What Car Magazine Reliability Awards

[Thunderbird1]

Most reliable executive and electric car

WINNER - Tesla Model 3 (2019-present)
What went wrong? Interior trim 5%
Reliability Rating 99.4%

Tesla’s newest model is its most durable so far, with a score that not only puts it ahead of every other electric car, but all the petrol, diesel and hybrid executive cars, too. Just 5% of Model 3s suffered a fault, and those that did could still be driven. All were fixed in a day or less at no cost to the owners.

 

[Chanser]

Colour me surprised.

 

[ACarneiro]

Fairly niche class, isn’t it?
Just a handful of competitors?

 

[pgkevet]

Fairly niche class, isn’t it?
Just a handful of competitors?

Yup! A Sinclair c5 with walnut trim, a milk float with doors and a Leaf that couldn't see the autumn out..

 

[AndrewGR]

Fixed in a day?!!!

 

[pgkevet]

Fixed in a day?!!!

..That was after the 6 wk wait for a servie slot, diagnosis and the parts to arrive...

 

[NewbieT]

Snags aside, how many people have ‘broken down’ other than a flat tyre? Probably not many. A few rear motor failures; steering wheel came off; wiring harness water ingress w/ multiple failures;. They don’t all get posted online but many do. 100?/20,000 = 0.005%.

I guess everyone else has a smaller sample size

 

[m3gt2]

Where are they published? I could only find last years awards

 

[pgkevet]

Snags aside, how many people have ‘broken down’ other than a flat tyre? Probably not many. A few rear motor failures; steering wheel came off; wiring harness water ingress w/ multiple failures;. They don’t all get posted online but many do. 100?/20,000 = 0.005%.

I guess everyone else has a smaller sample size

Sorry but I have to correct your math 100/20000 = 0.005 but is 0.5%

 

[M3noob]

Snags aside, how many people have ‘broken down’ other than a flat tyre? Probably not many. A few rear motor failures; steering wheel came off; wiring harness water ingress w/ multiple failures;. They don’t all get posted online but many do. 100?/20,000 = 0.005%.

I guess everyone else has a smaller sample size

And we are astride an equally small sample of owners that aren't shy of internet bitching when our skinny water bottles rattle

 

[Jason71]

forums give us a distorted view. go on any forum and all you will find is the problems that is what they are there for.
personally I have had one trip to a service centre because a puddle hit at 50mph ripped the rear motor cover (fixed for free after some negotiation). Not great and not something any other brand would have suffered but something most owners wont experience. No other issues in 9 months 10K miles. I don't consider that too bad. but my expectations coming in were pretty low.
I think the pain of getting stuff fixed when it does go wrong is what magnifies the actual number of issues

 

[M3noob]

I'm with Jason71.

6000 miles and two flats - clearly not Tesla's fault. Failure to charge once at a Destination Charger that a reset would have fixed (trip to Service Centre unnecessary). What I consider excessive tyre wear on the front was actually caused by the tyre shop using the wrong specs after my MPP Lift Kit was installed. Tyres rotated for free by them yesterday and have been promised a good deal when it's time for new rubber.

I've saved hundreds on petrol on my two long Spanish trips thus far and the ride is comfortable. FSD (such as it is currently) makes for a relaxing trip. If it got totalled tomorrow, I'd buy exactly the same.

My other cars are a Smart cabrio and a Subaru Forester that are parked a lot of the time in favour of the M3.

 

[ACarneiro]

So far (touch wood!) absolutely flawless. Just over 25k miles on the clock.

 

[Jason71]

I'm with Jason71.

6000 miles and two flats - clearly not Tesla's fault. Failure to charge once at a Destination Charger that a reset would have fixed (trip to Service Centre unnecessary). What I consider excessive tyre wear on the front was actually caused by the tyre shop using the wrong specs after my MPP Lift Kit was installed. Tyres rotated for free by them yesterday and have been promised a good deal when it's time for new rubber.

I've saved hundreds on petrol on my two long Spanish trips thus far and the ride is comfortable. FSD (such as it is currently) makes for a relaxing trip. If it got totalled tomorrow, I'd buy exactly the same.

My other cars are a Smart cabrio and a Subaru Forester that are parked a lot of the time in favour of the M3.

That would make for an interesting thread/survey. If your Tesla was written off today by a runaway lorry while parked (i.e no personal trauma either physical or emotional from the incident) what would you do?
I think I would get another M3 LR but probably in another colour. The white was hard work in the winter and the wife doesn't like it. If we knew the release date I might hold out for an MY

 

[Jason71]

So far (touch wood!) absolutely flawless. Just over 25k miles on the clock.

Maybe that's it! Perhaps it's the cars with white interiors that have all the issue since there is no wood to touch?

 

[Roy W.]

Maybe that's it! Perhaps it's the cars with white interiors that have all the issue since there is no wood to touch?

White interior here. The huge and distressing problem that I had was that the light in the glovebox never worked. Fixed by a visiting Ranger. It’s put me off Tesla for life

 

[GRiLLA]

It's not been unreliable, but I have had quite a lots of service visits to fix things

* minor paint issues on collection
* some hideous noise from the front axles
* All 4 rear lights swapped due to water
* Fitting the Homelink that I argued should have been part of the original spec
* Rear glass cracked along the screen heater
* persistent rattle from the headlining, fixed on second attempt

I love my car, but in a year it has had 2 service center stays and 3 ranger visits.

 

[M3noob]

Maybe that's it! Perhaps it's the cars with white interiors that have all the issue since there is no wood to touch?

It's not been unreliable, but I have had quite a lots of service visits to fix things

(horrendous defect list omitted)

I love my car, but in a year it has had 2 service center stays and 3 ranger visits.

You were evidently born under a bad sign. Ever though of being a blues musician?

 

[Thunderbird1]

Where are they published? I could only find last years awards

What Car?

 

[Neilman]

One annoyance I find with all the M3 reviews is they rarely mention exactly when their testing took place.
Reading through the description begins to show old specifications or mentions of "things not available when we tested this" comments.
Tesla seem to be all-too fluid in their developments and of course no such thing as "model year" so no help there.