2013 Model S sudden battery failure

[Wendy G]

Really sorry to see that. If Tesla doesn't yet offer a low-cost battery repair option, I think you should request one and escalate this if needed. Otherwise you can contact one of the companies below or trade your car in for a newer Tesla.

Services | Black Screen | Roadster Battery | Gruber Motors

We offer PEM Repair & Rebuilds, ESS Battery Pack Repair & Recovery, Firmware Upgrades. Services Available for Tesla Roadster & Model S. Schedule an appointment today!

grubermotors.com

Electric Vehicle Service

Expert third-party service for maintenance, repair, and customization, all at competitive prices.

electrifiedgarage.com

I had complained about the 14K cost so they offered me a refurbished battery at 10K. Since I was so close to covered on milage and only 30 days out of life time warranty. I had also had in in 2 times prior complaining about charge issues.
I wrote to the service area manager for Palo Alto & asked for a 40% discount as my battery had very little damage and they were going to re-sell it as well. NOT a peep he did not respond at all. The service situation for all of us is getting really bad.

 

[BostonBurley]

Really sorry to see that. If Tesla doesn't yet offer a low-cost battery repair option, I think you should request one and escalate this if needed. Otherwise you can contact one of the companies below or trade your car in for a newer Tesla.

Services | Black Screen | Roadster Battery | Gruber Motors

We offer PEM Repair & Rebuilds, ESS Battery Pack Repair & Recovery, Firmware Upgrades. Services Available for Tesla Roadster & Model S. Schedule an appointment today!

grubermotors.com

Electric Vehicle Service

Expert third-party service for maintenance, repair, and customization, all at competitive prices.

electrifiedgarage.com

Don’t trade your car in for another Tesla

 

[raphy3]

Even shipping your car both ways across the country for service, we can still likely beat Tesla's pricing by over $15k. It's sad they don't offer any reasonable path towards repairs for these things.

This sounds like a really great and viable option. With end of warranty approaching, and reading stories like the OP, it makes me wonder if I should sell and move on or assume I can rely on aftermarket services like this. I wouldn't have any qualms shipping my car for repair if it meant stopping myself from putting another new car (even if it's an EV) on the road. I'm willing to repair and existing one, but not be ripped off (by Tesla) in the process!

Considering that you're going to be much lower cost than Tesla, differences in warranty would be understandable, but just to check, are you able to warrant the packs you install for some amount of time? Based on everything I've seen, you probably have a number of packs, and maybe need to remanufacture some in order to get them back up to speed; you probably can make good use of the replaced pack as likely only a single cell in the entire thing is dead, or just some wiring or board has gone bad. So you probably have a lot of good cells and equipment to work with that is perfectly good to remanufacture new packs with.

 

[BostonBurley]

This sounds like a really great and viable option. With end of warranty approaching, and reading stories like the OP, it makes me wonder if I should sell and move on or assume I can rely on aftermarket services like this. I wouldn't have any qualms shipping my car for repair if it meant stopping myself from putting another new car (even if it's an EV) on the road. I'm willing to repair and existing one, but not be ripped off (by Tesla) in the process!

Considering that you're going to be much lower cost than Tesla, differences in warranty would be understandable, but just to check, are you able to warrant the packs you install for some amount of time? Based on everything I've seen, you probably have a number of packs, and maybe need to remanufacture some in order to get them back up to speed; you probably can make good use of the replaced pack as likely only a single cell in the entire thing is dead, or just some wiring or board has gone bad. So you probably have a lot of good cells and equipment to work with that is perfectly good to remanufacture new packs with.

They don’t do new packs. Only reman packs. The pack you might send them with your vehicle is not a core charge, but it’s the actual pack you’ll be getting back.

 

[wk057]

This sounds like a really great and viable option. With end of warranty approaching, and reading stories like the OP, it makes me wonder if I should sell and move on or assume I can rely on aftermarket services like this. I wouldn't have any qualms shipping my car for repair if it meant stopping myself from putting another new car (even if it's an EV) on the road. I'm willing to repair and existing one, but not be ripped off (by Tesla) in the process!

Considering that you're going to be much lower cost than Tesla, differences in warranty would be understandable, but just to check, are you able to warrant the packs you install for some amount of time? Based on everything I've seen, you probably have a number of packs, and maybe need to remanufacture some in order to get them back up to speed; you probably can make good use of the replaced pack as likely only a single cell in the entire thing is dead, or just some wiring or board has gone bad. So you probably have a lot of good cells and equipment to work with that is perfectly good to remanufacture new packs with.

We're pretty upfront that we just can't justify any warranty on the packs. Doing so would just potentially increase the overall cost of the service, and the object is to keep the cost down. Either we overcharge and offer a super basic warranty that you're unlikely to ever need or utilize in the time permitted, or we do what we've been doing for most of a decade. Your car is going to leave with a fully functional pack that has all hardware and cells intact and in working order and tested as best as possible.

They don’t do new packs. Only reman packs. The pack you might send them with your vehicle is not a core charge, but it’s the actual pack you’ll be getting back.

Unless the issue is something simple regarding hardware with the BMS or a connection issue on a module, the customer will get a different pack entirely that has all good modules, and we part out the original core pack to recover costs for the customer.

 

[raphy3]

We're pretty upfront that we just can't justify any warranty on the packs. Doing so would just potentially increase the overall cost of the service, and the object is to keep the cost down. Either we overcharge and offer a super basic warranty that you're unlikely to ever need or utilize in the time permitted, or we do what we've been doing for most of a decade. Your car is going to leave with a fully functional pack that has all hardware and cells intact and in working order and tested as best as possible.



Unless the issue is something simple regarding hardware with the BMS or a connection issue on a module, the customer will get a different pack entirely that has all good modules, and we part out the original core pack to recover costs for the customer.

Ok, that's reasonable. I like the fact that the pack would indeed be a different, remanufactured one.

The kind of conversation we're having here means we need 1) more services like this, which i think hopefully are coming in the form of cell recyclers coming online in a few years from now, and 2) some kind of interim service is needed to cover the gap between now and cheap battery swaps. We need an insurance product for battery packs, perhaps. Even extended car warranties won't cover these.

 

[Electric700]

Don’t trade your car in for another Tesla

It's up to the owner whether they want to do this, after exhausting all other options. The Tesla Superchargers are the best out there, so trading in with Tesla might be a good option. At the same time, if enough of us demand a low-cost out of warranty battery repair option, I believe they will want to satisfy that demand. If they don't, someone else will which will mean competition and eventually Tesla will offer this to help win new purchases.

 

[BostonBurley]

It's up to the owner whether they want to do this, after exhausting all other options. The Tesla Superchargers are the best out there, so trading in with Tesla might be a good option. At the same time, if enough of us demand a low-cost out of warranty battery repair option, I believe they will want to satisfy that demand. If they don't, someone else will which will mean competition and eventually Tesla will offer this to help win new purchases.

I agree, but Tesla is overextended in every sense of the word. They won't offer low-cost anything, but even if they did they'd screw it up. They need to focus on increasing quality and experience in what exists, what's gotten them to this point. Elon is full of empty promises and thus, so is Tesla. Who knows what tomorrow brings with Tesla, but I'll overextend myself on a Taycan instead of long range refresh. Charging infrastructure will be awesome this time next year for the 270KW charging. And I'll finally have a vehicle where the quality and experience is up to par with the price I paid. We've kept our original model s for 9 years now, so I still have an affinity for the car, but not the brand.

 

[BostonBurley]

What're you doing in Model S forums, WhiteWi? Trolling with that thumbs down? Here is another... I like it.

 

[WhiteWi]

What're you doing in Model S forums, WhiteWi? Trolling with that thumbs down? Here is another... I like it.

I own both 3 and S if you didn’t know. And there is only one person trolling with anti Tesla negativity here.

 

[BostonBurley]

I own both 3 and S if you didn’t know. And there is only one person trolling with anti Tesla negativity here.

You thumbs down every single post, and I’m free to voice the issues of Tesla. I don’t have to explain them Bc everyone already knows. I have a right to be here as much as anyone, if not more. Our deposit was in 2011. We have had 3 Tesla’s. I’ve experienced great financial loss Bc of those idiots. I’ll continue. Thank you.

 

[MobDibble]

What has happened with your car? I have the same situation I have to replace the whole car battery and now I cannot charge at all. The car is at 0 miles. Mine also is a 2013, I had has wonderful service up until now, but I am getting frustrated with the new management and the lack of response. I am also in CA

Wendy did you get a reply to this? I'm in the same boat as you and I'm here in Menlo Park. I Tried for mercy at the Pal Alto service center when my 2013 P85 battery stopped taking a charge 2 weeks after the warranty expired (expired 9/21/21). I stopped driving it with 130 on the battery and with the slow drain every day, I have 90 miles left until it's completely dead.
The Service center folks are all super friendly and act like they care but at the end of the day the shop manager says he can't do anything because his hands are tied by the regional manager. All they offer is the $25,000.00 HV replacement or $12,000.00 refurbished replacement with a 4 year/50,000mile warranty. Gruber in AZ isn't really a good way to go IMO since you'll pay 5-6k minimum for fixing a single module (more bad modules will increase the price) plus you have to pay to truck it to and from AZ to have the work done. I'm assuming that fix will run in the neighborhood of $8k-$9k and the downside is they only provide a 1 year warranty plus they are backlogged 6 months on the Model S.
I'd love to hear how you are progressing with the service centers here on the peninsula? I would really like to know who the regional managers are and how to contact them.

 

[Daveb25]

Two weeks after warranty expired.. sounds like what they are doing to me. They will instill software to make it limp past your warranty and then royally f you. Zero customer care or appreciation for being early adopters.

 

[MobDibble]

Two weeks after warranty expired.. sounds like what they are doing to me. They will instill software to make it limp past your warranty and then royally f you. Zero customer care or appreciation for being early adopters.

How long after your warranty expired did your battery die? Did you get the alert that says "Maximum battery charge level reduced"?

I should point put that I love the car and it has been great other than this. It's just so disappointing to go from such a sweet ride one day to a brick in the driveway the next.....and just14 days past the warranty!
I was hoping they would add up the amount of days the car had spent in the shop getting repaired, then add those days back to my warranty and cover the repair.
If they aren't going to do that, they should at least grant me some sort of goodwill repair that takes into account how long (or short) the battery was out of warranty then give me a real break on this monster repair bill.
Unfortunately, you can't debate that issue with the service center manager. They are just the messenger. Apparently you need to get ahold of their supervisor/regional manager. Does anybody know how to get that information? I'd like to escalate this to someone who has some say in the matter.

 

[WhiteWi]

Joined today lol

 

[emil.aguinaldo]

Same issue with my 2013 S85. Imbalanced after 3 months out of warranty. Gruber is 6 months backed up and has downsides of 3k per module, less expesive though than the 25K. Repair from Tesla. The real warnings came after i got a bunch of successive software updates. Car was worth to Tesla for 16K a year before, so the battery repair is worth more than the trade in value?

 

[WhiteWi]

Same issue with my 2013 S85. Imbalanced after 3 months out of warranty. Gruber is 6 months backed up and has downsides of 3k per module, less expesive though than the 25K. Repair from Tesla. The real warnings came after i got a bunch of successive software updates. Car was worth to Tesla for 16K a year before, so the battery repair is worth more than the trade in value?

25k is not repair it’s new battery plus it’s less than 25k. Refurbished 11-12 k.

 

[jpvdheijn]

Same issue with my 2013 S85. Imbalanced after 3 months out of warranty. Gruber is 6 months backed up and has downsides of 3k per module, less expesive though than the 25K. Repair from Tesla. The real warnings came after i got a bunch of successive software updates. Car was worth to Tesla for 16K a year before, so the battery repair is worth more than the trade in value?

Do you have any statistics on the values of the imbalance? This always wonders me when the car thinks the imbalance is too great.

 

[islandbayy]

Do you have any statistics on the values of the imbalance? This always wonders me when the car thinks the imbalance is too great.

My MX 75D has a 65mV imbalance. A single brick of cells. Screws to high hell with range calculation when pack gets below 40 miles. It will jump all around range wise. The car dies not throw errors, Tesla says it's "Fine". :-(

 

[raphy3]

still in warranty? I wonder if it will no longer be "fine" once the warranty is up and you'll get a "charge level reduced" message...