Poor Delivery Experience and Already Having an Issue

[T397]

So like all new buyers, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on my new Model 3. I bought the SR+ and my car had an arrival date of last Thursday.

To start off, my delivery date was delayed three times, from last Thursday to what would’ve been tomorrow, but due to work, I wouldn’t have been able to pick the car up until this Friday. The individual who I sold my old car to was coming to pickup my car on the upcoming Saturday (yesterday) so I would have been without a car for a week.

After calling them about five times, I was finally able to get them to assign me a new VIN to a car that’s already been delivered, and sitting on the lot for about a week. They explained that I could pickup the car on Thursday, but that they wouldn’t have the car detailed and buffed (they ended up giving me an ability to come back on a scheduled service date to have the car detailed and buffed.)

When the car arrived, it was pooring rain so I tried to inspect the car to the best of my ability. There were a few scratches and scrapes on the inside of the door panel which the sales rep noted, and explained would be taken care of during the detailing process. There was also yellow dust all over the inside of the car. I drove the car home and the following day after it had dried up, and I decided to look the car over entirely. The car had a number of scrapes and scratches, as well as a dent on the passenger side door, with glue and tape residue all over the car from what I would assume to have been shipping. I’m really hoping this will all come out during the detailing process...

Anyway, today I’m driving, and on my 128th mile, I get an alert that says “cabin heating unavailable, contact Tesla service”. After doing some research, it seems as if this involves the DC-DC fuse, which without a warranty would’ve been a $3,000 fix. This is concerning, especially if this is the case being that I had only driven 128 miles with the car...

I scheduled a service appointment, but the soonest they can get me in is in about 2 weeks, and my nearest service center is over an hour away. For the next two weeks, I’ll have no way to heat my car or defrost my windows, and in the north east USA it’s going to be cold for quite some time.

I haven’t actually spoken directly with a Tesla rep yet, but does anyone have advice on how I should handle this with Tesla? This whole experience has been nothing but stressful for me, especially because this was my first time buying a car.

 

[Tam]

...2 weeks, and my nearest service center is over an hour away...

Sorry about your experience.

In a subfreezing winter region, the heater is important and a safety issue because I don't see how you can drive without it when your car would all be fogged up.

I would call Service Center and get your car in the same day so you can get a loaner with a functional heater.

 

[T397]

Sorry about your experience.

In a subfreezing winter region, the heater is important and a safety issue because I don't see how you can drive without it when your car would all be fogged up.

I would call Service Center and get your car in the same day so you can get a loaner with a functional heater.

Thanks, I really hope they’ll be able to do this.

 

[Tam]

...This is concerning..

As long as this is taken care of, I wouldn't worry about the rest of your car because it might just be a bad component that was mistakenly passed in a Quality Control check from a third party supplier.

 

[jkoya]

When the car arrived, it was pooring rain so I tried to inspect the car to the best of my ability.

I was in the same situation in December. Took delivery of the car outside in the rain and it was almost impossible to see all the defects in the paint. When the car finally dried in the garage, I found several scratches, paint chips, sand in the clear coat, discolored splotches and a small crack in the front roof glass. Only Tesla approved body shop in the area was backed up, so it took a 2.5 month wait to get the car fixed.

I hope they can fix your heater and defroster sooner than later. Let us know how it goes.

 

[notAnExpert]

Because you are within the return period, can you check if they have another inventory car they can switch you to?

 

[Stroble]

Service centers are pretty accommodating from my experience...may take longer then expected once they have the car though..hope you get resolved

 

[sperkin]

You should return the car and Tesla should give you a loaner S in the meantime until your new car arrives. This is a brand you have to love and stick with. What you experienced with delivery delays is the same with both of my cars. It’s not Tesla’s fault. Truck drivers have too much power and deliver at will.

I love Tesla, but I talked my cousins and brother out of buying it. You really have to be a fanboy to buy one at this time. I don’t want any family members to blame me for their large purchases.

1. Tesla has the best Charging network but still not enough. There’s usually 2-3 Tesla in front of you waiting to charge. So expect a 15-30min wait before you can charge. This will take another 45-60min to get a decent range.
2. Tesla has great service support but not enough. It takes 4-5 weeks for the next open appointment slot. I drove around on really a cracked up spring for that long and I drove 400 miles per week. I could have probably been in a bad accident if the spring broke in 2 at Fwy speed. Had no idea it was my springs. I thought it was plastic body panels.
3. Car still has build and software issues where normal car people won’t want to be bothered by it. My springs broke on my AWD at 5k miles, software broke in my RWD broke at 2k miles. I have doors that don’t close all the way or doors can’t open from the inside. My cars have a combined of 100+ days at the shop. Tesla does offer Tesla Model S but those don’t have EAP. I only bought a Tesla for EAP. Otherwise it’s just a regular car but one that adds a couple of hours on a road trip.

So you have to ask yourself, do you like Tesla enough to put up with this?

1. You’ll have other issues later like a headlight go out which is something you need to wait a long time for a ranger to get out to you. It’s not something you can just DIY in a couple of minutes.
2. You will get a flat and there’s no tire shops around that can fix it. I stock 4 new OEM tires in my garage. My wife gets 3 nails in her tires/ year on average.

Plan ahead if you want to keep your car. Once you fall in love with Tesla then you’ll have the perfect car.

 

[Glamisduner]

You should return the car and Tesla should give you a loaner S in the meantime until your new car arrives. This is a brand you have to love and stick with. What you experienced with delivery delays is the same with both of my cars. It’s not Tesla’s fault. Truck drivers have too much power and deliver at will.

I love Tesla, but I talked my cousins and brother out of buying it. You really have to be a fanboy to buy one at this time. I don’t want any family members to blame me for their large purchases.

1. Tesla has the best Charging network but still not enough. There’s usually 2-3 Tesla in front of you waiting to charge. So expect a 15-30min wait before you can charge. This will take another 45-60min to get a decent range.
2. Tesla has great service support but not enough. It takes 4-5 weeks for the next open appointment slot. I drove around on really a cracked up spring for that long and I drove 400 miles per week. I could have probably been in a bad accident if the spring broke in 2 at Fwy speed. Had no idea it was my springs. I thought it was plastic body panels.
3. Car still has build and software issues where normal car people won’t want to be bothered by it. My springs broke on my AWD at 5k miles, software broke in my RWD broke at 2k miles. I have doors that don’t close all the way or doors can’t open from the inside. My cars have a combined of 100+ days at the shop. Tesla does offer Tesla Model S but those don’t have EAP. I only bought a Tesla for EAP. Otherwise it’s just a regular car but one that adds a couple of hours on a road trip.

So you have to ask yourself, do you like Tesla enough to put up with this?

1. You’ll have other issues later like a headlight go out which is something you need to wait a long time for a ranger to get out to you. It’s not something you can just DIY in a couple of minutes.
2. You will get a flat and there’s no tire shops around that can fix it. I stock 4 new OEM tires in my garage. My wife gets 3 nails in her tires/ year on average.

Plan ahead if you want to keep your car. Once you fall in love with Tesla then you’ll have the perfect car.

Tesla tires are the same as other cars so, why can't a tire shop fix a flat? I had discount tire fix my flat for free.

Headlights are LED, and thus are not a serviceable part, same as other cars with led headlights. They are designed to last the life of the vehicle.

 

[NathanielHrnblwr]

You should return the car and Tesla should give you a loaner S in the meantime until your new car arrives. This is a brand you have to love and stick with. What you experienced with delivery delays is the same with both of my cars. It’s not Tesla’s fault. Truck drivers have too much power and deliver at will.

I love Tesla, but I talked my cousins and brother out of buying it. You really have to be a fanboy to buy one at this time. I don’t want any family members to blame me for their large purchases.

1. Tesla has the best Charging network but still not enough. There’s usually 2-3 Tesla in front of you waiting to charge. So expect a 15-30min wait before you can charge. This will take another 45-60min to get a decent range.
2. Tesla has great service support but not enough. It takes 4-5 weeks for the next open appointment slot. I drove around on really a cracked up spring for that long and I drove 400 miles per week. I could have probably been in a bad accident if the spring broke in 2 at Fwy speed. Had no idea it was my springs. I thought it was plastic body panels.
3. Car still has build and software issues where normal car people won’t want to be bothered by it. My springs broke on my AWD at 5k miles, software broke in my RWD broke at 2k miles. I have doors that don’t close all the way or doors can’t open from the inside. My cars have a combined of 100+ days at the shop. Tesla does offer Tesla Model S but those don’t have EAP. I only bought a Tesla for EAP. Otherwise it’s just a regular car but one that adds a couple of hours on a road trip.

So you have to ask yourself, do you like Tesla enough to put up with this?

1. You’ll have other issues later like a headlight go out which is something you need to wait a long time for a ranger to get out to you. It’s not something you can just DIY in a couple of minutes.
2. You will get a flat and there’s no tire shops around that can fix it. I stock 4 new OEM tires in my garage. My wife gets 3 nails in her tires/ year on average.

Plan ahead if you want to keep your car. Once you fall in love with Tesla then you’ll have the perfect car.

1. Misleading. Very location/time dependent. 53 of 63 slots available in my local area currently.
2. Again, location dependent. I can schedule service at my local service center this Wednesday at 9am, two days from now.
3. Model S does not have EAP? O rly?

1. Stating something is an eventual certainty when it isn't is not beneficial to anyone reading your post.
2. I got mine fixed at Discount for free when I had a nail in one of my 20" tires. Perhaps you got a nail near the edge of the tire tread which is not repairable on ANY brand tire used on ANY car.

Sounds like your experiences are unique and you put up with a lot. I'm sorry to hear of your troubles.

 

[sperkin]

Tesla tires are the same as other cars so, why can't a tire shop fix a flat? I had discount tire fix my flat for free.

Headlights are LED, and thus are not a serviceable part, same as other cars with led headlights. They are designed to last the life of the vehicle.

Yes, there’s places that can plug them but Michelin don’t recommend it. Plus they don’t do it probably like plugging it from the inside. They do it from the outside. Probably okay, but tires are the only thing holding your car to the road so I don’t plug but replace. I also replace tires on the same axel so it’s always 2 at the same time.

As for LED, mine was out and Tesla had to order a new one. I drove on 1 headlight for 6 weeks. 1 month to get an appointment and another 2 weeks while Tesla waited for parts. Other cars have dealer support so you can get one replaced within a day.

All I’m saying is a Tesla is not a typical car where average people wants to jump through hoops for. There’s a lot of compromise. I came to terms that I’m a fanboy and will deal with it. Others are doing the same because I have the same conversation at Superchargers where owners complain about the wait times. We are paying electricity with our time.

Now let’s talk about parts if you ever get into an accident. I was rear ended and many collision centers don’t even want to see the car. They just say move on, we dont’t work on Teslas.

 

[sperkin]

1. Misleading. Very location/time dependent. 53 of 63 slots available in my local area currently.
2. Again, location dependent. I can schedule service at my local service center this Wednesday at 9am, two days from now.
3. Model S does not have EAP? O rly?

1. Stating something is an eventual certainty when it isn't is not beneficial to anyone reading your post.
2. I got mine fixed at Discount for free when I had a nail in one of my 20" tires. Perhaps you got a nail near the edge of the tire tread which is not repairable on ANY brand tire used on ANY car.

Sounds like your experiences are unique and you put up with a lot. I'm sorry to hear of your troubles.

Sure it’s location based and some are like an hour or two from a service center. This is we’re planning ahead I was talking about. Don’t buy a car where the nearest service center is over an hour away like the OP and his earliest spot is 2 weeks out. I’m glad San Diego has many openings. It’s not as crowded as LA. Since I didn’t know a Tesla, I couldn’t see their schedule. When I got my car it was 2 weeks out and as more Model 3s are sold the longer the appointment time now. It’s up to 4-5 weeks.

Also, Model S don’t have EAP because Enterprise rental doesn’t buy them. Not all Model S or 3s have EAP. It’s an add on option.

My case is not unique because there are posts on here from people that has the same issues. There are also some Costco that works on Tesla while others don’t. I had already said, I don’t plug tires. I don’t want to drive somewhere far and then find out I have a slow leak because the plug ripped. Or the tread ripped. Btw, the plugs will weaken the foam inside. There is a low risk that form will fall off and get tangled inside. I rather buy 2 new tires. This may not be an issue now because I’m seeing Service centers stocking tires up now.

 

[MP3Mike]

Anyway, today I’m driving, and on my 128th mile, I get an alert that says “cabin heating unavailable, contact Tesla service”. After doing some research, it seems as if this involves the DC-DC fuse, which without a warranty would’ve been a $3,000 fix. This is concerning, especially if this is the case being that I had only driven 128 miles with the car...

That is a likely problem/cost if you had a Model S. I don't think we have any idea of what your issue is or how much it would cost to repair.

 

[Glamisduner]

Yes, there’s places that can plug them but Michelin don’t recommend it. Plus they don’t do it probably like plugging it from the inside. They do it from the outside. Probably okay, but tires are the only thing holding your car to the road so I don’t plug but replace. I also replace tires on the same axel so it’s always 2 at the same time.

As for LED, mine was out and Tesla had to order a new one. I drove on 1 headlight for 6 weeks. 1 month to get an appointment and another 2 weeks while Tesla waited for parts. Other cars have dealer support so you can get one replaced within a day.

All I’m saying is a Tesla is not a typical car where average people wants to jump through hoops for. There’s a lot of compromise. I came to terms that I’m a fanboy and will deal with it. Others are doing the same because I have the same conversation at Superchargers where owners complain about the wait times. We are paying electricity with our time.

Now let’s talk about parts if you ever get into an accident. I was rear ended and many collision centers don’t even want to see the car. They just say move on, we dont’t work on Teslas.

Tesla has a parts / service issues right now but it had to get better if they want to compete with other companies.

My tire was plug-patched from the inside by discount tire. Not sure why you think this is not possible.

They replaced the tpms bushing/sleve, and rebalanced it too. For free! Good as new! Tesla service center even gave me a loaner wheel so I could take care of it later in the week, because I didn't want to pay them $50 to patch it.

 

[eCharcoal]

If returning the car is too much trouble, just schedule an appointment in your Tesla mobile app. Yeah all the appointments are more than a month out but sometimes appointments get cancelled and you might be able to squeeze in earlier. Much earlier for my case. You just need to check your app frequently and see if anything earlier opens up. I had scheduled my appointment 45 days out but I checked my app everyday and saw something opened up in 5 days and I took that spot.

 

[T397]

I was in the same situation in December. Took delivery of the car outside in the rain and it was almost impossible to see all the defects in the paint. When the car finally dried in the garage, I found several scratches, paint chips, sand in the clear coat, discolored splotches and a small crack in the front roof glass. Only Tesla approved body shop in the area was backed up, so it took a 2.5 month wait to get the car fixed.

I hope they can fix your heater and defroster sooner than later. Let us know how it goes.

Me too! Thanks for the response. I have an appointment scheduled for this Friday, crossing my fingers for a smooth process.

 

[T397]

Because you are within the return period, can you check if they have another inventory car they can switch you to?

Because I test drove the car, I’m unable to return it after 24 hours. I will ask them about this and see what they say, I will update the thread here after my service apt. on Friday.

 

[notAnExpert]

Because I test drove the car, I’m unable to return it after 24 hours. I will ask them about this and see what they say, I will update the thread here after my service apt. on Friday.

Just read that Tesla changed its policy to allow 7-day returns even if you test drove.
Tesla changes return policy after Elon Musk’s contradictory tweets — The Verge

 

[Perry]

Tesla tires are the same as other cars so, why can't a tire shop fix a flat? I had discount tire fix my flat for free.

It is true. Some shops will not fix flats on tires with sound reducing foam inside, like Tesla tires are.

 

[Perry]

1. Misleading. Very location/time dependent. 53 of 63 slots available in my local area currently.
2. Again, location dependent. I can schedule service at my local service center this Wednesday at 9am, two days from now.
3. Model S does not have EAP? O rly?

1. Stating something is an eventual certainty when it isn't is not beneficial to anyone reading your post.
2. I got mine fixed at Discount for free when I had a nail in one of my 20" tires. Perhaps you got a nail near the edge of the tire tread which is not repairable on ANY brand tire used on ANY car.

Sounds like your experiences are unique and you put up with a lot. I'm sorry to hear of your troubles.

His experiences are not unique. I have had every one of those mentioned experiences.