Paint Issues at Delivery - Worth it to Repaint?

[sbtz]

Took delivery of my MSM AWD 3 today after a loooooooong ordeal leading up to the event (over a week's worth of logistics problems, then sent home from AM delivery), and even spent most of the day at the DC with delivery issues. When I walked around the car, I noticed that there were some paint defects on the passenger side front door. There were three "pitts" in the paint, as if there were three small grains of sand stuck to the panel when it was painted, then removed afterward. TBH, they're barely noticeable kind of like tiny pimple scars - and I might not have even seen them if the detailing/prep team hadn't done such an awful job prepping the car that I felt like I needed to look more closely.

My delivery rep brought over someone from the service side, who said that she'd go ahead and make an appointment for me to have the door repainted. I'm glad they didn't gloss over the issue, but part of me wonders whether it's even a big enough deal to have the door repainted (who knows how well they'd even do that - and I'd be without the car for 1-2 weeks)? Should I leave well-enough alone?

 

[ttom3]

Buying the extra cost Obsidian Black Metallic, manufactured 10/2018, one pit of white showing rear quarter, trunk lid upper side had tiny paint bit sticking up, same things on side view mirror, and just under frunk near headlight. Orange peel surfaces except perhaps the frunk lid. Yes, poorly prepped, even after a twice over; seals between panoramic glasses and windshield seemed to be coated with fine light brown dust which is terrible against black paint...not sure if removable or stuck on rubber. Dealer says only about half the cars arrive with covers during shipping...that sounds risky and new cars in lot seemed to be arriving very dusty w/ 10/2018 dates. And 1" paint chip near front wheel well. Not happy, but they will repaint as needed. Windshield glass to panoramic glass transition not even, up on one side vs. other, may be another redo. Panoramic glass edges have uneven grey edge, but maybe cleanup will even it out. Some panels not transitioning evenly as well, but may accept. Gaps between panels not bad. Otherwise, it would be a lovely car if perfected a bit more before leaving factory.

 

[super20g]

My (also MSM) car has several dust nibs on every panel. They repainted the worst panels TWICE and still dust nibs on most panels and now at least one paint run. During the process of repainting the panels, they damaged the front bumper and had to repair/repaint it as well. They also damaged EVERY piece of glass on the car and EVERY piece of glass had to be replaced which led to scratches in the door panels, scratches in the paint in the door sills, etc. I am still left with a car with the paint in similar condition as before and a lot more damage added and a shady service center that forced me to take the car back so it didn't hit the 30 days to meet lemon criteria.

While YMMV, I provide this cautionary tale to let you know that if your issue is very minor like it sounds, I would ask for the cost of the repainted panel be refunded or added as service credit and do not get it fixed...

 

[Glamisduner]

I'd have it fixed but maybe it friends on your local service center. The service center does not repaint your car they take it to a body shop for that. They should also give you a loaner Tesla in the meantime.

 

[TampaRich]

Leave it alone. A few hundred miles in the highway and you’ll have dings that make those pits incredibly minor. Flawless paint is an unattainable goal unless you’re planning on never driving it.

 

[paranoidroid]

Leave it alone. A few hundred miles in the highway and you’ll have dings that make those pits incredibly minor. Flawless paint is an unattainable goal unless you’re planning on never driving it.

^^^ THIS.

 

[C141medic]

My (also MSM) car has several dust nibs on every panel. They repainted the worst panels TWICE and still dust nibs on most panels and now at least one paint run. During the process of repainting the panels, they damaged the front bumper and had to repair/repaint it as well. They also damaged EVERY piece of glass on the car and EVERY piece of glass had to be replaced which led to scratches in the door panels, scratches in the paint in the door sills, etc. I am still left with a car with the paint in similar condition as before and a lot more damage added and a shady service center that forced me to take the car back so it didn't hit the 30 days to meet lemon criteria.

While YMMV, I provide this cautionary tale to let you know that if your issue is very minor like it sounds, I would ask for the cost of the repainted panel be refunded or added as service credit and do not get it fixed...

I had a small chip after a door sill repair which took almost 2 weeks. Dropped it off at the SC this past Monday. Its been sitting at the body shop since then. Was supposed to pick up this past Friday. Not even sure if they repaired it at this point. Communication between the SC and body shop is horrible for them to let car sit at body shop for a week. So, my tally is 3 weeks body shop and about 3 weeks of actual drive time of my car. Wtf?

 

[ba2002]

I could share a long boring story about getting something repaired and causing other issues but I'll skip it and say - don't fix them.

 

[BrokerDon]

I had a similar problem with a door panel on a brand new triple BLACK Corvette convertible. Dealer had the door repainted... but the idiots at the body shop they took it to painted this door "orange peel" even though the rest of the car wasn't... AND these monkeys oversprayed the ENTIRE car too including every piece of glass and chrome. Dealer said no problem our body shop will fix it... and after 2 days they call me just before closing to pick it up. I notice my car is parked around back in the shade, so I pull it into the sunlight and HOLY SPIT the ENTIRE beautiful original black paint now has horrible buffer swirl marks everywhere !!! I refuse to accept it and after another 2 days meet with the owner of the STEALERship who agrees to repaint my entire no longer brand new Corvette at another body shop I choose at their cost. Two weeks later I finally have my "new" Corvette. Wished I'd never let them repaint it !!!

BOTTOM LINE: Don't sweat a couple of almost imperceptible paint blemishes. The "fix" will probably be worse than the "cure", especially your time in some other car while your new Model 3 is in a body shop.

BTW we bought an "inventory" 2015 P85D with 3,000 miles on it which had some minor blemishes. Haven't noticed the blemishes since our EAR-TO-EAR Tesla grin still reappears every time we drive our Tesla... or talk about Teslas... especially after we got the Ludicrous upgrade.

 

[brandonee916]

I have little "bubbles" in nearly every panel (they look like air bubbles in the clear coat, LOTS of them)... clear coat paint drip on my fender, back bumper alignment was really off, and the front bumper has a dark area and lots of bubbles like it was cooked, headlights misaligned. I took delivery on 9/8, dropped the car off a week later... I haven't seem my car ever since :-( I'm trying to keep positive that it will be right, but I'm getting really disappointed by my experience.

 

[C141medic]

I could share a long boring story about getting something repaired and causing other issues but I'll skip it and say - don't fix them.

So you’re okay with not getting whatever is wrong with your brand new car not addressed? I understand that sh*t happens after you’ve owned your car awhile but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to have a brand new car delivered to you without any defects whether they’re mechanical or body/paint related and expect to have them repaired in an appropriate manner.

 

[voip-ninja]

So you’re okay with not getting whatever is wrong with your brand new car not addressed? I understand that sh*t happens after you’ve owned your car awhile but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to have a brand new car delivered to you without any defects whether they’re mechanical or body/paint related and expect to have them repaired in an appropriate manner.

Its not unreasonable. However for a really minor issue it might be better off trying to get some other compensation rather than take the chance that a body shop will “fix” the problem and in the process make things worse.

 

[C141medic]

Its not unreasonable. However for a really minor issue it might be better off trying to get some other compensation rather than take the chance that a body shop will “fix” the problem and in the process make things worse.

I hear you. I have my fingers crossed hoping that everything will be taken care of and no new issues crop up. Don’t know what the alternatives are since I wasn’t offered any by the SC?

 

[Stirfelt]

Frustration with the SC will only get worse as each month additional new M3's with deficiencies are delivered to owners.

The SC correcting defects is NOT the answer!
Assembling a vehicle without flaws is the ONLY solution. Then let the SC's deal with fewer issues that crop up.

No one should or can expect a "perfect" automobile. If more buyers would reject shoddy assembly, Tesla would find a way to correct the problems reported on this forum by new owners.

BTW .... Tesla "seems" to have solved the assembly defects on the S.

 

[roblab]

So you’re okay with not getting whatever is wrong with your brand new car not addressed? I understand that sh*t happens after you’ve owned your car awhile but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to have a brand new car delivered to you without any defects whether they’re mechanical or body/paint related and expect to have them repaired in an appropriate manner.

Mechanical defects, absolutely, but cosmetic? Just get in and drive. You won't see them, and neither will anyone else.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Before asking Tesla to repaint, ask yourself if you would have it done if you needed to pay for it.

Everybody wants flawless paint, but we can be a bit nit pickey when someone else is picking up the tab.

On the other hand I have seen some new cars with poor paint that really needs correction.

 

[Stirfelt]

"Just get in and drive. You won't see them, (blemishes)."

The same can be said for the new Prius. From the drivers seat you cannot see how ugly it is.

I'm sorry, but I am a visual sort of guy. You must approach the car "to get in."

 

[kmtl]

I had similar issues at delivery and the fix has been a disaster. Service center and their subcontracted paint shop said three days...took 2.5 weeks and I got the car back completely covered in clearcoat overspray. The windshield looked frosted when the sun hit it, no QC from Service Ctr. Center will make a second attempt to fix this soon. I made them clay-bar it the first time (they wanted to start with cutting compound and a buffer.) Moderate success..about halfway there. Even when the overspray is compounded and polished away my new $59k car has hazy, swirled clearcoat and will never look the way it should without repainting. Service is doing their best to recover I guess, but I wish I'd never bothered.
Tesla should have just offered cash in lieu of fixing the original issues.

 

[Stirfelt]

Referring to my post above, I keep thinking ..........
I worked hard for many, many years; made a lot of sacrifices along the way, to earn a comfortable retirement.
The memory of the effort helped me come to an mental association between the value of money and .... effort, sweat, and long hours.
The thought of exchanging hard earned dollars .... for a car that appears to be becoming more and more conflicted with assembly faults,
is unsettling.

Initially, I placed "want" and "need" on opposite sides of a virtual balance scale. The "want" side heavily out-weighed the "need."
The "want" in still there, and that is what keep me "in the game" reading the forum (and not asking for my $1k back).
But the "need" has tipped the scale the opposite way now, and I realize I do not "need" an M3 for a while, and certainly not until the QC issues are solved.

But what about the $7500 rebate?
Well, it was never a factor ..... from the beginning I knew that I only "needed" the SR, and "$3750 was a more realistic goal.
Reading the many, more recent post .... owners are reporting $3750 worth of misery: long waits to get a reservation at the SC; incomplete repairs (parts on order); and most recently, new cars returning from the SC in worse condition than when they entered.

BTW, not long ago, most owners praised the SC's; recommended this one and that; praised how the faults were properly addressed and corrected; AND, a loaner was provided. Based on recently reported experiences, the praise is being replaced with frustration.
It's not too late ..... but Tesla's upper management had better address these issues quickly.

 

[voip-ninja]

I had similar issues at delivery and the fix has been a disaster. Service center and their subcontracted paint shop said three days...took 2.5 weeks and I got the car back completely covered in clearcoat overspray. The windshield looked frosted when the sun hit it, no QC from Service Ctr. Center will make a second attempt to fix this soon. I made them clay-bar it the first time (they wanted to start with cutting compound and a buffer.) Moderate success..about halfway there. Even when the overspray is compounded and polished away my new $59k car has hazy, swirled clearcoat and will never look the way it should without repainting. Service is doing their best to recover I guess, but I wish I'd never bothered.
Tesla should have just offered cash in lieu of fixing the original issues.

IMO that is exactly what Tesla should be doing in these situations. If the fix through a body shop would be $1500 then offer the customer $1500 in Tesla store credit (with their margins that costs them $850) or $1000 cash and save everyone a lot of trouble. They could also offer free EAP for owners who don’t already have it since it effectively costs them nothing other than a theoretical future sale they might never get.

This body shop debacle might explain why Tesla is bringing bodywork in house.