Long Term Tesla Model 3 Is Literally Falling Apart After Only 4 Months

As many of you are probably aware, Edmunds has a Tesla Model 3 for the long haul. Essentially, the publication lives with the car over an extended period of time and provides valuable information for prospective buyers. Based on the slew of issues Edmunds is reporting, it appears that either they got stuck with a lemon, Model 3s lack consistency from vehicle to vehicle, or this is just a really problematic car.

We’re talking about intermittent screen and backup camera function, navigation bugs, failure to recognize keycard, audio system independently turning on and off and up to full volume, vanity mirrors falling off, and inability to shift the car into drive or reverse.
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SanJoseDriver - 5/23/2018 1:42:08 PM

-9 Boost

Some of the early owners might have gotten screwed :/ However, read the whole article. Despite all of the flaws in their test car, there was the following statement. Bottom line this is what counts most:

"After my drive, a friend of mine asked me how the Model 3 compares to the current BMW 3 Series, and I told him I’d rather have the Tesla. He laughed. I wasn’t kidding."

scenicbyway12 - 5/23/2018 2:39:09 PM

+19 Boost

Perhaps this is a more relevant quote from the article,

"Forget that this is a “cutting-edge” EV with a cult following. That’s irrelevant if Tesla wants to be anything more than a footnote in automotive history. Our Model 3 cost us $56,000, and by that standard alone, the ownership experience so far has been unacceptable. But this is no ordinary $56K car. We put down a $1,000 deposit to get on a two-year waiting list for this car and it’s falling apart."

That is with Edmunds driving the 3 only 5257 miles on it. This car went into production waaaaay to early. Nothing like over promising and under delivering at a premium price.

mre30 - 5/23/2018 4:32:31 PM

+12 Boost

I just went to the Tesla website (fun fact - you can put yourself on the 'priority founder list' for the vapor-ware "Tesla Roadster" for a $50,000 deposit and give Tesla the remaining $200,000 in 2030 or whenever production starts - comical!) and priced out a cheap Model S -

If you really want a Tesla, just lease a cheap, stripper Model S 70 for $62,000. I hear that the brakes work.

carloslassiter - 5/23/2018 6:27:25 PM

-8 Boost

I'm sure the people outraged about Telsa have excused the Ford "incinerator Pinto' era as 'no big deal', and the Audi sudden acceleration problems as the mere cost of near luxury.

TomM - 5/23/2018 7:48:35 PM

+6 Boost

Both FORD and AUDI were not in danger of going out of business at the time.

I really do not care about people who chose to buy a Model 3 - that was their decision to make - I did not choose a Tesla - and I warned against first year totally new vehicles- which generally have terrible reliability records. And there was PLENTY of information as to the problems in production of the Model 3 - and the financial status of TESLA as well.

TomM - 5/23/2018 7:48:35 PM

+5 Boost

Both FORD and AUDI were not in danger of going out of business at the time.

I really do not care about people who chose to buy a Model 3 - that was their decision to make - I did not choose a Tesla - and I warned against first year totally new vehicles- which generally have terrible reliability records. And there was PLENTY of information as to the problems in production of the Model 3 - and the financial status of TESLA as well.

Vette71 - 5/24/2018 6:22:55 PM

+1 Boost

Remember the other fake news staged events? The GM pickups with exploding gas tanks after being T boned. Caught in the act.

MrEE - 5/23/2018 7:47:22 PM

+4 Boost

Even smart shoppers of German models lease and don't buy.

MDarringer - 5/23/2018 7:50:13 PM

+12 Boost

The Model 3 was rushed to production before engineering was finished and without any substantive durability/reliability testing.

ricks0me - 5/23/2018 9:18:23 PM

+14 Boost

SanJoseDriver = Spin Doctor

MDarringer - 5/23/2018 11:04:59 PM

+8 Boost

so very true

SanJoseDriver - 5/24/2018 1:54:56 AM

-7 Boost

I'm an optimist, but wouldn't call it spin. I'll give credit where credit is due on the negatives. Like I said before, people may have gotten screwed on the earliest Model 3s with quality issues like panel gaps and apparently wind noise.

GermanNut - 5/23/2018 9:49:57 PM

+12 Boost

Tick tock, tick tock...that's the sound of Audi, BMW and Porsche launching their own EVs this year and in 2019. Tesla better improve its reliability if it wants to stand a chance against the Germans. I didn't even get into global sales volume, size of dealership network, economies of scale and reliability ratings...

DinduNuffin - 5/24/2018 9:10:48 AM

-3 Boost

We've been hearing this same schpiel for the past 5 years. How hard should it be if they have a century of quality control fine-tuning? Nope, they are scurrying to get ANYTHING out there after seeing the Model S eat their lunch in Euro sales.

stiffy - 5/24/2018 7:13:09 AM

+4 Boost

Don't worry, they'll address all these issues with the latest firmware update ;) Code being written overnight I assume, just like the rest of the car's development.

vortical - 5/24/2018 2:28:09 PM

+1 Boost

Sounds like when the VW Golf was new.

zlives - 5/24/2018 2:42:27 PM

+4 Boost

a 50K car with these issues.... a typical Merc customer would demand the hide of the dealer. atypical Tesla customer bends over and asks for more...

SanJoseDriver - 5/25/2018 9:17:30 PM

+1 Boost

Have had the same types of issue in a Lexus, worse actually.

ColMosby - 5/24/2018 5:00:01 PM

+2 Boost

I'm still trying to understand why anyone would call this car "advanced technology." An Autopilot that runs into not one, but two parked fire trucks
within a span of a few weeks, and in between runs into a brick wall and a collision barrier, a dash mounted touchscreen control panel which is more dangerous than texting. A battery pack that explodes upon impact and then incinerates its vehicles, often including a trapped occupant. I wouldn't set fot inside this preposterously overpriced death trap