It’s been a little over 4 years since I owned the Tesla 3. I’ve had to take it into the Tesla repair shop 3 times over the years. First one was a rock chip that spiderwebbed all over the front windshield. That cost me $1047 to have replaced. Then a year or so ago, my wife ran over one of those parking median things that stop you from going too far past the parking space. That ripped off the plastic panel underneath the car. That cost a reasonable $213 to replace the plastic panel with laber. Then a few weeks ago, the car was making a squeaking noise by the driver side, caused by the left control arm. I thought there was a recall on the part, but I guess there isn’t. I also thought I was still under the 5 year/50K warranty, but it turns out the car only has a 4 year warranty that ended in August. Luckily they were nice enough to only charge me for the part and not the labor to fix, so I was out of pocket $200.
I also had to replace all 4 tires a year ago when one of them got a flat and they were too worn to not replace all 4. I think that was around $1000. I also don’t rotate my tires regularly even though I should. I know I’m living on the edge with the original 12V battery; I feel I should pay the $80 to proactively replace that before it randomly dies on me.
I don’t know if my story is out of the ordinary or normal for other Tesla 3’s. It’ll be interesting to see what else breaks and the cost going forward now that I’m out of warranty.
This feels pretty similar to my 2018 Model 3 as well. Still on my original 12V battery too. I’m around 36k miles and will probably need a new set of tires soon.
Biggest issue was when the high voltage battery contactor went kaputt on a roadtrip while I was Supercharging. Had to go the rest of the way using level 2 charging, but it was a relatively quick fix at the service center that was covered under the four year warranty.
A grand in new tires after (pro rated) around 36,000 miles seems a bit harsh. I read somewhere that EV’s go through tires quicker because of greater weight. Any thoughts?
I’m not really sure tbh; I feel it’s the same as my SUV. However, the Tesla 3 uses sport tires out the factory so that might explain it. When I changed them, I went with all season vs sport just to get more mileage.
How many miles do you have on the car?
Around 48K