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I need to know about your rattles....

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#123
Okay so I have an update from a new SC appointment today.

My SA has offered to make things right and I took him up on it. I brought the car in today and was set up to go on a test ride with one of the shops two senior technicians. This technician is probably in his 40's and has been an auto tech his whole life. He has worked for BMW dealerships and others.

Within a couple of miles on the test drive the front passenger area started loudly rattling and buzzing and I pointed out to him this was not present before windshield replacement. He started trying all sorts of things to get it to stop and believed he identified it by pushing hard on the top of the dash and getting it to stop so he recommended replacement of the dash pad.

The rear noises were more difficult. He identified a rattle in the deck lid and marked that for the tech that would be doing the work. He acknowledged there was another difficult to isolate noise but he could not figure out where it was coming from because so many other things in the car were making noise at that time ("solid piece of billet" my ass).

The plan is to fix the issues he could identify, they do another test drive and try to identify any remaining noise and get that addressed, followed by a final test drive with me to confirm if the issues are resolved before turning the car back over to me.

I will say that this lead tech was a solid guy and he and my SA are working hard to try to regain my trust in the Tesla brand. That goes a long way with me, as does setting me up with a Tesla loaner car to ease the sting of repeat service visits (no stupid visit to Enterprise to rent a car today thank god).

Now, some fun "extras" from the service visit.

  • I was told that the service center outsourced glass replacement to a 3rd party shop about a month ago and they have had a very high # of problems now that 3rd party techs are servicing glass on the cars.
  • I mentioned that when I was pressing around things near the glass to try to identify what could have been done and that a piece of the frunk splash shield (cowling) snapped back into place. The lead tech came in as the service ticket was being written and said not only was it not pressed back in properly but that it was permanently ruined somehow (leaned up against something warm and it was misshapen?) and it would have to be replaced. I asked that they check any other parts that the windshield tech would have messed with because I don't want to come back for another problem.
  • Mentioned wind noise on driver side and how when the car was new there were some out of position gaskets I had to stuff back in. He checked it over and saw where the factory had missed a large section of a door channel gasket and he spent about five minutes fixing that while I was there. I commented that they should check passenger side as well since there's still noise on that side as well.
  • As I was preparing to leave they were getting another tech on a noise check ride on a P3D+.
  • I was not under the impression at any time that noise issues are uncommon on these cars. In fact, while nobody said anything, I was left with the impression that they are fixing a lot of these types of issues on cars of new owners. Maybe my car is part of the "August/September" special group of builds that were put together 1/2 ass in order to meet a quota.
 
#124
voip-ninja said:
Maybe my car is part of the "August/September" special group of builds that were put together 1/2 ass in order to meet a quota.
Click to expand...

My P3D is an August build delivered the last day of the quarter. Perfect in every way. I feel for the few people who appear to be reporting issues but the Model 3 owners I meet in the real world are not reporting quality issues at similar frequencies. In fact, most rave about the lack of issues, issues that they were dreading based on "Internet reports".

Sometimes it's necessary to step out of the "Internet echo chamber" to get a realistic perspective as to what to expect.
 
#125
StealthP3D said:
My P3D is an August build delivered the last day of the quarter. Perfect in every way. I feel for the few people who appear to be reporting issues but the Model 3 owners I meet in the real world are not reporting quality issues at similar frequencies. In fact, most rave about the lack of issues, issues that they were dreading based on "Internet reports".

Sometimes it's necessary to step out of the "Internet echo chamber" to get a realistic perspective as to what to expect.
Click to expand...

Put me on the list for the August/Sept delivery problem childs with a bunch of paint defects, panel rework, crappy roof glass, a few rattles, poor fitting taillight, and non-working AC upon delivery.
 
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#126
Overall pretty solid - but I do have the periodic rear suspension creak, and the odd "noise" from the back seat - not so much a rattle, just some "noise". Not a rattle trap by any stretch but no way is it a solid piece of billet. It just doesn't have that same "bank vault" solidity feel to it like I have had with some other cars.
 
#127
Birdman325 said:
Overall pretty solid - but I do have the periodic rear suspension creak, and the odd "noise" from the back seat - not so much a rattle, just some "noise". Not a rattle trap by any stretch but no way is it a solid piece of billet. It just doesn't have that same "bank vault" solidity feel to it like I have had with some other cars.
Click to expand...

I have this too and the creak wasn't always there. It's a bummer imo. It was so silent when I first got it...
 
#128
Okay here's the latest and hopefully last update from me on this ordeal.

I got a text today that Tesla technicians had mitigated the noise problems in the car and it was requested that I go on a check ride with the tech (really nice kid too) who performed the repairs.

  • The dashboard rattle & buzz was mitigated by something he did with the dash pad. I'm not sure what exactly was done as I haven't seen the repair notes. This problem did not present again on a 15 minute test drive and the tech indicated that the shop couldn't reproduce it after repair either. Unfortunately on my drive home it did present briefly a couple of times but was at a lower noise level and much less obnoxious than it had been previously. Assuming it doesn't get any worse I can live with it. If this had been completely eliminated this would have been a home run.
  • The rear deck lid was insulated.
  • The obnoxious wind noise on the driver side looks like it might have finally been killed by the lead tech noticing that the gasket was incorrectly installed from the factory. I didn't notice any wind noise on my drive home, for probably the first time ever in owning the car.
  • The most obnoxious noise, which was a metallic ticking sound that was very inconsistent to reproduce but very annoying (and had not been mitigated by just insulating the door panel) was picked up by this tech in a test drive. He said that he had to take the entire door apart and examine various components to figure out what it was, but that ultimately he isolated it to the door latch cartridge behind the B pillar on the passenger side. After replacement of this component the noise is gone.

So, I'm fairly happy now. I'd be happier if the dash buzzing was 100% eliminated but I've spent too much time fighting this and since it is harder to reproduce now I don't have any interest in bringing my car in yet again to have them mess with it further (not to mention risk of them thinking I'm crazy) As long as it does not get worse I will be marked down as a satisfied customer.

My 25 minute drive home today, with my stereo playing at a reasonable volume, was the most enjoyable experience with this car I've had since owning it. Not perfect, but close enough for government work.
 
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#131
So this morning in cooler temperatures (it was about 30F this morning and was pushing 60F when I did the test drive with the technician yesterday) there was still an intermittent buzz from the dash pad as well as some noise in the side of the passenger cabin near the B pillar when going over non-smooth road surfaces.

Definitely not as obnoxious as it previously had been.

I can live with it assuming it doesn't get worse.

Considering the # of issues I've had and how extensively it's been documented by Tesla I don't anticipate getting any push back from them if I need one of these items addressed after the "one year squeaks and rattles" warranty has expired.

I would honestly consider fixing it myself too. From the service manual it looks like taking the dash pad off is not trivial but not a monumental task either.
 
#132
Got my car back from service. Will provide a more detailed update shortly but just focusing on the rear creaking noise. I went on a test drive with a tech and he did hear the noise.
The service invoice reads as follows: “...no faults found. Checked and retourqued rear suspension and sub frame hardware for customer assurance....”.

I have only driven the car once since picking it up and so far, no creak. But having said that, the creaking noise was not constant, but sporadic and periodic (and not weather dependent). Will monitor and see if it returns.
 
#133
Took mine into a service center, was diagnosed as a loose VIN plate for a very frequent rattling noise coming from the dashboard left of the driver. Their fix worked for a day and then returned. Their "fix" for it was this: IMG-20190416-085447 (also image attached to post)
IMG_20190416_085447.jpg


pieces of foam wedged between the windshield / vin plate and dashboard.... and glued into place there. The foam is visible from the driver's seat. I responded to the SC manager's followup email with this information and will see how the SC responds. I consider their fix to be a defacement of my vehicle instead of a proper fix.

Additionally, the rattle was initially noticed about 1-1.5 weeks after I accepted delivery
 
#134
0ptions said:
Most of these are rattle type sounds, but the whining of the electrical system (or just the motor itself) when cruising around 45MPH when the battery isn't fully conditioned is starting to get to me.
Click to expand...
That's strange. My 3 is quiet. I don't hear any whine or motor noise except when I step on it entering the freeway. And Eben then it isn't real noticeable. No rattles either. Guess I got lucky for once.
 
#137
wokuku said:
My car used to make rattle noises, coming from the front area and the driver side was worst than passages side. What I discovered was that the two plastic covers that cover the bonnet hinge were both loose and allowed to move around during any movement. They are clipped loosely into the hinge and relied on the bottom windshield cover to keep them tight. But on mine car the cover was about 2mm short and that allows the hinge covers to move freely. To fix this I put on some shin around and that seems to have fixed the rattle
Click to expand...

I wonder if this is what I am hearing in mine. Mine sounds like if you have a small metal or plastic ball in a tube, and slowly move the tube vertical to horizontal - the sound of the ball hitting the bottom of the tube is the noise I hear intermittently from the driver's side front dash area and I can't pinpoint a cause. It doesn't seem related to going over bumps or anything.

That's the most accurate description I can come up with because it's not a rattle in the sense of multiple ticks, it's just a single tick and it's a little more pronounced than *tick*, that I can't seem to find a commonality for.
 
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#139
0ptions said:
Maybe. It's a pretty high sound frequency, some people might not hear it.
Click to expand...

Ah well I am supposed to wear hearing aids because of high frequency loss. But I don't. Don't really need 'em most of the time. I had some expensive ones and they were ok but then the cat got ahold of one and dropped it in the kitchen sink and it went into the disposal. Literally $3000 down the drain. Well actually I recovered pieces of it but it was definitely beyond repair. Just never bothered to get more and I'm tired of paying extremely high prices for those things. Not the first pair I had. I've probably spent close to $20,000 on hearing aids through the years. Bah. I only have trouble hearing my wife with her high soft voice ... and that ain't a bad thing

I do have high frequency hearing loss. But it only gives me trouble hearing my wife with her high soft voice ... and that ain't a bad thing :)
 
#140
Arizona Willie said:
Ah well I am supposed to wear hearing aids because of high frequency loss. But I don't. Don't really need 'em most of the time. I had some expensive ones and they were ok but then the cat got ahold of one and dropped it in the kitchen sink and it went into the disposal. Literally $3000 down the drain. Well actually I recovered pieces of it but it was definitely beyond repair. Just never bothered to get more and I'm tired of paying extremely high prices for those things. Not the first pair I had. I've probably spent close to $20,000 on hearing aids through the years. Bah. I only have trouble hearing my wife with her high soft voice ... and that ain't a bad thing

I do have high frequency hearing loss. But it only gives me trouble hearing my wife with her high soft voice ... and that ain't a bad thing :)
Click to expand...

giphy.gif
 
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