during all electrical fault failures the vehicle was stationary. i've had 6 service visits related to electrical faults causing mechanical failures. the steering rack failure was the most recent problem. tesla replaced the entire steering rack. the tesla owner's forum and teslamotorsclub.com owners say they've replaced only the steering motor and that 1 part fixes the power steering fault. the electrical charging port failed because of electrical faults. the 12-volt battery has failed twice during the last year. 5 door regulators have been replaced in the front 2 seats due to electrical faults. 3 window regulators have been replaced due to electrical faults. the power steering failed due to an electrical fault. i've paid $6,500 for electrical faults during the last year. the tires i buy are rated to 55,000 miles, but they keep wearing out unevenly, and often blowing out, at less than 30,000 miles. the service center cannot tell me why the tires are continually blowing out and wearing out unevenly after minimal use. i went to a tesla service center for help resetting my touchscreen and installing a firmware update when i was thousands of miles from home. the service center forced me to get nearly $2,000 of new regulators. parts were incorrectly replaced that were not malfunctioning. parts that malfunctioned once or twice were replaced. parts that were replaced the previous month, and were covered under the tesla parts warranty, were replaced again. the battery pack that powers the vehicle instantly lost 50-miles of range, 16% of total available range after visiting a service center. during 5.6-years of ownership, i lost less than 7% of total available range. i paid a $10,000 upgrade for range. i'm concerned it's a fault or that my vehicle was damaged or the battery was replaced with a defective battery without my knowledge.
Intermittent loss of electric power steering assist, leaving the steering wheel almost immobile, and very hazardous driving under the wrong circumstances. the problem started after an over-the-air software update from tesla. car has 33k miles on it. tesla service says not their problem, please have it towed here (90 miles) and pay us to look at it. power steering rack itself failed one year ago and was replaced under recall.
My steering failed at 27000 miles and 5 years. the failure occurred one week before tesla issued a recall for this issue. the service center says that the recall covers replacing the bolts that fail and not the broken steering rack that occurs because of the failed bolts, so they think that i should pay ~$3000 to repair a known defect and obvious safety hazard. i was lucky that the failure happened when the car was stationary.
Here is a tesla in the junkyard. https://www.copart.com/lot/19512447/photos the air suspension has collapsed and all the wheels have gone whompy. i think this might make driving difficult. *tr
Here is a tesla for sale at a salvage auction. http://www.copart.com/us/lot/30119166?searchid=695877385 the air-bags have not been deployed and there is only minor damage to the front rh side. the car shows signs of collapsed suspension. the two rear wheels are skewed sideways in opposite directions. all wheels are jammed high up in the wheel wells. this would tend to make that car rather difficult to steer. there have been several reports of the air suspension failing and that since the car does not have limit stops on the suspension it can lead to dire consequences. please investigate this problem.
My front wheel hub assembly came loose from the upper control arm causing a lose of steering.
Here is an auction listing of a tesla that has caught fire. http://salvage-bid.com/result.php?vin=[xxx] the pjhotographs show that the lh top ball-joint has pulled out from the steering knuckle. this is not the result of the fire because those parts are solid metal and neither the steering knuckle nor the wishbone have melted. the suspension failure is consistent with the pattern of similar failures that appear to have been the cause of crashes. please investigate this recurring failure information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr
This is the car which swerved over a cliff and killed the driver. https://www.easyexport.us/vehicle-finder/lot-16405175/2013-tesla-tesla-non-repairable-ca-san-jose http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/3318773-181/pd-default-story-headline-xy?gallery=3314901&artslide=0 i have attached photographs that show not only that the steering knuckle has snapped but the tread is worn off the tire. this can only have happened while the car was driving on the road. this was almost certainly the cause of the crash. this same effect of snapped suspension with worn tire can be seen in many other tesla crashes.. since about 2015 tesla has redesigned the steering knuckle to a solid h-section instead of the hollow die-cast original. there should be a recall to replace all of the earlier fragile versions. many more images of snapped knuckles can be seen at https://www.flickr.com/photos/136377865@n05/sets/72157658490111523/. *tr
Some tesla owners are alleging that there are tesla service bulletins for modifications on tesla's that are being kept secret. ie: some tesla owners are reporting occasional poor brake performance under some circumstances. many tesla owners have reported that brake discs and other brake parts easily become wet, then rust. rusted rotors can cause grabbing, and uneven braking (swerving on brake application). allegedly sometimes rusted parking brakes won't disengage. it seems sometimes brake parts become rusted, sticky and unreliable. when the brake pads become wet, there is poor brake performance with longer stopping distance. there are some tesla owners reporting that there are tesla service bulletins to prevent poor brake performance, by adding dust (splash) guards, replacing rotors and brake pads; yet doing internet searches i haven't been able to find any tesla model s. service bulletins on the brakes. tesla seems to be keeping safety problems like poor braking performance and the related service bulletins secret. allegedly some teslas have been sold without brakes dust shields (splash shields) thus making them more vulnerable to water. tesla's regen braking can be so efficient, that it seems some customer's friction brakes are not being used enough to squeegee away the water or generate enough heat to dry out the brakes. shouldn't service bulletins, especially ones regarding safety be readily available to the general public? automotive manufactures like tesla are dropping the ball. *tr
Here is a report of a tesla crash at an intersection. http://insideevs.com/tesla-model-s-gets-wrecked-owner-says-vehicle-saved-his-life-images-owner-testimonial/ the report blames the other driver and credits the tesla with saving the owner from injury. the claim that the hyundai hit the tesla and then rebounded and hit the tesla once more is quite unusual. the photographs are high resolution and if they are blown up and examined close up you can seethe that tip of the steering knuckle is broken off (close up photograph of the actual part -which was purchased by a rebuilder- here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/136377865@n05/22799472895/in/album-72157658490111523/ i think it is possible that suspension failures are causing many crashes. the date of the incident is an estimate. the owner says that tesla have been very helpful. "?tesla called my home shortly afterwards saying that they received multiple alarms from the car and wanted to make sure i was ok. they picked up my car free of charge and transported it 50 miles to the nearest service center. they are also arranging a loaner model s. can i ask for more? please note that i am not the owner just a concerned citizen please include this crash in any inquiry into the tesla suspension issue. *tr
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 tesla model s. the contact stated that while driving various speeds, the steering wheel abnormally tightened as it exhibited an unusual cracking noise. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis where it was stated to the contact that the sham and racking pinion nut needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 200.