All European countries that I am aware of try to make sure used cars are in good condition to keep on the road. This is why they promote regular inspections, which varies from country to country. The Tesla Model 3 has just started going through these inspections in Germany, and it has already earned an unpleasant title: the vehicle with the most inspection failures among 111 other models.
The Technischer Überwachungsverein (TÜV, or Technical Inspection Association) needs to inspect the cars in Germany for the first time three years after they are delivered to their first owners. After that, they have to be retested every two years. According to Auto Bild, 14.7% of all evaluated Model 3 units failed the inspection. The reproach average among the 111 models that were as old as the Model 3 was 5.7%. The German magazine and TÜV have a partnership to publish the annual used car report. This year's study was based on 10,225,866 general inspections (HUs, or Hauptuntersuchung).
This is the first time the Model 3 shows up in the report, but not the first occasion in which a Tesla disappoints. In January 2022, TÜV disclosed that the Model S was also the worst battery electric vehicle (BEV) in the report. The American company's flagship had a 10.7% rejection rate at the time. The average that year was 4.7%. It only failed to be the worst among the 128 vehicles with up to three years of use because of the Dacia Duster and the Dacia Logan, which beat it in inspection failures.
According to Auto Bild, most of the defects in the Model 3 were related to suspension components and brake discs. The Model S had fog light and low beam issues, but its wishbones were its primary concern. BEV advocates may claim that all vehicles powered by a massive battery pack will have similar problems, but they will be dismissed – totally or just in part – by the Renault ZOE and the Volkswagen e-Golf.
Photo: Renault
The ZOE ranked the 44th best among the 111 models with up to three years of use. It had no brake disc issues, even if it also presented suspension issues. The deal is that the electric hatchback's defects were in a much lower proportion: only 5.1% of ZOE units failed to pass the HUs. As for the e-Golf, it did not have issues with the suspension or the brake discs. It did so well that it was in the 4th best position, with a failure rate of only 2.6%.
Claiming that these cars have much smaller battery packs is no excuse. Neither the ZOE nor the e-Golf can be considered light vehicles. What seems to have made the difference was the engineering and possibly also quality control. That's something that Tesla owners learned to joke about by saying "within specs." That's what they hear from Tesla Service Centers when they complain about several issues with their cars.
This is the second time TÜV indicates that the American BEV maker has to improve its game in Germany. Before that, I had already reported that Model 3 units had cracked jacking points. Christoph Lindner, the TeslaAnwalt (Tesla Attorney), has taken at least two cases so far to German courts. One of these owners' main concerns was that their cars would never pass the HU.
Photo: Meyle HD
Auto Bild explained that only a few electric vehicles were present in the TÜV list because they have to be statistically relevant to be included. Summing up, they will only show up if they have had a minimum number of results in the mandatory inspections. That means we will have to wait a few years to see the Model Y and most of the new BEVs in that report. If the Model Y has similar quality issues, they will eventually show up.
That is not the first time we have heard about Tesla vehicles having suspension component issues. Keith Leech, aka Keef Wivaneff, has been warning about "whompy wheels" in cars from the American company for years.
He even turned into a Tesla short-seller to defy the company to sue him and prove him wrong. According to the detractor, "filing false complaints whilst holding a position in TSLA could lead to prosecution by SEC." Wivaneff posts all suspicious cases he finds on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for it to investigate them. He also publicly challenged Elon Musk to sue him. So far, nothing happened: Tesla has never sued Wivaneff. NHTSA launched an investigation in November 2020 about the front suspension forelinks of 115,000 Model 3 and Model Y units, but we never heard about the results.
Photo: via TMC
Tesla has performed quite a few suspension recalls in the US and China. Before the Model Y was made in Germany, that's where the cars sold there came from. It is valid to ask if Tesla did the same repairs in Europe. I'd do so if the company had a working press relations department.
The fact is that all Tesla models have already been officially recalled in the US for suspension issues. When that happened in China, the BEV maker blamed its supplier. While the culprit is up for discussion, the main victims are Tesla's customers. If they imagined that their relatively new vehicles would pass the HUs without concerns, 14.7% must have been deeply disappointed. Considering how the Model S did in 2022, these customers should be more prepared.
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