I fail to see how repairs will cost more. What... a body shop will find the two-piece (welded together to make one piece instead of cast as one) easier to repair? Please explain why.
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"Single Piece Casting" - Does it matter to the consumer?
- Thread starter ratsbew
- Start date
I guess you never seen an oil refinery..
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I have seen lots of oil refineries. They all look about the same. Are you trying to compare apples to elephants? I have also visited several auto manufacturing facilities. Not a single one looks like that giant mess Tesla has in Fremont. If you are ever in South Carolina visit the BMW plant. You will be stunned and I do mean stunned at the difference! I fully understand now how a car can leave the factory with the roof not even attached. Elon, hire a few people to at least walk around and pick up the trash and fire the plant manager!
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Sounds like you're comparing apples to elephants. I'd argue there is a fallacy in your comparison. BMW and other traditional manufactures have been producing cars for decades and have a tried and true method of producing cars and the factories to support current demand. Tesla is pushing the boundaries of production and doing that with far fewer factories to pump out vehicles. If given the same amount of time I have no doubt the comparison between Tesla vs BMW or any other manufacturer would be less discernable.
Back in the day when Toyota blazed into the US the factories at GM and Ford were a total joke. There was no world where a US factory could compete against the lean manufacturing principles that Toyota implemented. However, many factories have adopted those very same principles and have tried to emulate what Toyota introduced.
If 20 years from now Tesla factories still look like a crap shoot then your argument would have some merit
I would totally disagree. Tesla has been making cars for quite some time. They were starting from scratch without huge investments in old infrastructure. They should be the state of the art every one else is looking to copy. This is not secret stuff that needed a learning curve. Think Korean car makers. I mean we are talking some things as basic as picking up the trash on the ground. How hard is that? I have been involved for a long time in aviation safety. You could usually tell when you arrived for a inspection what the results would be in the first 10 minutes just by looking at how the facilities were maintained. That drone pic clarified Tesla’s quality control issues for me in 3 minutes. It’s about attention to detail. Tesla appears to have none. That video is forcing me to rethink my Tesla purchase planned for the first week in Feb since my I3 lease expires mid March.
Seems legit.... 
Seems like there are a lot of folks on TMC that "planned" on buying a Tesla when they have absolutely nothing good to say about them.
Seems like there are a lot of folks on TMC that "planned" on buying a Tesla when they have absolutely nothing good to say about them.
Tesla's factory looks like GM and Fords did back then. Now everyone's factory looks like Toyota's did. And Tesla's reliability and initial quality is on par with what GM and Ford's was back when Toyota came around.
jelloslug
Active Member
The two piece design was seam welded together so it was essentially one piece when it was installed in the car. As for "cost more to repair", if that part of the car is damaged, it's going to be a total loss in the vast majority of accidents.
jelloslug
Active Member
I can see that you have never set foot in any automotive manufacturing facilities before.
Just because it is cheaper to make, does not mean Tesla is required to lower the price... That said, the cheaper it is for Tesla to make a vehicle, the easier it is to adjust the price to keep demand high while fending off competitors and keeping market share.
Suspension components come both cast and steel (welded). When accidents happen, with for instance a Tesla, castings such as A-arms, or wishbones, are typically replaced (happened to me, on both sides, from a left side hit). Castings typically fail by breaking, cracking or developing small fractures, that need special analysis to verify. -part of the reason insurance jobs just replace castings. I've run into this concern at the track, with cast versus forged wheels, as another example.
We'll know for sure, if body shops start listing out entire castings for replacement. Castings are not welded to, or "stretched", back into spec. Wherever it sticks out could be a failure point.
The stigma Tesla carries, as expensive to fix and insure, won't be helped by single/dual castings, IMO. A car company makes more money if its product is cheaper to build, and needs more frequent replacement. I think we're naïve, to believe otherwise.
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