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When do I maintain my Model 3?
- Thread starter JetFalcon
- Start date
Wow. That does not look like anything I would personally want to tackle. On my Lexus I just opened the glove compartment and slid out the filter. There were no panels to remove, no screws to pull out, no wires to unclip. That’s just a pain in the butt to get to.
Petra
Member
Alpaca
Member
some cars have the filter under the glove box - but many have it in a similar position to the Tesla - I changed that on Mazda 3, Acura MDX. Yes, a bit more involved - but certainly DIYable ,,
yeah - other than that - wiper blades (when needed), tire rotation (every 5-10K perhaps / as needed), brake fluid they claim 2 years - and in humid climates - maybe - but you could test the fluid to see if it really needs that - and a Motive Fluid bleeder is cheap and again is an easy DIY if you are going to rotate your own tires.
Battery coolant - need to do that at the service center at 4 years to maintain battery warranty - but I plan to do all the other routine stuff above myself ...
yeah - other than that - wiper blades (when needed), tire rotation (every 5-10K perhaps / as needed), brake fluid they claim 2 years - and in humid climates - maybe - but you could test the fluid to see if it really needs that - and a Motive Fluid bleeder is cheap and again is an easy DIY if you are going to rotate your own tires.
Battery coolant - need to do that at the service center at 4 years to maintain battery warranty - but I plan to do all the other routine stuff above myself ...
It does, to the lower right inside the center console.The Model 3 doesn't have a cabin filter.
SammichLover
Banned
You've been ninja'd.
When do I maintain my Model 3?Any word on what Tesla prices replacements at, assuming they'll sell one to you? Have any 3rd party replacement parts shown up yet?
EnrgyNDpndnce
Member
You've been ninja'd.
Any word on what Tesla prices replacements at, assuming they'll sell one to you? Have any 3rd party replacement parts shown up yet?
If the cabin filters are like every other car I’ve owned, the part will be available on Amazon or at Walmart for $5 to $10. Or Tesla will gladly charge you $100 to change them and save you 10 minutes of DIY time.
SammichLover
Banned
The thing is that Tesla is notoriously unfriendly to 3rd party supply chain. Manufacturers through retailers. Plus they are relatively new and until 6 months ago the Model 3 fleet was tiny, and there was still reasonable questions about financial and logistics viability of Tesla to get more vehicles out. Trying to find 3rd party parts and specialized tools for all sorts of normally basic things is very difficult still.
That's why I'm asking explicitly if someone has seen them.
<edit> Incidentally I've seen Model S owners mention that Tesla does sell the filters for DIY and charge "$10 to $20" for them. Unless you've got the Biowarfare Whatchamacallit option which is a lot more pricy. So it isn't overly soaking people, even if it is almost certainly going to be more expensive for the set of two compared to what a 3rd party will eventually sell them for. The other thing 3rd party suppliers will do will offer higher filtration capability filters, like activated charcoal and HEPA. I've seen those for the nose cone Model S cars, just never come across a Model 3 one yet.
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Knightshade
Well-Known Member
You don't ever need to do any maintenance to keep the warranty. Nor is the coolant thing even mentioned as a required item anymore.
Only "replace every X years" items listed anymore are:
cabin filter (2-3 years depending on type/model)
AC desiccant (every 2, 4, or 6 years depending on model)
That's it. And recommend you check brake fluid every 2 then change as needed.
Car Maintenance
Tesla said:
The coolant and brake fluid is still in the user manual as needing to be replaced on a schedule. So they will need to remove it from there if they are actually changing that requirement. Especially since that webpage tells you to check your manual for the latest.
Knightshade
Well-Known Member
The manual is routinely out of date (and predates the updated page I linked to)
Though even the previous "do X every Y years" info also said ignoring all the suggestions wouldn't void your warranty so that hasn't changed.
dhrivnak
Active Member
I would think you are good to 100,000 miles on the differential. Likely much longer as for most cars the fluid lasts the life of the vehicle.
Well, the manual in my car post-dates the updated webpage (since 2019.8.5 just came out this week and it now has the new NoA instructions) and it still has the brake and battery coolant intervals.
And if the manual is always out of date, why do they instruct you first to see the manual for the latest maintenance intervals? They must intend for the manual to be the source document.
So until my user manual is changed, the brake fluid and battery coolant intervals are valid.
Valid, but to what point. You don't have to do the maintenance to maintain your warranty, it is just a recommendation, not a requirement.
And here is the current maintenance items and prices:
Knightshade
Well-Known Member
well that's insane...
I never paid more than 50-60 bucks for an oil change at Lexus.
The trick was not telling them "I want the X miles service" because then they'd tack on a ton of useless "inspections" and jack the price up. I'd just ask for oil and filter change, and it was always ~50 bucks plus tax.
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Ah, but you do to maintain the extended warranty if they start offering one for the 3.
Besides, I believe you DO have to do the maintenance for the regular warranty, it just doesnt have to be at Tesla by law.
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