What's gone wrong with your Roadster?

[ViperDoc]

Over my first 8700 miles in a 2.5 sport, it has been pretty simple.

One rivet is missing from a mudflap (will be replaced at next service).
Paint Armor was misapplied (replaced but not perfectly)
Paint defect (repaired)
TMPS failure (repaired)
Panel above tire in wheel well detached (repaired)
Antenna wire for keyfob rerouted to give better range
PEM replacement (part of free replacement programs/upgrade)
HID headlights paid upgrade
Main underbody panel under car replaced (dented when car was initially delivered)
A bracket or fastener that holds the passenger front body panel by the headlight in place has popped or something (will be fixed later this month at next service)
Alpine unit failed to properly initialize radio several times (intermittent and undiagnosed/repaired)

A couple of other parts were repaired when the car was damaged in an accident. While they were bringing the car back to me in VT from NYC where work was done while I was deployed in Afghanistan, the driver hit black ice and took his van and the trailer with my car off the road. Apparently a wheel was scratched up and one other piece replaced, but all is well.


All in all I am very happy with the car!

DJ

 

[dwegmull]

2.5 #1077 14,500 miles since October 2010:

Front left turn signal intermittently failing (unsolved)
(...)

I thought all turn signals worked intermittently ;-)

 

[lmore]

Very useful and a bit scary thread! For the replacement/new item (PEM/battery) discussion, the information below from Tesla Motors (sent late 2011) might be useful:

"The cost of the US PEM would be $16,713.48USD. Upon receiving your old PEM back, we would proceed to refund you half of the funds as a core return. The PEM would have to be in good condition, repairable, and not damaged in any way by shipping or outside influences. The warranty label/seal would also have to be intact upon receipt. Upon receipt of your old PEM in good condition, we would credit you $8,356.74USD. "

Will Tesla Motors use a similar policy for the battery?

I guess repairing PEM/battery would vary great in cost so this would be an expensive policy for those who just have a minor failure.

I talked to a guy in Europe that recently repaired >100 PEM's for the electric car Think after they went bankrupt. He charges $120 per hour and was an earlier employer of the company so he knows the PEM of that car very well. Hopefully something similar will happen if Tesla Motors gets into trouble or keep their prices way too high.

 

[smoothoperator]

Very useful and a bit scary thread! For the replacement/new item (PEM/battery) discussion, the information below from Tesla Motors (sent late 2011) might be useful:

"The cost of the US PEM would be $16,713.48USD. Upon receiving your old PEM back, we would proceed to refund you half of the funds as a core return. The PEM would have to be in good condition, repairable, and not damaged in any way by shipping or outside influences. The warranty label/seal would also have to be intact upon receipt. Upon receipt of your old PEM in good condition, we would credit you $8,356.74USD. "

Will Tesla Motors use a similar policy for the battery?

I guess repairing PEM/battery would vary great in cost so this would be an expensive policy for those who just have a minor failure.

I talked to a guy in Europe that recently repaired >100 PEM's for the electric car Think after they went bankrupt. He charges $120 per hour and was an earlier employer of the company so he knows the PEM of that car very well. Hopefully something similar will happen if Tesla Motors gets into trouble or keep their prices way too high.

Yea there is no way for them to determine how much they should charge until the analyze the part (I do not think it would make any sense for them to guess and lose a bunch of money on repairs). The policy seems no different (except on a much more expensive scale) than going to Autozone, buying a starter and having to return the core. Looks like Roadster owners are in for some very expensive repairs in the future :crying: Someone could make a ton of money opening up a shop that can refurbish packs and PEM's.

I find it kinda weird that the Warranty label has to be intact in order to receive the refund on the core, even though the warranty on the part already expired? odd

Did Tesla give a warranty statement on how long they would warrant the new PEM from failure? I sure hope its more than the standard 1 year!

 

[hcsharp]

A couple of other parts were repaired when the car was damaged in an accident. While they were bringing the car back to me in VT from NYC where work was done while I was deployed in Afghanistan, the driver hit black ice and took his van and the trailer with my car off the road. Apparently a wheel was scratched up and one other piece replaced, but all is well.
DJ

Wow I hadn't heard about that. That's the second time (at least) that a ranger has slid off the road from black ice while delivering a car to/from VT.

 

[Doug_G]

I find it kinda weird that the Warranty label has to be intact in order to receive the refund on the core, even though the warranty on the part already expired? odd

That's simple. They don't want you tampering with it before returning it.

 

[smoothoperator]

That's simple. They don't want you tampering with it before returning it.

yea but the warranty is expired.....why not do a full test (like they should be doing) to determine if there is a defect in the PEM? I would hope there are more scientific tests being done on the PEM (other than checking to see if the seal is broken to determine if the core is usable) anyone can see that?

 

[lmore]

yea but the warranty is expired.....why not do a full test (like they should be doing) to determine if there is a defect in the PEM? I would hope there are more scientific tests being done on the PEM (other than checking to see if the seal is broken to determine if the core is usable) anyone can see that?

Good point about the warranty label, the warranty was in fact valid, here is the story:

This car was shipped from the US to Europe and therefore warranty is normally void. However, Tesla Motors kindly granted me the warranty since they emailed me in advance that I would not loose the warranty when exporting the car from Europe to the US. BUT, in order to use the warranty I would have to ship the car back to the US for any repairs. I wanted to avoid shipping the car Europe-USA, that's why I asked for a quote to see what would be least expensive solution.
I was hoping Tesla Motors would not be so strict about the need to ship the car back to the US to make use of the warranty, for example spitting the repair costs if I kept the car in Europe. I was wrong, I didn't manage setting up such a deal with them...

In general, I'm happy with Tesla Motors, they have been patiently answering my hundreds of questions. Unfortunately they no longer offer the 3 years extended warranty in Europe.

 

[smoothoperator]

Good point about the warranty label, the warranty was in fact valid, here is the story:

This car was shipped from the US to Europe and therefore warranty is normally void. However, Tesla Motors kindly granted me the warranty since they emailed me in advance that I would not loose the warranty when exporting the car from Europe to the US. BUT, in order to use the warranty I would have to ship the car back to the US for any repairs. I wanted to avoid shipping the car Europe-USA, that's why I asked for a quote to see what would be least expensive solution.
I was hoping Tesla Motors would not be so strict about the need to ship the car back to the US to make use of the warranty, for example spitting the repair costs if I kept the car in Europe. I was wrong, I didn't manage setting up such a deal with them...

In general, I'm happy with Tesla Motors, they have been patiently answering my hundreds of questions. Unfortunately they no longer offer the 3 years extended warranty in Europe.

so did your pem go bad and you had to purchase a replacement PEM for 16k? Or did you end up shipping your car back to the states to get the PEM replaced?

 

[ViperDoc]

Are you sure this isn't the same incident twice (since I had mentioned it in a personal email to you from my home address)?

 

[hcsharp]

Are you sure this isn't the same incident twice (since I had mentioned it in a personal email to you from my home address)?

The first incident was with Peter's car before you and I were owners yet. I don't remember that in any of your emails! I remember the dented under-panel and paint armor. My mind must have been on vacation while you were overseas. So at least 2 incidents.

 

[lmore]

so did your pem go bad and you had to purchase a replacement PEM for 16k? Or did you end up shipping your car back to the states to get the PEM replaced?

The car started working again so we didn't need a replacement PEM. I'm not sure about the details since it was my cousin that had the car.

 

[Ben W]

Here's a weird one. Yesterday I sat in my Roadster, and tugged my seatbelt to put it on. It wouldn't move. Further inspection showed that the belt had become ripped almost completely through(!), flush with the opening of the side well it disappears into when retracted. When I pulled it, the ripped part got wedged in the seatbelt holder above the shoulder, and I had to carefully thread it through.

On examination, I found that the plastic edge of the side well had somehow gotten gouged or scraped at some point, creating a sharp "hangnail" that has evidently been eating away at the seatbelt for some time. (No idea how this happened, but perhaps during a servicing when I got the soundproofing package installed? Not sure how else; it's a rather difficult spot to get to.) This seems to be more of a freak occurrence than a design flaw, but perhaps something other Roadster owners should look out for.

I will bring the car in tomorrow for repair, and fortunately they have a replacement seatbelt in stock. Though I suppose they might have to replace the entire plastic panel as well, or at least file it down or otherwise repair it to eliminate the sharp edge. Will post an update soon.

-Ben

 

[daniel]

I'm late to this thread. Somehow didn't notice it earlier. The above lists of problems are worrisome. Mine is short and nothing serious. <Knock on wood!>

2.5 Roadster number 1117, non-sport. Almost one year old. I don't remember the odo reading. Maybe 5,000 or so. (???)

The cruise control has quit working. Not a big deal for me since it's so hard to operate that I seldom use it anyway.

The windshield wiper works poorly: From right to left it leaves the glass clean; from right to left it leaves it smudged with moisture.

My iPod Touch, 2nd gen, would not reliably connect to the Alpine unit. Maybe one time out of ten using the little cable it would connect, and maybe one time out of five the bluetooth would connect if I shut everything down and booted again. I ended up buying an iPod Nano, which connects via the cable with no problem, and can stay in the car, which is actually better than having to bring the Touch out to the car with me every time.

The buttons on the key fob are VERY hard to press. The arthritis in my right thumb makes it painful to open the trunk using the key fob.

One of the climate control knobs came off. I pressed it back on, and no problems since.

The charge port door is very tight. So I wrapped an allen wrench in soft cloth and that's my door opening tool. It lives on a little shelf over the hook where my charger cable hangs.

My first annual service is coming up later this month and they'll fix what they can.

Non-fault expenses:

I bought a set of winter tires. Changing them is a hassle: Drive the tires to the tire shop in the Prius. Return home and drive the Roadster in to have the tires switched. Return home and drive the Prius back to the tire shop to pick up the tires. The tire place won't store my off-season tires for me. When I lived in North Dakota, the tire shop did that for me. They also won't accept appointments, so I have to go in and wait, maybe half an hour, maybe two hours. Not fun. But it's a safety issue, so I have no choice.

Bought the Taylor mesh top. On hot sunny days it's wonderful, and worth every penny.

 

[wycolo]

. . .
The PEM line fuses blew because of multiple faults associated with power spikes coming from our utility. Power Conditioner on the way to correct the problem. The Take-Home message from that: Have your incoming power to your house analyzed BEFORE you install the HPC. If the voltage is high a power conditioner is needed.

Would this be an 'active' power conditioner of some sort, or just an MOV (or modern equivalent)? Before I connect the Clipper Creek cs-40 (a MediumPC?) maybe I'd better install at least a passive device on the house breaker box. Lots of lightning exposure here.
--

 

[augkuo]

>>The windshield wiper works poorly: From right to left it leaves the glass clean; from right to left it leaves it smudged with moisture.

Try changing the stock wiper with Bosch 424A ICONs - I had the same problem before and these clean the windshield a lot better.

 

[vfx]

The buttons on the key fob are VERY hard to press. The arthritis in my right thumb makes it painful to open the trunk using the key fob.
The charge port door is very tight. So I wrapped an allen wrench in soft cloth and that's my door opening tool. It lives on a little shelf over the hook where my charger cable hangs.....

My charge port door was tight too. After a year or so I asked if they could adjust it. Much better now. Key fob might need replacement.

 

[daniel]

>>The windshield wiper works poorly: From right to left it leaves the glass clean; from right to left it leaves it smudged with moisture.

Try changing the stock wiper with Bosch 424A ICONs - I had the same problem before and these clean the windshield a lot better.

My annual service is coming up at the end of this month. No date yet, but they've said probably last week of June. They're going to replace the wiper blade with one they say works much better.

My charge port door was tight too. After a year or so I asked if they could adjust it. Much better now. Key fob might need replacement.

I'll ask them about this before they come out. I'm making a short list of things to email them about. OTOH, the tight door makes it less likely some curious person will open it, and the tool works fine.

 

[vfx]

... OTOH, the tight door makes it less likely some curious person will open it, and the tool works fine.

The tight door was only a minor issue with me until I struggled to open it to show strangers the plug inside. Then it was less than ideal.

 

[Doug_G]

Put a little vaseline on the charge port latch. That will lubricate it and it will be easier to open.