Hello. I recently paid for a pre-purchase inspection by a Tesla dealer/service center before purchasing the vehicle from the seller, an independent user car dealership, and having it shipped. This vehicle was to replace my model S that was ruined in the Marshall fire in Colorado while in a Tesla service center, which burned.
Upon delivery, I noted some issues that the inspection did not mention, and took it to my service center. The service advisor informed me that they had found issues with ball joints and tie rods. This was not mentioned in the inspection, and I even remember a phone conversation in which they mentioned that the inspection tech had checked steering and suspension parts and didn’t find anything loose or out of the ordinary.
The report also indicated passing inspection for autopilot. However, the autopilot system pulls suddenly and hard to the left. If traveling at highway speed, it pulls so hard that if you hold the steering wheel straight, as you would have to do to avoid abruptly changing lanes, it immediately disengages due to the driver’s resistance to the force. If traveling at low speed, it pulls, but if you resist, it doesn’t quite disengage, but tracks alarmingly close to the left side of the lane.
I trusted the inspection to make my purchase decision, and had I known there were issues, I wouldn’t have purchased the car, or I would at least have been able to negotiate with the seller. I feel that Tesla should stand behind their evaluation and take care of the issues that they said weren’t there.
The dealer that performed the inspection responded this week, “I reviewed the records from your visit and from when we inspected the vehicle there were no excessive pulls that were noted at the time of inspection. We did note on the inspection that the steering wheel was off center and that the tires were causing a vibration. We did complete the inspection for you and noted our findings as such unfortunately anything beyond that you would be liable for the repairs as the vehicle was sold from a third party and not through Tesla. There is an unknown as to if anything happened to the vehicle from the time it left our service center to the time it arrived into your possession but we would encourage you to work with your local service center to try and come to a resolution to correct the issues that you are having.”
The seller had agreed to drive the vehicle 30 miles to the service center to perform the inspection, and then to a tire shop they use, to perform an alignment, and install and balance new tires. From the odometer reading on the pre-inspection, to the time the vehicle was loaded on the truck, it was driven 69 miles. I don’t see any way that tie rods and ball joints could realistically be trashed in that drive from Milford, CT to Branford, CT and to the tire shop and back. I have a video of the car being loaded onto the truck, and it was strapped down by its tires, which is apparently the proper way to do it. The driver was also very careful and professional when unloading it.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can persuade Tesla to stand behind their inspection? Thanks for any advice.
Upon delivery, I noted some issues that the inspection did not mention, and took it to my service center. The service advisor informed me that they had found issues with ball joints and tie rods. This was not mentioned in the inspection, and I even remember a phone conversation in which they mentioned that the inspection tech had checked steering and suspension parts and didn’t find anything loose or out of the ordinary.
The report also indicated passing inspection for autopilot. However, the autopilot system pulls suddenly and hard to the left. If traveling at highway speed, it pulls so hard that if you hold the steering wheel straight, as you would have to do to avoid abruptly changing lanes, it immediately disengages due to the driver’s resistance to the force. If traveling at low speed, it pulls, but if you resist, it doesn’t quite disengage, but tracks alarmingly close to the left side of the lane.
I trusted the inspection to make my purchase decision, and had I known there were issues, I wouldn’t have purchased the car, or I would at least have been able to negotiate with the seller. I feel that Tesla should stand behind their evaluation and take care of the issues that they said weren’t there.
The dealer that performed the inspection responded this week, “I reviewed the records from your visit and from when we inspected the vehicle there were no excessive pulls that were noted at the time of inspection. We did note on the inspection that the steering wheel was off center and that the tires were causing a vibration. We did complete the inspection for you and noted our findings as such unfortunately anything beyond that you would be liable for the repairs as the vehicle was sold from a third party and not through Tesla. There is an unknown as to if anything happened to the vehicle from the time it left our service center to the time it arrived into your possession but we would encourage you to work with your local service center to try and come to a resolution to correct the issues that you are having.”
The seller had agreed to drive the vehicle 30 miles to the service center to perform the inspection, and then to a tire shop they use, to perform an alignment, and install and balance new tires. From the odometer reading on the pre-inspection, to the time the vehicle was loaded on the truck, it was driven 69 miles. I don’t see any way that tie rods and ball joints could realistically be trashed in that drive from Milford, CT to Branford, CT and to the tire shop and back. I have a video of the car being loaded onto the truck, and it was strapped down by its tires, which is apparently the proper way to do it. The driver was also very careful and professional when unloading it.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can persuade Tesla to stand behind their inspection? Thanks for any advice.
