09/10/2026
Tesla Endgame: The King of 145 Years of Automotive History! Bravo Franz von Holzhause & Tesla
This is a world record for both Tesla and our EVC HolyGrail remanufacturing technology. In 150 years of automotive history, no electric drivetrain has been documented covering over 1.2 million kilometers with just a single gearbox oil change. A milestone in engineering, durability, and sustainable remanufacturing.
Recognition comes late, but it comes. Designing a revolutionary vehicle 16y ago with drivetrain capable of covering over 1,250,000 km with just one liter of gearbox oil replaced, at an energy cost of €2-3 per 100 km, was almost unimaginable. Even we couldn’t have dreamed of this when we developed our EVC HolyGrail motor upgrade 3.5 years ago. It was one of our first serious experiments, back when EV Clinic was just three people.
Hansjörg visited us worried he would need a 14th Tesla motor, after 13 replacements under warranty. But the problem was mechanical: a coolant seal design flaw. A single failure point that could actually be solved. He asked us to do whatever it took to make the motor last.
And here we are, 3.5 years later. The motor, which already had 155,000 km, covered another 1,208,000 km, with only one replacement of 1 liter of Dexron VI gearbox oil at around 600,000 km, costing €8.
After the original battery warranty expired, he purchased a new 90 kWh battery at 1,750,000 km. That battery has now covered another 1,258,000 km.
Tesla wasn’t just economical in 2014. It was arguably the most logical financial choice, even with a Swiss franc mortgage. By the same mathematics, diesel becomes an expensive lender that generates poverty rather than progress.
Back to the LDU inspection
When we started inspecting the motor, there were no previous symptoms. Our original plan was to inspect it at one million kilometers and film the occasion together with Tesla Service. Unfortunately, Tesla’s upper management declined the celebration initiative for unknown reasons.
While removing the LV and HV wiring, a small amount of differential oil escaped, indicating wear on the oil seal. Oil isn’t harmful in the inverter compartment, but it certainly belongs in the differential.
Once opened, every SKF bearing had survived over a million kilometers. Even the ceramic 6007 rotor bearings remained undamaged and fully functional after approximately 5.43 billion rotations.
The special double-lip graphite rotor coolant seal was nearly disintegrated. Yet, thanks to its self-healing properties, it hadn’t damaged the rotor sealing surface, only left deposits, and had prevented coolant from entering the stator even in devastating condition.
This seal is remarkable. Besides its self-healing behavior, it has lower friction and doesn’t harden like the original PTFE seal, which was responsible for the failures of Hansjörg’s previous 13 motors. However, simply replacing the seal isn’t enough. Some minor modifications are necessary.
Tesla designed a drain opening near the seal to protect bearing grease. When coolant leaks, it saves the bearing but destroys the stator. Needs to be closed.
The drain hole must also drilled open because, during the first 1,000 km, the seal needs to polish and establish its contact pattern against the rotor shaft. Minor droplets during this break-in period are normal, especially at high speeds.
That’s why we keep repeating: coolant delete is a misleading, short-term workaround, not a real repair. We’ve even heard of someone in France charging €4,000 without warranty, while our HolyGrail solution costs €2,800 + VAT, with a 97% success rate and unmilited km 2y warranty. And we are still improving it.
The real diesel killer: The battery
For 15 years, toxic automotive journalism has used EV batteries to frighten audiences and generate billions of euros in attention and click bait revenue. This Tesla battery has just shattered that narrative indefinitely.
Its current capacity degradation is only 14.1%.
* Original capacity: 87.8 kWh
* Current capacity: 75.4 kWh
* CAC and dSOC delta: only around 5% outside the permitted margins
* Estimated equivalent full cycles: approximately 5,800, based on 16 kWh/100 km average consumption
That’s almost three times the commonly declared 2,000-cycle benchmark. Such longevity is exceptional even within the EV industry. This battery continues operating as if there were no mileage limit.
Now consider the economics.
Accounting for free public chargers in the early years, Tesla’s lifetime free Supercharging, and home charging, we estimate this Model S consumed approximately €50,000 in electricity over 1,258,000 km. A Mercedes W212 CDI would have consumed approximately €120,000 in diesel. An E300 V6 petrol, around €156,000.
And that’s before maintenance.
A combustion-powered E-Class would need approximately 128 scheduled services, potentially totaling €50,000, plus major drivetrain repairs or replacements. A new Mercedes OM651 engine alone costs around €28,000 including VAT at an authorized dealer.
Under our long-term cost assumptions, operating a comparable E-Class or BMW 5 Series could approach €290,000. The Tesla could theoretically replace its battery and motor every 400,000 km and still remain competitive in total ownership cost.
Put simply, journalists convinced diesel fanatics that buying an apartment for oil producers and spare-parts manufacturers, without ever owning that apartment, was a perfectly reasonable financial decision and approved reason to hate EV which they had never owned or driven.
Bravo.
Of course, not every Tesla is the same
We’ve also seen battery failures at 100,000-600,000 and 800,000 km. Longevity depends heavily on battery sealing, moisture ingress, and driving conditions. In our repair experience, moisture intrusion is responsible for the overwhelming majority of battery failures we investigate.
Driving like a rally driver and driving moderately will never produce identical results, regardless of drivetrain technology. But one thing is increasingly clear from our experience: many Teslas can outlive comparable combustion vehicles, and their major components can be remarkably repairable.
Even under heavy use, replacing an EV battery can be more economical than continuing to operate a combustion vehicle when the full long-term costs are considered. The real endgame isn’t whether an EV battery will eventually need replacement. It’s how many combustion engines, fuel bills, and scheduled services you can avoid before that day arrives.
You can hate brand but you cant hate accomplishment - Tesla is a logic choice and always will be first one. For everything else, contact EV dedicated superheros on a mission to make each EV sustainable.
*cert is not expectin mil km - total kwh is for 1.29mil
Km not bms total mileage 3mil km. Calcuation is 6000cycles with 16kwh average consumption.
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Bravo Hansjörg von Gemmingen-Hornberg
