Tesla’s Model 3 is the car that ushered electric vehicles into the mainstream. On the day it was unveiled, people all over the world waited in lines by the hundreds to place a $1,000 reservation. By 2021, it became the first EV to sell more than a million units.

We asked thousands of the first Model 3 owners about how the car has withstood the test of time and how it stacks up against previous vehicles they’ve owned. They told us they still love the sedan — especially the way it handles — and are only a bit less excited to tell their friends and family about it than they were the last time we asked.

Ratings were exceptional for performance, ease of use and design — as we touched on in Part I. But Tesla’s real challenge in cranking out millions of Model 3s was proving how well they could hold up to the trials of the open road.

It appears to have aced the test.

In the first few years of Model 3 production, cars frequently rolled out of the factory with minor manufacturing defects, including chipped paint and misaligned panels — and some bigger problems too. Bringing a Tesla back to fix cosmetic flaws became an almost routine part of the ownership process.

See the 2019 survey results

Still, owners in 2019 gave high marks for the Model 3’s ongoing reliability — and those scores actually increased over time. Owners in 2023 reported that once any initial defects that came with their cars were corrected, the major systems held up well.

The only problem I had in 90,000 miles was a broken window button. It cost $51 and they came to my office to repair it.

We asked Model 3 owners to rate reliability across six areas of the vehicle. As a group, the questions resulted in some of the most favorable response scores in the survey. Some of the top ratings went to the battery and electric-drive systems that are unique to EVs.

Exterior reliability was lowest, with some owners reporting continued dissatisfaction with paint quality. Paint chips and scratches were the most common complaint in 2019, mentioned by 10% of respondents.

Tesla’s over-the-air update breakthrough

The survey posed dozens of additional questions about the car’s features and quality. While satisfaction scores remain universally high, there was a slight downward trend across the board when compared to 2019.

The highest feature score was for Tesla’s over-the-air updates (4.79), through which the company carries out recalls and adds new features — from the Sentry Mode security system to the beloved “Dog Mode” for keeping pets safe when left in the car unattended. Other highly rated features include the sound system (4.76), maps and directions (4.71), keyless entry (4.62), seat comfort (4.58), touchscreen controls (4.56) and the Tesla phone app (4.49).

Two exceptions to the high marks were voice-activated commands (3.81) and automatic windshield wipers (3.35). The wipers suffered from Tesla’s unusual decision to use Autopilot driving sensors to determine when it was raining rather than off-the-shelf sensors used by other automakers.

Ratings for the wipers dropped since 2019, suggesting that either the performance worsened over time, or owners got fed up with waiting for promised improvements that never came. Musk recently acknowledged the problem: “Actually smart auto wiper software releases in about 3 weeks,” he announced five weeks ago.

Tesla owners were given a chance to submit comments about the car’s long-term reliability, in their own words. Those responses can be explored below, sorted by the owner’s overall rating of reliability compared to previous vehicles they’ve owned. Comments have been lightly edited for readability and appropriateness.

Beyond Tesla, the reliability results bolster the idea — until now, still somewhat theoretical — that EVs will require significantly less upkeep than internal combustion vehicles due to their having fewer moving parts.

Model 3 and Model Y battery performance

Lithium-ion battery performance degrades over time — enough that EV buyers should take this into account when determining how much range will be needed to meet their needs over the life of the vehicle.

Unfortunately, there’s little public data on battery degradation. In the past few years, Tesla started releasing battery-retention data for the higher-end Model S sedan and Model X SUV — but not for its top-selling Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, which rely on different battery chemistries.

Bloomberg asked Model 3 owners a series of questions to assess battery degradation. We also conducted a second survey for owners of other Tesla vehicles, from which we obtained data about the Model Y. Using results from both datasets, we were able to estimate what owners of the two vehicles might expect.

The results show a mild decrease in range to about 91% of the original rated capacity after 100,000 miles. That’s very similar to what Tesla reported for the Model X and Y, and in line with or better than most industry estimates for lithium-ion battery degradation.

Most battery loss occurs during a break-in period within the first 25,000 miles. Rates of degradation vary significantly, and there’s not always a straightforward reason why some batteries degrade faster than others. Some Tesla owners said they were frustrated by unexpected battery loss.

Factors that can accelerate permanent battery degradation include driving in very hot temperatures, regularly charging to the battery’s maximum capacity or discharging until empty, and frequent use of powerful high-speed chargers.

Electric vehicles also get much less range from their batteries in cold temperatures — though the cold-weather effect is temporary. In freezing conditions, range declined 28%, according to the average result of more than 5,000 Bloomberg survey respondents.

Model 3 owners reported a downtick in battery satisfaction since 2019. This could be the result of battery degradation — but also a reflection of rising consumer expectations for longer ranges. EV battery range in the US is now almost 300 miles on average, up from less than 200 miles before the arrival of the Model 3, according to a Bloomberg analysis.

Mixed reviews for customer service

Once Tesla’s factory in Fremont, California, started cranking out Model 3s at high volumes in 2018, its service operations were quickly overwhelmed. Phone calls and emails went unanswered, and vehicle replacement parts were on constant backorder. Bloomberg’s survey results in 2019 suggested the worst of the service crunch was passing.

Reviews haven’t improved much, however, and service reviews remain mixed. One bright spot was approval of Tesla’s mobile service, where a work van is dispatched to repair a vehicle at its owner’s home or office. By 2023, more customers had experience with the vans — and they continued to be wowed by it. Satisfaction with service centers and stores, on the other hand, declined.

Tesla has become notorious for making it exceedingly difficult to reach customer service by phone. For people who prefer communicating through an app, the experience improved.

The company also uses its app to contact customers preemptively about potential problems. Almost 17% of owners said they’d been contacted about a problem before they were aware of it. Most of these were for minor recalls or to fix faulty sensors, wiring issues or a failing 12-volt battery.

The people I interacted with were all good, but getting in touch with a human was tough.

While scores varied for different aspects of Tesla’s service interactions, ratings of the work actually done to cars improved over 2019.

The Model 3 owners we’ve tracked since 2019 were the EV enthusiasts who took a chance to try Elon Musk’s first high-volume product. We asked what new thing they’d like to see Tesla bring to market next.

Up Next:
Tesla Survey Part III: Driving on Autopilot