I am just keeping a list of all the issues and one day I will make an appointment and bring the car in. The closest service center is a 2 hour drive for me so I dont want to make several trips for all the issues that keep coming up and rather keep a list and in a few months I will make a trip to see if they can fix them all. Most annoying are the mirrors that dont open all the way, The wind noise from the sun roof and even after a day or two after it rains if I roll down dry windows and roll them back up they come up wet so their seals for moisture are not working. There are lots of quality control issues and I only picked up the car at the end of December. The Trim alignment probably annoys me the least.
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Tesla Chrome Trim Quality Failure
- Thread starter SocalMS
- Start date
I am just keeping a list of all the issues and one day I will make an appointment and bring the car in. The closest service center is a 2 hour drive for me so I dont want to make several trips for all the issues that keep coming up and rather keep a list and in a few months I will make a trip to see if they can fix them all. Most annoying are the mirrors that dont open all the way, The wind noise from the sun roof and even after a day or two after it rains if I roll down dry windows and roll them back up they come up wet so their seals for moisture are not working. There are lots of quality control issues and I only picked up the car at the end of December. The Trim alignment probably annoys me the least.
jamtek
Member
I respectfully disagree with my detractors...
1. There is NO perfect when it comes to this
2. Tesla service and support cannot make it perfect, but they will try to make it as good as possible until you can tolerate it.
3. I don't want the public, new Tesla buyers, or existing owners to think this is a non-issue. Tesla trim quality is a real issue.
Thus, the solution is to buy the car knowing what you're getting. And learn to tolerate the quality issues, because they are real.
bonnie
I play a nice person on twitter.
jelloslug
Active Member
Sorry for your misunderstanding.
Let me clarify....
I disagree w/ those who say that this issue can be fixed "perfectly".
I disagree w/ those who say that this issue is not prevalent w/ Teslas.
Are you kidding me?
I've done nothing but TRY.
How do you suppose I came to these realizations?
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
The trim issue is trivial. I fixed mine myself in 20 seconds. Grab trim, pull/push it into alignment. The whole piece fits by being wedged into a track at the top of the door. Just move it until it lines up. That's exactly what the service center is gonna do.
jelloslug
Active Member
pilotSteve
Active Member
Wait.... you just broke the Tesla Owners Code of Silence by spilling the secret.
As a prospective, "on the fence" owner, I'm kinda discouraged. If this can be "fixed" in 20 seconds, why was it not done by anyone at Tesla before releasing the car to the public? The common perception used to be that if anything like this happened on other vehicles, the response would be "Well , it's a cheap Chevy (or insert other name here) what do you expect?". Now, maybe the standard line should be "It's a Tesla, what do you expect?". I didn't place a smiling icon here, because it's not funny.
Allow me to interject. I love my car; it will be 2 years old any day now. During that time, I have sent it back 3 times for repair or service, and each time in the punch list of things to be fixed included the trim on the drivers door. I even had a extend email conversation with the lead at my local service station that next time a ranger passed thru town they would fix my trim, as "the repair is easy and does't necessitate a 420 mile round trip just to fix it." During that time, the ranger has never called or stopped by, and the trim was never repaired during any of my service visits.
I have spoken to the new manager at my local(ist) site - Nashville; she has assured me they will fix it with my 2 year service. We will see.
But the fundamental point of this thread remains; it really is quite upsetting that Tesla has such a difficult time getting this "in-your-face" part of the assembly wrong. It speaks volumes about lack of QC. Hopefully that has or will soon change.
I have spoken to the new manager at my local(ist) site - Nashville; she has assured me they will fix it with my 2 year service. We will see.
But the fundamental point of this thread remains; it really is quite upsetting that Tesla has such a difficult time getting this "in-your-face" part of the assembly wrong. It speaks volumes about lack of QC. Hopefully that has or will soon change.
AMPd
Well-Known Member
Again, not all cars come with misaligned chrome pieces.
But if yours does, just ask the service center to fix it upon pick up
No big deal
This doesn't scratch the paint, or loosen the trim? No heat gun or tools involved? Anyone do this AFTER Opticoat?
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pilotSteve
Active Member
I think the "fixed in 20 seconds" must be appropriately discounted. The Ranger fix required knowing where/how to look then lightly and carefully adjusted any trim that needed it until everything was proper. Service tech spent 20 minutes making everything balanced and perfect.
My "could do it myself" comment reflects no. Special tools required. Calibrated eyes and previous experience are what makes it look easy.
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
YMMV.
I grabbed mine (driver's door) with my hands using a microfiber cloth and pulled it up until it was perfectly lined up with the piece on the rear door. It took less than a minute. It's stayed put ever since. I'm sure service has some "special tools" that accomplish the same thing but it's not rocket science.
Should anyone have to do this on a brand new six figure car? No.
Is it an indication of rushed/poor/immature QC in the production process? Probably.
Is it trivial to fix during a service visit or by yourself? Yes.
Will I lose any sleep over it? Nope.
OP, I'm sorry, but you bought a vehicle from a boutique manufacturer on the forefront of technology that has made a couple hundred thousand cars in their entire existence.
To expect to be entitled to the same level of manufacturing precision as well established German or Japanese brands that have cranked out millions of cars a year for decades is foolish. You will be much happier going back to your Lexus or Mercedes.
Most Tesla owners seem to dismiss these quality issues, and that's unfortunate.
Yes, some of these things can be fixed, and honestly some cannot..
They can be fixed to "Tesla's Acceptable Degree of Quality", and at the point where you just emotionally decide to accept the quality fails.
Whether something can be fixed doesn't make it ok. There's time and stress taken away from the new Tesla owner.
.. and that just shouldn't be the case... new car company or not..
Yes, some of these things can be fixed, and honestly some cannot..
They can be fixed to "Tesla's Acceptable Degree of Quality", and at the point where you just emotionally decide to accept the quality fails.
Whether something can be fixed doesn't make it ok. There's time and stress taken away from the new Tesla owner.
.. and that just shouldn't be the case... new car company or not..
Gizmotoy
Active Member
You could say this about literally anything. If it's off by the tiniest fraction of a mm, it's not perfect.
Take the car in, tell them what's wrong, and they'll fix it. This is an issue admittedly many others have had, but it is pretty ridiculous claiming that it can't be fixed. It both can, and frequently is, fixed. If the biggest issue is that an easily-fixed trim piece is a few mm out of alignment, you're in good shape.
I have several trim pieces out of alignment. My car also spent a week in an independent body shop having the hood and other body panels realigned. The car was brand new from the factory. Some how all of these misalignments made it through the factory QA process and the Delivery Center's pre-delivery inspection (if one is actually done).
What's funny is even the body shop couldn't get the panels to align properly.
I don't feel too bad because just looking at other Tesla's when Supercharging I can see that poor fit and finish is a wide spread problem.
I noticed this on many Model S in parking lots and to a lesser extent in showrooms. I've even seen bumpers not aligned with quarter panels. Kind of horrifying. One you tuber showed such flaws and described unsatisfactory results at the service center. I just received my 100D Model S (late March 2018) and am happy to report good alignment. I talked to my sales advisor ahead of time and indicated I would not accept such flaws. Maybe the trim was, therefore, aligned at the delivery center. My only complaint is how doors close. Not even as good as my 2008 Acura TL. But a little technique helps (follow through with pressure till closed rather than just shoving). I'm über happy with my car. It's amazing to drive and beautiful. I was also told that Tesla has recruited Audi folks to improve fit and finish. True? Dunno. Hope so. We deserve the best for $100k+.
