[QUOTE]Tesla today issued a voluntary recall for every Model S sedan the company has ever made. The issue stems from a single report of a seat belt that wasn't properly connected
Tesla spokeswoman Khobi Brooklyn confirmed this recall to CNET and sent us a copy of the email that alerted customers to the recall. "We have decided to conduct a voluntary recall as a proactive and precautionary measure to inspect all front Model S seat belts and make absolutely sure that they are properly connected," the email states.
The automaker discovered the issue after the customer reported a seat belt disconnection when turning to talk to rear-seat occupants.
A seat belt that comes loose due to movement could spell trouble in the event of an accident, so Tesla's recalling every Model S out of an abundance of caution. "We have since inspected the seat belts in over 3,000 vehicles spanning the entire range of Model S production and found no issues," the email reads.
[/QUOTE]
[URL="http://www.cnet.com/news/tesla-recalls-all-model-s-sedans-for-seat-belt-concerns/"]Source[/URL]
[URL="http://i.imgur.com/urVwSWV.jpg"]Full email[/URL]
Well at least they did the responsible thing and issued a voluntary recall. If the Ford Pinto showed us anything it's that ignoring safety features to save money is not a good idea.
While this is all in the name of customer safety and is a very morally respectable thing to do, is such a move entirely necessary for [i]one[/i] seatbelt being connected improperly? Though I guess that's why it's a voluntary recall.
I just hope this doesn't do anything to damage Tesla's image, or that of electric cars in general. I can just see some uneducated people saying "well how can I trust an electric car if Tesla had to recall their entire fleet of them?"
[quote]The issue stems from a single report of a seat belt that wasn't properly connected[/quote]
amazing that they're that committed
It's a luxury brand. They absolutely rely on quality. Also, remember that a recall just means that they'll fix the seat belt for free if it has the issue. It's probably a super cheap fix.
[QUOTE=Flicky;49153275]While this is all in the name of customer safety and is a very morally respectable thing to do, is such a move entirely necessary for [i]one[/i] seatbelt being connected improperly? Though I guess that's why it's a voluntary recall.
I just hope this doesn't do anything to damage Tesla's image, or that of electric cars in general. I can just see some uneducated people saying "well how can I trust an electric car if Tesla had to recall their entire fleet of them?"[/QUOTE]
Just quote the GM incident.
[QUOTE]On February 7, 2014, General Motors (GM) recalled about 800,000 of its small cars due to faulty ignition switches, which could shut off the engine during driving and thereby prevent the airbags from inflating.[1] The company continued to recall more of its cars over the next several months, resulting in nearly 30 million cars worldwide recalled[2] and paid compensation for 124 deaths.[3] The fault had been known to GM for at least a decade prior to the recall being declared.[/QUOTE]
Imagine if every other car manufacturer was this good about things.
[QUOTE=Amiga OS;49153393]The shareholders wouldn't allow it.[/QUOTE]
Which is why private companies are better in many cases.
[QUOTE=Amiga OS;49153393]The shareholders wouldn't allow it.[/QUOTE]
Tesla is a public company to.
You all acting as if nobody else recalls. This isnt the 70s anymore
[QUOTE=draugur;49153352]Imagine if every other car manufacturer was this good about things.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Amiga OS;49153393]The shareholders wouldn't allow it.[/QUOTE]
Not to diss Tesla's great customer service, but this really isn't unusual. They're not scrapping the cars, they're giving owners a free trip to the dealership to examine the seatbelt and either approve it or replace a minor part- it'll cost them next to nothing. Manufacturers, even ones that aren't luxury brands, do this kind of thing all the time, especially when the safety of the car is called into question.
To be fair, even though this is pretty impressive, I imagine that some recalls by other companies in the past are much bigger than this. I can't imagine there's more than a hundred thousand or so Model Ss in the world.
[QUOTE=Flicky;49153275]While this is all in the name of customer safety and is a very morally respectable thing to do, is such a move entirely necessary for [i]one[/i] seatbelt being connected improperly? Though I guess that's why it's a voluntary recall.
I just hope this doesn't do anything to damage Tesla's image, or that of electric cars in general. I can just see some uneducated people saying "well how can I trust an electric car if Tesla had to recall their entire fleet of them?"[/QUOTE]
It's the Fight Club thing. Tesla's taking the morally-right stance here, and fixing everyone's cars, rather than trying to decide whether it'll be cheaper to let people potentially be injured or killed because of a seatbelt issue.
To which, I applaud them. They're doing a whole lot better than Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, and GM in terms of actually caring about their customers.
[QUOTE=Jamsponge;49153435]To be fair, even though this is pretty impressive, I imagine that some recalls by other companies in the past are much bigger than this. I can't imagine there's more than a hundred thousand or so Model Ss in the world.[/QUOTE]
just one month ago [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34589891[/url]
[editline]20th November 2015[/editline]
that's over a window switch, renault have also recalled in the past over a bonnet latch
[QUOTE=Amiga OS;49153428]Take a look at Dell, its improved hugely since Michael took the company back.[/QUOTE]
It has? Haven't heard anything about Dell in a damn long time.
[QUOTE=rampageturke 2;49153424]You all acting as if nobody else recalls. This isnt the 70s anymore[/QUOTE]
Many are [I]very[/I] reluctant to recall due to lost profits, though.
FCA is infamous for it, IIRC they've got two or three class action lawsuits going on against them because of shit that should be recalled.
The thing about Tesla's Service center is it regularly schedules check-ups for your car. Given that it's a voluntary recall, all the cars will probably be systematically checked as they come in for their already scheduled check-ups. They'll probably check it if you have to go in to get anything else fixed, too. Which I believe is standard procedure for automakers.
So this really isn't a big deal, or a big loss for Tesla.
[QUOTE=catbarf;49153432]Not to diss Tesla's great customer service, but this really isn't unusual. They're not scrapping the cars, they're giving owners a free trip to the dealership to examine the seatbelt and either approve it or replace a minor part- it'll cost them next to nothing. Manufacturers, even ones that aren't luxury brands, do this kind of thing all the time, especially when the safety of the car is called into question.[/QUOTE]
If anything they could even use it as an opportunity to upsell on accessories and maintenance while they have people at the dealership.
Perfect PR-timing when looking at some of their competitors (*cough* Volkswagen *cough*)
[QUOTE=OvB;49153625]The thing about Tesla's Service center is it regularly schedules check-ups for your car. Given that it's a voluntary recall, all the cars will probably be systematically checked as they come in for their already scheduled check-ups. They'll probably check it if you have to go in to get anything else fixed, too. Which I believe is standard procedure for automakers.
So this really isn't a big deal, or a big loss for Tesla.[/QUOTE]
It sounds like they are actually making appointments outside of their regular schedule.
[URL="https://www.reddit.com/r/teslamotors/comments/3tl5jj/tesla_recalling_all_model_s_sedans_for_seat_belt/cx74ikf"]A guy on Reddit[/URL], claiming to be an employee:
[QUOTE]I am an employee at Tesla Motors. We are currently taking phone calls non stop addressing the issue. 6 appointments per 30 minutes. This "issue" has only surfaced once in Europe and here at our service center we expect 0 out of hundreds of Model S's. We can assure there is nothing to worry about, and are happy to help you with your model S, And look forward to working with all of our owners.
[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Morgen;49153760]It sounds like they are actually making appointments outside of their regular schedule.
[URL="https://www.reddit.com/r/teslamotors/comments/3tl5jj/tesla_recalling_all_model_s_sedans_for_seat_belt/cx74ikf"]A guy on Reddit[/URL], claiming to be an employee:[/QUOTE]
Of course they will accept people calling in about it. I just mean that the recall will be addressed on all the cars eventually whether the owner calls it in or not.
[QUOTE=sgman91;49153328]It's a luxury brand. They absolutely rely on quality.[/QUOTE]
Then why do their drive trains consistently fail every 25-50 thousand miles?
[QUOTE=Flicky;49153275]While this is all in the name of customer safety and is a very morally respectable thing to do, is such a move entirely necessary for [i]one[/i] seatbelt being connected improperly? Though I guess that's why it's a voluntary recall.
I just hope this doesn't do anything to damage Tesla's image, or that of electric cars in general. I can just see some uneducated people saying "well how can I trust an electric car if Tesla had to recall their entire fleet of them?"[/QUOTE]
Yes. they are being extremely cautious. A lot of people have an unreasonable fear of electric cars as far as I can tell. One accident could spell the death of the company as the media train takes it and makes it out to show that all electric cars are unsafe.
[QUOTE=Zephyrs;49154035]Then why do their drive trains consistently fail every 25-50 thousand miles?[/QUOTE]
It doesn't have 100 years of industry standard to build on. There hasn't really be a comparable electric vehicle of similar stats or mass production as the Model S motor, and having it go from dead stop to maintaining speed, to accelerating, to dead stop again a few dozen times a day over many thousands of miles in all climate conditions takes it's toll. It's a relatively new technology and that motor was invented specifically for the car. It's going to take awhile before they can iron out all the kinks. Not to mention the motor itself is incredibly powerful, and the car incredibly heavy.
If you have the warranty, replacement is free for 8 years/unlimited miles. (same for the battery).
$4,000 get's you 4 years/50,000 miles worth of prepaid service, replacement (assuming no fault of your own) parts covered.
[url]http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/infinite-mile-warranty[/url]
[url]http://www.teslamotors.com/support/service-plans[/url]
Here's a good example of the service:
[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcVuw8ENIGU[/media]
(he get's his car back from the Service Center at 6:30, complete with service details at 8:00)
[QUOTE=OvB;49154205]It doesn't have 100 years of industry standard to build on. There hasn't really be a comparable electric vehicle of similar stats or mass production as the Model S motor, and having it go from dead stop to maintaining speed, to accelerating, to dead stop again a few dozen times a day over many thousands of miles in all climate conditions takes it's toll. It's a relatively new technology and that motor was invented specifically for the car. It's going to take awhile before they can iron out all the kinks. Not to mention the motor itself is incredibly powerful, and the car incredibly heavy. [/QUOTE]
It's a tri phase electric motor. They were invented in the late 1800s. This is not new technology. And furthermore it's extremely well tested and vetted technology. There's thousands/millions of tri phase motors that have been running in heavy industrial settings nearly continuously for years.
The general consensus seems to be that the problems are stemming from an induction problem across the bearing casing leading to excessive wear. This is a problem that has been solved in industrial tri phase motors for the better part of a century.
Regardless of the cause, it is inexcusable that a fixed gear ratio drive train with a tri phase motor is [i]consistently[/i] failing after what is, relatively speaking, quite minimal use. One of the major selling points of electric cars is the fact that their drive train is far simpler, and has far fewer pieces that [i]could[/i] fail, let alone actually fail. Telsa has unequivocally failed in this regard.
[QUOTE=OvB;49154205]If you have the warranty, replacement is free for 8 years/unlimited miles. (same for the battery).
$4,000 get's you 4 years/50,000 miles worth of prepaid service, replacement (assuming no fault of your own) parts covered.[/QUOTE]
The battery warranty does not cover degradation. It only covers failures.
More to the point, who honestly gives a fuck what the warranty is when you have a car that is practically guaranteed to have critical components fail shortly after going out of the warranty? Sure if you are a person who only leases their cars, none of this is important to you, but the fact remains that the Model S (and probably the Model X since the drive train is virtually identical) is extremely failure prone.
As for their extended service agreement? Why don't you read it. There's significant deductibles whereas most manufacturers offer no deductible for most items. Tesla also charges the deductible per maintenance issue, not per service visit, unlike nearly every other extended service agreement in existence.
[QUOTE=Zephyrs;49154035]Then why do their drive trains consistently fail every 25-50 thousand miles?[/QUOTE]
That is far from an uncommon problem in luxury car brands. Mercedes and BMW had an issue back in 2003 where their new CVT transmissions would detonate at 100,000 miles. Took two class-action lawsuits to get them to recall the part, and another to get them to extend warranties to people whose transmissions had already blown out of warranty. Hell, my Mini died this way, and most of the first-generation reboot fleet either have the issue, or will develop it as they age.
There's also the issue with various models of Lamborghini literally bursting into flames, Aston-Martins that have leaking issues with water entering the cabin, the Takata airbag thing a few years ago that affected almost every automaker... Cars are not an exact science, and defective parts are industry standard. Tesla isn't held to another level here, nor are any other luxury car manufacturers.
[QUOTE=itisjuly;49153400]Which is why private companies are better in many cases.[/QUOTE]
Even so you could tell them to fuck off and sell their shares early, since they'd be sold anyway if an issue wound up in someone getting effectively murdered because of stockholder pressures and them only giving a damn about profit margins.
[QUOTE=woolio1;49154614]That is far from an uncommon problem in luxury car brands. Mercedes and BMW had an issue back in 2003 where their new CVT transmissions would detonate at 100,000 miles. Took two class-action lawsuits to get them to recall the part, and another to get them to extend warranties to people whose transmissions had already blown out of warranty. Hell, my Mini died this way, and most of the first-generation reboot fleet either have the issue, or will develop it as they age.
There's also the issue with various models of Lamborghini literally bursting into flames, Aston-Martins that have leaking issues with water entering the cabin, the Takata airbag thing a few years ago that affected almost every automaker... Cars are not an exact science, and defective parts are industry standard. Tesla isn't held to another level here, nor are any other luxury car manufacturers.[/QUOTE]
none of this means you can just shrug of 25-50k mile critical failures
[QUOTE=woolio1;49154614]That is far from an uncommon problem in luxury car brands. Mercedes and BMW had an issue back in 2003 where their new CVT transmissions would detonate at 100,000 miles.[/QUOTE]Um, that's [I]double[/I] the miles and well past the expected use of a luxury car, they're often traded in, sold, or otherwise change hands well before that point. (do note I am talking about the target demographic, people who can afford to just get a new car after a couple years)
Plus Tesla's entire marketing strategy is, "well this is our electric vehicle and it is literally better in every single way compared to the cars put out by the big auto manufacturers." If the drivetrain fails shortly after purchase then that strategy and that claim is directly called into question. As much as I love Tesla and what they're trying to do that is absolutely unacceptable, no critical part on a high-end car that's touted as "high quality" should fail after so little use.
[QUOTE=Zephyrs;49154605]It's a tri phase electric motor. They were invented in the late 1800s. This is not new technology. And furthermore it's extremely well tested and vetted technology. There's thousands/millions of tri phase motors that have been running in heavy industrial settings nearly continuously for years.
The general consensus seems to be that the problems are stemming from an induction problem across the bearing casing leading to excessive wear. This is a problem that has been solved in industrial tri phase motors for the better part of a century.
Regardless of the cause, it is inexcusable that a fixed gear ratio drive train with a tri phase motor is [i]consistently[/i] failing after what is, relatively speaking, quite minimal use. One of the major selling points of electric cars is the fact that their drive train is far simpler, and has far fewer pieces that [i]could[/i] fail, let alone actually fail. Telsa has unequivocally failed in this regard.
The battery warranty does not cover degradation. It only covers failures.
More to the point, who honestly gives a fuck what the warranty is when you have a car that is practically guaranteed to have critical components fail shortly after going out of the warranty? Sure if you are a person who only leases their cars, none of this is important to you, but the fact remains that the Model S (and probably the Model X since the drive train is virtually identical) is extremely failure prone.
As for their extended service agreement? Why don't you read it. There's significant deductibles whereas most manufacturers offer no deductible for most items. Tesla also charges the deductible per maintenance issue, not per service visit, unlike nearly every other extended service agreement in existence.[/QUOTE]
Fair enough.
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