We have classified the 20 complaints from 2015 Tesla Model S about ELECTRICAL SYSTEM into the following categories.
12v battery has started failing, been over 2 months, tesla keeps cancelling appointments to fix. car is going to die on the road on me.
When our battery charges to 100% capacity, it suddenly shows only 219 range miles, when earlier in october, it showed 267 miles at 97% charged capacity. (over the 1.8 years of owning this car, 267-270 was the usual range when 100% charged.) this sudden drop in maximum range for "full" charge has been noted by other drivers during 2019, and it led to a lawsuit reported here: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-battery/tesla-owner-lawsuit-claims-software-update-fraudulently-cut-battery-capacity-iduskcn1uy2tw and here: https://chicago.suntimes.com/2019/10/18/20919396/tesla-batteries-software-update-electric-car-fires-range-lawsuit-consumers-guillermo-perez-chicago the latter article also reports that, as of oct 18, "nhtsa has received at least 25 complaints" of this sort. this here is my step to add to this number. i suspect that, like for other user, an over-the-air tesla-imposed software update during october caused this sudden limit of maximal absolute charging level (even though displaying the 100%). for tesla s models, battery deterioration is estimated at 1-3 miles range/year. i am attaching a file that shows the trip information recorded by a smartcharge device we have in our car (https://smartchargerhodeisland.fleetcarma.com). it shows the battery as charged to 96% capacity this morning (we charged at our house over night). normally this would correspond to a displayed range of 260 miles, but the displayed range was only 218 miles (when starting a short <1-mile trip at 10:08am).
The home charging unit was overheating causing a failure of the main circuit breaker for my house. the wear on the main circuit breaker was severe enough that the breaker had to be replaced or would have been a fire hazard for the house. the car was not moving and in the garage at the time.
Tl* the contact owns a 2015 tesla model s. the contact stated that the instrument panel screen was illegible because it was filled with a liquid that started to leak. the vehicle was taken to tesla (3555 manchester traffic way, kansas city, mo 64129) where it was determined that the instrument panel screen needed to be replaced, not readable. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 47,000. *bf*jb
Since may software updates, i don't know the real reason why tesla limit my car's battery: maybe to shut off a single battery module like the one that caused a car to catch fire in shanghai (same year model as my car)... or decrease the battery voltage to reduce potential fire...but is it right and legal that i paid for a top of the line performance model s p85d and now tesla limited it to only 68-69 kwh? i would not mind if i paid for 70 kwh and be limited by tesla to 68 kwh, but my battery is 85 kwh and limited to only 68kwh! the power also seemed to be reduced and charging is taking much longer. what made me really mad is that tesla went behind my back and cheated like that using ota updates.
My car's charging speed was significantly reduced following a software update. i used to charge at 116kw until about 25% state of charge but now i barely get 90kw at that state of charge.
Starting with a software update in may 2019, tesla capped the max voltage the high voltage battery would charge to. they claim they did this "out of an abundance of caution" after several non-crash fires happened to these models. tesla took action to downgrade horsepower and range along with all other aspects of performance through a total voltage cap after claiming to be releasing a fire-safety update, but officially no safety update was released. this change happened while the car was parked in my garage and stationary. https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/16/18627746/tesla-fire-battery-software-update-model-s-x https://jalopnik.com/tesla-is-updating-battery-software-after-a-model-s-catc-1834794877
On may 20, 2019, this car was issued a forced, ota-update from tesla, versions 2019.16.1 and 2019.16.2 as a result of what is believed to be a response to the series of multiple battery fires worldwide involving tesla's electric vehicles. without disclosing what the software updates would do or what negative affects they would have, tesla forced these updates without telling my client and other affected owners that their batteries would be limited and charging speeds would be throttled, effectively and significantly decreasing the range and speed of charging for their cars. tesla advertised my client's specific year, make and model (2015 model s 70d) as having an approximate epa estimated 240 miles of range. this case has been filed as a class action which is already pending in the u.s. district court, northern district of ca, case number 5:19-cv-04596-vkd, by the named class plaintiff and representative david rasmussen. this office represents mr. rasmussen, as well as mr. lin and various additional owners of these affected vehicles, including residents in different states across the county. to date, tesla has proffered the explanation that the updates were done in order to promote the health and battery longevity for the vehicles, however, there is a correlation between the age of these cars, the recent fires, and any corresponding warranties with these cars by which tesla appears to try and avoid. thus, customers are left completely without any remedy to the issues caused by tesla, as ncds arbitrators across the u.s. are unable to come to terms with the fact that tesla has committed these illegal, unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent acts, or are unable to due to the limited scope and requirements by which ncds arbitrators are bound to.
Nhtsa action number: dp19005 - investigation subject : battery management software updates
There is a flaw in the tesla emmc which will inevitably cause a critical portion of the chip to fail prematurely, due to constant excessive logging within the touchscreen system. ultimately the memory chip fails and the touchscreen goes black, placing the car in limp home mode, the parking sensors and rear view camera no longer work, it will not charge and effectively becomes un-drivable when the battery runs out. the emmc is a linchpin component for the functionality of the car. the emmc, though it does not control the car's propulsion, braking or steering, is the heart of the touchscreen which is used to turn on headlights, adjust hvac and all car settings run through the touchscreen. the hvac unit now has a "dog mode" which keeps the cabin cool for dogs or occupants waiting in car. the failure of the touchscreen unit while in dog mode could result in heat-related fatality, should an owner. for more information here are some references: - video showing an engineer who's helped several hundred customers disable logging between minutes 8 through 12: https://youtu.be/o-7b1waoj9q?t=499 - a recent article explaining the flaw: https://www.thedrive.com/news/27945/a-single-component-can-brick-older-teslas-and-tesla-wont-fix-it this has been a known problem by the tesla owners community for upwards of a year now and requires a simple software update to remedy - disable logging to emmc memory. according to other owners, this problem exists on all current and past tesla models and it is a matter of "when" not "if" for all chips to fail unless they make a change to their software logging.
Tesla removed miles from my battery capacity by over 25 miles by remote downloads the vehicle was stationary in my garage i contacted them and they did a remote test and said the battery was fine and the download was the cause and they would return the miles thru future downloads . it hasn't happened and they won't respond anymore
April, 2019- my model s was stationary at a supercharging station, battery not charging normally, interrupting with error message: battery "recalculating". a 90% charge normally resulted in 242 miles of rated range. suddenly, a 90% charge now results in only 210 miles rated range. since new, the battery gradually lost a total of 3% of range, or 8 miles, over 3.5 years. suddenly, the loss of range is an added 15% or another 32 miles. the car now charges at a much slower rate. normal supercharger rate of charge starts at 116 kw. now, starts at only 60-80 kw. charging now taking much longer. i contacted tesla multiple times, with the above information. i have received no repair of issue after numerous attempts at receiving service. i've received many nebulous, conflicting, and untrue statements from tesla, refusing to confirm clearly what has caused this battery performance and charging problem. at one point, they indicated "the charging rate and your battery's capacity was limited to prevent over degradation of cells and damage caused by overuse of supercharging." another tesla rep stated it was caused by a firmware update, but no one has put that statement in writing. but, they still insist the battery has no problem, and needs no repair. if there is no problem with my battery then why did tesla cap it's voltage and charging rate with a firmware update? why will tesla not restore my car's performance? indications are such that either the battery should be repaired or replaced. considering that this firmware update coincided with some tesla battery fires, i am concerned that a faulty battery could present a dangerous condition. tesla has not been forthcoming with information, only refusing to repair the issue.
Rear driver door handle stopped presenting restricting access to the car. this is a well known common break on cars with some cars experiencing as many as 6 door handles breaking.
Reportedly a 2015 tesla model s on "autopilot" crashed into a laguna beach police patrol vehicle on tuesday about 11am 5-29-18 @ 20652 laguna canyon road, laguna beach, california. the driver of the tesla was injured. the driver is probably at fault for inattentive driving, however the hype from tesla, elon musk and the cult following have contributed to tesla drivers driving recklessly by overhyping the safety and autonomy of tesla vehicles. it seems the vehicle left the driving lane and entered the parking lane at the side of the road. reportedly elon musk and other management rejected sensors and other technology that could have improved safety and autonomy. reportedly tesla management rejected requests by their own engineers that wanted lidar, eye sensing and other technology that would have improved safety. tesla has a history of censoring safety advocates and trying to censor the media, thus preventing whistleblowers from improving safety through public awareness. tesla also has a history of scapegoating their own customers and other tesla drivers; to draw attention away from the faults of tesla. the "swiss cheese model" indicates that most crashes involve several causal/contributing factors. there also needs to be more emphasis on the psychology of "human factors". tesla hype and tesla censorship of media and safety advocates are some of the human factors that is contributing to tesla drivers driving more recklessly, unsafe and arrogantly.
One of the door handles is not presenting and therefore the door cannot be opened. this happened to a different door handle but it was covered under warranty at that time. now that my car is out of warranty, they are quoting me $700-$1000 to fix the door handle. this seems to be a manufacturing defect because many others are experiencing this issue as well. another problem is that we never know when exactly the handles will return to its recessed position. our kids have often gotten their fingers caught in between as the handle was retracting causing significant pain. to the point where they are afraid to open the door. there is no sensor (like a garbage door opener) where it will reverse when it senses motion or pressure. though it's a cool idea, basic necessity as a door handle should not cause this many problems.
I was parking in my usual parking spot in a parking lot at my office at approximately 8:15 a.m. as i approached my parking spot, i slowed my car by pressing on the brake and made a 90 degree turn into my parking spot. the vehicle was slowing moving forward and was less than 10 feet from where i intended to stop the vehicle when the vehicle suddenly accelerated on its own and crashed into the concrete wall that was at the base of my parking spot, causing the car's airbags to deploy. i did not have my foot on the accelerator pedal at the time the vehicle accelerated into the wall. i informed tesla of the incident and they told me that the vehicle had experienced 100% acceleration immediately prior to the collision with the wall.)
Tl* the contact owned a 2015 tesla model s. while driving 70 mph with the auto pilot engaged, the auto pilot steered the vehicle to the left. as a result, the vehicle crashed into a metal divider. the air bags deployed. a police report was filed and there were no injuries. the vehicle was towed. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 13,000.
Electronic parking, while parking the automobile in the garage i pressed the parking option. the automobile surged, rammed the garage, backed up and rammed the garage again and careened backwards into the street.
While using the autopilot on a busy i-80 freeway in san francisco. i was driving south and in the middle lane trying to make a lane change into the left lane. i hit the speed adjuster knob instead of the turn signal, this automatically increases the speed of the car without intending to perform such action. this action could prove fatal if a bicyclist or other bikes in the category are in front. this is a design flaw. the turn signal is too close to the speed adjuster knob, and i could foresee a safety incidence occurring due to this lapse. thank you. *tr
Tl* the contact owned a 2015 tesla model s. while driving 55 mph, the vehicle caught fire. the vehicle was destroyed. there were no injuries sustained. the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 500.