO The only acceptable fix for this is a replacement vehicle.

I have 3 doors that are misaligned. Once pointed out to the Service Advisor, he immediately went into what has to get done, how I would be without the car for 1-2 weeks, I would get a loaner, etc., etc. Ho-hum, just another delivery... another mis-alignment...routine... Why??? just get it right the 1st time. Known problems should have known causes which should get fixed. I suppose a percentage of customers won't notice or care, and THAT makes it cheaper for Tesla. Just get the #s up... who cares about quality or satisfaction? Well, Model 3 buyers WILL care. I suspect those buyers will be stretching there budget to get one, and will demand perfection. You think us S and X buyers are anal? Wait til the Model 3....

 

[Tampaukfan]

Can you point to any other $100k+ car that made it into an owner's hands with such a serious defect?

The apologists will come out and defend Tesla no matter what.. Paint problem? Your fault stop being picky! panel misaligned? you are picky!
Split A pillar a serious safety defect? suck it up! put some some bondo on it and dont roll the car over and you will be fine.

Tesla made 76,000 cars last year, BMW 400,000... Go on the BMW forums and do you see new threads each week from owners with lists of defects? No you dont.. Because other automakers check their cars before they ship them unlike Tesla who's goal is to hit a production # so the stock doesn't tank.

Whats going to happen IF and its a big IF, they can build 300K cars in year? Tesla already allocates the largest dollar amount for warranty claims per car and the service centers are over loaded with just 76k per year being built.
If your company already has a high defect rate with low production #'s is it smart to quadruple it ?

Elons vision and brilliance is amazing he has forced the aging auto industry in new direction. But by this point the company should be past the early growing stages of poor build quality, bad communication at the service centers and supply chain issues.
Owners/enthusiasts that constantly defend Tesla are doing more to hurt the company long term than help it. When potential buyers see major defects being dumped on customers and then being giving the run around its a major turn off. I have several friends that have considered buying an S but after looking over the cars the all felt for the money they should be built better.

 

[jelloslug]

The apologists will come out and defend Tesla no matter what.. Paint problem? Your fault stop being picky! panel misaligned? you are picky!
Split A pillar a serious safety defect? suck it up! put some some bondo on it and dont roll the car over and you will be fine.

Tesla made 76,000 cars last year, BMW 400,000... Go on the BMW forums and do you see new threads each week from owners with lists of defects? No you dont.. Because other automakers check their cars before they ship them unlike Tesla who's goal is to hit a production # so the stock doesn't tank.

Whats going to happen IF and its a big IF, they can build 300K cars in year? Tesla already allocates the largest dollar amount for warranty claims per car and the service centers are over loaded with just 76k per year being built.
If your company already has a high defect rate with low production #'s is it smart to quadruple it ?

Elons vision and brilliance is amazing he has forced the aging auto industry in new direction. But by this point the company should be past the early growing stages of poor build quality, bad communication at the service centers and supply chain issues.
Owners/enthusiasts that constantly defend Tesla are doing more to hurt the company long term than help it. When potential buyers see major defects being dumped on customers and then being giving the run around its a major turn off. I have several friends that have considered buying an S but after looking over the cars the all felt for the money they should be built better.

Lol, I had an i3 before I got my Model S and it was far from the perfect piece of German craftsmenship you are talking about. It had more minor defects at time of pickup than my S and it shipped with a half working charging system that was gimped for months and month until BMW managed to figure out the software. Parts took weeks and weeks to get from the motherland and my local dealer (and only choice) was so bad that I have the service department manager as a contact in my phone.

 

[somnambule]

The apologists will come out and defend Tesla no matter what.. Paint problem? Your fault stop being picky! panel misaligned? you are picky!
Split A pillar a serious safety defect? suck it up! put some some bondo on it and dont roll the car over and you will be fine.

Tesla made 76,000 cars last year, BMW 400,000... Go on the BMW forums and do you see new threads each week from owners with lists of defects? No you dont.. Because other automakers check their cars before they ship them unlike Tesla who's goal is to hit a production # so the stock doesn't tank.

Whats going to happen IF and its a big IF, they can build 300K cars in year? Tesla already allocates the largest dollar amount for warranty claims per car and the service centers are over loaded with just 76k per year being built.
If your company already has a high defect rate with low production #'s is it smart to quadruple it ?

Elons vision and brilliance is amazing he has forced the aging auto industry in new direction. But by this point the company should be past the early growing stages of poor build quality, bad communication at the service centers and supply chain issues.
Owners/enthusiasts that constantly defend Tesla are doing more to hurt the company long term than help it. When potential buyers see major defects being dumped on customers and then being giving the run around its a major turn off. I have several friends that have considered buying an S but after looking over the cars the all felt for the money they should be built better.

There are apologists who will gloss over any mistake Tesla makes and there are the whiners who expect the exact same quality as you would get from a 100-year-old manufacturer that sells at the same price. The reality lies somewhere in between.

The reality is that the Model S (and X, as its derivative) are the first vehicles manufactured by a brand new car maker. This is the platform on which Tesla learned how to build cars. If someone's risk tolerance can't handle that reality then, yes, the Model S is not the car for them. OTOH, if you can handle the risk, there are plenty of rewarding aspects of owning a Tesla. This also means you can't extrapolate from the S to the 3 (when/if Tesla makes 300K+ cars per year). Hopefully some lessons were learned with the S that will be applied to the 3. So let's judge that when we get there.

All that said, in my personal experience, the problems I have had in the first year of my S are similar in nature and number to the issues I had with one of my two previous cars in the first years (Cadillac) and fewer . So while there do seem to be some quality lapses at Tesla, it does not seem to be the norm. Either that, or I should be buying lottery tickets.

And I'd add that Snowstorm's attitude in this case is precisely the right one (at least in my opinion). There's a serious problem with that one car that needs attention and he/she is being firm about getting it resolved but also not going off the rails about it.

 

[JRP3]

The apologists will come out and defend Tesla no matter what.. Paint problem? Your fault stop being picky! panel misaligned? you are picky!
Split A pillar a serious safety defect? suck it up! put some some bondo on it and dont roll the car over and you will be fine.

Then the extremists come out and post things completely divorced from reality. No one suggested anything like that of course, and no one is suggesting that Tesla doesn't need to improve their QC.

 

[somnambule]

All that said, in my personal experience, the problems I have had in the first year of my S are similar in nature and number to the issues I had with one of my two previous cars in the first years (Cadillac) and fewer . So while there do seem to be some quality lapses at Tesla, it does not seem to be the norm. Either that, or I should be buying lottery tickets.

Sorry, I just noticed I didn't finish one of the sentences in the above post . What I meant is that "in my personal experience, the problems I have had in the first year of my S are similar in nature and number to the issues I had with one of my two previous cars in the first year (Cadillac) and fewer than I did with the other (BMW)".

 

[Tampaukfan]

If I recall, Elon was sleeping on the assembly line? I figured that was going to be the turning point for Tesla, QC would be the #1 priority and threads like this would be disappear.
But that is not the case, if anything it has gotten worse which sucks.. I want to see Tesla succeed as much as anyone since they have pumped new life/excitement into an old mans business. However if they continue delivering cars with defects they will end up like Jaguar and never be able to shake the stigma of a low quality auto company. The model S is 5 years old now, QC, fit and finish should be perfected at this point.