Saw VIN 184XX, highest VIN I’ve seen: headlights still not flush with body

[ecarfan]

OP needs to organize a meeting with Elon and Franz and tell them what they're doing wrong.

Sadly I don’t have that kind of pull with those guys.

If the protrusion was intentional, then it would be symmetrical.

Mine was not symmetrical. I pointed this out on delivery , and they put it on the list of things to fix, and they have since fixed it.

Exactly. Tesla acknowledged that it wasn’t right and needed to be corrected.

 

[ecarfan]

Here is another data point: I happened across VIN 131 yesterday in a parking lot in my area. I checked the headlight enclosures and both of them were within about 2mm of being flush with the bumper (by eye and by feel). They were symmetrical.

So it is possible for Tesla to get the headlights flush with the body. I suspect most owners don’t notice the issue and therefore do not request that Tesla rectify it.

As it happened, there were two other Model 3s in the same parking lot! (No, this was not the Tesla factory, headquarters, a showroom or a service center, it was a retail establishment). Their headlights were not flush and were asymmetrical, which is what I usually see.

And during the 30 minute drive from my house to the parking lot in question I saw four Model 3s on the road. They are becoming a common sight in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

[H2050]

I just got my VIN from Toronto, 290XX

 

[azred]

Source?

Three Tesla techs are my source and I’ve posted that in this forum at least twice. Funny how the same BS complaints keep getter recycled.

 

[ecarfan]

Three Tesla techs are my source and I’ve posted that in this forum at least twice. Funny how the same BS complaints keep getter recycled.

And yet the fact remains that direct observation of over a dozen cars shows that the degree of headlight enclosure protrusion varies from none to over 1/4” and on most cars is significantly asymmetrical on the same car.

That data does not support the claim that the Model 3 headlight protrusion is deliberately done for “cooling”. And S/X LED headlights do not protrude, they are consistently flush.

 

[barjohn]

Ask the techs to show you the written specifications and how the protrusion affects cooling. They should be able to show in a manual that it is within specifications. If they can't call it BS to put off doing something they would rather not fix because it is only cosmetic.

 

[dgaultiere]

I picked up VIN 185xx two weeks ago and my headlights are protruding as OP describes. I think mine are pretty equal right and left though.

I have an appointment with the service center next week to look at a few issues including this. I’ll report back what I learn.

Also, just to be clear, the fit and finish on my car is excellent overall and I probably would not have noticed something like this if it was any other car.

 

[Boourns]

Also, just to be clear, the fit and finish on my car is excellent overall and I probably would not have noticed something like this if it was any other car.

This is where I am. There's no way I'd think to look for this if it wasn't for this forum. I definitely cannot tell you how the panel gaps or headlights were on previous cars I've owned, from Mazda3, to a LEAF, to a new G37 I leased a few years back.

 

[ecarfan]

According to @chinnam3, Tesla has released a service bulletin with a procedure for fixing the headlight protrusion issue, see New Bulletin available to SC to align headlights with bumper - Mine fixed

It is done by adjusting the bumper, not the headlights.

Of course they are supposed to be flush, despite statements in the past by Tesla showroom or service personnel.

 

[pobudz]

260xx here... Lip is hardly noticeable but present and symmetrical.