Like many reservation holders in Northern California, as Q3 drew to a close in September I received a text stating that my expected mid-November X 100D would instead be available in 3 days (Sept 30, last day of the quarter). I was not prepared at the time, but quickly got a loan application in (1 hour approval at a great rate) and confirmed pickup. I was pretty stoked 
This was to be my second Tesla, after a 2015 S 75D I purchased as a low-mileage (40!) inventory model that fall (what a great deal at the time). I sold it a little over a year later due to a move and and have missed it ever since.
Come delivery day for the X, my expectations were tempered. I knew it would be a madhouse in Fremont, and I was unsurprised when my 7pm delivery appointment changed to 9, and then again to 11after we arrived. We just rolled with it and went for dinner until they texted us close to midnight.
When the car and paperwork were finally ready, I did a walk-around as best I could in the dark, was happy with what I could see of my Multicoat-Red-on-White Model X, signed and drove off, back to SF on deserted highways. The ride was magnificent. I parked it in our underground parking, and since I am recovering from a recent shoulder surgery I didnt drive it again for the next week. I did notice a scratch on one of the seats, and a rattle in one of the sun visors, so I made an appt. to have those addressed.
I plan to keep this car a long time, so I made an appointment to have the front end wrapped (I hate rock chips) and took it in about a week after delivery, and this was the first time I had a really good look at the exterior in sunlight, going over it with the representative from the service company before they took it in to begin work. We... found a few issues:
- raised specks of dirt / dust & fish-eyes in the paint (lots and lots of them, more than I expected despite my realistic end-of-quarter expectations, and more than they’ve ever seen in a Tesla coming in for work)
- deep scratches in a couple of hard to spot places, some sloppily touched-up with touch-up paint, some not
- chips in the paint along the edge of several panels
- several glaring panel alignment issues around the hood & fenders
- missing clear-coat around the edges of the side mirrors
- a really visible 6-inch-long run in paint along the side of the rear hatch — this is the one that finally led the shop owner to say “Take this back and get Tesla to fix it.”
I’m going to take it in for correction, and I’m sure it’s eventually going to end up fine. Thankfully, the car is mechanically wonderful as far as I can tell so far. Still need to get in some more driving to really check it out but I remain super stoked overall.
This is an area that Tesla needs to work on, though. I expected the people doing body & paint work in Fremont to show a little more pride in their work, even under the incredible time constraints I know they’re working in. This was a little over the top.
Each piece of tape is either a speck of embedded dirt / fish-eye in the paint, scratch, chip, run, or a misaligned panel. The hood looks like it has the measles.
This was to be my second Tesla, after a 2015 S 75D I purchased as a low-mileage (40!) inventory model that fall (what a great deal at the time). I sold it a little over a year later due to a move and and have missed it ever since.
Come delivery day for the X, my expectations were tempered. I knew it would be a madhouse in Fremont, and I was unsurprised when my 7pm delivery appointment changed to 9, and then again to 11after we arrived. We just rolled with it and went for dinner until they texted us close to midnight.
When the car and paperwork were finally ready, I did a walk-around as best I could in the dark, was happy with what I could see of my Multicoat-Red-on-White Model X, signed and drove off, back to SF on deserted highways. The ride was magnificent. I parked it in our underground parking, and since I am recovering from a recent shoulder surgery I didnt drive it again for the next week. I did notice a scratch on one of the seats, and a rattle in one of the sun visors, so I made an appt. to have those addressed.
I plan to keep this car a long time, so I made an appointment to have the front end wrapped (I hate rock chips) and took it in about a week after delivery, and this was the first time I had a really good look at the exterior in sunlight, going over it with the representative from the service company before they took it in to begin work. We... found a few issues:
- raised specks of dirt / dust & fish-eyes in the paint (lots and lots of them, more than I expected despite my realistic end-of-quarter expectations, and more than they’ve ever seen in a Tesla coming in for work)
- deep scratches in a couple of hard to spot places, some sloppily touched-up with touch-up paint, some not
- chips in the paint along the edge of several panels
- several glaring panel alignment issues around the hood & fenders
- missing clear-coat around the edges of the side mirrors
- a really visible 6-inch-long run in paint along the side of the rear hatch — this is the one that finally led the shop owner to say “Take this back and get Tesla to fix it.”
I’m going to take it in for correction, and I’m sure it’s eventually going to end up fine. Thankfully, the car is mechanically wonderful as far as I can tell so far. Still need to get in some more driving to really check it out but I remain super stoked overall.
This is an area that Tesla needs to work on, though. I expected the people doing body & paint work in Fremont to show a little more pride in their work, even under the incredible time constraints I know they’re working in. This was a little over the top.
Each piece of tape is either a speck of embedded dirt / fish-eye in the paint, scratch, chip, run, or a misaligned panel. The hood looks like it has the measles.
