Model 3 repairs

[privatepilot]

I'm really struggling with the decision to buy a model 3 or not (I have my reservation). On the one hand I luv the company and what they stand for. On the other hand, I see these horror stories of people being charged huge sums for repairs out of warranty.
This car will cost me 5 years of savings, so I was planning on keeping it for a long time, well beyond the warranty. However the 'dark side' of Tesla (out of warranty) scares me. Is anyone else facing a similar struggle?

 

[mbman81]

What are these big dark side expenses you have seen? Just curious. I have thought it's simpler and less things to go out on a Tesla/EV then a normal car. Big ticket items I think of are drivetrain related, but those are all 8 years. So a while before it passes. Non-drivetrain is probably similar to ICE cars.

 

[Fusion]

I think it should be less for this car compared to the S or X. Those had very expensive electronics if you had to replace them such as door handles and rear trunk motors.

 

[cwerdna]

Big ticket items I think of are drivetrain related, but those are all 8 years. So a while before it passes. Non-drivetrain is probably similar to ICE cars.

NO! On the Model S and X, the 8 year warranty is on the battery pack and drive UNIT (Vehicle Warranty | Model S and Model X). There is no "drivetrain" warranty.

 

[tracksyde]

I think with hundreds of thousands Model 3s in the wild in the next couple of years, (1) there will be an excellent supply of parts on eBay and (2) 3rd party/OEM auto parts manufacturers will be getting in on the action too. Also, Tesla is going to start offering auto body repair services themselves. That alone may drive the market cost of repairs down in the future.

 

[cwerdna]

Those had very expensive electronics if you had to replace them such as door handles and rear trunk motors.

Yep. On the S, the door handles were expensive, along with MCU ($2700 to fix MCU. Might DIY, but how much to reprogram new unit?) and half shafts: Clunking sound is costing me a bundle to fix out of warranty.

A/C Compressor finally failed. But $3400??! is also pricey, but in the end, he didn't need to get the compressor replaced, only the DC to DC converter. We haven't found out the final bill though... I don't think either of these issues are that common though, unlike the S door handles.

 

[voip-ninja]

I think with hundreds of thousands Model 3s in the wild in the next couple of years, (1) there will be an excellent supply of parts on eBay and (2) 3rd party/OEM auto parts manufacturers will be getting in on the action too. Also, Tesla is going to start offering auto body repair services themselves. That alone may drive the market cost of repairs down in the future.

The problem from the OPs perspective could really boil down to how willing he is to do his own repairs or find a shop willing to undertake repairs when Tesla refuses to provide the kind of repair information and direct-sell parts like every other auto maker on the planet.

The concern he has is a legitimate one. Consumer Reports, who initially gave the Model S the highest score of any car they had ever tested did ultimately revise the score down after seeing the 'ludicrous mode' repair costs of the car, even under warranty.

While the Model 3 should cost less to maintain over the long haul than the more complicated MS, it's a complete crap shoot right now on what the long term reliability is going to be or what repairs are going to cost.

I believe that replacing the drive unit, center screen, or one of a number of other things will still be multi-thousand dollar repairs.... but we don't yet know how reliable those parts are going to be over 10 years and hundreds of thousands of kilometers.

 

[adaptabl]

I wouldn't keep it after the warranty expires. Budget for the 4 years than move on. Maybe Tesla service rates will fall but who knows. If you budget doesn't work for 4 years maybe it is not the car for you.

 

[dhrivnak]

I'm really struggling with the decision to buy a model 3 or not (I have my reservation). On the one hand I luv the company and what they stand for. On the other hand, I see these horror stories of people being charged huge sums for repairs out of warranty.
This car will cost me 5 years of savings, so I was planning on keeping it for a long time, well beyond the warranty. However the 'dark side' of Tesla (out of warranty) scares me. Is anyone else facing a similar struggle?

I have a Roadster that is now 5 years out of warranty and parts have not been excessive and fortunately quite rare.

 

[David L]

I love the Model 3 and would recommend it, but spending 5 years of savings on a depreciating asset seems excessive. At their current prices, Teslas are luxury goods.

 

[voip-ninja]

I wouldn't keep it after the warranty expires. Budget for the 4 years than move on. Maybe Tesla service rates will fall but who knows. If you budget doesn't work for 4 years maybe it is not the car for you.

Keep in mind that this is the most expensive way to own a vehicle, and might not jive with the OPs objective which appears to be to purchase the vehicle and drive it for an extended period of time.

If you purchase a Model 3 for, let's say in New Zealand, $70,000 and drive it for four years and it's then worth 50% of what you paid for it (I'm being generous) then you just spent almost $9,000 per year to own it and that doesn't even count insurance/registration/taxes/fueling costs.

 

[vinnie97]

I wouldn't keep it after the warranty expires. Budget for the 4 years than move on. Maybe Tesla service rates will fall but who knows. If you budget doesn't work for 4 years maybe it is not the car for you.

That's dire.

 

[eSpiritIV]

Don't worry, the S and X are expensive for a reason. No mass produced parts. Model 3 will be way different. Also there will be aftermarket parts in a couple years.

This car is way simpler design for a reason. You won't regret it .Just get the 35k car

 

[C141medic]

Keep in mind that this is the most expensive way to own a vehicle, and might not jive with the OPs objective which appears to be to purchase the vehicle and drive it for an extended period of time.

If you purchase a Model 3 for, let's say in New Zealand, $70,000 and drive it for four years and it's then worth 50% of what you paid for it (I'm being generous) then you just spent almost $9,000 per year to own it and that doesn't even count insurance/registration/taxes/fueling costs.

Exactly. This is one of the reasons I canceled my reservation. I’m still planning on a M3 but will wait until leasing opens up. Tesla’s are great vehicles; however, for me personally, leasing rather than purchase is a better option.

 

[voip-ninja]

Exactly. This is one of the reasons I canceled my reservation. I’m still planning on a M3 but will wait until leasing opens up. Tesla’s are great vehicles; however, for me personally, leasing rather than purchase is a better option.

Leasing cost will actually be a bit higher unless Tesla starts offering lease support (discounts) similar to what BMW does.

The main reason to lease is that the bank doing the lease is assuming all of the depreciation risk associated with such a new model.

 

[omgwtfbyobbq]

I'm also a little wary of being out of warranty, but thanks to some really enterprising DIYers there's far more info on the S out there, and sooner or later I imagine X and 3 specific issues will be addressed.

If push comes to shove, there are a few technical wizards on the forum like Ingineer who might be able to provide support and/or repair the problem for a lot less than Tesla charges.

Model 3 Teardown - What's under the Frunk?

 

[Tummy]

There will be high repair costs and long lead times. Tesla doesn't have anywhere the logistics of the ICE car manufacturers that have been in business for 100 years. Tesla also requires approved repair centers with a post repair inspection, otherwise they can remotely disable supercharging, software updates and other functionality. This is the reality so far.

If you plan to keep the car and are worried about it, budget for the extended warranty which has not been announced yet. Also for insurance claims, make sure you have a good rental car coverage, because they take forever to complete collision repairs, months for Tesla which might take a few weeks for Mercedes/BMW.

 

[ewoodrick]

I'm really struggling with the decision to buy a model 3 or not (I have my reservation). On the one hand I luv the company and what they stand for. On the other hand, I see these horror stories of people being charged huge sums for repairs out of warranty.
This car will cost me 5 years of savings, so I was planning on keeping it for a long time, well beyond the warranty. However the 'dark side' of Tesla (out of warranty) scares me. Is anyone else facing a similar struggle?

First, I suspect that you are hearing the horror stories on the MX and MS, they are much more expensive cars and generally have higher repair bills no matter what. But, you also look at cars with technologies and parts not built for the mass market. The M3 should be a horse of a different color. Once the backlog is delivered, parts should become readily available, locations to repair more numerous, and part reliability higher to begin with.
You hopefully won't even have to worry about this for about 4 years, once it is out of warranty.

But, I don't think that I would recommend 5 years of savings for the car. There are a lot of things in life that can pop up and change your needs. It takes a lot of work to create that much savings, don't go overboard because of a car.

 

[H2050]

4 years later you don't need to own a car, get $2 auto driven taxi is cheaper.

 

[MXWing]

With 2 million Model 3s on the road by the time 3 years rolls around I don’t think it will be as difficult as an S and an X to fix that might have 500,000 total between the two in the same time period.

Tesla’s top the hot crazy matrix. Crazy but hot.

You just put up with the extra BS.

No regrets.. yet