Fair enough - I don’t think I caught post #22 previously and didn’t know initially that it wasn’t purchased new.
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2021 Model 3 Tire Fell Off - Get your bolts checked ASAP
- Thread starter ndallas1983
- Start date
"In its report to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Tesla said its quality team had found 39 service repairs during production of the two models, in which one or both of the front suspension lateral link fasteners were loose or missing. After the company confirmed what it suspected was causing the issue – it seems that if the assembly worker unsuccessfully tried to tighten the bolt too many times, it could actually loosen it – Tesla made a decision on October 18, 2021 to issue a recall. At the production level, Tesla now uses a multi-spindle tool to tighten the fasteners."
If anyone is curious, the TSB to reference for the above (Model 3/Y) is "Tesla TSB SB-21-31-003"
What is more curious is that this was apparently happening for quite some time... appearing in a class action lawsuit for Model S and Model X vehicles produced between 2013 and 2018. I bet assembly workers were also doing this on those cars as well as I doubt Tesla was using a multi-spindle torque tool for those models and decided against it for Model 3/Y.
Look at one of the complaints in the lawsuit... look familiar? 2016 Model X.
If anyone is curious, the TSB to reference for the above (Model 3/Y) is "Tesla TSB SB-21-31-003"
What is more curious is that this was apparently happening for quite some time... appearing in a class action lawsuit for Model S and Model X vehicles produced between 2013 and 2018. I bet assembly workers were also doing this on those cars as well as I doubt Tesla was using a multi-spindle torque tool for those models and decided against it for Model 3/Y.
Look at one of the complaints in the lawsuit... look familiar? 2016 Model X.
As an engineer for an OE who actually deals with identifying safety issues and tracking the implementation of counter-measures, chances are taking it apart and putting it back together will actually be more likely to produce more problems than fix. I regularly have to check with production for records of repairs made on the assembly line. These kinds of repairs are typically not done by those that normally install the parts on the line so you end up with someone who doesn't know the procedures as thoroughly and is installing the parts without the usual tool used to tighten each nut and bolt. If you read the 573 (attached) for this recall, they describe implementing a tool to properly tighten and have fail-safe measures in place.
If I were Tesla, I would be concerned that it occurred again or side the recalled VIN range. It would be something that I would investigate further both from a safety standpoint, and as NHTSA is likely to hear of this. It wouldn't be a bad idea for you to submit a report to NHTSA to make sure they identify the case. This may trigger a follow up by NHTSA with Tesla.
Getting an attorney is really unnecessary. Unless you have out of pocket expenses that were not covered by Tesla, there are no damages to recover.
I'm not saying they are broadly unsafe, but I am saying that Tesla has a problem with quality, and I for one don't trust them because they also have a problem with honesty. OP's wife seems to not really be in the trusting camp, either, and with good reason, IMO.
People act like Tesla gives a damn about us or they're close family or something. They're a corporation, and we are simply their customers. When people make excuses for them and accept bad quality, bad customer service, and dishonesty, and then buy more from them, they have ZERO incentive to clean up their act.
I know a lot of people made a lot of money off the stock in the past and think they owe something to Tesla in terms of loyalty, but you don't.
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
The S/X issue is completely and totally unrelated. Has nothing to do with bolts - the control arm itself actually breaks.
So just an update. We drove back from Florida to Texas, the wheels stayed on. I managed to reach someone at corporate Tesla Corporate Resolutions and after explaining how unsafe the vehicle was and that we feel checking the bolts from time-to-time is now on our maintenance list, they felt it was better to just forward us to a service center and have the car fully inspected.
We're not expecting them to pull all of the bolts off the car - as someone mentioned, that would probably create more problems than fixing them. We just want to make sure that anything that can fall off the car is securely tightened to the car and will not "unmount" from the vehicle.
Since then I recommended to the national transportation safety board that Tesla recalled only specific vehicles by Vin # for this issue, but failed to include ours. We asked Corporate Tesla to just provide us with a safer vehicle, and they decided that us pushing to have any/all teslas under 25,000 miles recalled was cheaper than just providing us with a safer vehicle. It sucks, but if it saves your life, or the passengers in your car, you can hate me later. The transportation board takes these things seriously and our car should 100% have been on the recall list.
Also we just found out, our vehicle has had a safety recall from Sep 2022 and Tesla has not notified us of the recall. I had to dig it up on a website somewhere and it says our vehicle was never serviced for it. This being 5 months ago, the car has gone through 2 tesla service centers and an onsite technician, and apparently Tesla is the only company not keeping track of safety recalls on vehicles.
You should go to the National Transportation Safety Board website and look up your Vin #. My wife looked it up on some other site, and there were no recalls; but this site had an incomplete recall that could really hurt someones fingers or hands when the windows roll up (the reverse rollup mechanism when something is blocking the window from going up) - it looks like a lot of cars were recalled for this. We have yet to get any kind of recall notification from Tesla.
I'm just beyond done with ever contacting Tesla for anything. I feel like we should just contact our insurance company and let them handle it from now on.
We're not expecting them to pull all of the bolts off the car - as someone mentioned, that would probably create more problems than fixing them. We just want to make sure that anything that can fall off the car is securely tightened to the car and will not "unmount" from the vehicle.
Since then I recommended to the national transportation safety board that Tesla recalled only specific vehicles by Vin # for this issue, but failed to include ours. We asked Corporate Tesla to just provide us with a safer vehicle, and they decided that us pushing to have any/all teslas under 25,000 miles recalled was cheaper than just providing us with a safer vehicle. It sucks, but if it saves your life, or the passengers in your car, you can hate me later. The transportation board takes these things seriously and our car should 100% have been on the recall list.
Also we just found out, our vehicle has had a safety recall from Sep 2022 and Tesla has not notified us of the recall. I had to dig it up on a website somewhere and it says our vehicle was never serviced for it. This being 5 months ago, the car has gone through 2 tesla service centers and an onsite technician, and apparently Tesla is the only company not keeping track of safety recalls on vehicles.
You should go to the National Transportation Safety Board website and look up your Vin #. My wife looked it up on some other site, and there were no recalls; but this site had an incomplete recall that could really hurt someones fingers or hands when the windows roll up (the reverse rollup mechanism when something is blocking the window from going up) - it looks like a lot of cars were recalled for this. We have yet to get any kind of recall notification from Tesla.
I'm just beyond done with ever contacting Tesla for anything. I feel like we should just contact our insurance company and let them handle it from now on.
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
I'm not sure what you mean by this, but if you mean them providing a replacement car, that is simply not a reasonable expectation. They fight doing that even for lemons, much less for an issue they can easily fix by replacing or tightening some bolts. Stuff like this is what recalls are for.
As for reporting to NHTSA, that is your right, but they are unlikely to agree to your request. If there really is a recall expansion necessary, then so be it, but certainly they don't want to set precedents like this.
The window pinch recall is just a software update, which you likely have installed already. The notice is sent by mail and may have been sent to the original owner depending on how you transferred ownership.
maclean525
Member
People really should not be minimizing this AT ALL. Yes it's a known issue but this is evidence that the recall was not wide enough. That is a BIG deal. If Tesla need to expand the recall that would be a serious situation. OP has done the right thing to bring this to everyone's attention, Tesla need to act on it.
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
It's possible to acknowledge this is a serious issue that may require an expansion of the original recall, while pointing out the OP's original account may be a bit exaggerated and misleading (there is a big difference between a suspension link being disconnected versus the wheel/tire falling off completely) and also that it is not reasonable to expect a replacement vehicle for an issue like this that has an obvious fix.
These things are not mutually exclusive.
Golf8621204
Member
OMG 'Escape the Cult'. That got me LOL
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
Agree. This is a real issue that warrants further investigation. OP's account of the actual event and subsequent expectations (just give me a new car?) are way over the top and borderline hysterical.
Those are the same bolts for the front lower control arm that nearly ruined our Laguna Seca lap a few years ago. If you're tracking your car they need to be retorqued before each track day. By the end of the lap the bolts were being held in by the undertray 
Agreed. Like his other post about the 'near death experience' because of phantom braking.
Clunking after a suspension install is almost always loose hardware that was touched during the installation!
LoL-Gas
Member
Did you buy the subframe through Tesla, despite them giving you trouble having it fixed in their shop? Did they make it hard to buy the parts needed for the repair?
No went through a local shop that is a certified repair shop/servicer for Tesla, they ordered from Tesla and it took a little to get the part but that was almost a year ago when everything was slow.
The work required for something so trivial is pretty absurd though, having to replace the entire subframe because a nut broke free sucks. The problem is that the weldment fully captures the nut so it's totally inaccessible after the subframe is manufactured. I assume it's like this for stiffness reasons and/or ease of manufacturing, but kinda sucks when the bolts are prone to coming loose and then breaking the nut free from the subframe.
The nut that captures the lower control arm bolt is inside of this (this is top-view):
Ugh. Not making excuses for Tesla, but EVERY car manufacturer has skeletons in their closet like this. Every, Single. One. I certainly think Tesla has some quality issues they need to resolve, but the vitriol that appears sometimes is a little over the top (if you listened to people on Reddit, you'd think that every single Tesla driving down the road is a massively overpriced POS that's literally as dangerous as a loaded gun pointed at your head with 5 lbs on a 7 lb trigger).
We had scheduled the vehicle to be inspected on Jan 11, but after talking to Tesla Corporate they decided that they did not want to do this in good faith. We were sent a Service Agreement for $267 to check the bolts on the rear. If anyone needs to see the PDF let me know. It's kind of crappy.
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