Outrageous $5000 repair bill after warranty expire!

[Eresan]

I got my model x in late summer 2016 for $110k. During the 3 years of ownership. I had several problems, they all covered under warranty. The most recent problem was this March, right before before my warranty expires. It was the Shock Spring on the suspension at the passenger front tire broke. I heard a very load "pop" when I was driving 10 miles a hour in my neighborhood. The car comes with 5 years warranty or 50k miles whichever comes first.

Unfortunately my car now just past 50k mile, I went to supercharger last week. While it is supercharging, I felt my whole car was shacking and making a big engine noise under the front hood. I could not figure out why and tried to unplug the super charger. It took me like 5-8 minutes to figure out after I turned of the A/C, then the shaking stopped. The AC after that completely quite working.

Same day evening the screen shows
Air conditioning reduced
DC Fast Charging / Supercharging rate maybe reduce.

I bought to the service center, it took them 2 business days to email me a quote. They said "the air conditioner compressor had an internal failure and sent aluminum shaving throughout the system and all needs to be replaced."

I only used the A/C for 2.5 summers... now I have to pay $5k+ to fix it.... I am very upset with it. I don't know if I can or how to get hold of their higher tier manager to see if I can try to ask them to make an exception to fix my car. It is apparently a quality issue. I have had bmw, mercedes, toyota, corvette, dodge, mazda in the past. Non of them had a problem like this. And tesla is the only NEW car I purchased....

I am a big fan of tesla and Elon, that is why I spend so much money on this car even tesla keeps dropping the price after I bought it. I still love it so much. However the $5147 A/C failure in 3 years is NOT acceptable.

Before my warranty expire couple of month ago. I did consider to purchase extended warranty. I read peoples opinion on the forum, agreed not to pay the $4000 ahead of the time, can't believe this.

 

[Sandiegodoug]

I was thinking about skipping the extended warentee on our 6/17 x, but after reading your post, maybe I’ll cough up the money.

 

[NHK X]

Same here, problem is I will probably blow through the warranty in about 1.5 years with how much I drive.

 

[Tam]

1) ESA is useless for those who won't need it at all (no repair claims ever)

and

2) ESA is most vital for those who will need it most (lots of expensive repair claims).

So who among us can predict that simple future: 1 or 2?

 

[jmaddr]

@Eresan, sorry for your bad fortune but I think that's all it is, bad fortune. Sometimes you hear about car companies doing a one time exception, but I think that is just that, an exception and not common unless you have purchased several cars from the dealership and trade it in every two year. However, it's always worth the effort so I say go for it. It's bad timing your AC went but that's all it is...bad timing. You unfortunately are out of warranty.

As for the extended warranty, even with this $5k bill, I still think you will come out ahead in the long run. Think of it this way. If that $5k is the only thing you would have covered in the X years of the extended warranty, you would only be $1k in the hole, and even then they usually have deductibles that will reduce that $1k to potentially peanuts. Couple that with a lifetime of refusing extended warranties and you are way ahead. You may lose a couple, but you will win the many. Most every financial advisor like Clark Howard and others say they are a waste of money in almost every case.

Again, bummer. Good luck to you.

 

[Grassright]

Maybe consider trade-in the car to Tesla, and get a new one... Hope they give you some discount..

 

[MXWing]

1) ESA is useless for those who won't need it at all (no repair claims ever)

and

2) ESA is most vital for those who will need it most (lots of expensive repair claims).

So who among us can predict that simple future: 1 or 2?

There’s 2 calculations for this.

MTBF - mean time before failure and risk adversity.

Everything is “typically” designed to not fail during warranty periods. Precision of MTBF is higher during the initial warranty period.

MTBF will is less precise between when ESA starts and it ends. Warranty programs, however expect to take in more than they spend.

Next comes to your risk adversity. Can you afford to fix your car during the ESA without the coverage?

If you can, you roll the dice and take your chances. Chances are good you end up on the right side as ESA in average have negative ROI.

If you cannot afford the repair and do not want to take risk, you just pay for the ESA and roll it into the total cost of ownership.

I personally would not expend energy on uncertainty as opportunity cost is very high on service headaches. If I keep the car I buy the ESA - assuming I am on pace to match miles / years.

 

[nctalkinghead]

When I was coming up on the 50k mile mark on my 2016 Model X, I weighed purchasing the ESA for $4000, plus $200 deductible every time I used it, plus the "then implied requirement to do the extended service every year." This was happening just before the $7500 tax credit was ending. I was able to sell my 2016 and purchase a new - albeit a 75D - car, with the tax credit, that cost me $2000 out of pocket.

 

[Eresan]

I was thinking about skipping the extended warentee on our 6/17 x, but after reading your post, maybe I’ll cough up the money.

Definately! Give you piece of mind! Each problem visit will cost you at lease $1000 without warranty. And learn the lesson do not buy a out of warranty tesla

 

[Eresan]

Maybe consider trade-in the car to Tesla, and get a new one... Hope they give you some discount..

The problem is, tesla depreciate so fast. My 2016 tesla now only worth $60k in 3 years, from $110k

 

[Bet TSLA]

Before my warranty expire couple of month ago. I did consider to purchase extended warranty. I read peoples opinion on the forum, agreed not to pay the $4000 ahead of the time, can't believe this.

Go to your favorite service center. Talk to the service manager. Ask if they would consider letting you retroactively purchase the extended warranty (after making sure your AC problem would be covered. Worth a shot depending on how recently you passed 50,000 miles.

 

[Dutchie]

Isn't there some kind of legal warranty under consumer protection law? I know that there is one in the EU that says that the manufacturer is on the hook, as it is reasonable for a consumer to expect an air conditioner to last more than the 2.5 summers described, despite the warranty given by manufacturer.

 

[cpa]

Another thing that I just found out about Tesla and the extended warranty.

Automobiles under warranty are eligible for mobile service. Those that are not under warranty must be taken to the Service Center for diagnosis and repair, regardless of issue, or so I was led to believe.

Many minor issues do not need to be taken to the Service Center, like doors, windows, 12V battery, and touchscreen issues (I believe.)

Purchasing the extended warranty continues the availability of mobile service.

We were denied a mobile service appointment to repair a window until I correctly pointed out that we had purchased the extended warranty. Tesla quickly backtracked and set up our appointment.

 

[outdoors]

Another thing that I just found out about Tesla and the extended warranty.

Automobiles under warranty are eligible for mobile service. Those that are not under warranty must be taken to the Service Center for diagnosis and repair, regardless of issue, or so I was led to believe.

Many minor issues do not need to be taken to the Service Center, like doors, windows, 12V battery, and touchscreen issues (I believe.)

Purchasing the extended warranty continues the availability of mobile service.

We were denied a mobile service appointment to repair a window until I correctly pointed out that we had purchased the extended warranty. Tesla quickly backtracked and set up our appointment.

That's interesting. I had my charge port door replaced outside of warranty by about 20k in miles by a mobile tech just recently.

Did they say bring it to us and provide a date? Or did you request via mobile service and they declined after date was provided at SC?

Not disputing what was told, but does it say it in the warranty that you must bring it in, or did a Tesla employee tell it to you? Sounds BS like to me. The whole model on service that Tesla is working on is to do mobile for just about everything they can vs. brick and mortar service centers. Seems almost backwards as a "rule".

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

I got my model x in late summer 2016 for $110k. During the 3 years of ownership. I had several problems, they all covered under warranty. The most recent problem was this March, right before before my warranty expires. It was the Shock Spring on the suspension at the passenger front tire broke. I heard a very load "pop" when I was driving 10 miles a hour in my neighborhood. The car comes with 5 years warranty or 50k miles whichever comes first.

Unfortunately my car now just past 50k mile, I went to supercharger last week. While it is supercharging, I felt my whole car was shacking and making a big engine noise under the front hood. I could not figure out why and tried to unplug the super charger. It took me like 5-8 minutes to figure out after I turned of the A/C, then the shaking stopped. The AC after that completely quite working.

Same day evening the screen shows
Air conditioning reduced
DC Fast Charging / Supercharging rate maybe reduce.

I bought to the service center, it took them 2 business days to email me a quote. They said "the air conditioner compressor had an internal failure and sent aluminum shaving throughout the system and all needs to be replaced."

I only used the A/C for 2.5 summers... now I have to pay $5k+ to fix it.... I am very upset with it. I don't know if I can or how to get hold of their higher tier manager to see if I can try to ask them to make an exception to fix my car. It is apparently a quality issue. I have had bmw, mercedes, toyota, corvette, dodge, mazda in the past. Non of them had a problem like this. And tesla is the only NEW car I purchased....

I am a big fan of tesla and Elon, that is why I spend so much money on this car even tesla keeps dropping the price after I bought it. I still love it so much. However the $5147 A/C failure in 3 years is NOT acceptable.

Before my warranty expire couple of month ago. I did consider to purchase extended warranty. I read peoples opinion on the forum, agreed not to pay the $4000 ahead of the time, can't believe this.

The general rule with extended warranties to skip them.

But, on a vehicle that even Elon Musk himself admits is too complicated?

To be frank you got bad advice on the Thread, and Tesla really should have just covered it under warranty as you were barely past it.

If they covered it you would have been more likely to get a Model X in the future. Now that you've had a $5K repair bill just after the warranty expired means you'll likely pass on the Model X in the future.

Dumb move by Tesla.

 

[cpa]

That's interesting. I had my charge port door replaced outside of warranty by about 20k in miles by a mobile tech just recently.

Did they say bring it to us and provide a date? Or did you request via mobile service and they declined after date was provided at SC?

Not disputing what was told, but does it say it in the warranty that you must bring it in, or did a Tesla employee tell it to you? Sounds BS like to me. The whole model on service that Tesla is working on is to do mobile for just about everything they can vs. brick and mortar service centers. Seems almost backwards as a "rule".

Here is the text message I received verbatim:

"Hi this is Fresno Tesla. Unfortunately your Model S is out of warranty. We no longer do customer pay diagnosis or repairs in the field. Please schedule an appointment with our service center on your mobile app using the following directions...Your Mobile Service has been canceled. Please schedule a Service Center visit through your Tesla Mobile App. Select either 'Tires and Wheels,' 'Heating and Air Conditioning,' or 'Glass Replacement.' Then enter your concerns in the notes, then select the Service Center of your choice. Thank you--Tesla Mobile of Fresno."

My guess--strictly a guess--is that what I received was the Company Line. Individual centers and even individual mobile techs probably know how to do an end run around the Company Line.

 

[outdoors]

Here is the text message I received verbatim:

"Hi this is Fresno Tesla. Unfortunately your Model S is out of warranty. We no longer do customer pay diagnosis or repairs in the field. Please schedule an appointment with our service center on your mobile app using the following directions...Your Mobile Service has been canceled. Please schedule a Service Center visit through your Tesla Mobile App. Select either 'Tires and Wheels,' 'Heating and Air Conditioning,' or 'Glass Replacement.' Then enter your concerns in the notes, then select the Service Center of your choice. Thank you--Tesla Mobile of Fresno."

My guess--strictly a guess--is that what I received was the Company Line. Individual centers and even individual mobile techs probably know how to do an end run around the Company Line.

This news extremely disturbing. Just counter to my thoughts on the direction this company is heading. Might just have to open my twitter account again.

 

[jboy210]

BMW charged us $7,500 for a turbo and wastegate after they blew on our 335. It was 5 years old and had 35,000 miles. Warranty was 4 years 50,000 miles, which ever occurs first.

 

[BrokerDon]

Sorry your AC went out that you "only used the A/C for 2.5 summers" but I think you're missing a BIG difference between an AC in an ICE car and you Tesla. ICE cars DON'T use their AC to cool their batteries... Teslas DO.

As for your out of warranty repair being expensive, well you gambled when you didn't buy an Extended Service Agreement from Tesla. I paid $4,250 for our Tesla ESP to cover any expensive repairs like yours... so why should Tesla cover your repair for free but charge me $200 deductible in addition to the $4,250 I paid already? EXACTLY... Doesn't make sense.

Also, since you "had bmw, mercedes, toyota, corvette, dodge, mazda in the past. Non of them had a problem like this" then you were running on borrowed time against a major repair on your next vehicle... and you Tesla just happened to be it. I've owned BMW, Mercedes, Toyota, Corvette, Audi, Jeep, Porsche, Ford, etc. too and have been bit my major repairs on Mercedes, Corvette, Ford and Jeep. Fortunately I'd purchased Extended Service Agreements for ALL of these which actually saved me THOU$AND$ vs. paying out of pocket... and could have paid a lot more if the repairs had been more catastrophic (Corvette Z06 engine $12,000, Mercedes Blutec DEF system $5,000, etc.

Owning ay vehicle without having an Extended Service Agreement is a gamble... which you lost. Accept you made a bad bet and man up to the consequences. That's life.

 

[mohanman]

just bought the extended warranty ... 4800
Thanks for posting this!! Jeez.