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I made a huge mistake with this car

18K views 102 replies 39 participants last post by  AMIRZA786  
#1 ·
Yeah, another TCAM victim here. Key and LTE is not working anymore and it won't reset with the defrost method. I get the SOS ecall service required message and have to place the key fob in the cup holder to be able to start it.
Only way to close and open the car is to use the provided physical key.
Anyway, called Austin space and they don't care as there are no available appointments till November. Support cannot do anything.
Am I supposed to wait more than 1 months to get an 1 month old car fixed !?
Very frustrating is an understatement.
The zero solution proposed by Polestar is more than worrisome.
I know I am not the only one who has been ranting about that but really think about getting rid of the car asap if possible.
 
#3 ·
Well, that is just no acceptable and not the terms under which you have bought the car. Send a message to a Polestar in writing, that they are essentially breaking the contract terms. Should they not provide a service threaten them with a legal action.

It is one thing to be told to wait and get a loaner, and altogether something else when the other side doesn’t seem to bother at all.

It’s really sad to hear these unbelievably negative experiences from some parts of the US. It will certainly hurt the brand sooner or later …
 
#4 ·
I'm sorry you are having this issue. Unfortunately it's not just Polestar. Every dealership is booked up from Toyota to Hyundai due to short staffing. We also have a 2020 Hyundai Ioniq EV, and I got the routine maint light, could not get an appointment until Oct 27. My Polestar also has an issue (a different one than yours) and it's been sitting in Polestar Los Angeles since Sept 2nd, it took them two weeks just to be able to get to it so they could diagnose it. I would suggest contacting Polestar support, open a ticket by emailing custsupp@polestar.com or calling 800-806-2504
 
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#8 ·
I’d have said much the same until our Mercedes went in for service this week; I was able to get a service appointment pretty much straight away and with a loaner, which turned out to be a brand new GLC which was fine. Then they had a small issue applying a software update, but that was fixed inside 24hrs and keeping the loaner an extra day was no issue.

I’m seriously thinking about cancelling the Polestar order and waiting till next year, even if I have to spend a bit more then. We just don’t need these hassles.
 
#5 ·
Yeah, this is maddening. The response is basically, "oh this is drivable, just deal with it".

Thank you for the advices. I just opened a ticket by sending them an email. I have zero faith it will do anything at this point.
Support told me I could have it towed but, yeah, I guess they could take weeks to get to it...
 
#6 ·
Ask this to be assigned to Boubacar Fall if possible, he was extremely helpful in my case. If you do get the car towed, they will setup either a loaner or rental. In my case I have a rental with Enterprise...which btw has a car shortage as well. Again, they are not trying to shun their responsibilities, they are just overwhelmed. Polestar Los Angeles which is a huge dealership in SoCal owned by Galpin Volvo had a huge backlog, it took 2 weeks just to look at my car. In normal times (pre-COVID) this was not acceptable, but unfortunately we are not in normal times. As another example, my brother in law was trying to buy a car over the last 4 months. He finally gave up and ordered a Tesla Model 3, which won't arrive until November
 
#7 ·
I would try contacting them again and asking if there is anyone who could look into it. I was originally told 30+ days by the service rep at Austin but she gave it to the service manager who called me the next business day. He was able to schedule me in that week because it was an AC issue in the middle of the Texas heat. If your car is operating so minimally they may be able to help.
 
#12 ·
Ok, but regardless … we cannot keep defending Polestar because of COVID etc etc … that worked for some time in the past, but quite frankly doesn’t anymore. Many places are getting better and quickly.

Especially, if they are not asking an owner to be patient for a week or two with a loaner … but a month or more ?? And they don’t seem to make it look like they really care? I always ask the same question, what if one has only one car in the household? … I guess I would be paying for Uber out of my pocket?

What really gets me is the claim they are overwhelmed … Polestar has not sold so many cars, so what they are overwhelmed from?? Frequent issues with the few cars they sold? … either one is concerning very much.

I certainly am glad I don’t live in your market at the moment, because if they did that to me, I would have serious second thoughts about my purchase…
 
#13 ·
Ok, but regardless … we cannot keep defending Polestar because of COVID etc etc … that worked for some time in the past, but quite frankly doesn’t anymore. Many places are getting better and quickly.

Especially, if they are not asking an owner to be patient for a week or two with a loaner … but a month or more ?? And they don’t seem to make it look like they really care? I always ask the same question, what if one has only one car in the household? … I guess I would be paying for Uber out of my pocket?

What really gets me is the claim they are overwhelmed … Polestar has not sold so many cars, so what they are overwhelmed from?? Frequent issues with the few cars they sold? … either one is concerning very much.

I certainly am glad I don’t live in your market at the moment, because if they did that to me, I would have serious second thoughts about my purchase…
I would agree with you, but the fact is, it's not just Polestar, and it's not just cars. Being in IT for example, it could take months to receive equipment I've ordered. Same if I need engineering support for projects.

Polestar Los Angeles, which is a huge dealership took 2 weeks to look at my car. Did they just sit on their hands and wait two weeks? I don't think so. Companies don't deliberately neglect their customers unless it is profitable to do so
 
#18 ·
Yes they are. They are also finding out the hard way that if they (not just Ford) don't cut costs they could find themselves out of business
 
#22 ·
Even if our Ioniq was to break down, it would sit at the dealership for a few weeks before they even touched it. My coworkers Lexus is sitting in a body shop for 3 weeks after an accident, adjuster hasn't even looked at it yet. Should I go on?
 
#25 ·
I feel your pain. And my experience with polestar has been similar. It’s a great daily car but the support is the worst I’ve ever experienced. Polestar just doesn’t answer any questions. All they do is direct you to Volvo for everything. But Volvo is either not capable of servicing these cars or simply doesn’t want to. Every appointment I try to schedule is scheduled 2 months down the road. That is IF they call back at all.

Im signed up for a BST270 and the 6 but after the last two months of pure * I’ve decide to cancel the BST. And if this doesn’t improve in the next year, they can keep the 6 as well.

Polestar, if your reading this: get your shit together! You’re losing customers!
 
#26 ·
All they do is direct you to Volvo for everything. But Volvo is either not capable of servicing these cars or simply doesn’t want to.
M
My car is with them now for an infotainment issue... The "certified techs" have no idea what's wrong and are bringing in a Polestar engineer. I have a feeling I will be on the "waited weeks" list... But quite frankly I don't care since the loaner they gave us was a P2... They can keep it for months. That should be more frustrating to OP than anything else - not getting the car taken in and a P2 loaner replacement immediately.
 
#28 · (Edited)
I think this is related to the wider issue involving the conversion to electric, more computerized cars. Unlike most ICE cars, we can't go down to an auto store and buy parts. There aren't independent mechanics that are equipped, or trained to perform these kinds of repairs and diagnostics, causing a bottleneck at the dealers and service centers. I'll give kudos to polestar and volvo for allowing individual access to VIDA, tech manuals and some parts on their tech hub sites, and allowing easy(easier compared to others, anyway) access to the the 12 volt and tcam batteries. It's not perfect, but it's a start. Hopefully in the future, right to repair will expand further to cars too, allowing service centers to offload much of that work to indepedents. For now, it's a major pain point for all of us, no matter the brand.

Imagine if every ICE car could no longer go to independent repair centers, we'd have seen the same kinds of service bottlenecking for ICE cars over the last 50 years, even without a global supply chain disruption.
 
#29 ·
This is also an issue with modern ICE cars. My favorite independent German mechanic told me it has gotten to the point where a mechanic (technician) must specialize in one brand due to proprietary software and diagnostics. Companies like Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), GM, Ford, and Stellantis (formerly FCA) are using the same infotainment/vehicle management systems from their EVs and PHEVs for their ICE vehicles. This only makes sense for parts commonality and economies of scale regarding hardware and software development.

The big difference in current ICE vehicles is that there are more moving parts to manage.
 
#30 ·
This is unacceptable by Polestar. We paid for the service that we were promised, and failure to provide appropriate service in this case is not a supply chain issue, its a lack of commitment and investment and transparency. If the vehicle isn't working correctly we were promised that we could:

"Just press the ‘connect’ button in the roof, or summon us through the app, and our experts will show up to repair your vehicle on-site."

"We will pick up, service and deliver back your car at no additional cost if you live within 150 mi"


The promise of exceptional service convinced at least me into buying an expensive new-tech vehicle from a start-up company with the closest venue located 100 miles away, but they are just not set up as promised. The eSOS error cripples the car -- CS told me twice it was "unsafe to drive". It is one thing to have a line at the service center or wait for a part on order, its another thing to address a quick fix that requires no parts and is plaguing the fleet. There should be an aggressive strategy to address TCAM issues involving mobile techs and a coherent response from PS/Space/Volvo. Right now they don't even admit that TCAM problems exist, for fear of the bad press and cost of a recall.

I have come to realize that Polestar US is comprised solely of a call center that dutifully takes notes of complaints and, if pressed, can call their third-party towing company and maybe a rental car company too. The call center has no effective sway over the "Spaces" or the service centers. The Spaces are not run or owned by Polestar, they are owned and operated by local car dealerships beholden only to themselves, and the "service points" are Volvo shops, also responsible to only themselves. Sure there are agreements in place, but Polestar doesn't run these places.

With that being said, the car itself is great. If I knew about the wizard-of-oz structure of Polestar in the US, I probably would have kept my id4 or other reservations, but after seven months and 20K miles, I love the car and it has been reliable enough (and fun) that I don't regret my decision (yet). Polestar should have remained a sub-brand within Volvo and used their customer support infrastructure while they continued to design nice cars. In the meantime, perhaps they can use some of their $800m IPO money to stock a few spare parts and hire some mobile techs, neither of which they currently have or do (the service center didn't even have a single 5V spare battery or BDU in stock -- Polestar prohibits them from carrying stock).
 
#31 ·
an expensive new-tech vehicle from a start-up company with the closest venue located 100 miles away,
It is not really expensive compared to similar cars (full size, modern EVs?), the tech is not really new, Polestar might be young but it has a lot of knowledge shared and borrowed from Volvo. Having a service point 100 miles away is indeed problematic and I think I would have thought twice before I bought a Polestar if that was my case.
 
#41 ·
Yes!

The snap ring below the front strut damper may fail, resulting in a sudden drop in ride height or front brake line damage.
CNET reported that the 2022 Lucid Air was recalled for possible brake failure triggered by suspension problems
Lucid Motors has issued its second recall on its flagship Air sedan. According to the American EV automaker, the issue concerns a wired data connection to the instrument panel that may not have been secured properly during a given vehicle’s assembly
And many more here
 
#34 ·
Yeah, another TCAM victim here. Key and LTE is not working anymore and it won't reset with the defrost method. I get the SOS ecall service required message and have to place the key fob in the cup holder to be able to start it. Only way to close and open the car is to use the provided physical key. Anyway, called Austin space and they don't care as there are no available appointments till November. Support cannot do anything. Am I supposed to wait more than 1 months to get an 1 month old car fixed !? Very frustrating is an understatement. The zero solution proposed by Polestar is more than worrisome. I know I am not the only one who has been ranting about that but really think about getting rid of the car asap if possible.
I had the same issue last month, and am also in Austin. They got me in the next business day and took maybe 20 minutes to correct it. Support was not much help, but I spoke with the Service Manager and he guided me to put the key in the cup holder to re-pair it, which was a quick fix until I could get to the service appointment.
 
#35 ·
Had a similar crummy experience last week with DC space. Carvanna is picking up mine very soon and we have ordered a Model Y. I have had exactly zero issues with my existing Model Y Performance or in dealing with Tesla. The scales are tipped for me when you add in the charging network. I have traveled long distances with both and there is no comparison.
 
#37 ·
If I have any other issues with my P2, I'm also selling and getting an Model 3. But don't think you are going to escape issues...a friend of mine bought a Plaid 6 or 7 months ago, and he is still dealing with tons of issues that Tesla hasn't fixed yet. For example the memory function for his seats no longer works. Tesla can't figure it out and pretty much gave up on it. That's only one of his issues. He has so many I lost count
 
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#36 ·
Rather than waiting that long for a service appointment I would do the full TCAM reset myself. I had the dreaded TCAM issue and have done it. Took me 30 minutes first time. If you dig the TCAM battery out and velcro it under the cargo cover side piece next time it will be a 5 minute fix. Unfortunately I think it likely will happen again. See dedicated thread for instructions:
12V/TCAM battery disconnect process - Ron Swanson method
 
#42 ·
This is what I did. I was told 3 weeks to bring it in, loaner provided. What’s annoying is, Polestar should offer a drive-in TCAM reset, any service person should be able to do it in 5-10 minutes, it took me 15 or so myself first time, will be quicker next time.
OP - did you set up your PAK? That often works when physical keys don’t with this TCAM issue.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#38 ·
Hate to say it, but even formerly "reliable" brands have troubles these days:

The infotainment system in my 2021 Subaru Outback XT was so buggy! It constantly froze up and I couldn't turn on A/C or any other accessories in this state. I had to pull the car over, turn off, wait 2 minutes and restart to get it to reset. Dealer never could find the problem and after 18 months and a heads-up that my car was going to be recalled for CVT issues, I gave up and traded it for the P2...

I've actually had far fewer issues with the P2! :LOL:
 
#39 ·
Key and LTE is not working anymore and it won't reset with the defrost method.

Anyway, called Austin space and they don't care as there are no available appointments till November.
I tend to agree with @P2 ACDC , given the long wait for an appointment if I was in your position I would be tempted to have a go at the hard TCAM reset, and a 12v battery disconnect. It should take well under an hour (vs waiting until November for an appointment). Should you have to do it? No. Will it solve your immediate issues? Maybe. Will it last? Maybe/maybe not.

None of us should have to resort to taking the battery out of the TCAM and/or disconnecting the 12v battery but if it gets you back on the road quicker.....then it's a choice.
 
#40 ·
I am also in Austin and sold a 2020 Volvo XC60 for the P2. A couple of months before we made the swap, we needed service for a SRS failure, "Drive to Workshop", error. Seems important to get it looked at. Called the service writer whom we had used the entire time we owned the Volvo, and were given a 2 month wait to get it looked at, but only 1 month if we didn't need a loaner. The takeaway is that they have crazy waits for Volvos too.

Also, I can't use the same guy for the P2. They only have 1 service writer that can work on Polestars, or at least they did 2 months ago.
 
#45 ·
Sorry to heard that. As a former TCAM victim. I will call the Polestar space manager and have him/her contacting the service manager at the Volvo dealer. Your car might work with just the battery reset until that would take 30 minutes, as a temporary fix. They might be able to squeeze your car for that asp. Make the service appointment even if there are booked several weeks, because it might happen again. Once you are booked it is easier to get the loaner. That’s what I did. My car got a new TCAM module. It took two days for them to fix it. I had the loaner for one week because they were busy and I was able to get a loaner before my appointment. But it helped talking to the space manager first. If you leave near the Volvo service. You cans stop by no appointment and ask for urgen service/TCam reset.
I felt as frustrated as you are feeling, not wanting the car anymore. It happens one week after my delivery. Now all is working fine. Good luck !
 
#47 ·
An upgrade, after I opened a ticket with Polestar support they replied that I should try an appointment to another space 300 miles away from my home. Right, sounds great...
So, I decided to try a reset myself with the help of the video, posted by a fellow forum TCAM victim. My car TCAM battery is much more painful to reach, it seems they made it worst with new iterations! With the help of a second person (my daughter) I was able to unplug the infamous Volvo battery. I am letting this thing sit for 1h, so more update coming if this is successful!
By the way, cable to the battery is super short, looks like they really decided to make that reset even more difficult... I am pretty used to build computers, never seen such cable management...
 
#49 ·
This was literally my exact situation last week. I called Polestar Grapevine and Polestar customer support over and over, and they said they were booked up until Oct 31st. After complaining enough they sent a tow truck over and fixed it in 4 days and I just got my car back today.

Apparently they downgraded the TCAM firmware and that fixed it. As another slap in the face they decided to give me my car with a 30% charge and I barely made it home.

Worst customer service ever.
 
#51 ·
well this is what the 2,3 should have fixed but didnt, so they are working on it at least.
very glad to hear that you fixed the issue, I am wondering if a total reset of the car could help this issue also?
Nobody seems to do that and depending on how much apps you have downloaded and personal settings you have to redo it might be more time consuming then just yanking the little volvo battery?

by the way! do you have a 2023 car?