6 ms·

Tesla Model 3, owner here. The list of reasons why I will never buy a Tesla again is too long, but they pretty much all boil down to cheap parts and poor build

Tesla Model 3, owner here. The list of reasons why I will never buy a Tesla again is too long, but they pretty much all boil down to cheap parts and poor build quality. That goes for their software also, absolute junk.

audunw 3y ago
I’m surprised that you find the software to be junk.. that’s supposed to be one of their strong points. I found the software on the Model S I borrowed for a trip a while back quite nice. But I guess the issues aren’t surface level?
- yareal 3y ago
  We had a model s, the software crashed constantly. Or just locked up. Nothing like having your dashboard go black at 70 mph to instill confidence in your car.
  - bzzzt 3y ago
    My 8 year old Volvo does that rarely (two times in 8 years). At least it has a watchdog that reboots the dash and keeps running.
    - ceejayoz 3y ago
      Guessing an eight year old Volvo still has a working speedometer during a restart, though.
      - bzzzt 3y ago
        It's a V40 with the LCD based speedometer. It's still a computer screen but driven by a separate CPU running the QNX OS which won't crash ;)
  - cynix 3y ago
    Weird, I’ve had my Model S for 8 years, and it never locked up once. Is yours a MCU1 model with problematic eMMC that has worn out?
    - myko 3y ago
      My 2016 Model S has had this happen a few times. I have even upgraded to the new computer (so the touch screen no longer feels like a Motorola Xoom), and I occasionally get this issue - but it's much rarer today than it was pre-upgrade. Major complaint here: when it does happen, it takes minutes to reset, and you can't see your speed and get no audible cues for what is going on with the car. It is an extremely dangerous failure state.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- iterati 3y ago
  My partner and I share a Tesla. It's 'mained' under her account. About 25%-50% of the times I enter the driver's seat - it varies depending on the version it's on - it forgets my driver profile and I have to reconfigure the mirrors and seat. This bug was first reported in 2020 IIRC and never fixed. Never buying another Tesla. Their only advantage is the network of superchargers.
  - elif 3y ago
    Weird. Is your wife's phone nearby by chance? The only time this happens to me it's because we are both walking to the car together and her phone unlocks it before mine does.
    - janoc 3y ago
      And why would that feature rely on a phone in the first place instead of letting the driver change the profile when getting behind the wheel? Or e.g. use a fingerprint sensor or interior camera (which some of the Teslas do have)? That sounds like some software guy somewhere didn't realize that those seats in the car aren't only for carrying air but that actual people or, gosh, occasional other drivers ride in them too. Sadly this is rather symptomatic for many things coming out of Silicon Valley (not only Tesla).
      - WolfRazu 3y ago
        There is an easy profile toggle
        gumby 3y ago
        The author said they know that but the problem was the profile being deleted.
      - iterati 3y ago
        It's an option when you set up your phone as a key. If it didn't delete me and just picked the wrong profile, it'd be a great feature.
- dagmx 3y ago
  Their software is strong compared to other car manufacturers. Which is a fairly low bar to cross. Their software is buggy and has a lot of friction points compared to mobile phones which is a high bar to cross. The catch is that a lot of the other car manufacturers supports CarPlay and Android Auto which allow you to have a better experience.
underdeserver 3y ago
Can you please elaborate on that list? I've had a Model 3 for two and a half years and it's still the best driving experience I've ever had.
- seanieb 3y ago
  I've had my car for about the same length of time. It is fun to drive when it's working. The first two years were uneventful, but it was evident that the build quality was subpar and the software substandard. And I'm not referring to the entertainment system here, but rather the software that controls the car itself, which falls short compared to my Volvo XC60. The fly-by-wire system lacks the necessary redundancies and telemetry/logging to fail safely. My experience involved the car's computer malfunctioning while in lane-keeping cruise control (Autopilot, not FSD). The vehicle would abruptly and violently swerve out of the lane, crossing over the white line into adjacent lanes and towards barriers. Tesla initially attributed these issues to wheel alignment or tracking. It took several service appointments and months to convince them otherwise, requiring me to mount a GoPro in my car and dangerously recreate the issue, which randomly occurred after about 45 minutes of cruise control driving. It wasn't until I contacted their PR department and threatened to involve the press that they took the matter seriously. What a perilously flawed failure mode. Yet, throughout these months, during which the car swerved erratically at least 20 times, no alerts were triggered, nor were errors or crash dumps logged that could be detected by their technicians or the main office in California. It required GoPro footage from inside my car to highlight the issue. Their service process is Kafkaesque. Phone support is ineffective, and you're relegated to using a text box in the mobile app that only accepts small image attachments. Videos cannot be uploaded directly; they provide an email address, but emails can;'t contain links or they will be blocked and emails with large attachments won't work. Each interaction feels like starting from scratch, as they don't seem to review the history or notes of your issue. As for the humidity or fog in your headlights, they claim it's within specifications and will dissipate once the car warms up. There's so much more, phantom breaking at highway speeds, exaggerated range estimates, slow headlight dimming, headlights that need constant re-calibration, terrible rain sensors and wiper modes, etc. etc.
  - 3y ago
braza 3y ago
I don't own a Tesla, but I have a relevant anecdote related to your post. I rented a Model 3 in Switzerland and while the car was drivable, I felt that the interior was cheaply made, giving the impression that I was driving a toy car. The car had a lot of plastic and whenever I drove over bumpy roads, there were cracking friction sounds everywhere. Additionally, the acceleration was extremely sensitive, making it difficult to maneuver in tight streets.
- mdorazio 3y ago
  Totally agree with you on interior feel. However, the acceleration is tunable in the settings whenever you want.
- RedShift1 3y ago
  The interior is cheap. Even my 10 year old BMW 1 series interior feels better and is much sturdier.
  - bitcharmer 3y ago
    Does your BMW have blinkers?
  - hatsix 3y ago
    Your BMW 1 series is considered a luxury car. A new sedan is close to twice the Model 3. Tesla is not a luxury car company. You pay a premium for the electric part, and put up with everything else. They took a risk that nobody else was willing to make and proved a market. We're in a better place, ecologically speaking because of them. Their cars are also cheaply made. Now that manufacturers that know what they're doing are competing, Tesla is in trouble.
    - DennisP 3y ago
      Tesla has always cut corners on everything besides the powertrain because batteries were so expensive. Now that battery cost has fallen so much, they're upgrading interiors, starting with the Model 3 refresh. Aside from possibly BYD, other manufacturers have no particular cost advantage over Tesla in BEVs. Ford and GM are still losing money on each one they sell, and have cut production for next year.
nickpp 3y ago
> That goes for their software also, absolute junk. Compared to what? I am a BMW owner who would never recommend this brand to anybody because of its horrible build and software problems. Thank God for CarPlay!
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- piperswe 3y ago
  I always find this sentiment about BMW surprising - iDrive is my favorite of the OEM infotainment systems.
  - nickpp 3y ago
    Every time I get in the car, the left&right side mirrors change their position with a few extra mm to the outside. The heads-up display loses its saved position every few trips. Profile management is a mess, as is recognizing the wrong driver (me or wife) when we are both in the car. Unlocking the car with my iPhone is a hot mess. The US connecteddrive app (which I use since I have the US AppStore) does not work with the European account made on an European car (which I own). And these are just a few of the software problems BMW has. On the hardware side I experienced electrical problems, badly installed parts, crappy rubber and complete loss of coolant. New car, lightly driven, btw.
darthrupert 3y ago
I cannot say much about parts quality since I have owned my Tesla only for 6 months, but the software is top of the line of EVs. There seems to be a bunch of Musk hatred that people just transfer to Tesla hatred.
- seanieb 3y ago
  It would be much more productive to ask why rather than to dismiss my observations as some sort of grunge against the CEO. See my other comments. I also have a Volvo XC60 with lane keeping, I find it's much more reliable than Autopilot and doesn't dangerous "phantom break" at highway speeds for no reason. See my other comment for some more, but not an exhaustive list, of the issues I have with my Model 3.
  - darthrupert 3y ago
    The phantom break thing is irritating, but it's probably due to the emergency braking system, which saves lives in its own way. Does the Volvo have a similar system?
    - seanieb 3y ago
      Yes, I believe they were one of the first companies to have that feature. It was on my previous XC60 too, which was my primary car. I never experienced one case of phantom breaking on the highway, while I don’t drive a lot I believe 4-5 years of driving XC60’s has given me a good feel for their system.
throwaw33333434 3y ago
I bought a new MB CLA 6 years ago, done almost 100k. Nothing broke, never had a problem with software or hardware. Only maintenance was oil, brake fluid, break pad, filters, summer tyres, windshield wipers. Batter is still good, next year I'll replace break discs. I've been tracking, drifting and driving quite hard (bloody potholes!). I don't think I'll ever sell this car.
jredwards 3y ago
I also have a Model 3 and don't feel that way. The only issue I've ever had with it was a door sensor that went bad. Someone showed up at my house and replaced it in under 5 minutes at no cost. All in all, not a terrible experience. My last Nissan shut off (including the power steering) in the middle of the road while I was driving; I don't recall the exact problem but it was related to the motor. My BMW blew a headgasket. My Subaru was recalled for a faulty transmission. None of those flaws are even possible with an all electric drivetrain.
mft_ 3y ago
Interesting. I had a model 3 for a couple of years from new (company car) and nothing went wrong at all. I enjoyed owning it quite a lot. And while I was irritated by the unnecessary UI rethink (maybe 18 months ago?) that worsened usability (I mean, HTF does that even happen?) overall the software was reliable, responsive and usable, and far better than any other car brand I’ve experienced. I’m vacillating over buying another Tesla in the future. If I could guarantee a similar experience to my last car I definitely would, but I’m also wary of getting stuck when something goes wrong and the only recourse is Tesla’s anecdotally expensive/unreliable/un-customer-friendly “service”.
valval 3y ago
How to spot a person who doesn’t own a Tesla from a mile away.

audunw 3y ago

I’m surprised that you find the software to be junk.. that’s supposed to be one of their strong points. I found the software on the Model S I borrowed for a trip a while back quite nice. But I guess the issues aren’t surface level?

yareal 3y ago
We had a model s, the software crashed constantly. Or just locked up. Nothing like having your dashboard go black at 70 mph to instill confidence in your car.
- bzzzt 3y ago
  My 8 year old Volvo does that rarely (two times in 8 years). At least it has a watchdog that reboots the dash and keeps running.
  - ceejayoz 3y ago
    Guessing an eight year old Volvo still has a working speedometer during a restart, though.
    - bzzzt 3y ago
      It's a V40 with the LCD based speedometer. It's still a computer screen but driven by a separate CPU running the QNX OS which won't crash ;)
- cynix 3y ago
  Weird, I’ve had my Model S for 8 years, and it never locked up once. Is yours a MCU1 model with problematic eMMC that has worn out?
  - myko 3y ago
    My 2016 Model S has had this happen a few times. I have even upgraded to the new computer (so the touch screen no longer feels like a Motorola Xoom), and I occasionally get this issue - but it's much rarer today than it was pre-upgrade. Major complaint here: when it does happen, it takes minutes to reset, and you can't see your speed and get no audible cues for what is going on with the car. It is an extremely dangerous failure state.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
iterati 3y ago
My partner and I share a Tesla. It's 'mained' under her account. About 25%-50% of the times I enter the driver's seat - it varies depending on the version it's on - it forgets my driver profile and I have to reconfigure the mirrors and seat. This bug was first reported in 2020 IIRC and never fixed. Never buying another Tesla. Their only advantage is the network of superchargers.
- elif 3y ago
  Weird. Is your wife's phone nearby by chance? The only time this happens to me it's because we are both walking to the car together and her phone unlocks it before mine does.
  - janoc 3y ago
    And why would that feature rely on a phone in the first place instead of letting the driver change the profile when getting behind the wheel? Or e.g. use a fingerprint sensor or interior camera (which some of the Teslas do have)? That sounds like some software guy somewhere didn't realize that those seats in the car aren't only for carrying air but that actual people or, gosh, occasional other drivers ride in them too. Sadly this is rather symptomatic for many things coming out of Silicon Valley (not only Tesla).
    - WolfRazu 3y ago
      There is an easy profile toggle
      - gumby 3y ago
        The author said they know that but the problem was the profile being deleted.
    - iterati 3y ago
      It's an option when you set up your phone as a key. If it didn't delete me and just picked the wrong profile, it'd be a great feature.
dagmx 3y ago
Their software is strong compared to other car manufacturers. Which is a fairly low bar to cross. Their software is buggy and has a lot of friction points compared to mobile phones which is a high bar to cross. The catch is that a lot of the other car manufacturers supports CarPlay and Android Auto which allow you to have a better experience.

underdeserver 3y ago

Can you please elaborate on that list? I've had a Model 3 for two and a half years and it's still the best driving experience I've ever had.

seanieb 3y ago
I've had my car for about the same length of time. It is fun to drive when it's working. The first two years were uneventful, but it was evident that the build quality was subpar and the software substandard. And I'm not referring to the entertainment system here, but rather the software that controls the car itself, which falls short compared to my Volvo XC60. The fly-by-wire system lacks the necessary redundancies and telemetry/logging to fail safely. My experience involved the car's computer malfunctioning while in lane-keeping cruise control (Autopilot, not FSD). The vehicle would abruptly and violently swerve out of the lane, crossing over the white line into adjacent lanes and towards barriers. Tesla initially attributed these issues to wheel alignment or tracking. It took several service appointments and months to convince them otherwise, requiring me to mount a GoPro in my car and dangerously recreate the issue, which randomly occurred after about 45 minutes of cruise control driving. It wasn't until I contacted their PR department and threatened to involve the press that they took the matter seriously. What a perilously flawed failure mode. Yet, throughout these months, during which the car swerved erratically at least 20 times, no alerts were triggered, nor were errors or crash dumps logged that could be detected by their technicians or the main office in California. It required GoPro footage from inside my car to highlight the issue. Their service process is Kafkaesque. Phone support is ineffective, and you're relegated to using a text box in the mobile app that only accepts small image attachments. Videos cannot be uploaded directly; they provide an email address, but emails can;'t contain links or they will be blocked and emails with large attachments won't work. Each interaction feels like starting from scratch, as they don't seem to review the history or notes of your issue. As for the humidity or fog in your headlights, they claim it's within specifications and will dissipate once the car warms up. There's so much more, phantom breaking at highway speeds, exaggerated range estimates, slow headlight dimming, headlights that need constant re-calibration, terrible rain sensors and wiper modes, etc. etc.
- 3y ago

braza 3y ago

I don't own a Tesla, but I have a relevant anecdote related to your post. I rented a Model 3 in Switzerland and while the car was drivable, I felt that the interior was cheaply made, giving the impression that I was driving a toy car. The car had a lot of plastic and whenever I drove over bumpy roads, there were cracking friction sounds everywhere. Additionally, the acceleration was extremely sensitive, making it difficult to maneuver in tight streets.

mdorazio 3y ago
Totally agree with you on interior feel. However, the acceleration is tunable in the settings whenever you want.
RedShift1 3y ago
The interior is cheap. Even my 10 year old BMW 1 series interior feels better and is much sturdier.
- bitcharmer 3y ago
  Does your BMW have blinkers?
- hatsix 3y ago
  Your BMW 1 series is considered a luxury car. A new sedan is close to twice the Model 3. Tesla is not a luxury car company. You pay a premium for the electric part, and put up with everything else. They took a risk that nobody else was willing to make and proved a market. We're in a better place, ecologically speaking because of them. Their cars are also cheaply made. Now that manufacturers that know what they're doing are competing, Tesla is in trouble.
  - DennisP 3y ago
    Tesla has always cut corners on everything besides the powertrain because batteries were so expensive. Now that battery cost has fallen so much, they're upgrading interiors, starting with the Model 3 refresh. Aside from possibly BYD, other manufacturers have no particular cost advantage over Tesla in BEVs. Ford and GM are still losing money on each one they sell, and have cut production for next year.

nickpp 3y ago

> That goes for their software also, absolute junk. Compared to what? I am a BMW owner who would never recommend this brand to anybody because of its horrible build and software problems. Thank God for CarPlay!

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
piperswe 3y ago
I always find this sentiment about BMW surprising - iDrive is my favorite of the OEM infotainment systems.
- nickpp 3y ago
  Every time I get in the car, the left&right side mirrors change their position with a few extra mm to the outside. The heads-up display loses its saved position every few trips. Profile management is a mess, as is recognizing the wrong driver (me or wife) when we are both in the car. Unlocking the car with my iPhone is a hot mess. The US connecteddrive app (which I use since I have the US AppStore) does not work with the European account made on an European car (which I own). And these are just a few of the software problems BMW has. On the hardware side I experienced electrical problems, badly installed parts, crappy rubber and complete loss of coolant. New car, lightly driven, btw.

darthrupert 3y ago

I cannot say much about parts quality since I have owned my Tesla only for 6 months, but the software is top of the line of EVs. There seems to be a bunch of Musk hatred that people just transfer to Tesla hatred.

seanieb 3y ago
It would be much more productive to ask why rather than to dismiss my observations as some sort of grunge against the CEO. See my other comments. I also have a Volvo XC60 with lane keeping, I find it's much more reliable than Autopilot and doesn't dangerous "phantom break" at highway speeds for no reason. See my other comment for some more, but not an exhaustive list, of the issues I have with my Model 3.
- darthrupert 3y ago
  The phantom break thing is irritating, but it's probably due to the emergency braking system, which saves lives in its own way. Does the Volvo have a similar system?
  - seanieb 3y ago
    Yes, I believe they were one of the first companies to have that feature. It was on my previous XC60 too, which was my primary car. I never experienced one case of phantom breaking on the highway, while I don’t drive a lot I believe 4-5 years of driving XC60’s has given me a good feel for their system.

throwaw33333434 3y ago

I bought a new MB CLA 6 years ago, done almost 100k. Nothing broke, never had a problem with software or hardware. Only maintenance was oil, brake fluid, break pad, filters, summer tyres, windshield wipers. Batter is still good, next year I'll replace break discs. I've been tracking, drifting and driving quite hard (bloody potholes!). I don't think I'll ever sell this car.

jredwards 3y ago

I also have a Model 3 and don't feel that way. The only issue I've ever had with it was a door sensor that went bad. Someone showed up at my house and replaced it in under 5 minutes at no cost. All in all, not a terrible experience. My last Nissan shut off (including the power steering) in the middle of the road while I was driving; I don't recall the exact problem but it was related to the motor. My BMW blew a headgasket. My Subaru was recalled for a faulty transmission. None of those flaws are even possible with an all electric drivetrain.

mft_ 3y ago

Interesting. I had a model 3 for a couple of years from new (company car) and nothing went wrong at all. I enjoyed owning it quite a lot. And while I was irritated by the unnecessary UI rethink (maybe 18 months ago?) that worsened usability (I mean, HTF does that even happen?) overall the software was reliable, responsive and usable, and far better than any other car brand I’ve experienced. I’m vacillating over buying another Tesla in the future. If I could guarantee a similar experience to my last car I definitely would, but I’m also wary of getting stuck when something goes wrong and the only recourse is Tesla’s anecdotally expensive/unreliable/un-customer-friendly “service”.

valval 3y ago

How to spot a person who doesn’t own a Tesla from a mile away.