Tesla cars are great. Best EV you can get when balancing cost and quality and capability. By far.
But it comes with Elon, so I drive a Rivian.
But it comes with Elon, so I drive a Rivian.
MANY EVs sold by renamed automakers, and even good chinese brands.
From my recollection, the car door handle's that Tesla "innovated" are so unsafe that China has now banned hidden door handle designs. Some articles on related deaths due:
https://www.statesman.com/business/article/tesla-door-handle...
https://www.autonews.com/automakers/teslas-futuristic-door-h...
And then I recalled the insanely high fault rate with Tesla's from a report from Denmark: https://fdm.dk/nyheder/nyt-om-trafik-og-biler/tesla-skandale...
2025 Vision statistics for electric cars:
Car model | Total number of cars | Approved | Conditionally approved | Inspection | Percentage of care
Tesla Model Y | 2,394 | 1,281 | 44 | 1,069 | 45%
Tesla Model 3 | 8,564 | 5.438 | 189 | 2,937 | 34%
VW ID.4 | 7,121 | 6,292 | 651 | 178 | 2%
And so I googled for a few minutes and found some more stuff, like a reuters investigation into coverups, german reporting of defect rates as well, UK defect rate reports, a US investigation too.
Here's your AI and human assisted summary:
# Overview of the Tesla Inspection Issues
Data from mandatory vehicle inspection agencies in Europe and federal investigations in North America show that relatively new Tesla Model Y and Model 3 vehicles are failing safety tests at unprecedented rates. The issues stem from high vehicle weight, a lack of traditional annual service schedules, and component material choices.
## Key Regional Inspection Data
- Denmark (FDM): Danish roadworthiness data reveals that 45% of 2021 Tesla Model Ys failed their first periodic vehicle inspection. The primary culprit is excessive play in the suspension and wheel hubs. [https://fdm.dk/nyheder/nyt-om-trafik-og-biler/tesla-skandale...]
- Germany (TÜV Association): In official vehicle inspection reports, the Tesla Model Y ranked dead last out of 110 models with a 17.3% serious defect rate at its first 3-year check. The year prior, the Tesla Model 3 ranked worst out of 111 models with a 14.2% failure rate. [https://marqstats.com/insights/germany-tesla-model-3-tuv-ins...]
- United Kingdom (DVSA): Vehicle standards data shows thousands of combined first-time MOT inspection failures for Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, largely driven by premature chassis strain.
## The Primary Defects Found
The high failure rates are consistently tied to three mechanical areas:
- Suspension and Control Arms: Extreme battery weight combined with instant motor torque causes suspension ball joints and lateral control arms to experience accelerated wear, loosening, or catastrophic snapping.
- Brake Disc Degradation: Because Teslas rely heavily on regenerative braking, physical brake pads and discs are rarely used. In damp climates, this lack of friction causes the brake discs to corrode heavily, failing mechanical efficiency tests.
- Headlight Misalignment: High rates of faulty factory headlight alignment frequently fail strict European beam leveling tests.
## Regulatory and Legal Impact
- Federal Safety Probe: The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is actively investigating roughly 1.2 million Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles following over 150 customer reports of front suspension parts snapping while driving.
- The "Driver Abuse" Cover-up: Investigations by Reuters revealed that Tesla internally recognized these global suspension defects for years but actively instructed service centers to blame consumers for "driver abuse" to deflect warranty payout costs. [https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/tesla-mu...]