Hi folks.
I wanted to post some of my thoughts on why as a 3/31/16 pre-reveal reservation holder I've ultimately decided to not place an order for a Model 3 - at least, not this year. I should preface this entire post by assuring you that I'm not a Tesla "short" - in fact I have no financial position on Tesla at all. My account is brand new because I decided to make one just to post this, after being a reader here for many months and really struggling with the decision for most of 2018. I still absolutely consider myself a fan of the company and I want nothing more than for them to succeed. It's hard to understate how important a goal electrifying the personal automobile is, for so many reasons, and Tesla is clearly at the forefront of innovation in making that a reality. Nobody else is coming close.
I should also mention that this post only represents my personal opinions on these issues, and by no means should anyone take this as an indictment of their decision to purchase, or interpret this as me telling you that you should not purchase, if you are still on the fence yourself. Only you can take all of the information out there into consideration and make a decision on what's best for you, personally. This is just an account of what conclusion I came to, in case my reasoning is helpful to you.
With all that out of the way, here's my thoughts on this vehicle, at least as it's currently being built.
Many people have pointed out on this forum and elsewhere that Tesla is a growing company making their first truly mass-market automobile, and that issues with overall quality, the ordering and delivery process, and service are to be expected at this stage. I think there is some validity to that point. Like many of you, I've been following Tesla for a long time, and was fully aware of some of the issues with the Model S and X, especially early in the production process. I knew that there would probably be similar issues with the unprecedented ramp-up building the Model 3 and I was willing to accept some of that.
With this being the first full year of production for a brand new vehicle on a brand new platform, I wanted to keep a very close eye on delivery experiences. I spent a lot of time reading people's posts here and on several other related forums as they took delivery of their RWD cars earlier this year. I fully expected to see some issues - there will be problems with any car from any manufacturer. Some people had paint problems, panel alignment problems, door or taillight seal issues, pretty visibly bad panel alignment, or various other quality concerns.
For the most part I ignore reports of software issues because I know OTA updates are frequent, and the most egregious bugs will certainly be squashed over time. This is one of Tesla's strengths. Similarly, there have been many, many reports of how terrible the delivery process has been for so many people, but this again is something I'm willing to overlook - additional delays don't really bother me after having a reservation in place for so long, and this is bound to improve too.
The two classes of problems that concern me the most, and which have continued to concern me, are:
1) The paint issues which seem pervasive through vehicles produced through June, July, and August of this year on RWD and AWD cars. In addition to self-reported issues in forum posts, I've been able to inspect a number of Model 3s myself on delivery lots at a couple of different service centers on the east and west coast between May and August, and all of them had some kind of paint defect. The severity varies, with some having damage on the clear coat, scratches, overspray, bubbles, "orange peel" effect, etc. I have yet to find a car that I would classify as having no significant defects. That doesn't mean that they don't exist, and some of you may well be lucky enough to be in possession of such an example - it just means I haven't personally found one, which concerns me. Paint is important to protect the vehicle itself, not just for aesthetics - and paint issues are some of the most difficult to rectify post-purchase. I would be alright with minor blemishes that could be buffed out at the service center or at a professional body shop, but some of the issues I've seen would certainly require an aftermarket repaint job, which is just something I'm not willing to accept on a brand new $60,000 car. Worse, it's possible the car being delivered to you has already been repainted without disclosure (depending on state law) - and I'm aware that this is the case with non-Tesla cars as well, but the likelihood of it happening here seems significantly higher, given the systemic problems with paint.
2) Weather sealing. This encompasses the door seals, the headlight and taillight seals, the trunk, the charge port, and the rear bumper cover. In general, it seems like the car is not very well equipped to deal with wet conditions, which may be less of an issue in southern California, but will be a much bigger consideration here in New Jersey. A couple of these issues seem like actual design flaws (as opposed to quality control issues) that will need to be addressed in a future revision. Namely, the flange around the trunk is insufficiently tall and allows water to flow in if opened during rain, and the rear bumper cover and surrounding undercarriage seem to direct water and debris upward and inward into the bodywork. It seems like drain holes may be missing from this piece and buildup of debris or water inside could present an ongoing hazard. I'm aware that there have been only two instances of the bumper cover pulling completely off over thousands of cars delivered, but teardowns of the rear of the car showing debris buildup (particularly this video from JerryRigEverything with Ben from Teslanomics' car) helped convince me that this part needs to be redesigned. The bumper cover coming completely off may be highly unlikely, but the car damaging itself by retaining water and dirt seems a lot more probable. I drive a lot of miles.
These are the main issues that have kept me hesitant on putting in an order, despite how many positive things can be said about this car - over two and a half years after putting in my reservation. I understand that forum posts are almost by definition going to be skewed towards those who have had more serious issues, since those with minor problems or no problems at all are going to be out driving their cars, not posting their story on a forum. I think I have taken that inherent bias into account, and looking at cars in person has helped to supplement what I've read online. I've also taken two test drives (which were great - the car drives wonderfully).
I understand what is happening with the tax credit and how that has almost singlehandedly made the decision for a lot of folks out there. $7500 is not a small sum of money and I can completely understand the willingness to overlook some of these problems in order to qualify for the rebate. On a personal level though, I decided that I want to see some of these things addressed before I can commit to spend this type of money. It would be the most money I've ever spent on anything, other than attending college. For me, I think I may be willing to sacrifice $3750, $5625, or even the whole $7500 if I can buy a version of this car a year or more from now which has some of these problems addressed - when the company is out of such a stressful production hell, when engineering tolerances are lower, and when fit and finish have been tightened up to standards that compete with the other cars that the Model 3 is currently eating the market share of within its segment.
I hope this post makes sense, and if it is helpful to anyone else out there who has found themselves in indecision for as long as I have, all the better. I still haven't withdrawn my $1000 deposit - as far as I'm concerned Tesla can keep my free loan for a while longer, if it helps them. I am really looking forward to buying a Tesla in the future, if possible, and in the meantime I'll just have to be jealous of all of you out there that I see on the highway every day.
I wanted to post some of my thoughts on why as a 3/31/16 pre-reveal reservation holder I've ultimately decided to not place an order for a Model 3 - at least, not this year. I should preface this entire post by assuring you that I'm not a Tesla "short" - in fact I have no financial position on Tesla at all. My account is brand new because I decided to make one just to post this, after being a reader here for many months and really struggling with the decision for most of 2018. I still absolutely consider myself a fan of the company and I want nothing more than for them to succeed. It's hard to understate how important a goal electrifying the personal automobile is, for so many reasons, and Tesla is clearly at the forefront of innovation in making that a reality. Nobody else is coming close.
I should also mention that this post only represents my personal opinions on these issues, and by no means should anyone take this as an indictment of their decision to purchase, or interpret this as me telling you that you should not purchase, if you are still on the fence yourself. Only you can take all of the information out there into consideration and make a decision on what's best for you, personally. This is just an account of what conclusion I came to, in case my reasoning is helpful to you.
With all that out of the way, here's my thoughts on this vehicle, at least as it's currently being built.
Many people have pointed out on this forum and elsewhere that Tesla is a growing company making their first truly mass-market automobile, and that issues with overall quality, the ordering and delivery process, and service are to be expected at this stage. I think there is some validity to that point. Like many of you, I've been following Tesla for a long time, and was fully aware of some of the issues with the Model S and X, especially early in the production process. I knew that there would probably be similar issues with the unprecedented ramp-up building the Model 3 and I was willing to accept some of that.
With this being the first full year of production for a brand new vehicle on a brand new platform, I wanted to keep a very close eye on delivery experiences. I spent a lot of time reading people's posts here and on several other related forums as they took delivery of their RWD cars earlier this year. I fully expected to see some issues - there will be problems with any car from any manufacturer. Some people had paint problems, panel alignment problems, door or taillight seal issues, pretty visibly bad panel alignment, or various other quality concerns.
For the most part I ignore reports of software issues because I know OTA updates are frequent, and the most egregious bugs will certainly be squashed over time. This is one of Tesla's strengths. Similarly, there have been many, many reports of how terrible the delivery process has been for so many people, but this again is something I'm willing to overlook - additional delays don't really bother me after having a reservation in place for so long, and this is bound to improve too.
The two classes of problems that concern me the most, and which have continued to concern me, are:
1) The paint issues which seem pervasive through vehicles produced through June, July, and August of this year on RWD and AWD cars. In addition to self-reported issues in forum posts, I've been able to inspect a number of Model 3s myself on delivery lots at a couple of different service centers on the east and west coast between May and August, and all of them had some kind of paint defect. The severity varies, with some having damage on the clear coat, scratches, overspray, bubbles, "orange peel" effect, etc. I have yet to find a car that I would classify as having no significant defects. That doesn't mean that they don't exist, and some of you may well be lucky enough to be in possession of such an example - it just means I haven't personally found one, which concerns me. Paint is important to protect the vehicle itself, not just for aesthetics - and paint issues are some of the most difficult to rectify post-purchase. I would be alright with minor blemishes that could be buffed out at the service center or at a professional body shop, but some of the issues I've seen would certainly require an aftermarket repaint job, which is just something I'm not willing to accept on a brand new $60,000 car. Worse, it's possible the car being delivered to you has already been repainted without disclosure (depending on state law) - and I'm aware that this is the case with non-Tesla cars as well, but the likelihood of it happening here seems significantly higher, given the systemic problems with paint.
2) Weather sealing. This encompasses the door seals, the headlight and taillight seals, the trunk, the charge port, and the rear bumper cover. In general, it seems like the car is not very well equipped to deal with wet conditions, which may be less of an issue in southern California, but will be a much bigger consideration here in New Jersey. A couple of these issues seem like actual design flaws (as opposed to quality control issues) that will need to be addressed in a future revision. Namely, the flange around the trunk is insufficiently tall and allows water to flow in if opened during rain, and the rear bumper cover and surrounding undercarriage seem to direct water and debris upward and inward into the bodywork. It seems like drain holes may be missing from this piece and buildup of debris or water inside could present an ongoing hazard. I'm aware that there have been only two instances of the bumper cover pulling completely off over thousands of cars delivered, but teardowns of the rear of the car showing debris buildup (particularly this video from JerryRigEverything with Ben from Teslanomics' car) helped convince me that this part needs to be redesigned. The bumper cover coming completely off may be highly unlikely, but the car damaging itself by retaining water and dirt seems a lot more probable. I drive a lot of miles.
These are the main issues that have kept me hesitant on putting in an order, despite how many positive things can be said about this car - over two and a half years after putting in my reservation. I understand that forum posts are almost by definition going to be skewed towards those who have had more serious issues, since those with minor problems or no problems at all are going to be out driving their cars, not posting their story on a forum. I think I have taken that inherent bias into account, and looking at cars in person has helped to supplement what I've read online. I've also taken two test drives (which were great - the car drives wonderfully).
I understand what is happening with the tax credit and how that has almost singlehandedly made the decision for a lot of folks out there. $7500 is not a small sum of money and I can completely understand the willingness to overlook some of these problems in order to qualify for the rebate. On a personal level though, I decided that I want to see some of these things addressed before I can commit to spend this type of money. It would be the most money I've ever spent on anything, other than attending college. For me, I think I may be willing to sacrifice $3750, $5625, or even the whole $7500 if I can buy a version of this car a year or more from now which has some of these problems addressed - when the company is out of such a stressful production hell, when engineering tolerances are lower, and when fit and finish have been tightened up to standards that compete with the other cars that the Model 3 is currently eating the market share of within its segment.
I hope this post makes sense, and if it is helpful to anyone else out there who has found themselves in indecision for as long as I have, all the better. I still haven't withdrawn my $1000 deposit - as far as I'm concerned Tesla can keep my free loan for a while longer, if it helps them. I am really looking forward to buying a Tesla in the future, if possible, and in the meantime I'll just have to be jealous of all of you out there that I see on the highway every day.
