Terrible quality Tesla Model S 90d - Finland

[H.Aulakoski]

Hello,
I want to share my experience of ordering my first Tesla. Early January 9th 2017 I placed an order for Tesla Model S 90d from the Tesla's own webstore.

Estimated delivery should be in the end of May 2017 but I finally got the car last day of June (last day Q2). After 30 days late from estimated (first promised) delivery time.

And this is what I finally got. Please check the photos from my Dropbox folder. There is some nasty noise coming from front of car when accelerating slowly. Also streering wheel is not full centered when driving straight. My DES assured me it is very normal Tesla quality and I should not be worried but others Tesla owners told me there was happen something strange during the last month of delivery, when the car was disappered.

Enjoy looking the photos!

Dropbox - Tesla - Aulakoski

 

[gabeincal]

Sounds about right. Welcome to Tesla ownership

 

[fasteddie7]

I had the same issue in img_3997, I took photos and on my first service center visit, they made everything right.

 

[H.Aulakoski]

Third day after delivery Tesla picked up the car back for service...

 

[gabeincal]

Sounds about right. Welcome to Tesla ownership

So let me get this straight. You complain about build quality, I let you know that this is basically how it is with Teslas and then you hit a disagree on my post.. Is it just me being confused..?

 

[fasteddie7]

I know it sounds crazy to be accepting of imperfections on a six figure car, but I honestly love the experience of driving so much, it makes looking past imperfections easy. That’s physical now, not mechanical, that’s another story.

 

[oktane]

Perfectly normal for a Tesla. They are assembled very, very poorly. In fact they recently fired a whistle blower at the plant who was not happy Tesla releases "defective" cars out of their production facility to unsuspecting owners.

 

[gabeincal]

Perfectly normal for a Tesla. They are assembled very, very poorly. In fact they recently fired a whistle blower at the plant who was not happy Tesla releases "defective" cars out of their production facility to unsuspecting owners.

Care to share the source?

 

[Medpilot]

Unfortunately it's hit or miss with Tesla. The quality is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get. For the most part, my 2014 P85D has been pretty decent. Fit and finish has been on par if not better than most cars I've owned.

 

[oktane]

Care to share the source?

My car is the source for poor quality control as is the OP.

Here's the whiste blower:

Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Alleges Tesla Shipped 'Defective' Cars | Inverse

A new lawsuit concerning sexual harassment at Tesla claims the company ignored a female employee’s concerns that cars were being “sold in a defective state,” due to substandard quality testing. The lawsuit alleges that the company pushed back against her concerns and punished her by denying overtime pay, rest breaks, and meals for being a “whistleblower.”​

 

[scottm]

It looks some body damage repair from shipping.
The odds of this go up when a boat is involved in the delivery process.
Manufacturers are allowed to do body and minor repair and still present and sell the car "as new".
It's up to you to accept it. And you did.. probably because of the long wait to get it, didn't want to do that again. But it's within your rights to look the car over and refuse delivery.

The moral of this story may be never accept delivery of a car at night. Ever.

 

[Buster1]

Sorry to hear about this. Please keep us posted as I expect Tesla will correct some/most of your car's cosmetic issues.

 

[buttershrimp]

Where are the European models assembled? California? Also, are those wheels european option?

 

[oktane]

Where are the European models assembled? California? Also, are those wheels european option?

Every Tesla is assembled in California and shipped around the globe.

 

[schonelucht]

Every Tesla is assembled in California and shipped around the globe.

Not really. To avoid a 10% import duty, Tesla ships cars in parts to Europe and assembles the car in Tilburg. It used to be the case that each car was fully assembled and tested in Fremont, then dismantled and shipped. But since the upgrade of the Tilburg facility and adding their own indoor testing track, this isn't the case anymore.

 

[drew.c]

What brand/size are the wheels? Are they staggered? They look nice.

 

[wdolson]

Teslas can have largish panel gaps. Compared to my old 1992 Buick, they were larger, but they are about the same as my SO's 2013 Subaru. The steering wheel should be straight when driving straight and the marks in the paint are not right.

The noise you're hearing could be a defect, or it could be a normal sound the car makes. Because there is no engine noise, other noises the car makes are a lot more noticeable. Just in front of the dashboard is a fair bit of equipment and some of it makes odd sounds. The first time I supercharged and stayed with the car I thought something was seriously wrong because the pumps in the cooling system came on full about 15 minutes after I started supercharging. My air conditioner is kind of loud when it's on high, it quiets down after that.

When driving about 40 mpg (around 75 kph) there is a noticeable motor whine. Driving faster the whine is still there but it gets drowned out by tire and wind noise.

There are also some shutters on the radiators used to cool the batteries. Sometimes those shutters can make a bit of a scraping noise when they move.

There are also noises that shouldn't be there. A lot of the early refresh cars developed headlight whines that were annoying. Tesla service replaced mine when they started whining. That's about the only actual defect other than a minor paint defect under the hood I noticed on delivery (and they fixed while I waited).

It sounds like some of these problems happened in the Netherlands plant. I don't know how much they assemble there, but it would make sense to install the steering wheel at Tilburg. The steering wheels are made in Germany.

The damage could have happened anywhere along the line. The further the car is shipped, the more likely it could get damaged.

 

[Ross_K]

Not really. To avoid a 10% import duty, Tesla ships cars in parts to Europe and assembles the car in Tilburg. It used to be the case that each car was fully assembled and tested in Fremont, then dismantled and shipped. But since the upgrade of the Tilburg facility and adding their own indoor testing track, this isn't the case anymore.

Wouldn't this mean that the delivery time for EU orders would be drastically cut? I have still been quoted 8-10 weeks delivery after production - which would suggest the car is still being assembled in CA.

 

[oktane]

Not really. To avoid a 10% import duty, Tesla ships cars in parts to Europe and assembles the car in Tilburg. It used to be the case that each car was fully assembled and tested in Fremont, then dismantled and shipped. But since the upgrade of the Tilburg facility and adding their own indoor testing track, this isn't the case anymore.

Very interesting, it appears I was wrong. Thank you for posting the correct information.

 

[schonelucht]

Wouldn't this mean that the delivery time for EU orders would be drastically cut? I have still been quoted 8-10 weeks delivery after production - which would suggest the car is still being assembled in CA.

No. Delivery time after production is dominated by shipping. Especially for the UK. Just from Fremont to the port of shipping (Houston these days) can take up to two weeks.