Some disturbing information buried in Consumer Reports reliability ratings....

[Mayhemm]

So, I was just perusing the ratings for the Model S over at CR.org because I was bored, and I came across something a bit disturbing in the reliability section.

Notice the car gets a pretty much perfect score for 2012, before tumbling a bit in 2013 (significantly in some categories, like "squeaks & rattles" and "body hardware", which now received the lowest score possible)

Don't know whether this is old news or not and I haven't heard anyone mention it yet.

Hopefully, this doesn't signify a downturn in Tesla long-term quality and they can pick it back up for 2014.

 

[Duckjybe]

My car was a Feb 2013 car. I had several issues in the poor categories listed. Although annoying, they were relatively minor and were all fixed. The car is fantastic.

I wonder if 2013 ratings cover the whole of 2013? It's possible they only capture the first part of 2013 and could be getting better already.

 

[Mayhemm]

I don't know how CR gets its reliability data, but I'd think for the car to get a black dot rating (1 out of 5), the problems encountered would have to be frequent and/or serious.

Good to hear that doesn't describe your experience, though.

 

[Duckjybe]

I don't know how CR gets its reliability data, but I'd think for the car to get a black dot rating (1 out of 5), the problems encountered would have to be frequent and/or serious.

Good to hear that doesn't describe your experience, though.

For example, under Body Hardware all my door handles were replaced with an updated design because one of the old ones was proving to be somewhat finicky in allowing you to open it. I think the issues were fairly wide spread at the beginning of 2013. They were redesigned in mid 2013, mine were replaced, and as far as my experience the door handles work perfectly now. The extending door handles are actually one of the coolest features on the car. I wouldn't necessarily classify the issues I had in 2013 as "reliability" issues. I think they were more design or manufacturing issues that needed correcting.

 

[brandonmbeard]

Think about it most of the cars in 2012 were Sigs. Although produced on the line, basically hand made. 2013 = mass production using robotics.

 

[jamieb]

I have a one month old car that definitely had some issues with squeaks & rattles; Tesla has been relentless in working with me and yesterday they went through it with a fine-toothed comb and they have, I think, nailed it - the car is now silent as far as I can tell. I think part of the issue with squeaks & rattles is that the car is so otherwise silent it's easy to hear problems that wouldn't even be audible in an ICE car.

 

[CalDreamin]

I don't know how CR gets its reliability data, but I'd think for the car to get a black dot rating (1 out of 5), the problems encountered would have to be frequent and/or serious.

CR said the problems involve "smaller details that caused some minor issues, such as wind noise, squeaks and rattles, and body hardware (including the sunroof, doors, and locks)."
Tesla Model S Recommended | Car Reliability - Consumer Reports News

 

[Mayhemm]

I have a one month old car that definitely had some issues with squeaks & rattles; Tesla has been relentless in working with me and yesterday they went through it with a fine-toothed comb and they have, I think, nailed it - the car is now silent as far as I can tell. I think part of the issue with squeaks & rattles is that the car is so otherwise silent it's easy to hear problems that wouldn't even be audible in an ICE car.

Good to hear. What's important is not that you had problems (all cars have problems) but that they worked with you to find and fix them. Tesla does this better than most.

 

[N4HHE]

I don't know how CR gets its reliability data, but I'd think for the car to get a black dot rating (1 out of 5), the problems encountered would have to be frequent and/or serious.

They send an annual questionnaire to all subscriber/members.

 

[rjcbox]

So, I was just perusing the ratings for the Model S over at CR.org because I was bored, and I came across something a bit disturbing in the reliability section.

View attachment 41507

Notice the car gets a pretty much perfect score for 2012, before tumbling a bit in 2013 (significantly in some categories, like "squeaks & rattles" and "body hardware", which now received the lowest score possible)

Don't know whether this is old news or not and I haven't heard anyone mention it yet.

Hopefully, this doesn't signify a downturn in Tesla long-term quality and they can pick it back up for 2014.

This "rating" really doesn't bother me much - via the forums, I know of many issues that were fixed by Tesla. So a bunch of Tesla owners giving an honest review of a hardware issue (old door handle design, for example) may statistically give a black dot. But Tesla seems to always "make it right." One the other hand, when I see an ICE getting a black dot, I imagine having to deal w/ dealers, repeatedly, and an ICE company that wants nothing to do with you after the sale. And that ICE issue, whatever it is, being rather permanent that you just deal with, get used to, don't have replaced or upgraded. Unfortunately, to someone who is not that familiar w/ the Tesla product, the CR ratings may steer them away.

 

[ecarfan]

They send an annual questionnaire to all subscriber/members.

Correct, that is where CR gets its reliability data.

I've had my S85 for two months,the car had zero issues when new and still has zero issues as far as I can tell.

 

[Doug_G]

My Sig has been a bit trouble-prone, but Tesla has fixed everything. Great service, great car.

 

[SFOTurtle]

For example, under Body Hardware all my door handles were replaced with an updated design because one of the old ones was proving to be somewhat finicky in allowing you to open it. I think the issues were fairly wide spread at the beginning of 2013. They were redesigned in mid 2013, mine were replaced, and as far as my experience the door handles work perfectly now. The extending door handles are actually one of the coolest features on the car. I wouldn't necessarily classify the issues I had in 2013 as "reliability" issues. I think they were more design or manufacturing issues that needed correcting.

Exactly my experience. I had one other issue with the touchscreen, and they fixed that in short order. I've had no other issues.

 

[stevezzzz]

Think about it most of the cars in 2012 were Sigs. Although produced on the line, basically hand made. 2013 = mass production using robotics.

The robot line has been in place since very early on in Sig production (I saw it in full operation during a factory tour the first week of November, 2012). I think any advantages the Sigs might have in terms of reliability are likely due to more thorough testing/inspection; my Sig, for instance, had 133 miles on the odometer when it was delivered (a lot more testing than the low double figures we've seen recently), and it was reported that Elon personally inspected every car coming off the line during the early days.

Another factor could be the difference in buyer mentality between the true early adopters, who waited years for their model S, and late early adopters, who ordered a car and received it the same year. The true early adopters might also be characterized as true believers, folks who are a lot more likely to forgive problems, or to categorize them as design issues rather than defects, especially when Tesla updates their car with the newer parts via Ranger service, or with a firmware update over the air.

 

[ABVA]

So, I was just perusing the ratings for the Model S over at CR.org because I was bored, and I came across something a bit disturbing in the reliability section.

View attachment 41507

Notice the car gets a pretty much perfect score for 2012, before tumbling a bit in 2013 (significantly in some categories, like "squeaks & rattles" and "body hardware", which now received the lowest score possible)

Don't know whether this is old news or not and I haven't heard anyone mention it yet.

Hopefully, this doesn't signify a downturn in Tesla long-term quality and they can pick it back up for 2014.

I have had mine for shade under two months, only problem (totally insignificant) I had was the ambient light on front passenger door was not functioning. Tesla not only fixed it in less than 10 minutes but also removed some scuff marks that were caused by my own error.

As for CR overall rating of 2, I think someone needs to check their calculation. If ratings are from 1 - 5, and total score in 17 categories is 72, that should constitute an overall rating of 4.24 and not 2 as shown in the table. I hope my math is correct.

 

[mknox]

To be perfectly honest, I've had more "problems" with my Model S than probably my last 5 or 6 cars combined. A lot minor and some serious (if you consider a drive unit replacement serious, which I do, because I'd hate to think what that would cost out of warranty). Having said that, Tesla has fixed all the problems and I've barely had to ask. No fights or struggles like you might have with an ICE car dealer trying to get things fixed. Unfortunately, these specific CR ratings are pretty binary: you had problems or you didn't.

 

[nrcooled]

I would agree with everyone here in saying that my early production car (Dec 2012) wasn't without issues. I am having my door handles replaced and I have had random noises (steering rack clicking, interior creaks, fan noise/speed issue) that have all been fixed but they were still present. The car is darn near perfect right now.

 

[Owner]

I also had a lot of door handle issues that I documented in my blog. I haven't had an issue for 6 months now.

For example, under Body Hardware all my door handles were replaced with an updated design because one of the old ones was proving to be somewhat finicky in allowing you to open it. I think the issues were fairly wide spread at the beginning of 2013. They were redesigned in mid 2013, mine were replaced, and as far as my experience the door handles work perfectly now. The extending door handles are actually one of the coolest features on the car. I wouldn't necessarily classify the issues I had in 2013 as "reliability" issues. I think they were more design or manufacturing issues that needed correcting.

 

[efusco]

Unfortunately the CR ratings don't put things into perspective very well. A lot of us with early production vehicles have had some minor issues, all quickly addressed. The door handles, there was the corrosion issue, and a few creaks and rattles here and there. I think there were complaints about fit and finish in many early vehicles as well. I would expect those "problems" to level out over the next year as the production line is now much more finely tuned.

 

[Gizmotoy]

CR said the problems involve "smaller details that caused some minor issues, such as wind noise, squeaks and rattles, and body hardware (including the sunroof, doors, and locks)."
Tesla Model S Recommended | Car Reliability - Consumer Reports News

I have a late November build, and have encountered pretty much all of these problems.

Wind noise: pretty intense after 65mph. Even more than my other sedan, which is shaped like a brick, has huge dumbo-sized side mirrors, and was designed by a dying auto maker. If I were used to Mercedes or BMW levels of quiet, I'd probably be upset. I expected quieter, but it's not bad enough to worry or complain about.

Squeaks and Rattles: driver's seat squeaks like crazy. Is being replaced as soon as they can get a spare seat, which supposedly have a 4+ week wait. Tons of squeaking in the dash and somewhere in the trunk area, but come and go so I haven't been able to track them down.

Body hardware (sunroof): Painful pressure buffeting since new, such that the windscreen would bounce up and down violently. Maybe rectified by service, still keeping an eye on it.
Body hardware (doors): Hey! They work!
Body hardware (locks): These don't, unfortunately. Weird behavior when charging that sometimes leaves me locked out until I can dig out and press buttons on the key. Behavior when away for >24h inconsistent, not always matching the described behavior for this case in the manual.

Plus, condensation in tail light trim.

So, in summary, those low ratings are probably deserved.

To be perfectly honest, I've had more "problems" with my Model S than probably my last 5 or 6 cars combined. A lot minor and some serious (if you consider a drive unit replacement serious, which I do, because I'd hate to think what that would cost out of warranty). Having said that, Tesla has fixed all the problems and I've barely had to ask. No fights or struggles like you might have with an ICE car dealer trying to get things fixed. Unfortunately, these specific CR ratings are pretty binary: you had problems or you didn't.

Same. I had exactly one issue each with two Civics I owned (over a total of 11 years), and my Evo had three issues (over 6 years). 5 issues in two months with the Model S, one unresolved with no known resolution available (for the door locks). All relatively minor, sure, but still annoying.

Tesla's been pleasant to deal with, and in general willing to track down issues, but for the past 4-5 weeks I've been getting the "Someone will look at it (ignore him and he'll go away)" for the issue regarding my door locks, so I'll have to see how that plays out. I've been toying with the idea of involving a different service center. I'm not sure this one's on top of things.