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That article is on a site called investors.com I would not take a single bit of advice from that author or site. For sure the author does not own Tesla stock, and should not be telling people one single event is the end all be all for investors putting them on "pins and needles".
That type of thinking is why people panic sold Tesla over the years.
Panic selling is a good thing. When the stock dips, BUY. We know it's going to correct and go right back up. I see it as a service
Tesla Model 3 Ownership: Documenting 15 Years With The Popular EV
At least five different Model 3 owners collaborate to share the good and the bad related to the world's first popular EV
What's it like owning a Tesla Model 3? Furthermore, we all know what's great about a Model 3, but what should a new owner watch out for or be aware of? It depends on who you ask — different owners have different experiences. Some experiences are more common than others, though, and some are more notable. Over on CleanTechnica, eight of our writers have a Tesla Model 3 (myself included). Five of us have written up 3-year reviews of our cars. I'm using all of those experiences here (as well as some other review articles from those writers) for a summary of the highs and lows of Tesla Model 3 ownership. Hence the "15 years" in the title.
Before getting into these things to look out for, though, I'll provide a little more info on the diversity of our cars in terms of trim level and geographic location. Three of us have a Model 3 Standard Range Plus (SR+). We live in Florida, Hawaii, and Australia. (So, no cold climates for those of us who didn't feel a need for longer range.)
One of us has a Model 3 Long Range AWD. He lives in Utah in the winter and Wisconsin in the summer, and he goes between those homes with his Model 3 and two e-bikes on the back. The last one of us has a Model 3 Long Range RWD — if you recall, this was an option for a short period of time four years ago. He lives in Denmark.
(We actually have another writer who has this Long Range RWD option as well, but he hasn't written a 3-year review of it. He did just recently get into a bad accident with it — someone ran a red light and then into the side of his car with him, his wife, and his kids in it — and after much deliberation, they decided to buy another Model 3.)
7 Things To Watch Out For (Or At Least Be Aware Of)
1. Your tires will get eaten up.
I think the biggest surprise for many Model 3 owners is how quickly tires need replacing, especially the first set of tires. After just two years and about 17,000 miles, I had to have my tires replaced, and that was within the norm according to Tesla Service. (It was much sooner than I expected.) My daughters' tennis coach, who got a Model 3 a couple of years after me, just had to have his tires replaced at about 18,000 miles and he was shocked and upset about it.
In short, it's part of the ownership experience, but it's at least good to know about it ahead of time. (Note that we've had some readers who own Teslas who say their tires lasted much longer. I don't know how that's the case, but there may be factors such as climate, road quality, or driving behavior at play.) One thing I've done since replacing that initial set of tires is to leave red lights at a more "normal" pace (not like the Road Runner). However, I'm now approaching 36,000 miles and I'm afraid this second set of tires may need replacing soon.
2. The two aero shields under your car are not super tough.
Another thing that surprised that tennis coach I just mentioned also surprised our Utah writer ... a couple of times. The aero shield on the bottom of the car tore off. There are actually two aero shields down there underneath the battery — a front aero shield and a back aero shield — and our Utah writer had them both tear off. Unfortunately, they are not the most durable pieces of the car.
Our Utah writer, a retired NASA employee who had a hand in the famous Blue Marble pictures of the Earth that we're all familiar with, had one tear off from a steep driveway. This is seemingly what happened with the tennis coach's aero shield as well — but he didn't realize it was missing until they had his car in service to replace the tires, so he's not entirely clear when or where it happened.
In the case of the Utah writer, they replaced the rear aero shield in 2021 with a new, better version that is supposed to be more durable. However, he recently drove through some rather high snow and lost the other aero shield. It was again replaced with the new, better version. Only one of the aero shields came off of the tennis coach's car, but the Tesla Service technicians said they needed to replace both. Perhaps they have discovered it's just better to do them both while doing one, or perhaps there was more damage there that warranted it.
3. Replace the cabin air filter!
As many Tesla Model 3 owners will tell you, after a while, the air in your car will begin to stink. In particular in my case and the case of another one of our writers who lives in Southwest Florida, Florida's infamous swampland humidity tends to lead to the buildup of mildew in the air filter. After my wife complained about the smell in our car for a bit, I learned about the problem and Tesla Service replaced our air filter.
I swore they told me at that time to do that once a year, but when we had them replace it last time, 5 months ago, the service employee indicated it was quite filthy (the dirtiest he had seen in a while) and he told me it should be replaced every 6 months. Unfortunately, most Tesla owners have no idea about this, as there's no reminder (beyond bad-smelling air) and Tesla doesn't seem to tell people about this when they pick up a new car. So, hat tip: be proactive about it and get your air filter changed every 6 months, especially if you live in a humid climate.
4. Full sunshields are highly advised in hot climates.
Speaking of hot and humid places, the glass roof, as beautiful as it is, lets in a lot of heat. Up to about 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit), it's not a big deal. However, when you start climbing above that, it's letting in a lot of heat. Around 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), the glass itself is scorching hot from the inside (do not touch it) and you can feel the heat wafting in if you put your hand near the glass.
A tip I learned from a cleantech scientist in Cocoa Beach, Florida — Danny Parker — is to put sunshields under the glass roof in the hotter months of the year. Luckily, I got a full set of these from EVANNEX and they work wonders. Half of the year, we have them suction-cupped under the glass and the comfort level is immeasurably better. They make a world of difference! (Actually, I'm writing this inside my car right now, the temperature has climbed to 33 degrees Celsius, and it is clearly time to deploy the sunshields again. It has just started rising above 30 degrees midday here, and the difference in comfort is dramatic compared to a week or two ago — not in a good way.)
Naturally, you can also try tinting the glass roof more than it is tinted from the factory. I know that can help, but I'm not sure it's as good of a solution as the sunshields. I've been told it's helpful but not entirely effective in very hot climates like Southwest Florida.
Tesla Full Self Driving (FSD) is, well, a wildcard.
I was lucky enough to get Tesla Full Self-Driving at the "low cost" of $6,000. Nowadays, it costs $15,000. Unfortunately, by now, based on what Elon Musk was saying at the time I bought my car, my Tesla Model 3 was supposed to be robotaxi-capable ... and it's not. I certainly enjoyed some of the progress the tech was making for a couple of years, doing things like Smart Summon races to enjoy and test out new capabilities.
However, like many, I've been quite disappointed with FSD (Beta) and its progress (or lack thereof) in the past year and a half. I used to be extremely bullish on Tesla FSD, but I've shifted to more bearish than bullish. There are many like me, while there are still many who are very bullish on Tesla's approach. Whether you are bearish or bullish at this point, though, it is a clear fact that the capabilities are years behind what Elon Musk was predicting in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and even 2020. The bottom line is: FSD is a wildcard. Whether you're inspired to get it or not, just don't expect too much from it. Expectations are the root of most of our unhappiness!
At the moment, a handful of our Model 3 owners have FSD (Beta) but seldom or almost never use it. One of our team members uses it a lot and is very excited about it, but even he has cut back his usage of it compared to last year. We'll see if things change much for our team with Version 11, and we'll be sure to honestly document things!
6. If your camera feed and trunk popper get glitchy...
...you may be eligible for a legit recall. Tesla has had numerous recalls in the past few years, but there was only one actual physical recall for Model 3 owners that I remember. The wiring harness inside the trunk was not built to last and needed replacing. Interestingly, symptoms of this problem popped up for me several months before the recall was issued. When I searched for other people having problems I was having, I found no results.
My issues included the backup camera feed not showing on my touchscreen and the trunk not opening — not from the app, the touchscreen, the outside handle, or anything other than the manual safety latch inside the trunk. These features and others are linked to wires that extend into the trunk of the car. Although they fixed my car months before the recall, the issue was apparently new enough back then that they hadn't yet worked out a better system, so I had to have the wiring harness replaced a second time once the recall was issued.
If you have a Tesla that faces such problems, perhaps the recall service was never performed on your car or perhaps your vehicle was not in the recall window but needs the fix anyway. Also, frankly, we don't know for sure if the improved wiring harness won't run into problems of its own over time and lead to such features failing. We'll see what happens as our Tesla Model 3s become 4, 5, 6, and 7+ years old, and we'll be sure to still be reviewing some of these cars to let you know. Stay tuned!
7. Battery range will drop, and then hold.
This is something I almost overlooked, and it's again something that I think is not well understood by most Tesla buyers these days. Most of the talk regarding electric vehicle driving range concerns the estimated range ratings of new cars. As everyone knows, though, batteries degrade over time — which means that the driving range on a full charge drops. Luckily, the masses are at least aware of this basic concept because of having smartphones, laptops, etc. However, some of the important details of how batteries degrade are seldom explained and not that widely understood, especially with regard to how this affects an EV over time.
How it works is a battery tends to lose a chunk of its capacity quite quickly, but then tends to be stable for several years (potentially more than a decade with Tesla's batteries). In my case, my Model 3 SR+ started with around 240 miles of range and then dropped to about 200 miles of range within a year. Since then, though, for the past 3 years or so, it seems to have held steady. Other Tesla owners who read CleanTechnica have reported similar experiences.
The point with this one is: if you notice your relatively young Tesla has lost a chunk of range, don't worry, it's not a linear degradation pattern and after an initial hit to the range, your battery is likely to hold steady for many years thereafter. For 15 years? Well, we'll see — check back with us in 11 years!
Overall, though, I think most Tesla owners learn that home charging and/or workplace charging is so easy, we drive so little on a daily basis (relative to how far our cars can drive), and Supercharging is so convenient that there's not much to think or worry about with regards to the battery and range.
Range is a concern for many people before buying an EV, and then it fades for most of us as we get used to EV ownership. Several years ago, we had a guest writer on CleanTechnica who wrote an article about "range anxiety anxiety." His point was that there's not that much actual range anxiety among owners, but that non-owners can have a lot of anxiety about getting range anxiety if they ever get an electric car. Don't worry, be happy, and drive electric
Tesla poaches battery expert to fix its dry electrode issue
Tesla has poached a battery manufacturing expert to lead its dry electrode, which has been identified as one of the main bottlenecks for Tesla’s 4680 battery cell.
When Tesla unveiled its 4680 battery cell at its Battery Day in 2020, the automaker highlighted several advancements that can significantly slash battery costs when bottled together.
This powder-into-film process is wildly less complicated and requires less machinery than the usual wet process to create an electrode.
Tesla claimed that it would result in a “10x reduction in footprint” and “10x reduction in energy” usage.
Some experts have speculated that it could reduce the cost of a battery pack by thousands of dollars.
However, as the automaker admitted when announcing the 4580 battery cell, the technology acquired through Maxwell wasn’t quite ready for primetime yet and needed more work before Tesla could ramp up 4680 battery cell production to high volume.
Recent teardowns of Tesla’s 4680 cells in Model Y vehicles produced at Gigafactory Texas show that the dry electrode factor is still not where Tesla needs it to be.
Electrek has learned that Tesla has hired a new battery manufacturing expert to help carry the dry electrode project to the finish line.
Matt Tyler, a Milwaukee School of Engineering educated mechanical engineer, has been working on battery cell for over a decade.
Most recently, he was working for Cambridge-based 24M, a battery manufacturer pioneering what it calls “semisolid electrodes” for lithium-ion batteries.
The company describes the technology on its website:
Invented in the MIT lab of Dr. Yet-Ming Chiang, SemiSolid electrodes use no binder, mixing electrolyte with active materials to form a clay-like slurry. The unique slurry allow us to create thick electrodes with less volume, mass and cost while enabling a simpler manufacturing process. It’s simpler and safer with more reliable performance
It sounds a lot like what Tesla is trying to achieve with its dry electrode.
Tyler was at the company for more than six years, and most recently, he held the role of vice president of advanced manufacturing.
He wrote about his responsibilities on his LinkedIn profile:
Responsible for managing the development of semi-solid lithium ion battery manufacturing engineering. Leading the overall manufacturing concept design, equipment vendor/partner selections, in-house equipment and tooling development, and process development to be competitive in cost and product quality in the lithium base rechargeable battery market. Working closely with the VP Product Development to select and implement analytical equipment, as well as design and develop processes to meet the tolerances defined in product and process specifications. Also working closely with Director of Product Launch, and the Director of Operations, to define and execute against milestones and product delivery schedules.
That’s until he moved to Tesla last month.
As of February, the engineer moved from Massachusetts to Fremont, California, and he is now “Director of Dry Electrode Development” at Tesla.
He will be in charge of effectively ramping up the manufacturing process to work with Tesla’s ambitious mass production plans.
The automaker wants to eventually produce hundreds of gigawatt-hours of its own battery cells.
Tesla has initiated a recall for its Class 8 all-electric Semi truck, as per a notice posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The recall is due to faulty parking brake valve modules manufactured by one of the electric vehicle maker’s suppliers.
A total of 35 Tesla Semi units are affected by the recall, which likely comprises a substantial number of trucks that the company has delivered to customers as of date.
Tesla described the defect that triggered its Tesla Semi recall as follows:
“Certain Tesla Semi trucks are equipped with a supplier-provided electronically controlled parking brake valve module that may intermittently fail to transition when the parking brake is engaged or disengaged, which could then result in the parking brakes not being set or released,” the NHTSA’s Safety Recall Report read.
As noted in the document, if the parking brakes of the Tesla Semi are not engaged when the driver expects them to be and the driver releases the service brakes, the Class 8 all-electric truck may move unintentionally. This increases the risk of a crash.
The NHTSA document noted that the fault is due to the supplier’s specification, which allowed for excessive internal air leakage. This results in the valve modules failing to transition when the Semi’s parking brakes are requested by the driver.
The issue that triggered the recall of the Tesla Semi was first communicated to the EV maker on February 13, 2023. At the time, supplier Bendix informed Tesla that their Safety Committee had opted to file a recall for the involved component, which happens to be used in the Tesla Semi. The next day, Tesla met with Bendix to review the issue. The supplier then filed a 573 Safety Recall with NHTSA for the component. Tesla conducted an investigation until March 17, 2023, after which the company opted to file a voluntary recall for the Class 8 truck.
So far, there have been no warranty claims, crashes, injuries, or fatalities that have been related to the Tesla Semi’s parking brake valve modules issue. Tesla would also be replacing the faulty components on affected vehicles for free. And as per the Safety Recall Report, Tesla Semi units produced starting March 14, 2023 are already equipped with a replacement parking brake valve module with improved internals that prevents air leakage.
I'm not sure how you would go about addressing a leaky air valve caused by incorrect tolerances, with a software update.
supplier-provided electronically controlled parking brake valve module that may intermittently fail to transition when the parking brake is engaged or disengaged,
I interpreted as an electronic fault. But yes, having a leaky air part sounds impossible.
Good video. Tesla should increase market share but they claim brands other will slow.
I also never knew the most important part of Tesla batteries come from Japan
Tesla sales and growth is slowing down. Cutting prices is the reflection of this slowdown or softening. In 2023, the US interest rates are going to continue to increase making it far more expensive to finance a car and existing homeowners mortgages will continue to increase, this is a big problem for those who have car payments and mortgages. Current inflation is 6.5% and the Fed has said the goal is 2% The slowdown or softening will be for every auto manufacturer, and will be more prevalent for those who have higher priced models.. the alternative to price cuts for MSRP are production cuts at Tesla.
Originally Posted by LexsCTJill
I am 100% sure the demand is softening. The discount tell the story
Originally Posted by LexsCTJill
Demand is softening. There is no doubt about it. The discounts prove it.
The EV haters already know it's over. All the lies they tell to themselves and everyone around them does not change the facts. I'm sure everytime Elon hears stuff about Tesla demand softening, he does what I do. Ignore them and count his billions
The EV haters already know it's over. All the lies they tell to themselves and everyone around them does not change the facts. I'm sure everytime Elon hears stuff about Tesla demand softening, he does what I do. Ignore them and count his billions
Tesla just had the best Q4 to Q1 growth in the companies history. Guaranteed tomorrow morning in the finance media (or already) this will be spun into a negative.
Tesla just had the best Q4 to Q1 growth in the companies history. Guaranteed tomorrow morning in the finance media (or already) this will be spun into a negative.
Oh it will. Despite the records, Tesla fell a little short of "analyst expectations". Apparently the consensus was an oddly specific 430,008 deliveries, and Tesla delivered 422,875. In other words, the analyst guesstimates, because that's really all they are, when aggregated were missed by 1.6%. That will likely be spun as a negative. This is a prime example of how the market is manipulated to drive short term blips. So much of the money made in the market isn't based on long term stock appreciation, it's made by ensuring the stock blips (in either direction) and taking positions to take advantage of those blips.
People confuse market share, sales and demand. Q1 vehicle sales are almost always less than Q4 due to new model releases and prior year discounting. In the US Tesla sold more cars in Q1 than BMW and MBZ combined. More than VW.
I am not sure about the Europe numbers, except they are very strong vs the competition.
The SEMI has been released and the Highland changover is in process in Fremont.
And Tesla is breaking ground in Monterrey.
The idea that Tesla reduced prices due to slowing demand may have merit, but there is more to the business decision. Tesla is using its margin strength to squeeze the competition. The competition is struggling to make a profit on their EV Business Unit.
03-30-23, 11:54 AM
