A Tesla owner claims that after his car’s battery, worth $140,000 (€105,400), failed, the automaker told him it would cost $26,000 (€19,800) to replace it. €) and locked him out of the vehicle until he bought a new battery.
Mario Zelaya, a Canadian Tesla owner, recently posted a clip on TikTok in which he claims his “trash” car is dead and the vehicle is locked, even preventing him from entering it, Fox Business reports.
Locked out of his car
The caption of the video reads: “$26,000 for a new battery. I’m stuck out of my car. Reminders are needed.
Zelaya said he bought his Tesla in 2013, but both that year and 2014 models had issues with air conditioning system fluid leaking into the battery.
“I called Transport Canada, who investigated the car,” Zelaya said. “Not only have they investigated this car, but they are going to do another investigation that Tesla is not yet aware of. »
“Tesla is trying to sweep the problem under the rug”
Zelaya said he contacted another Tesla owner who had the same issue with his car battery. According to him, Tesla canceled that owner’s Uber credits while the vehicle was in service.
“Tesla is trying to sweep the problem under the rug,” he said. “They don’t want to give him an explanation as to why his battery died. »
He further alleged that when Tesla owners have their vehicles serviced, the battery is not checked, saying Tesla has no interest in doing so.
Zelaya said he wanted to sell his car, but couldn’t because his ownership papers were in the car, which he couldn’t access because the vehicle was locked. He says he was forced to pay $30 (€23) to receive new papers.
“This is the end of my journey with Tesla”
“I will never buy Tesla again,” he said. “It’s the long road I’ve taken to say ‘stay away from the Teslas’. They’re terrible cars, terrible manufacturing, and worst of all, it’s a 10-year-old company. »
In another video, Zelaya says he sold the car and someone is seen picking it up from his driveway. The buyer was then filmed removing part of the front bumper and reloading it.
“This is the end of my journey with Tesla. She walked out of my life. Keep it out of yours,” Zelaya said.