2018 P75D Bent Tie rods

[nasirqadri@gma]

I am new here so forgive me if I accidently break rules.

I bought my Model S used at 46000 miles here in southern california. It was a non-tesla dealer and the car was sold As-Is with no warranty. Know a thing or two about cars so i trusted my gut and cut a deal. Love everything about the car except a problem that surfaced last week. Between the speed range of 60 to 90 MPH, i started feeling a consistent vibration. Not very harsh, in fact, mild but enough to make the drive annoying and uncomfortable.

Took it to a local shop for balancing and alignment.... the mechanic said alignment was not easy to do because the tie rods are bent. He put the car up on the jack and i took pictures. Left is bent more than the right but both are bent. I figured the last owner hit something. There are scratches on the battery cover right behind the right front wheel. Cutting the long story short, the mechanic ordered aftermarket tie rods but the sleeves were not compatible. Took it to Tesla and they said it needs a new steering rack assembly. Quoted $4500 for it. I am in disbelief. Looking for a cheaper solution. The car still drives okay bu with the vibration.

Is it safe to get a rack off eBay and have a local mechanic put it in? What other options do I have.

Any guidance will be appreciated.

 

[Aggmeister2010]

12-16 inner tie rods are different than the 16.5-20's. Possible that your mechanic ordered the wrong ones. These are the correct inners:

Tesla Model S Front Inner Tie Rod, 2016-2020

Take control of your Tesla Model S and restore your steering with this quality front inner tie rod end! Tesla Model S 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 Highest Quality Inner Tie Rod 2 Required Sold each Replaces originals 6007071-00-B, 1027841-00-B Note: For 2016 late (after July 2016) If you've...

evpartsonline.com

And here are the outers:

Tesla Model S Front Right or Left Outer Tie Rod, 2016-2023

Replace your Tesla Model S front outer tie rods with this quality replacement from EV Parts Online! Tesla Model S 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 High Quality Restoration Outer Steering Tie Rod Made From Premium Steel Fits Driver or Passenger side Sold Each Perfectly Replaces...

evpartsonline.com

Tesla quoted you the whole rack because they only sell "assemblies," not individual components. That doesn't mean your rack is shot. Plus, replacing the rack requires dropping the front subframe, which requires removing the HV battery.

 

[nasirqadri@gma]

Thank you so much.
Does the battery need to be dropped only for the inner tie rods to be replaced as well?

 

[Aggmeister2010]

Thank you so much.
Does the battery need to be dropped only for the inner tie rods to be replaced as well?

No

 

[nasirqadri@gma]

No

Hi Aggmeister2010,

I got the inner tie rod ends installed yesterday using the parts that you pointed me to. It worked. Almost all of the vibration is gone. Bump steer is completely gone. Acceleration is smoother with less torque steer. Overall, the tie rod replacement made a huge difference.

Interesting part is that the job was done for 6% of what Tesla quoted me and they needed the car for 10 days.

Here is the breakdown:
Inner Tie Rod Ends from Napa Auto parts = 198.24
Labor = $120
Alignment = Free (Free lifetime alignment was part of the last alignment)
Total = $318.24
Time = approximately 3 hours.

So i am thinking how can i communicate this to Tesla Service leadership. It seems they are ripping customers off by charging an arm and a leg by trying to sell and replace parts that do not need replacement. Period. They do not have a leg to stand on. I asked them why dont you just change the tie rods and the the reason given to me was that the tie rod ends are part of the rack therefore cannot be independently replaced. That was a lie. Proven with evidence..

So what is their intent... or is there something wrong in their process that they dont have time to fix. I can bet that selling assemblies, and in this case, selling the whole steering rack vs just the tie rod ends is not at all operationally cheaper. It definitely is not efficient. It does not take less time and effort. Isnt it a unethical business practice. Or am i just being too sensitive about it? Isnt LOL.

Anyways... Aggmeister2010. Appreciate your help. Thank you so much!!

Nasir.

 

[Aggmeister2010]

That's great news, glad to hear it's more or less resolved.

Unfortunately, reaching out to Tesla is just going to be a waste of your breath. While it's absolutely true that you can fix these types of problems with individual parts, Tesla holds fast to their rule of only selling full assemblies. Hence why when your battery needs repair, they quote you the full $22k replacement vs a $1k fix. They likely do this to reduce their spares and cover their own liability......at the cost of customer satisfaction.

That's where the aftermarket usually steps in, with shops that can do maintenance and repair outside of warranty or outside of what Tesla is willing to segment out. But the problem here is that the skilled labor for their particular brand is limited, many of their parts are software-locked to a VIN and require special programming to re-use, and Tesla has made it exceptionally difficult for shops to buy parts.

And yet, they're still sold-out for 6+ months. So, why change if people keep buying? I know it's not a good answer, but until they feel the pain of competition, I don't think they're going to deviate.

But that's where places like this forum come into play, where we can help each other in the meantime!

Best of luck!

 

[nasirqadri@gma]

Agreed. Why change anything when doing what they do made them 750 billion dollar company. All said and done... love the Model S. Damn it!

 

[nasirqadri@gma]

pictures of the bent tie rods.

 

[maximizese]

Wow, that's quite the price delta and I generally agree with your stance. I prefer the most economical and ecological response and replacing the entire assembly is one what to go, often times it's unnecessary and costly to the consumer. I'm not sure how many other auto manufacturers follow the same policy but some do. For those of us who want a more affordable alternative we are grateful for the 3rd party mechanics who are emerging and sharing their knowledge. Likewise it's also helpful when fellow owners share their issues and experiences because it's very likely another owner will face a similar issue down the road.

 

[ucmndd]

So i am thinking how can i communicate this to Tesla Service leadership.

You can’t. They don’t care.

This isn’t really a “Tesla” problem so much as it is a first party service problem. Every manufacturer does this - rip and replace complete assemblies until the problem goes away.

This is where independent shops come in and why right to repair is so important.

 

[Henry Samonte]

I am new here so forgive me if I accidently break rules.

I bought my Model S used at 46000 miles here in southern california. It was a non-tesla dealer and the car was sold As-Is with no warranty. Know a thing or two about cars so i trusted my gut and cut a deal. Love everything about the car except a problem that surfaced last week. Between the speed range of 60 to 90 MPH, i started feeling a consistent vibration. Not very harsh, in fact, mild but enough to make the drive annoying and uncomfortable.

Took it to a local shop for balancing and alignment.... the mechanic said alignment was not easy to do because the tie rods are bent. He put the car up on the jack and i took pictures. Left is bent more than the right but both are bent. I figured the last owner hit something. There are scratches on the battery cover right behind the right front wheel. Cutting the long story short, the mechanic ordered aftermarket tie rods but the sleeves were not compatible. Took it to Tesla and they said it needs a new steering rack assembly. Quoted $4500 for it. I am in disbelief. Looking for a cheaper solution. The car still drives okay bu with the vibration.

Is it safe to get a rack off eBay and have a local mechanic put it in? What other options do I have.

Any guidance will be appreciated.

None of this is good or fair for any of us…but, if it’s any consolation, I was just surprised with a revised estimate for the same fix as yours…except at double your already excessive quote!

Can any of you that know about this kind of repair tell me if this looks reasonable?

 

[CSFTN]

I'm sorry but have to ask ..P75D? Tesla never made a Performance version with a 75 battery .. P85, P85D, P85DL, P90, P90DL, and P100D, then just "Plaid". No?