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Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

caranddriver.com

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Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#71

Post by chc »

o-__-o wrote: post #70
sneak wrote: post #3

I think the general level of abysmal service from Tesla these days, plus the inability to casually sever the network connection/tracking, is the reason I will cancel my cybertruck order.

My wife saw a Kia Stinger in a parking lot the other day and started drooling over it. “Why didn’t you get this one??” I asked her to remember the horror stories we have gone through with our Ford dealership, I told her Kia service would be worse by 5 orders of magnitude. You are being downvoted, but poor customer service is a real reason to avoid certain car brands..

And by all accounts I've heard, Tesla customer service for the Model 3 is legitimately poor. The car needs much less routine maintenance, but if anything goes wrong, it seems to take anywhere from several weeks to months to get the car back.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#72

Post by Gibbon1 »

chc wrote: post #62
travelton wrote: post #5

"Catastrophic Failure" sounds a bit dramatic.

"Catastrophic failure" is a common engineering term that essentially means "complete and irreversible failure."

For a regular car when I hear catastrophic failure I think scrap metal in the oil pan.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#73

Post by LoSboccacc »

newnewpdro wrote: post #58
LoSboccacc wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you are supposed to call a tow with a blinking light, so yeah. hardly different

> you are supposed to call a tow with a blinking light Citation needed.

just open your owner manual, for most cars is standard

steady light: maintenance

flashing for a time: issues on the emissions controls, you risk on the long run to damage the converter or stuff like that

fixed flashing light: something seriously wrong, like a misfire or worse, running the engine is actively damaging it. car runs in protected mode as not to leave you stranded in a dangerous situation, but you are not supposed to run it.

what's your car if I might ask?

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#74

Post by AngryData »

nerdwaller wrote: post #59
thaumasiotes wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The check engine light doesn't prevent you from driving.

True, though some cars fall into “limp mode” making it challenging to drive very far. That typically limits the max RPM if a potential catastrophic drivetrain issue is detected while not also stranding you.

If a car is in limp mode though you probably shouldn't be moving it at all unless you have already committed to writing it off.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#75

Post by AngryData »

MBCook wrote: post #15
travelton wrote: post #5

"Catastrophic Failure" sounds a bit dramatic.

The car could no longer drive. Short of bursting into flames that’s about as bad as it gets.

So what would constitute a normal failure? Because I wouldn't consider it a failure at all unless I couldn't drive.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#76

Post by bryanlarsen »

teachrdan wrote: post #52
ogre_codes wrote: post #29

I was very disappointed that the author's idea of Catastrophic was far less interesting than what I pictured in my head. It's definitely not the only time an expensive car has failed in the first 6,000 miles of use. Also, the author's assumption that ICE cars don't fail while parked is a bit of hairsplitting. This isn't much different from any of the dozen or so times I've driven somewhere and discovered my car won't…

I am honestly surprised by your blasé reaction. To make an apples to apples comparison, have you ever had a: 1. New car, 2. Which cost almost $60,000, with 3. Fewer than 6000 miles, 4. Suffer a catastrophic failure (i.e. couldn't start with a jump), 5. While parked, 6. And had the manufacturer not communicate the source of failure, 7. Or how long it would take to fix? That, to me, seems almost unbelievable. I have en…

Sure, just 2 weekends ago I tried to boost a friend's Highlander. A few more miles but otherwise met all conditions. They spent several hours on the phone with the help desk, but nobody could do anything on a Sunday. They ended up staying an extra night in the hotel without any sort of assurance it would be a quick fix the next day.

And yet Toyota is considered one of the good brands.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#77

Post by AngryData »

newnewpdro wrote: post #58
LoSboccacc wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you are supposed to call a tow with a blinking light, so yeah. hardly different

> you are supposed to call a tow with a blinking light Citation needed.

I dunno where you can look it up, probably a modern car manual, but as someone within an entire family of mechanics, ive never heard of a blinking check engine light that didn't mean your shit is seriously fucked up and any second away from blowing apart. In fact blinking check engine lights are pretty new overall to differentiate between shit like 'this light is on because your o2 sensor is going bad' and 'this light is on because only half your motor is getting enough oil', now it blinks with the oil problem so you know it is serious. Although a number of cars these days have completely separate 'service engine' and 'engine warning' lights so a blinking check engine light might not exist for whatever model.

If anything other than your blinker blinks more than a handful of times past startup, something is very very wrong.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#78

Post by dasv »

jessaustin wrote: post #16
travelton wrote: post #5

"Catastrophic Failure" sounds a bit dramatic.

TFA mentions a "pyrotechnic battery" which sounds like a great feature for a military fort but not so much for an automobile?

A pyrotechnic battery disconnect, which I suppose cuts the connection to the battery instantly in case of accident to avoid shorting it. There are already pyrotechnic devices in cars: airbags are pyrotechnic, as well as safety belt detents. It's the fastest type of actuator.

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#79

Post by Alain-lf »

MBCook wrote: post #15
travelton wrote: post #5

"Catastrophic Failure" sounds a bit dramatic.

The car could no longer drive. Short of bursting into flames that’s about as bad as it gets.

If you are late to work because your car won't start, say a bad starter or a dead fuel pump, would you really tell your boss that your car had a "catastrophic" failure?

Re: Our Tesla Model 3 Suffered a Failure While Parked

#80

Post by teachrdan »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #76
teachrdan wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am honestly surprised by your blasé reaction. To make an apples to apples comparison, have you ever had a: 1. New car, 2. Which cost almost $60,000, with 3. Fewer than 6000 miles, 4. Suffer a catastrophic failure (i.e. couldn't start with a jump), 5. While parked, 6. And had the manufacturer not communicate the source of failure, 7. Or how long it would take to fix? That, to me, seems almost unbelievable. I have en…

Sure, just 2 weekends ago I tried to boost a friend's Highlander. A few more miles but otherwise met all conditions. They spent several hours on the phone with the help desk, but nobody could do anything on a Sunday. They ended up staying an extra night in the hotel without any sort of assurance it would be a quick fix the next day. And yet Toyota is considered one of the good brands.

That's an interesting story, and I did some quick research to compare the two models. It looks like the Toyota Highlander sold almost twice as many cars in the US in 2019 (~219,000 vs ~114,000) and costs about $20,000 less for the most-expensive model. This is, in my opinion, not an apples to apples comparison.

I know most of us at HN--me included!--want Tesla to succeed, but I am again surprised that people are so quick to write off a brand new, low-mileage Model 3's catastrophic failure with no apparent cause. I have to wonder if it's because, when we saw the word "catastrophic" in the headline, we assumed it would be due to a battery catching fire, or autopilot steering the vehicle into a Jersey barrier.

Toyota Highlander sales figures: https://www.goodcarbadcar.net/toyota-highlander-sales-figure...

Tesla Model 3 sales figures: https://www.goodcarbadcar.net/tesla-model-3-sales-figures-us...

Price of top-end Highlander: https://www.google.com/search?q=how+much+is+a+toyota+highlan...

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