According to the latest report from TUV SUD, the fault rate of a Tesla Model 3 will surpass the average after being used for two to three years. The vehicle was ranked at the bottom of the TUV 2024 report with a fault rate of 14.7%.
TUV SUD is a Germany-headquartered company offering testing and certification services. It did 10.2 million times of regular testing on 221 vehicle models between July 2022 and June 2023. The 2024 report included EVs for the first time.
According to TUV SUD, the lights, brakes, and axles are the foremost sources of faults in the Tesla Model 3. Tesla stopped defining service intervals in 2019 and does not have a close network of service centers, causing the fault rate of Model 3 to exceed the average.
The report showed that the average car age in Germany for 2023 is 10 years, compared to 6.9 years in 2000. Cars have become more reliable and more expensive, thus stopping many consumers from buying a new one.
In the report, the Volkswagen Golf Sportsvan led in the segment of cars aged four to five years as the Mazda CX-3 was the front-runner for the age six to seven years. The Mercedes B-Class was ranked first in the eight-to-nine-year segment.
Supply chain sources said Tesla was the first to leverage over-the-air (OTA) updates to offer more services and deal with issues resulting from the vehicles. Many automakers have followed suit. However, ambiguity remains in the definition of OTA and how it can be used.
For example, China has restricted the scope and time that OTA can function in recent years. In addition, the maintenance system for traditional cars can not satisfy the needs of EVs. Many services have to rely on EV makers, which creates high maintenance costs for consumers.
