Model 3 Gaps Oh My...

[Zaphod]

Not to make excuses, but keep in mind Tesla really has only been manufacturing mass-produced cars for 4-5 years. And the early years were still pretty low volume. The legacy automakers have been building cars for decades. Would I love to see flawless Model 3 prototypes in all the pictures, of course, but I'm not going to panic until we see what the truly production released vehicles look like. Who knows what tooling and assembly processes were used for these release candidates.

 

[strykeroz]

I still don't understand why I have to choose between a crappy dealer experience and "hiccups".

You don't. We had both with our GM-branded purchase. Win-win!

Bottom line is one isn't the opposite of the other.

 

[GBleck]

I just don't see it. How is this different then any other car? All "panel" gaps are bigger around the trunk.

 

[Zaphod]

I just don't see it. How is this different then any other car? All "panel" gaps are bigger around the trunk.View attachment 231138

They are talking about the how the trunk lid lines up with the rear window and C-pillar. The "tail" of the trunk lid is crooked and not aligned. That is the biggest area of contention.

 

[GBleck]

They are talking about the how the trunk lid lines up with the rear window and C-pillar. The "tail" of the trunk lid is crooked and not aligned. That is the biggest area of contention.

Feels like more of a design issue then a manufacturing one.

Also more pronounced on white and silver models. If your bugged by it the blue and black models look better.

 

[Runt8]

Feels like more of a design issue then a manufacturing one.

Also more pronounced on white and silver models. If your bugged by it the blue and black models look better.

There's no way they designed it to look that way.

 

[Zaphod]

Feels like more of a design issue then a manufacturing one.

Also more pronounced on white and silver models. If your bugged by it the blue and black models look better.

While the design is probably more sensitive to manufacturing and assembly concerns, I don't think that is the root issue. I just think it is not assembled with the care and accuracy it needs. The trunk lid bolts to the hinges and they bolt to the car. Most likely any misalignment when assembled is magnified due to the unconventional design. If the trunk lid was designed like the Honda, assembly and alignment is probably magnitudes easier to do. I'm sure it will improve as assembly processes and/or fixturing is implemented. Guess we will see in the near future.

 

[Stirfelt]

I'm satisfied (perhaps erroneously) all the concern about fit and finish (on a pre-production vehicle) is a lot about nothing. The vehicles we have thus-far seen are basically hand assembled .... and there have been sheetmetal changes made during the process. We have all seen minor changes in the front end ... does it not follow that a front skin and hood change would impact joints with old design fenders?

When production starts ... robots will cut, form, align, and weld the individual pieces together. Once the robots are aligned .... they should produce duplicates .... copy after copy.

Now, all that said, I read another thread on this forum discussing the build quality of the S. It was not especially encouraging. If the fit and finish of a $100K luxury auto is not up to the highest standard ... I am not sure what we can expect on a $35K vehicle. Time will tell. But that has little to do with the test vehicles we see driving around.

There was a thread a while back about what would cause you to cancel your deposit? A $35-50K vehicle is very costly for me. If it is revealed the production model is poorly assembled, rattles, water leaks, poor paint, sloppy handling (all of which were mentioned in the just mentioned thread) .... I'll cancel in a minute .... regardless of the technological wonders.

Finally .... I do not expect that. My brother has an S and he is very excited about the vehicle and recommends the Tesla brand strongly. I am putting more value in his opinion that some of the nay-sayers that I do not know and may have other agendas.

 

[sandpiper]

...
Now, all that said, I read another thread on this forum discussing the build quality of the S. It was not especially encouraging. If the fit and finish of a $100K luxury auto is not up to the highest standard ... I am not sure what we can expect on a $35K vehicle. Time will tell. But that has little to do with the test vehicles we see driving around.

There was a thread a while back about what would cause you to cancel your deposit? A $35-50K vehicle is very costly for me. If it is revealed the production model is poorly assembled, rattles, water leaks, poor paint, sloppy handling (all of which were mentioned in the just mentioned thread) .... I'll cancel in a minute .... regardless of the technological wonders.

Finally .... I do not expect that. My brother has an S and he is very excited about the vehicle and recommends the Tesla brand strongly. I am putting more value in his opinion that some of the nay-sayers that I do not know and may have other agendas.

To some degree there is an inverse relationship between the price of a car and the number of problems. If you want trouble free, buy a low-mid price boring car - whatever the big builders are making in large numbers. The cars are simple, very well tested, highly refined and don't incorporate any unproven tech.

But, if you buy a really high end supercar, you're going to have some ongoing problems. They push technology and the cars are more complex so things are going fail more frequently. And they don't make enough of them to clear out the niggling problems.

The Model S is between the two, leaning toward the supercar category. The Model 3 should be closer to the low price volume car.

 

[22522]

I think:

The trunk lid is getting bent at the attachment point for the strut. Just push up on the lid a bit and it bends at that see saw point. The large part of the trunk lid registers near the trunk seal, but the hinge is pried up by the bend at the strut attachment point.

 

[dsvick]

To some degree there is an inverse relationship between the price of a car and the number of problems. If you want trouble free, buy a low-mid price boring car - whatever the big builders are making in large numbers. The cars are simple, very well tested, highly refined and don't incorporate any unproven tech.

But, if you buy a really high end supercar, you're going to have some ongoing problems. They push technology and the cars are more complex so things are going fail more frequently. And they don't make enough of them to clear out the niggling problems.

The Model S is between the two, leaning toward the supercar category. The Model 3 should be closer to the low price volume car.

What you're describing is a direct relationship ...

 

[sandpiper]

What you're describing is a direct relationship ...

Yep! Duh!