Older Tesla Model 3 Cars Will Get a Power Tailgate Retrofit, China Leads the Way

As the entry-level offering in the Tesla lineup, the Model 3 lacked the convenience features found in its bigger brothers. Among them, we count the power tailgate that even Model Y featured right from the factory. This led many Model 3 owners to buy aftermarket solutions that were later installed at third-party garages, which was not an ideal solution. Right now, you can buy on Amazon the kits to convert the tailgate and even the frunk lid to open automatically or at the touch of a button.

Tesla-China stepped in to close this loop and offer a factory service to retrofit the desired power tailgate to Model 3 cars that did not come with this feature. The move was announced on Sina Weibo by Tesla China customer support, and CEO Allan Wang shared a video detailing the whole retrofitting process. The retrofit is as good as the factory-fitted power tailgate on the newer Model 3, including the UI display feature additions. After the job is done, the tailgate can be open and closed via the button on the back, the Tesla app, or the infotainment system.

“Tesla electric tailgate upgrade service. Official service, genuine parts, professional technician installation. The long-awaited electric tailgate upgrade is here. Your voice, we are all listening carefully,” reads the Google-translated Tesla Customer Support post on Weibo.

At the equivalent of $630, the power tailgate retrofit is a tad more expensive than aftermarket solutions, which hover around $500. But the price includes the installation and this is significant. Also, the power tailgate functions are properly integrated with the Model 3 platform, not to mention the retrofit is backed up by the carmaker’s three-year warranty.

Although the service is for the moment only available in China, we expect this to be made available in other markets soon, including in the U.S. At least that was the case with other features Tesla introduced, all of them originating from its China operations. It will probably be a lot more expensive in western countries than it is in China, like all other products and services.