Vehicle Maintenance Bulletin: Fill & Download for Free

To add to Peter Hugosson-Miller’s on-point response:The first Tesla Model S battery-electric sedans were delivered on 6/22/2012, just seven years ago, and they remain the benchmark of the BEV industry. Prior to that, ~2450 Tesla Roadsters were produced between 2008-2012, demonstrating to the world that BEVs could be fast, have plenty of range and be a blast to drive (Elon Musk’s original Roadster is in orbit, with Starman at the wheel). Tesla’s lithium-ion battery cell, battery pack and Battery Management System (BMS) technologies have evolved tremendously over the past 16+ years, and continue to be improved and refined; their recent acquisition of Maxwell foreshadows exciting upcoming developments. It’s hard to imagine modern-day life without our mobile electronic devices and their constantly-improving rechargeable lithium-ion batteries.Data analysis from a large sample of Tesla vehicles indicates an average of 92% battery pack SoC remaining after 240,000 km (149,129 miles). The data extrapolates to an average of 80% battery pack SoC remaining after 780,000 km (484,669 miles):Tesla Model S battery degradation dataHighest Mileage Tesla Now Has Over 420,000 MilesMany ICE have deliberate “interference designs” and timing belts with a recommended replacement service interval of 70k miles (popular in the 80’s and 90’s). If you didn’t replace the composite timing belt regularly, or if the belt wore and “hopped a tooth” or two, you were likely facing internal engine damage and a VERY expensive repair - great business for the dealership Service Centers.As ICE computer controls and emissions system and fuel injection technologies were refined in the late 90’s, tune-ups became less frequent and service intervals lengthened, but vehicle maintenance became more technically difficult for do-it-yourself-ers trying to save a buck …It took Tesla and others in the past 10 years with clean, efficient new BEVs for us to finally escape gas station expenses and detours, frequent oil changes, annual emissions testing, tune-ups, radiator flushes, transmission service, brake jobs and other maintenance repairs on the thousands of mechanical components of fossil-fuel vehicles.The dominant service expenses for low-maintenance Tesla vehicles are tires, windshield washer fluid and wiper blades. Highly-efficient electric motors require essentially zero maintenance, and regenerative braking minimizes disk brake pad wear. You drive the cars and then plug them in overnight. That’s pretty much it.The recommended Tesla service interval is now essentially 200k miles, but with a high-tech investment like that, you’d be a fool not to take it in to the nearest Tesla Service Center every couple of years for servicing and inspection, if for no other reason than to have any Technical Service Bulletin and Recall Advisories performed, and to keep that important Tesla warranty valid.Tesla Car MaintenanceDo It Yourself - Tesla Model 3

Unless you have really abused your car, or it is particularly old, it is a scam.You don’t say how old it is, so we have to guess a bit.I write maintenance bulletins and plans, audit companies maintenance practices, etc. I own two oil change facilities and wholesale oil and filters. I also personally restore classic cars. My cars and trucks do not go in for timed certain other services per the manual, as we are on top of how they run.Oil changes, yes, should be when the light goes on or 12 months, or 5000 miles (at least that is my plan to make sure, with the semi-synthetic oils I use in 14 vehicles with varying routes, get past the half million km mark without repairs.) Oil change lights are only useful if they are reset at each change.We pull out the brake fluid and power steering fluid from the reservoirs at each oil change and refresh with new, so thee is constantly a partial refresh of both.HOAT coolants are 5 to 6 years if put in a clean system, OAT 10 years if you don’t mix with any other type.Transmission fluids I like to change at 50,000 km. Mountains, city driving, dirt, floods, etc. mean better safe than sorry.Alignment when buying new tires and if they show wear or edges when you pull your hand across them, or if it wants to pull to one side on a flat street without wind.A bottle of Techron every 4000 to 5000 km to keep the fuel system and injectors clean. Really noticeable improvement with the gas we have locally.Timing chain or belt if it has it is a must.My wife’s Outlander is programed for the maintenance light to come on every 30 days or 3000 km so you go back to the dealer for service. It is approaching 9 years old and we just got used to leaving the light come on with every engine start.Other things as noticed, by different performance, inspection, etc. When we change customer’s oil, we do a quick scan and tell them what might need attention.If your 24,000 miles were 2 mile drives each day, it might need serious work, as I’ve seen KIA’s totally sludged up with that mileage. But that would not be the norm.I’d have someone else look at it and tell you what it really needs.

It is the sign of the times. In the mid 60’s I worked for a Lincoln dealership. I still remembered every Wednesdays we have factory bulletins issued to us which we suppose to file and keep up to date. Fast forward to the late 90’s , printed repair manuals are no longer available and you have to get a subscription service - Mitchell 1 to download service information at close to $2000 a year to keep up with repair procedures, recalls and factory bulletins. Repairs are divided into engines, transmission, OBD II engine computer control diagnostic, system wiring diagrams, electronic component locator, AC and heating systems, brake systems and anti-lock, collision repairs, hybrid and EV drive systems, etc….. Nowadays, if you are out of the loop for 5 years, you are obsolete! A Tesla EV is basically a computer on wheels. Their parts are not made by the aftermarket and their drivetrain information is proprietary. They don’t want you to work on their cars because you can do more damage to the vehicle and at worst, electrocute yourself! That is why Tesla fought against laws that required dissemination of repair information by manufacturers - “The right to repair law”. To satisfy the requirement of that law, they released the repair information very slowly.Our expectancy from our cars have changed over the years. My dad worked for Henry Ford in the late 20’s. Those cars didn’t require a tool investment like the present. It is not unusual to see a tech investing many thousands of dollars for tools of their trade. Some of the specialized tools only service one or two model years! GM computer carburetors repair set, Cadillac water pump wrench that only work on their Northstar engines, Ford variable venturi carburetors to mechanical/electronic fuel injections of the Bosch D, K, KE jetronics etc. required a sizeable of investments of tools and knowledge. Nowadays, electronic tools are a must. Dual trace/4 trace oscilloscopes, OBD readers with access to CAN network and ABS are new requirement for the modern technician. Training is also high on the agenda as well as many factory or after market suppliers sponsors seminars that you have to pay to enroll and certify.The complexity is driven by governmental regulations, EPA, NHTSA, ecological and climate change realities, fuel quality and chemistry, MPG and operating cost made possible by the evolution of faster and more powerful computer processors that control dedicated electronic networks designed to milk every ounce of energy from the fuel. Direction injection, start/stop technology, cylinder deactivation 5 to 10 speed automatic transmission or cvt transmission. Every new vehicle sold these day must have 4 wheel anti-lock brake system, power or the newer electric steering, power or electric braking system, AC and heating system, rear view camera, blind spot warning system, collision avoidance sensors and actuators, air bags/side curtains/seat belts. Options that are almost standard are automatic braking system, surround view cameras, thrust vectoring system on AWDs, multi-speaker stereo/cd system with sub-woofers, GPS, climate control, power windows/door lock/sliding door control/remote trunk opening and closing, and so on.The result of all these changes: Vehicles are safer per million mile of driving, pollution per vehicle mile is much lower. Maintenance intervals are longer. Engines and drive trains are warrantied for 100,000 miles and can last 200,000+ miles with conscientious maintenance. MPG for vehicles have been improving year after year. Turbo charging allowed a 4 cylinder 2.7 liter GM engine to produce over 310 HP for their 2019 Silverado pickup, more than V8s just a decade ago. The term “Tune-up” is obsolete as engine computer does it many times a second and sparkplugs last over 100,000 miles. Tires last 80,000 miles. Synthetic oil good for 7,500 to 15,000 miles between changes. Timing belt changes are getting to be a thing of the past. The only thing that hasn’t change is the car owner’s knowledge of their vehicle. They have not kept up and most have resigned themselves to let the dealerships do the work. They have been made obsolete by those advances. So what can they do? change wipers, light bulbs and may be engine oil and filter.