Comment by BluSyn | Hacker News Reader

Comment by BluSyn | Hacker News Reader

I have an early build 2018 Model 3 Performance. I have experienced almost zero quality issues. I use Autopilot frequently and have experienced phantom braking maybe 5 times ever in 3+ years, and certainly isn't a deal-breaker. In fact it's improved dramatically since I first got the car.

I feel like all I ever hear from outside the Tesla owner bubble is quality issues, complaints, weird problems I've never experienced. When I talk to other Tesla owners, they also are confused by this phenomena, because the vast majority I've talked to have the same experience as me; complete joy in the product, very few if any complaints at all. Especially relative to any other car I have owned or is available on the market today, I wouldn't recommend buying anything else.

When people talk about annoying Tesla fanboys, this is the core of problem. On the one hand you have the public perception of Tesla cars, based on reviews like this one. Then you have actual experience from the *majority* of owners being the exact opposite. Tesla certainly has issues, but so does GM, Ford, and every other auto maker. Reviewers rarely shout these issues in the headlines. But with Tesla it's always different.

What are we do to about this instead? Why is every review of Tesla highlighting the flaws, whereas every review of non-EV cars highlight the positives? How come Tesla owners don't get to write about their positive experiences without being called fanboys or shills?

I owned a BMW 328i for 20 years. I loved that car dearly.

I've now got 94,000 miles on a 2018 Model 3 long range. It's more fun than the BMW in every way. Handles better, accelerates faster, it's much quieter inside. The sound system is much better than the HKs in the BMW. It's more comfortable. I can drive for 4 hours straight with no discomfort.

I don't have autopilot cuz my insurance guy wouldn't give me a discount if I bought it. Once he does, I'll add it.

Regarding service: It's on the 3rd set of tires and I replaced the cracked windshield.

That's it.

You’re comparing a BMW designed in the late 90s to a brand new car.. If it wasn’t better that would be concerning.

Can you explain what significant improvements BMW have added in the last 20 years? I'm not a car guy but from my perspective, BMWs have only added incremental improvements.

>I don't have autopilot

you mean FSD

you have autopilot by default

>have experienced phantom braking maybe 5 times

I'm sure the drivers behind you were thrilled to learn it didn't bother you when your car decided to randomly brake.

>Why is every review of Tesla highlighting the flaws, whereas every review of non-EV cars highlight the positives?

Amongst other things, because other constructors aren't taking every opportunity to jerk themselves about how you're the pretended best in the world when they're just a mediocre constructor selling overpriced cars with bad build quality and lying on having level 5 autopilot at every occasion.

> How come Tesla owners don't get to write about their positive experiences without being called fanboys or shills?

Because ultimately, your feelings about the car gets overshadowed by the fact that Tesla is at the bottom of every single reliability study. They're worse than Jeeps, ffs. That's a new record.

Well, maybe this will change when the reviewer doesn't find water in the trunk of the car after washing it? Or when their car doesn't brake for no reason? Some things are simply not acceptable for ordinary users who are accustomed to other companies' quality standards. Especially at comparable price point.

This could have been my words! Tesla Model 3 owner here from the Netherlands

The vehicle was unsafe. That's a flaw I want to hear about.

Interestingly, the Model 3 actually has a pretty good reputation for reliability. Somehow it's the more expensive models that tend to do worse.

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