Tesla's $100,000 EV refund due to defects

author: FutureCar Staff    

The Tesla Model 3 was once the most popular new EV in New Zealand, but it was overtaken last year by its Model Y sibling.

A Tesla owner in Waikato has recently won a legal battle with Tesla New Zealand. The Motor Vehicles Disputes Tribunal found that the owner's vehicle had a recurring wheel alignment issue, making it mechanically defective. As a result, Tesla New Zealand has been ordered to issue a full refund.

The vehicle in question was a new Tesla Model 3 Performance that cost $104,643. Over the course of nine months, the owner had to bring the car in for six wheel alignment assessments, including repairs to the subframe. Despite initially denying any faults, Tesla was found to have failed to meet the threshold of "acceptable quality" by the tribunal adjudicator.

As a result of the ruling, Tesla will take back the vehicle, assume the customer's obligations with their finance company, and pay the customer's company its deposit and finance repayments, totaling $22,112.82.

Shaun Baker, the owner of the Tesla Model 3, purchased the vehicle in August 2022 for $104,643. On the day of collection, Baker noticed that the car would tend to "pull right" while driving. He immediately returned the car to Tesla for an assessment and service at their Auckland service center. The assessors performed a wheel alignment to correct the issue, but Baker reported that it did not fix the problem.

In November 2022, Baker returned to Tesla for another assessment. Once again, the wheel alignment was adjusted, but the problem resurfaced later that month. Tesla noted that while the wheel alignment measurements were within specification, there were "further improvements to be made." This led to a more significant repair, involving an adjustment to the car's front subframe.

Despite these efforts, the issue persisted. In February of this year, a Tesla mobile mechanic confirmed that the car's rear toe was outside of specification. Baker then took the car to a third-party group for a separate assessment, which found that the car drifted to the right even though the steering wheel was level.

Baker rejected the vehicle and emailed Tesla New Zealand about the ongoing problem. However, Tesla denied the rejection claims, stating that they found no faults with the vehicle. They suggested that the issues may be due to the vehicle's steering compensation system.

After a post-hearing test drive by an independent party and another vehicle alignment report, it was confirmed that the car still steered to the right on flat road surfaces. The tribunal's assessor also found no evidence of a chronic or abnormal wheel alignment problem.

FutureCar Staff