Model 3 Build Quality - What's your experience?

[cafz]

I am currently not able to use Autopilot or FSD, I have the beta, because of some kind of camera calibration issue.

If the calibration has got stuck without completing, there's a way to reset it and have it start again, which seems to fix the problem for those that have seen this. In the Service menu I believe.

Service should be able to fix the screen issue, that is certainly not normal.

 

[0CO2]

I’m really surprised by this, I took delivery of a 2021 M3P with FSD about 2 months ago. The car cost upwards of 74k and I’m shocked at the issues I’m having with the car. The wind blowing through the cabin is quite shocking in comparison to other vehicles I’ve owned. Granted, this is my first EV, and I wasn’t sure what to expect based on some of the posts I’d read, but I thought I would be driving in a much quieter car. I‘ve also had issues with the camera system not working when in reverse, I am currently not able to use Autopilot or FSD, I have the beta, because of some kind of camera calibration issue. My windshield wipers currently will not work on auto, and my Sentry feature doesn‘t work either, half the time I’m driving around without a screen, it just turns off, I don’t even have 2000 miles on it yet!! Extremely disappointed in almost all aspect of the car and I don’t think I would ever buy another until something has been done about the quality issues. Made an appointment to take the car in but even that is a big headache, I can’t even get an appointment for 3 weeks!! I’m not typically a complainer and I really wanted to love my new car but this is just unacceptable.

It does sound like you have got the rough end of the pineapple there Crumpetman. Not sure why you would have to wait 3 weeks for service though, particularly with so many problems. Fingers crossed for you that your problems get resolved. I have no bias towards Tesla and have had exactly the opposite experience with servicing. I have had my seat removed at home by a mobile Tesla service agent to fix a floating vent. I had a service scheduled in another state while travelling and Tesla fixed all my issues, gave me Uber credits to get home and back as they were out of loan cars at the time. Maybe we get looked after differently in Australia… (read, we are bigger whingers )

 

[Maximillan]

Maybe we get looked after differently in Australia…

Yes, we get our cars currently supplied from Shanghai, whereas Crumpetman's car came out of Fremont.

 

[Crumpetman]

It does sound like you have got the rough end of the pineapple there Crumpetman. Not sure why you would have to wait 3 weeks for service though, particularly with so many problems. Fingers crossed for you that your problems get resolved. I have no bias towards Tesla and have had exactly the opposite experience with servicing. I have had my seat removed at home by a mobile Tesla service agent to fix a floating vent. I had a service scheduled in another state while travelling and Tesla fixed all my issues, gave me Uber credits to get home and back as they were out of loan cars at the time. Maybe we get looked after differently in Australia… (read, we are bigger whingers )

It does sound like you have got the rough end of the pineapple there Crumpetman. Not sure why you would have to wait 3 weeks for service though, particularly with so many problems. Fingers crossed for you that your problems get resolved. I have no bias towards Tesla and have had exactly the opposite experience with servicing. I have had my seat removed at home by a mobile Tesla service agent to fix a floating vent. I had a service scheduled in another state while travelling and Tesla fixed all my issues, gave me Uber credits to get home and back as they were out of loan cars at the time. Maybe we get looked after differently in Australia… (read, we are bigger whingers )

Sounds like you have much better service

If the calibration has got stuck without completing, there's a way to reset it and have it start again, which seems to fix the problem for those that have seen this. In the Service menu I believe.

Service should be able to fix the screen issue, that is certainly not normal.

Thanks cafz, I have tried to calibrate the cameras myself but there is supposed to be a steering wheel icon that shows up with a circle around it that fills up as you drive, showing that it is calibrating. I have no such icon anymore, the left side of my screen just shows my car and nothing else.

 

[Crumpetman]

It does sound like you have got the rough end of the pineapple there Crumpetman. Not sure why you would have to wait 3 weeks for service though, particularly with so many problems. Fingers crossed for you that your problems get resolved. I have no bias towards Tesla and have had exactly the opposite experience with servicing. I have had my seat removed at home by a mobile Tesla service agent to fix a floating vent. I had a service scheduled in another state while travelling and Tesla fixed all my issues, gave me Uber credits to get home and back as they were out of loan cars at the time. Maybe we get looked after differently in Australia… (read, we are bigger whingers )

Thanks 0CO2, I originally contacted service and was told they were going to send the mobile service out to me. The day they were supposed to arrive I received a call from them saying they had sent the problem to there technical department who said I would need to take the car in for service and the soonest available appointment would be Jan 14th, this was a week ago. I’m chalking it up to the holidays and perhaps the whole supply chain issue everyone is having. I think maybe they know they are going to have to replace the front camera. I have the FSD and it has been doing some strange maneuvers ever since I got the download, even after all the updates. Suddenly stopping for no reason, swerving out of the way of phantom cars or objects, making strange jerky turns, both right and left turns. Hopefully once they fix this I won’t have these issues. Still doesn’t explain all the other quality issues I have. You would never think of buying a car at that price and being able to see several areas where they did touch up to cover up chips in the paint!! I just find it shocking. Again, I really want to love this car, I know EV’s are the wave of the future, maybe Elon is pushing cars out the door much to quickly.

 

[Crumpetman]

Sounds like you’ve unfortunately got a bit of a lemon. It happens. Not that that’s any consolation. Even if it’s 1 in 100,000, it still very crappy for the 1 who ends up with it.

Model 3 is not the world’s quietest car - you do hear the tyre noise above about 40 km/h, but that is partly due to the fact that there’s no noisy ICE to mask it. It doesn’t bother me, I find the car quiet enough. Never heard “wind blowing through the cabin” without the windows open .

Wipers were initially hit-and-miss when I first got my car, but subsequent software updates have made it fine In my experience.

No rear camera issues, and no issues with the screen randomly turning off.

Service might be able to fix all the issues. Hang in there.

Thanks Vostok, I appreciate it. I’m hoping they fix it as well. The wind comes through the window we’re it meets the seal, hopefully I can find a 3rd party seal that fixes that issue. I knew I would have some noise in the cabin due to no ICE but not as much as I have.

 

[cafz]

The wind comes through the window we’re it meets the seal, hopefully I can find a 3rd party seal that fixes that issue.

I would think Tesla Service should be able to fix that, too. Have you driven any other Model 3s to compare? Because it doesn't sound normal either.

 

[Candleflame]

I’m really surprised by this, I took delivery of a 2021 M3P with FSD about 2 months ago. The car cost upwards of 74k and I’m shocked at the issues I’m having with the car. The wind blowing through the cabin is quite shocking in comparison to other vehicles I’ve owned. Granted, this is my first EV, and I wasn’t sure what to expect based on some of the posts I’d read, but I thought I would be driving in a much quieter car. I‘ve also had issues with the camera system not working when in reverse, I am currently not able to use Autopilot or FSD, I have the beta, because of some kind of camera calibration issue. My windshield wipers currently will not work on auto, and my Sentry feature doesn‘t work either, half the time I’m driving around without a screen, it just turns off, I don’t even have 2000 miles on it yet!! Extremely disappointed in almost all aspect of the car and I don’t think I would ever buy another until something has been done about the quality issues. Made an appointment to take the car in but even that is a big headache, I can’t even get an appointment for 3 weeks!! I’m not typically a complainer and I really wanted to love my new car but this is just unacceptable.

I find the 3 just has a lot of noise on crappy roads. Not sure what roads you have in the USA.
I find the really smooth Motorway roads are fine with just a bit of wind noise.
Where the Model 3 is really aweful at are these country roads which have this.... gritty/chunky tarmac.

 

[strdst]

My 21 SR+ (built April) was pretty much perfect on delivery. Had slight difference in recessing of the rear door handles (cosmetic, you'd need to be pretty anal to see it), but was fixed in a morning at the service centre. Have had no other issues at all.

 

[Crumpetman]

I would think Tesla Service should be able to fix that, too. Have you driven any other Model 3s to compare? Because it doesn't sound normal either.

I did test drive the M3P before I bought it but to be honest, I didn’t notice the wind/cabin noise. I didn’t drive the frwy with it so I never really got to the speeds that the wind comes through in my car. I could probably live with the cabin noise, as long as my radio is turned up, it’s all the other issues that are really bothering me. I may be hyper tuned to all the small issues because of the big ones I have.

 

[0CO2]

I just did a 2000km return trip and the loudest noise I had was the bike I put on the roof… and even that was not that loud. As for “road noise” or “wind noise” it may be more “hearable” without a motor droning in the engine bay but I would say without a doubt my A4 was as loud or louder (quiet or quieter ) than the M3. If you have wind coming through the seals, that’s a warranty job. Tesla should definitely fix that.

 

[drdumont]

Took delivery of my third Model 3 (Red/White/18" LR AWD) on 2 Dec, 2021. Had a delivery app't scheduled at the local service center on 16 Dec, but at 8am on 2 Dec, I got a text saying my car was on the way to my house and I would get a text when it was near. Two weeks EARLY!. I looked out the window about Noon and there was a red Model 3 magically parked in front of the house next door. No human contact at all (my curb was full at the time). Absolutely no calls, letters, text, emails, Very flares, nothing. Just sitting there, locked. The app unlocked it, and on inspection, no issues. Finally found the cards in the armrest storage - they are black of course, as is the interior of the storage, Hell to find on a bright sunshiny day. And off I went.
I got a 2022 after ordering a 2021. In spite of the delivery pushbacks, I got a 2022 earlier than the last promised date. And during the entire ordering process, I never spoke to nor saw a Tesla employee.
The 2022 has improvements over the 2020, less road noise, and I like the new console design. The little holes in the back glass gasket keeps the rainwater from running into the trunk. And a few little changes here and there. Hooray for the power trunk operator.
Call me a fanboy, zealot, Tesla proselyte or what you will, all three of my Teslas delivered in Dallas were perfect unto my wants, I have had two minor service issues, immediately rectified with no tsouris whatsoever. Even got a loaner without asking for it.
Tesla is not without its warts, and I will continue to complain about the small fonts and the idiocy of the current UI, and the chrome delete, which is gonna cost me $$$ to fix, but I haven't been this happy with a vehicle since I bought my first new car, a '67 Barracuda 383 HiPerf Convertible (12 miles on the ODO). The next new car I bought was the original Good Ship Venus, which also had 12 miles on it. I tend to drive cars until the wheels fall off, and I am guessing my Teslas will outlive me.

 

[Vostok]

Call me a fanboy, zealot, Tesla proselyte or what you will, all three of my Teslas delivered in Dallas were perfect unto my wants

In case you didn’t realise it… you posted this in the Australian forum

 

[0CO2]

In case you didn’t realise it… you posted this in the Australian forum

Who cares? What a great story! Thanks for sharing. That Barracuda would have been a weapon in it's day and still a gorgeous looking car today.

 

[Priit]

Ok, so I might add my story to the list here. I pre-ordered my Model 3 in Jan 2018, it was built in July 2019 and I received it in September 2019. It was built in California. Model 3 SR+ Midnight Silver Metallic. Picked it up late Friday evening so had a quick but not thorough check on pickup and did not see any defects at the time.
I did a bit more thorough check on the next day at home and found a very small less than 2mm by 5mm paint discrepancy probably in the paint foundation as its smooth on surface, in left tail section close to the charging port but as it was so small and almost invisible if not really looking for it, I left it as a manufacturers beauty mark and it has not bothered me since. No other paint issues, panel gap issues or any other issues for that with build quality.
I did notice that the front fog lights were not working and there was no button to turn them on in the screen menus. I asked the Tesla service about it and they said that since the SR+ was not supposed to have fog lights, some had black inserts instead and some had them fully working and some had the lights there but no cabling behind, so mine was probably the latter. I accepted that. I have now come to change my mind as I received the Christmas update with the lightshow feature and the lightshow is able to light up multiple separate sections in those fog lights I have and no other button appears to be able to turn them on, so it is a software restriction somewhere.

So first contact with Tesla Service came 2 years later when they told me there is a complimentary service to check some bolts tightness, as I had no issues with the car or issues with complimentary check, I let them do it. Now 2 months after that I had a squeak develop on the left front end near the wheel, I sent them the sound recording of it and they scheduled a check. They took one look at it and said they know its the left front control arm joint and will replace under warranty, they just had to order the part. Took them 6 weeks to get the part but they replaced it in less than an hour and the squeak was gone. So far have not had any other issues. Though it has been only 2.5 years. The tires did wear out a bit quicker than I expected, I got less than 40k out of the original set of Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires, but reading up on them, that appears normal wear for those specific tires, as they sacrifice longevity to provide better grip and handling. The grip and handling has been very solid, so no complaints there.
I would say that for 30 months of ownership having spent less than 3 hours total at service and no service cost so far, it has been the most reliable and best quality car I have ever owned, considering that most of my cars before were Merc-s that needed service at least yearly for oil changes.

 

[drdumont]

In case you didn’t realise it… you posted this in the Australian forum

Nope didn't realize it. Thanks for pointing it out!

 

[Hairyman]

Nope didn't realize it. Thanks for pointing it out!

Very glad of your thoughts ‘tho

 

[MC3OZ]

My wife's white 2019 M3 SR+ had no issues

Same here.

My only minor issue is one part of the rear number plate bracket breaking, at one stage the plate was hanging via one screw.

I've popped in some extra screws, I'll see if Mobile Service can fix that while doing a regular service, on HVAC filters, etc.

 

[Priit]

Same here.

My only minor issue is one part of the rear number plate bracket breaking, at one stage the plate was hanging via one screw.

I've popped in some extra screws, I'll see if Mobile Service can fix that while doing a regular service, on HVAC filters, etc.

I have had that happen twice now, so both sides of the rear number plate original screws have broken off. Fortunately not at the same time, so the number plate was still hanging on there when I saw. I have managed to get a few extra screws in there so haven't lost the plate, but I do agree that the original screw attachments on that bracket were not reliable or long lasting. I suspect that is not the car manufacturing fault as those plate brackets are country specific (as plate sizes and form factors differ) so whatever plate bracket supplier they use here in Australia, is not very good with the bracket screw attachment design or material quality as they break off in normal use.

 

[MC3OZ]

I have had that happen twice now, so both sides of the rear number plate original screws have broken off. Fortunately not at the same time, so the number plate was still hanging on there when I saw. I have managed to get a few extra screws in there so haven't lost the plate, but I do agree that the original screw attachments on that bracket were not reliable or long lasting. I suspect that is not the car manufacturing fault as those plate brackets are country specific (as plate sizes and form factors differ) so whatever plate bracket supplier they use here in Australia, is not very good with the bracket screw attachment design or material quality as they break off in normal use.

Yes, the rear plate holder for Australia needs a redesign, the plastic is the part that snaps, so just making it out of metal would be a leap forward.
Just Power-coated-steel would do the trick.

Another alternative would be to make a version for wider number plates with 4 screws top and bottom.

I suspect those with the thinner number plates don't have the issue.

Regardless, there have probably been enough of us that have had the issue for it to have caught Tesla's attention,