Took delivery of VIN 24xx P90DL in Fremont on 2016/05/23

[Colby Boles]

The cars on the street were by no means perfect in any way - it's just that the net result looks much better than what I am seeing on this car, as well as the absolute tolerances. Our other cars also have complex curvatures but the gaps are much more consistent. Looking at my driver's side door now it is pretty obvious that it is rotated clockwise when looking from the side. Even the side view mirror stalk is misaligned.

@umeshunni is bringing his car by today so we can compare the two.

Perhaps in comparison what you saw on the street was 'better' than your vehicle - that I can believe. I've done the same type of walkabout in parking lots on several occasions and I've never seen perfect alignment of panels on anything, even really expensive vehicles. What I've seen is better general gapping and alignment on cars with much simpler panel shaping and simpler body design. And that's a big distinction that I never seen anybody talk about. Flat body panels without a lot of shaping are way easier to gap and align than those that have curves and points (especially when those curves and points go in opposite directions. Panels that are smaller, separated at certain points on the car, and don't have difficult cut outs are easier to gap and align. These are things that most people don't think about or take into consideration when looking at alignment and gapping.

Regardless, I hope your vehicle is fixed to your satisfaction asap.

 

[Colby Boles]

I keep looking at the tire pressure sticker on the driver's side, but I don't see a date. It does have my VIN series number though.

What's the actual build date of your car? (The date on the sticker on the door frame)

I will check that tomorrow morning.

 

[jsollender]

@Colby Boles there used to be one sticker with VIN and mfg date. Now the MFG date is on a second sticker much lower to the ground, but still on the B pillar. Let us know.
Should be start a post about how many (if any) people had the balls to refuse delivery based on first inspection at delivery? Do you get to take the car out for a lap to ensure function rather than the static look around at delivery before signing delivery docs?

 

[Congo Line]

I took delivery of my X 90D on Monday 5/23, and I have to agree that the fit/finish is not great on the car. Overally I'd give it a 3+ out of 5. The chrome/bright trim doesn't line up very well where body panels meet, and I've got the same gap between the rear quarter panel window and the lateral edge of the rear hatch. I showed it to the delivery specialist and we compared to another MX which was there, and they both had the same gap. They wrote it down on the due bill and said they would repair next time I brought it in. I intentionally postponed finalizing my order so that Tesla could hopefully work out the kinks before making our car. However, my 1-year-old Model S also had similar issues with alignment of the chrome trim, albeit with better body panel alignment. Thankfully, our front doors both close properly. Some of the rubber/plastic trim also doesn't seem very well lined up.

My wife and I took a copy of the delivery checklist and both delivery guys who were there seemed surprised; they said no one had done this before. One guy was very understanding and patient, but the supervisor was a little terse; definitely got the sense he just wanted to get the paperwork signed and the transaction finished. I'm glad we did it though, because my wife found scratches on the back of a couple of the middle-row seats which we otherwise would have missed.

Still happy with our new car, but it does take a bit of the excitement out of the experience to find your car has some cosmetic defects.

 

[jsollender]

@Dysong1 As asked before, were you too overly excited/happy to finally receive your car that you did not tell DS you would be back for delivery when they are ready to deliver a $100,000 car that is perfect and turn and walk away? I still don't get it....

 

[Colby Boles]

@Colby Boles there used to be one sticker with VIN and mfg date. Now the MFG date is on a second sticker much lower to the ground, but still on the B pillar. Let us know.
Should be start a post about how many (if any) people had the balls to refuse delivery based on first inspection at delivery? Do you get to take the car out for a lap to ensure function rather than the static look around at delivery before signing delivery docs?

So it turns out the lower sticker shows a 05/16 build date, which is strange based on everything else my DS has told me. Does anyone know how accurate these stickers are? Obviously they are stuck on pretty late in the process. Is the start-of-build or end-of-build date?

 

[Colby Boles]

Sorry to hear that. @umeshunni came by my workshop about an hour ago and we compared cars out in the daylight. His definitely has better alignment of panels and trim than mine does, but it shows most of the same problems to a lesser degree. Some of his rubber trim issues are actually worse. Looking more carefully at the FWDs, there doesn't appear to be any travel limiting bump stops at the bottom which could be used to fine adjust the closed alignment of the door. It appears that is is done mainly with the latch bar itself. I guess they must use that and the two linear motors up top to make up a kinematically deterministic mount. I mention the FWDs because it appears the some of the misalignments may be due to these closing too tightly.

I agree it's a great car. I just think that some more attention on their part to these details could make a big difference in people's initial experience, which is very important.

I took delivery of my X 90D on Monday 5/23, and I have to agree that the fit/finish is not great on the car. Overally I'd give it a 3+ out of 5. The chrome/bright trim doesn't line up very well where body panels meet, and I've got the same gap between the rear quarter panel window and the lateral edge of the rear hatch. I showed it to the delivery specialist and we compared to another MX which was there, and they both had the same gap. They wrote it down on the due bill and said they would repair next time I brought it in. I intentionally postponed finalizing my order so that Tesla could hopefully work out the kinks before making our car. However, my 1-year-old Model S also had similar issues with alignment of the chrome trim, albeit with better body panel alignment. Thankfully, our front doors both close properly. Some of the rubber/plastic trim also doesn't seem very well lined up.

My wife and I took a copy of the delivery checklist and both delivery guys who were there seemed surprised; they said no one had done this before. One guy was very understanding and patient, but the supervisor was a little terse; definitely got the sense he just wanted to get the paperwork signed and the transaction finished. I'm glad we did it though, because my wife found scratches on the back of a couple of the middle-row seats which we otherwise would have missed.

Still happy with our new car, but it does take a bit of the excitement out of the experience to find your car has some cosmetic defects.

 

[182RG]

• It is clear that the factory has or had problems building these cars to the tolerances that we all have come to expect from even inexpensive production cars. I walked down the street to lunch today and every car I passed from $2k to $100k+ looked to have very even panel spacings with no offsets. Even some that had been in accidents. It is reasonable to expect body fit as good as a Hyundai on a $150k out the door car.

It is clear that Tesla doesn't embrace a culture of quality, even with the CEO sleeping at the end of the line. Culture has to be infused in every employee, at every level. If they can't get a $150K car right, which is essentially being hand built at these volumes, how are they going to get 500K $35,000 cars right? Seriously, how?

I recently commented on this in the Model 3 section that I was concerned about the quality of fit and finish on what will be a mass produced car, when even less expensive competition gets it right. I was told that if that was a concern, I should probably look elsewhere for a car to buy since the drivetrain was fantastic...the rest you just live with. Apparently worry over fit and finish is old fashioned, "1950's" thinking. @ohmman , what are your thoughts?

My mother-in-laws new Hyundai Santa Fe was perfect from the dealership. No gaps, flaws, scratches or swirls. Everything worked. I doubt it took 2 weeks to quality check and prep it. It was more like an hour or two. I inspected it for her for an hour. I found nothing and I'm picky.

I'm sorry Colby. I sincerely hope you get it sorted out and enjoy your car.

 

[182RG]

I will be ordering the service manual soon...

Service manuals are only available to Massachusetts residents. Seriously.

 

[vandacca]

All brand new vehicle designs are going to have fit/finish issues. They get worked out over time. The more cars they build, the better the fit/finish. With Toyota/Honda, after a couple of hundred thousand cars, it's fit/finish is going to be very tight.

Tesla will get there, just like they did with the Model-S. They just need to keep tweaking their line by using the problem builds and feeding that info back into the line. Lots of statistical analysis is used to improve these assembly lines.

 

[jsollender]

I still don't get why you all are accepting your new cars at the dealership with these flaws and not walking away, unless TM convinced you to wire money to them before your delivery, and the money is already gone from your accounts, holding you hostage to your car. I will finance, so I do not have the money hanging over my head. Signage is only after acceptable vehicle is on site.

 

[Colby Boles]

Service manuals are only available to Massachusetts residents. Seriously.

Yep. I just ran into this. In the worst case I will hit up a MA friend to make the subscription and start scraping... It's very disappointing that Tesla is taking this approach. $100/day for a subscription. Really?

 

[Colby Boles]

All brand new vehicle designs are going to have fit/finish issues. They get worked out over time. The more cars they build, the better the fit/finish. With Toyota/Honda, after a couple of hundred thousand cars, it's fit/finish is going to be very tight.

Tesla will get there, just like they did with the Model-S. They just need to keep tweaking their line by using the problem builds and feeding that info back into the line. Lots of statistical analysis is used to improve these assembly lines.

I totally get that, but with the much-touted final QC steps they added, you would think that the customers would not ever see these production difficulties. It certainly seems like the pressure to get things out the door is still exceeding that to get things right before delivery. I might feel different if I didn't have to wait 5 months from order to get this car, being told all along that the delays were for the best as they wanted to "get it right".

 

[anticitizen13.7]

It is clear that Tesla doesn't embrace a culture of quality, even with the CEO sleeping at the end of the line. Culture has to be infused in every employee, at every level. If they can't get a $150K car right, which is essentially being hand built at these volumes, how are they going to get 500K $35,000 cars right? Seriously, how?

These are valid questions.

It is my observation that setting up a new production line is incredibly difficult, even for industry veterans. The fact that Model X is so complicated only makes matters worse.

A culture of quality is no guarantee of success either, at least in the short term. A recent example that comes to mind is the current-generation Honda Fit, which went on sale in Japan in 2013, and the U.S. in 2014. The JDM Fit was plagued with problems related to the DCT transmission, and this resulted in several recalls. The USDM Fit was built on a brand new production line in Celeya, Mexico, and vehicles built on that line had all manner of quality problems ranging from bad paint to misaligned panels. Fitfreak.net was blanketed with angry complaints about a product that should have been a slam-dunk for Honda. The Fit is by far the simplest car in Honda's North American lineup.

As painful as the Model X ramp has been for Tesla, it's better that the company learn its lessons now rather than in 2017.

Early adopters are willing to put up with bugs to some degree, but the mainstream buyer just wants something that works.

 

[Colby Boles]

In other news, @umeshunni who ordered the Accessory Hitch also received the same 2" receiver hitch and wiring harness adapter as I (who ordered the towing package). He also has the same towing option in the menus. So it would seem that the extra $550 doesn't buy you anything at all. Stranger still, both options are still in the design studio.

 

[182RG]

In other news, @umeshunni who ordered the Accessory Hitch also received the same 2" receiver hitch and wiring harness adapter as I (who ordered the towing package). He also has the same towing option in the menus. So it would seem that the extra $550 doesn't buy you anything at all. Stranger still, both options are still in the design studio.

According to Teslarati, the tow hitch is 2", with software sway control and a 7 wire pigtail. The accessory hitch is 1.25" with no software or pigtail. @umeshunni must have gotten the tow hitch.

Tesla Model X Now Has Optional Accessory Hitch, More Range

 

[SMSMD]

According to Teslarati, the tow hitch is 2", with software sway control and a 7 wire pigtail. The accessory hitch is 1.25" with no software or pigtail. [URL='http://www.teslarati.com/tesla-model-x-now-optional-accessory-hitch-range/']Tesla Model X Now Has Optional Accessory Hitch, More Range[/URL]

This info. is quite old when accessory hitch was free...later it was for a fee and 2"

 

[Dr ValueSeeker]

I still don't get why you all are accepting your new cars at the dealership with these flaws and not walking away, unless TM convinced you to wire money to them before your delivery, and the money is already gone from your accounts, holding you hostage to your car. I will finance, so I do not have the money hanging over my head. Signage is only after acceptable vehicle is on site.

Some people did pay up in advance. But even if you don't, you will still lose the $5000 deposit amount. Not pocket change.
There is also the psychological side of it, having waited so long and told your family and friends about it for years. Some people might already have sold their previous car, or terminated prior leases. It' s like saying "No" at the marriage alter. At that point, you don't care if the bride looks fat ro the groom comes drunk. Too late

 

[Colby Boles]

According to Teslarati, the tow hitch is 2", with software sway control and a 7 wire pigtail. The accessory hitch is 1.25" with no software or pigtail. @umeshunni must have gotten the tow hitch.

Tesla Model X Now Has Optional Accessory Hitch, More Range

I know he only ordered the 1.25" hitch but got the 2", which is not to say they didn't just give him a free upgrade. If you go to the Tesla Design Center, you will see that the accessory hitch is now 2". He may have gotten the sway control too. From the orientation specialist my understanding of the tow setting on the touch screen mainly was that it was there to disable auto-pilot and the like since the rear sensors would be potentially blocked. He also said that the vehicle had some way of sensing hitch loads and would kick into tow mode automatically if some amount of tongue weight or tow load was detected.

The sway control SW better be pretty good, otherwise $550 is a lot to pay for a $10 pigtail. It doesn't even include the trailer connector(s)!

 

[umeshunni]

Yeah, I got the 2" accessory hitch but it looks like I got the tow package gratis. On another thread people were saying that the 'tow package light's can town 3500lbs vs 5000 lbs for the full tow because of some missing body reinforcement.