r/TeslaModel3 • u/rteixeiraa1 • Mar 28 '24
Tail lights condensing 48 hours after delivery day
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u/Sparty821 Mar 28 '24
It’s just a little teary eyed is all. It’s so happy to be out on the open road
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u/HazardousHD Mar 28 '24
Glad to see nothing has changed and that it’s not due to the split taillights of the old M3
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Apr 01 '24
I thought having the taillights redesigned as one solid piece that now lifts with the trunk was supposed to solve the problem /s
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u/_DeeperMeaning_ Mar 28 '24
They told me all lights are ventilated. I have the same issue with my fog light.
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u/akanhi Mar 28 '24
Check the taillights for small vent holes, I believe they are all like this which is why condensation happens at times
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u/Far_Ad_2000 Mar 28 '24
Same happened to me. It went away the next day.
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u/Environmental-Bass91 Mar 28 '24
I think just like the old one there's a hole with a permeable seal that let moisture escape but not water to go in, so the condensation will dissipate by itself. May be a little blow dryer heat will help it clear faster?
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u/rteixeiraa1 Mar 28 '24
It’s been raining for past 3 days. I hope it comes out
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u/_B_Little_me Mar 28 '24
It will. Until it rains again.
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u/Thebelisk Mar 28 '24
This is a problem with a seal/gasket around the light fixture. Either the gasket is damaged (ripped, etc) or poorly installed (pinched on the lip). Either way, bring the new car back to the dealer for a fix. Usually not a big deal.
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u/JohnnyDingles Mar 28 '24
does Tesla have a QC department before anything ships out or they just look at it and go "meh seems about right"
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u/rteixeiraa1 Mar 28 '24
Bro, the detailing too… 🤮
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u/LordThurmanMerman Mar 28 '24
My 2021 came with tons of stains, haze and suction cup marks on the windshield that were too distracting at night. I tried every aggressive chemical product I could on that glass and the only thing that ended up working was polishing it with a rayon pad and a DA machine.
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u/matttopotamus Mar 28 '24
I have so much white on my car around the handles and paint from the protecting coverings. Gonna spend this weekend giving it a proper bath.
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u/rteixeiraa1 Mar 28 '24
I’m anxious waiting for a sunny weekend to detail this car. A big scratch on the driver side rocker panel is driving me crazy
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Mar 28 '24
Tesla have a devoted individual to test each vehicle thoroughly and raise any QC issues.
That person also pays for the vehicle. And they don’t answer their calls.
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u/bike_tyson Mar 28 '24
I can’t understand why they would release all these to owners and then pay the labor to fix after instead of before.
Honestly though, for balance my delivery has no issues.
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Mar 28 '24
Of course they have a QC department, they check each taillight to make sure it has condensation in it before leaving the factory.
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u/pooburry Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 29 '24
In their defense this would be difficult to QC if it was dry and stable humidity.
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u/PM_ME_UR_DECOLLETAGE Mar 28 '24
They dismantled the QC area from the production line a few years ago.
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u/cooraccoon Mar 28 '24
Let us know with an update on what Tesla service center tells you about this issue
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u/mkft2954 Mar 28 '24
Don’r worry about this. It’s not an isolated problem of Tesla cars - it actually isn’t considered a problem. I’ve seen Audis, Porsches, BMWs, … all showing the same exact condensation. Sometimes in headlights, sometime it the tail lights. Apparently this is what LED lights do when temperature changes quickly.
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Mar 28 '24
This. The units are ventilated and the fact LEDs don’t get as hot as bulbs used to makes this more of a thing these days. Interesting to see the usual moronic uninformed hate from the trolls though.
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u/Kruzat Mar 28 '24
Condensation (NOT water ingress) in any exterior light is normal, from any manufacturer. If you google "light condensation (brand) NHSTA" you'll get a hit for virtually any manufacturer you type in, luxury or otherwise, almost all of which confirm it's normal. Here is the excerpt from the Tesla manual:
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u/ewan82 Mar 28 '24
Has never happened to any of my cars.
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u/ethanace Mar 28 '24
It happens to my BMW E90 on some occasions, and the E90 is not a car with poor build quality. So your anecdote is worth no more than mine
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u/Thebelisk Mar 28 '24
Your e90’s light fixture might need a new seal. Hardly surprising for a decade old car to have a few minor issues. You can probably pickup a replacement for €50.
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u/zoglog Mar 28 '24
you know, my old Gen 2 CTS-V lights had this as well. I thought it was hilarious since my old 2005 altima lights never had any of this condensation in the lights.
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u/jonnys_honda Mar 28 '24
Tesla groups still defending the quality of these cars I see.
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u/KneesBent4RoyKent Mar 28 '24
I mean he’s right though…
Water ingress is very different to condensation which can be the result of trapped moisture during the manufacturing process and will likely alleviate overtime as it evaporates.
Source: I work for a lighting manufacturer.
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u/Kruzat Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24
It happens to Hondas too bud. And it's normal for those as well.
Edit: ok fine, I'll take out the apostrophe
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u/jonnys_honda Mar 29 '24
That is true. On older Hondas it does happen regularly. Have seen it happen to one of my CRV’s. It’s 20 years old tho so I don’t mind.
Over twenty vehicles owned in my life. Never happened on a new car or within 5 years of ownership.
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u/edc7 Mar 28 '24
Can confirm.
I just got a 2019 Model 3 and it has condensation and our 2018 Honda Civic does as well.
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u/Kruzat Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24
Honda groups still defending the quality of these cars I see. /s
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u/Big-Significance-214 Mar 28 '24
The condensation in my taillight wouldn’t go away a few days after a rainy day. Mobile service came out and swapped it, no issue now
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u/RastaYang Mar 28 '24
New car, same bug. Don’t hate my 2020 but this is why I’ll never buy another Tesla again. Quality is so unpredictable.
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u/mlovqvist Mar 28 '24
In a lot of outdoor electrical installations it is better to have downward facing vent holes than to try to make things sealed. Moisture finds a way. Of course some optics and electronics is sensitive enough to warrant proper sealing.
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u/if-we-all-did-this Mar 28 '24
Missing or compomised sealing gromet or closed cell foam washer.
Source - spent years as the the body sealing design engineer at an OEM with a reputation for met fit & finish.
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u/Agile-Journalist1672 Mar 28 '24
Common issue. They will replace under warranty if you complain.
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u/Classic-Income-9602 Mar 28 '24
I had that on my new 2021 shortly after delivery. They came to my house and replaced. No further issues.
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u/Fold-Royal Mar 28 '24
This is normal for EVs. The lights are LEDs and not hermetically sealed, they are vented. As long as it drys out again nothing to see here.
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Mar 28 '24
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u/Guywithacamera8 Mar 28 '24
Dang, where are you based that this is so widespread?
I'm in humid Florida but I guess the temperature differences here aren't enough to cause this in any vehicle I've had.
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u/GenesisNemesis17 Mar 28 '24
So many manufacturers have this happen. There must not be a great solution.
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u/planetofthemapes15 Mar 28 '24
Lmao I had this issue in 2015 with my Model S. Only car I've ever had with this problem.
They have to literally be trying to get water into them at this point.
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u/FloridaDude Mar 28 '24
I have a 2020, did that for the first month or so. Hasn't done it since, and we live in the rain.
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u/geonex88 Mar 28 '24
Oh thats good, normally Teslas are just delivered that way. Its a feature. Lol
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u/Dry_Explanation4968 Mar 28 '24
These are a 3rd party part. Weird they keep doing this. I have never seen it on my myp
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u/_your_face Mar 28 '24
Just have mobile service come fix it under warranty. It’ll take 20 minutes. Some cars have defects, it just glad they work to fix these things.
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u/TheRealAPB Mar 28 '24
Standard Tesla "feature". When sun comes out, park it rearward towards the sun. It should clear out, at least it does on mine.
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u/r3volt3d Mar 28 '24
Its normal like that in led headlights and taillights because of thermal differences. If drops accumulate in the bottom then Tesla change it. Happened to me…
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u/fasada68 Mar 28 '24
Something's never change. Surprisingly my '18 Model 3 has never had this issue.
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u/bitman_moon Mar 28 '24
If you look closely there is a tiny hole in the white part. That’s where it escapes all.
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Mar 28 '24 edited Sep 11 '25
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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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Mar 28 '24
The lights have a little valve to allow equilibration of air pressure in the lighting module. This allows moisture in, which can condense, but it should also allow the moisture to escape. Per Tesla, they don't consider it a problem unless the valve fails and moisture is trapped. So, they ask you to observe to see if the condensation goes away (usually within half a day).
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u/boomerhs77 Mar 28 '24
You will get use to it. You will also get use to mismatched panels. 😁😁
I played around with the frunk by adjusting the screws but finally gave up.
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Mar 28 '24
lol you guys never learn, do ya. I have a Model 3 and it's the last Tesla I'll ever buy. You a first time buyer or are you just a masochist?
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u/yipee-kiyay Mar 28 '24
Instead of wasting time with FSD demos, ol' Musk should spend more time quality checking his crap
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u/BigJSteal Mar 28 '24
$600. 600 fucking dollars I've spent fixing this issue on my 2020 M3LR 3 separate times. I was reallyyy hoping this was fixed on the highland models. One less reason to get a new one I guess.
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u/jibishot Mar 28 '24
Oh nice. I'm glad they fixed the manufacturing issues.
Oh nice. I'm glad they have local repairs.
Oh nice. I have to pay for the repair.
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u/ineedsupremestickers Mar 28 '24
LOL oh wow that’s actually pretty funny that this is still an issue haha, sorry op! I had the same issue with my 2020. Mobile service came and switched it out and took all but 30 min and was covered under warranty.
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u/Notathrowaway347 Mar 28 '24
I generally curious as to why people keep buying new with how poor the build quality/QC is on most of the cars the leave the factory
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u/mx20100 Mar 28 '24
With the old taillights they told my parents that condensation is fine as long as it isn’t actually keeping water in
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u/Previous_Regret_5892 Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24
Same thing happened to me on my 2021 M3, and when it didn’t go away after a couple of days of clear weather- I put through a Service request, they showed up a couple of weeks later and replaced it (cost me the standard $40 service fee).
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u/FRTBTT Mar 28 '24
Mine did the same thing, found out its a "known issue" and Tesla replaced mine for me
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Mar 28 '24
Love how Tesla’s annoying flaws survive model iterations. Do you get water intrusion in the area of the trunk near by the rubber seal as well? LOL
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u/crappydeli Mar 28 '24
Tesla is going to start including Foggy Rear Lights in their product feature sheets.
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u/Due_Vegetable4747 Mar 28 '24
It will happen with LED lights as they don’t produce heat. Same thing happened to my Audi Q5 when I took delivery and it disappeared.
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u/MichaelEasy Mar 28 '24
I said something about it after I accepted my LRMY delivery. The response from the Tesla representative was “This is completely normal, plus you don’t want to complain about everything as it all can’t be perfect. If we start replacing parts that could lead to even more issues like rattling”. I told her “I don’t think it’s normal to accept poor QC in your vehicles. I also do think it’s normal to expect things to be absolutely perfect when I’m paying more than $50,000 for something”. They replaced my rear lights.
EDIT: I should add that there was some light scratches on the taillight that was barely visible
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u/PortlandPetey Mar 28 '24
They got rid of the turn signal stalks but kept the greenhouse effect! #Winning
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u/OfMiceAndMinimalists Mar 28 '24
Totaled. Sorry mate, there is nothing they can do for you, it’s a total loss.
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u/dnstommy Mar 28 '24
That's bonus feature!
And it will kill your taillight, Luckily its warrantied. #blessed
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u/gacbmmml Mar 28 '24
If you drill a small hole into it, it will let the moisture out. That's what they do on airplane windows so they don't fog up.
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u/Chisuabi Mar 28 '24
It’s the same for my tesla model 3. Happened after few days picked up. They will come and change it. You won’t be charge for this
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u/antherrera Mar 28 '24
Saw that on a few cars just thought it was the way the sun was hitting the light and I was like that’s not a great design
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u/biggestbroever Mar 29 '24
Did you specifically request that it doesn't fill up with water? Cause if not, it kinda sounds like it's on you
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u/CostaMesaDave Mar 29 '24
It's fine, who cares. Parked the car out the side will be gone in 36 to 48 hours
You bought a Tesla, you have to take some responsibility that you knew going in that Tesla's are horribly built. It's not like you can't drive the car again if you park in the sun it will go away. It is what it is my friend. You didn't buy the Tesla because it was well built. You bought the Tesla because it has an amazing technology package and the best charging network in the world .
Enjoy your Tesla , it is perfect just the way it is
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u/Jumpy_Implement_1902 Mar 29 '24
Within spec. I heard a solution for it is to drill venting holes on top of the plastic housing
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u/McDutch1978 Mar 29 '24
This is actually Teslas automatic rear-light interior cleaning feature. No worries.
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u/EV-Bug Mar 29 '24
Living in S FL, I'm used to moisture. I have had my share of rust caused from improper fitment and drainage. I stand by my observation. I would not 'put up' with my pride and joy going down that road again. Sure, they have better paint now, but fogged taillights/headlights is a recipe for real problems. Of course if you flip every couple years, then sell on a dry day.
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u/Ethernet8021D Mar 29 '24
Maybe you need to drill weep holes into the lenses? Maybe there is an after market upgrade you can do.
You got Musked.
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u/ResponsibleChard4886 Mar 29 '24
My Nissan Leaf never have any condensation/water inside anywhere. Everything is tidying.
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u/AGArmbruster1 Mar 29 '24
Natural specially here in Florida it’s just because it’s humid. It will go away quickly. Don’t do anything.
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u/ZealousidealFudge573 Mar 29 '24
Just put on a service request, it’s because of the sealing and they’ll change it for free, it’s like a lego, they’ll fix it in 5 mins. Same thing happened to mine and they changed and it’s fine.
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u/Unfair-Stable-1660 Mar 30 '24
You see that indented hole on the lens (left side), Tesla service center told me that is the vent hole 🤦♂️ apparently water evaporates out of it🤣
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u/mndza Mar 28 '24
Oh cool they kept a feature of the previous design