It’s not often I consider anything I write important enough to be worthy of rejoinder. After all, this is mere auto journalism, not the solving of the Middle East crisis or an investigation into the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

On the other hand, it’s not every day someone completely rewrites automotive history. And, let us not underestimate what Elon Musk has done, even if we criticize some of his tactics. Call him visionary (as his acolytes contend) or proselytizer – as I, and the few other critics willing to stick our necks out, have tried – Tesla’s CEO nonetheless managed to convince more than 325,000 people to slap down US$1,000 (actually, it’s closer to US$1,250) for a car they had barely seen and that, by Mr. Musk’s own contention, is still in development. Even if he is a charlatan — or merely has charlatan-like tendencies — he’s bloody amazing. The auto industry has simply never seen anything like last week’s mad rush for the Model 3.

So let’s put aside contentions that Tesla in general – and the Model 3, specifically – won’t lead to the emissions-free nirvana supporters are predicting. Instead, let’s look at the challenges both Tesla and, especially, its new, more democratized clientele will face in the immediate aftermath of the March 31 blockbuster reveal.

As I detailed last week, Forbes and Cairn Energy Research Advisors are estimating Tesla will only be able to deliver 76,860 Model 3s by the end of 2018. With Tesla’s deposits now numbering more than 325,000 – and there being no reason to believe that 400,000 or even 500,000 is not an attainable figure – it’s difficult to predict exactly when a Model 3 will actually be delivered, particularly since Tesla is batting 0.000 for hitting production deadlines. Suffice it to say that if you’re number 325,001 on the list, Cairn’s numbers indicate you probably won’t see your Model 3 until 2020.

Or will you?

The good news is that, according to ModelXTracker.com, some 30 to 40 per cent of reservations for the recently introduced Model X have fallen by the wayside. If the same trend were to hold for the Model 3, this would mean that whoever is number 325,001 on the list might actually see their car by late 2019. That’s the good news. The bad news, especially for those who waited two days outside a Tesla store, is that the reason so many Model X “hand-raisers” haven’t followed through on their commitment is because Tesla’s cars are turning out to be quite troublesome.

Mr. Musk is fond of reminding everyone – he did so again at the gala unveiling of the Model 3 that is still crushing the Internet – that the Model S was the highest rated car in the history of Consumer Reports testing. What he fails to mention is that, despite the Model S garnering an almost perfect score from CR’s notoriously difficult-to-please testers, the organization nonetheless recommends you don’t buy one, citing numerous reliability issues. In fact, the Model S finished dead last in CR’s hybrid/electric cars research, its 45 per cent worse-than-average overall problem rating seeing it trail the Toyota Prius, the Nissan Leaf and the Ford C-Max, among others.

Some problems — like the hacking issue Tesla resolved quickly — are easily rectified by Mr. Musk’s vaunted over-the-air (OTA) updates. Others — mostly to do with hard parts such as motors, charging equipment and door handles (the latter of which, for some reason, seem to be a particular Tesla frailty) — are not as easily dismissed. Edmunds.com, another respected U.S. testing organization, replaced its Model S’s electric motor three times and its main battery once (not to mention manifold other smaller issues such as repeated touchscreen power outages and a broken sunroof) in just 18 months of driving. Indeed, the litany of reliability issues Edmunds suffered would make owners of old Jaguars blanch.

What makes these reports even more incredible is that Consumer Reports says the Tesla has the most loyal following in the luxury sedan segment, 97 per cent saying they plan to buy another despite the reported reliability problems. Nor is CR the only one noting this schism between reliability — normally a deal killer for customer satisfaction — and seemingly contented owners. Karl Brauer, senior automotive industry analyst for Kelley Blue Book, says its research reveals the same dichotomy, noting that the Model S enjoys the “highest Kelley Blue Book consumer rating in its segment and among the highest consumer ratings in the entire industry,” despite its well-known reliability woes.

This cult-like devotion may not transfer to more proletarian segments. It’s easy for the fabulously well-to-do to shrug off even terminal reliability issues, since a Model S is likely to be the second or even the third car in a family. Most potential Model 3 owners – indeed, all of the ones I have spoken with – will have but one car, their Model 3 to be not only their primary, but their singular, mode of transportation. Their expectations, therefore, will be of Toyota-like, not Land Rover-like, reliability.

To be fair to Tesla, it’s not the only luxury carmaker with reliability issues. Indeed, it is one of the conundrums of the automotive industry that the more expensive the car, the less reliable it generally is (Lexus being the notable exception). Owners of Mercedes and BMWs put up with all manner of trials and tribulations that would drive Toyota or General Motors to ruination. (It’s hardly ironic, then, that the BMW i3 was the second-most unreliable electric/hybrid vehicle after the Model S, according to Consumer Reports’ research.)

Nonetheless, after all the hoopla surrounding the Model 3’s introduction dies down, the greatest challenge facing Tesla – besides finally making something approaching a profit – will be producing a car that satisfies the masses now flocking to its Model 3. To be fair, Tesla has made inroads in solving (some of) the problems plaguing its previous products, but it will still be much harder to please Model 3 owners than it has been to wow the wealthy now driving the Model S.

Or, as one of the more forthright owners complained after the heating system on his 2015 Model S failed for the second time in three months, make sure there’s “an extra car at home to drive around while your car is at the service centre!”

Does this mean an electric revolution?

It’s worth noting that this recent rush to the mass electrification is a Tesla-only phenomenon. Though Carlos Ghosn, Renault/Nissan’s CEO (which produces the Leaf EV), was quick to praise Tesla’s success as “good competition,” pure electric vehicles — i.e., plug-ins powered by nothing other than electric motor and battery — remain very much a novelty, accounting for just 0.4 per cent of the 17.1 million light vehicles sold in the U.S. last year. More telling is that the total market share of all electric cars — EVs, plug-in hybrids and conventional hybrids — has declined; the 498,426 sold in the States last year represents a 2.9 per cent market share, down from 3.5 per cent in 2014. So far, Tesla’s success has not been the rising tide that lifts all boats.