Frustrated trying to figure out Tesla quality

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our Tesla is a lemon. I don’t remember which model it is, but it cost over 110k. I think it depreciated 10 grand a year since it was bought new. It’s a pain to have it serviced and they give you “Uber credits” (during a pandemic, lol) instead of a loaner or anything to make up for the fact your luxury auto is in the shop. The service is never done when they say it should and they don’t respond to texts in a timely manner. I think it’s stupid, but my husband is trading in his lemon (he can’t stand it anymore) for one of the cheaper, newer Tesla models. Me, I have a Toyota that never needs fixing. I guess he hopes the new ones will be better? Definitely, don’t buy a luxury Tesla.

How do you not know which model you have?

Until 2 years ago, a 10K a year depreciation for a car that costs $110K is actually pretty good... but some of your points still stand. The fact that Tesla doesn't give out loaners - or when they do are not comparable cars - goes back to the fact that they are not a luxury automaker, despite the costs of their cars. You will never get BMW or Mercedes or Lexus service from a Tesla dealer. While I never ever ever would spend over $100K on a Tesla because of these issues (service and fit/quality especially), I wouldn't hesitate on the cheaper models.

You should've bought the electric Porsche.

Because it’s my husband’s car and I literally don’t care about cars. I’ve driven the Tesla once in 5 years. I think luxury cars are a waste of money. I can tell you what model my reliable Toyota is and that it never breaks down - I’ve owned the same model car (newer versions) since the 90s. We can afford luxury cars, it’s just not my thing. I do find it really annoying that a 110k car breaks down and there isn’t a loaner, when I think just buying the car is a waste of money. But, my husband can spend his money however he wants.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our Tesla is a lemon. I don’t remember which model it is, but it cost over 110k. I think it depreciated 10 grand a year since it was bought new. It’s a pain to have it serviced and they give you “Uber credits” (during a pandemic, lol) instead of a loaner or anything to make up for the fact your luxury auto is in the shop. The service is never done when they say it should and they don’t respond to texts in a timely manner. I think it’s stupid, but my husband is trading in his lemon (he can’t stand it anymore) for one of the cheaper, newer Tesla models. Me, I have a Toyota that never needs fixing. I guess he hopes the new ones will be better? Definitely, don’t buy a luxury Tesla.

How do you not know which model you have?

Until 2 years ago, a 10K a year depreciation for a car that costs $110K is actually pretty good... but some of your points still stand. The fact that Tesla doesn't give out loaners - or when they do are not comparable cars - goes back to the fact that they are not a luxury automaker, despite the costs of their cars. You will never get BMW or Mercedes or Lexus service from a Tesla dealer. While I never ever ever would spend over $100K on a Tesla because of these issues (service and fit/quality especially), I wouldn't hesitate on the cheaper models.

You should've bought the electric Porsche.

Because it’s my husband’s car and I literally don’t care about cars. I’ve driven the Tesla once in 5 years. I think luxury cars are a waste of money. I can tell you what model my reliable Toyota is and that it never breaks down - I’ve owned the same model car (newer versions) since the 90s. We can afford luxury cars, it’s just not my thing. I do find it really annoying that a 110k car breaks down and there isn’t a loaner, when I think just buying the car is a waste of money. But, my husband can spend his money however he wants.

There's a lot to unpack here (do you have a reliable Toyota? You haven't mentioned it. Funny that Toyota is the farthest behind in developing all electric tech...) You must care a little about cars if you are in the car forum? It sounds like most of your issues are with the fact that your husband decided to make the purchase.

Anyhooo... basically there are two types of Teslas - 3 and Y ($50-70K or thereabouts) and S and X ($90-150K). It is insane if you have a $100K+ car and they make no accommodation for a loaner vehicle that is at least a similar model car. At those prices, you are talking ultra luxury vehicles and Tesla isn't an ultra luxury automaker. But I think most folks are talking about the lower priced Teslas which should have a different set of expectations. Obviously, your husband's beef isn't with Tesla since he's going to get one of the lower priced models.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Pretty much agree on all of this. If you want an electric car today, Tesla is the leader. Others are catching up - check back again in 2 years.

We vastly prefer our iPace to the Tesla’s we test drove, drives like a sports car and has the interior of a luxury car for significantly less than rhe more expensive Tesla models. The Audi was similar and it was really a question of what car was closer to us geographically. The lower priced Tesla’s were simply too small for our needs.

We are leasing and were still able to get the tax benefit. I believe Tesla is about to age out of that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Easy to maintain? You still have a new car.

Your cavalier attitude about gas station belies the fact you never take a long trip, because then you will spend a LOT of time hunting for charging stations or plugged into a 240V outlet chilling. It’s not like I spend much time at gas stations as it is, what an odd thing to focus on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Easy to maintain? You still have a new car.

Your cavalier attitude about gas station belies the fact you never take a long trip, because then you will spend a LOT of time hunting for charging stations or plugged into a 240V outlet chilling. It’s not like I spend much time at gas stations as it is, what an odd thing to focus on.

Tesla Superchargers are everywhere.

[Anonymous]

We have an X that is five years old and generally love it. Super safe, fast, easy to charge on road trips, etc. Both DH and I drove Hondas and Toyotas for years before we got this. If you buy a Tesla expecting that level of reliability, you’ll be disappointed. If you can handle slightly more maintenance for the sake of all the other awesome things, it’s a terrific car.

We’ve taken plenty of longer road trips and never had issues with supercharging. We bought long enough ago that it’s free for us, which is a nice bonus.

[Anonymous]

A friend told me she's going to get rid of hers when the warranty runs out. She LOVES driving it, but sometimes it quits, and then it's in the shop for weeks. You must have a second car when you own a Tesla because they need a lot of repairs, and the repairs take a long time. She gets tired of all the in and out of the repair shop, and says it's not worth it for the thrill of driving her Tesla. She'd going to replace it with a Lexus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Easy to maintain? You still have a new car.

Your cavalier attitude about gas station belies the fact you never take a long trip, because then you will spend a LOT of time hunting for charging stations or plugged into a 240V outlet chilling. It’s not like I spend much time at gas stations as it is, what an odd thing to focus on.

Tesla Superchargers are everywhere.

they are rarer than gas stations and the ones convenient to interstates seem to have lines, and that can mean a half hour or more of waiting

[Anonymous]

Tesla has a big new recall for trunk latches not working.

They clearly were pushing to make cars faster than they could do well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tesla has a big new recall for trunk latches not working.

They clearly were pushing to make cars faster than they could do well.

You are correct. Tesla is the first car company to have a recall for anything.

[Anonymous]

$22,000 to replace the battery!

https://people.com/human-interest/tesla-owner-blows-up-his-car-when-faced-with-22000-repair-bill/

Tuomas Katainen blew up his modified 2013 Tesla Model S and recorded the explosive event in a now-viral YouTube video, which was posted earlier this month. According to Insider, Katainen made the decision after he was told it would cost him around $22,000 to replace the car's battery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Detroit and worked at a big 3 auto company in college. Tesla quality is highly-variable. The car has some great, innovative design features, and it's impossible to argue against the fact that Tesla has made incredible contributions to the shift toward vehicle electrification. They've also innovated in other ways, such as direct-to-consumer sales. But it's a hit or miss car quality-wise.

I think a big part is that it's designed by SV engineers who think they know more than anyone [full disclosure: I'm a know-it-all SV engineer]. A friend of mine worked at Tesla in a manufacturing group, and about 5-6 years ago she was telling me her boss was interested in using data science to help with supply chain QC...stuff like sampling parts from a lot and tracking manufacturing lots. I laughed, because I did all of this with a spreadsheet and a notebook in the 90s! For whatever reason, early on Tesla opted not to learn from the things the legacy automakers did well and the lessons they'd learned from a century of mass producing consumer vehicles. They've started to hire more from legacy companies, but they're playing catch up in some ways.

If it matters, we are on our second Nissan Leaf, and DH has put in a pre-order reservation for a Cybertruck. But both he and I are on the fence of whether we'll actually want to buy it pending quality issues.

DH went to test drive a Model X a couple of years ago, and in the showroom one of the falcon doors didn't work and the back seats were stuck in an unusable position. That's in a showroom! A huge fraction of the cars have issues. People make fun of the Detroit automakers' quality, but none of them have the kind of issues that Teslas do. And stuff like the retractable door handles just feel like a part failure waiting to happen. DH and I are both trained in fields where we design for failure contingencies, longevity, and reliability...and nothing about a Tesla feels solid from that perspective.

Fellow engineer here and this assessment is correct.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Most of these benefits apply to any eletric car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ignore the people on here who clearly don't own one (the status poster for example...)

Best car I have ever owned
Not great fit and finish even in my 2017 model - but nothing major.
Incredibly fun to drive
Incredibly easy to maintain (less to go wrong...)
No wasted time at gas stations - just get in and go (how much is your time worth?)
Safety features great

The easy but somewhat fair criticism is you are paying 45% for the car, 45% for the battery and 10% for the computer. The reality is the user experience is worth multiples of what the car costs when you compare to all the alternatives

I'll never buy a gas powered car again.

Easy to maintain? You still have a new car.

Your cavalier attitude about gas station belies the fact you never take a long trip, because then you will spend a LOT of time hunting for charging stations or plugged into a 240V outlet chilling. It’s not like I spend much time at gas stations as it is, what an odd thing to focus on.

Tesla Superchargers are everywhere.

they are rarer than gas stations and the ones convenient to interstates seem to have lines, and that can mean a half hour or more of waiting

Do you actually own a Tesla or are you just parroting what you heard somewhere?

I've had my Model 3 since 2019, I've taken it on two dozen long road trips, and I've had to wait for a charger exactly once, for about 10 minutes. I've never, ever had to use a 240v outlet on a trip. I've used 110v outlets before, but that's literally only for convenience leaving it plugged in at an AirBnB or family member's house while we're staying there.

I've never spent a single minute "hunting for charging stations" because the car automatically routes you to chargers along the way to your destination. On a typical trip from DC to VT which I do several times a year, I spend 50 minutes charging - 25 minutes in NJ, 25 minutes on the Thruway, and I'm done. I use one of those stops as a food break while I charge, so considering an ICA car also need to stop for food and gas on an 8 hour drive, you're only adding maybe 20 minutes of actual extra time.

[Anonymous]

There are quality EVs out there that are not Tesla. I have a 2015 eGolf and it has been fantastic. I can't use it for long drives, but 95% of my driving is local. I bought it used in 2018 and I have never taken it in for a service or repair.