4 BENT WHEELS!

[CUBldr97]

I purchased a CPO 2013 Model S85 in Feb of this year. Love the car, but the car seemed to have a wheel out of balance or something that caused the car to vibrate and shudder a bit at 80mph... 19 inch wheels


switched out the brand new tires for winter tires, seemed better but still shuddered. Winter tires were on for about 4000 miles, had really uneven wear, then put the regular tires back on and had an alignment done, car still shudders, had wheels balanced again, no real improvement. finally got the car looked at today for the shudder, and squeaky suspension.


Here is what i got in an email...

"The technicians are working on your car. The car is need of all 4 wheels. They are significantly bent and a couple of them in more than one spot on the same wheel.


The technician also noticed all 4 caliper pistons are seized and the sway bar link has excessive play."


So somehow all four wheels bent? and "not covered" by warranty. they want $1600 to replace these crappy rims.


I have had a multitude of cars over time, and have NEVER bent a wheel, much less all four. I’m not a stunt man, nor is this the General Lee, so i haven’t jumped any rivers!


How do I escalate this?

 

[Odebek]

Seems like maybe the original owner did something crazy with the car. I would think that this would be covered under the C part of CPO... Have all of the issues been documented along the way?

 

[Super_Popular]

Ebay.

 

[Steven Murphy]

4 Caliper pistons seized?
On a CPO?

 

[Az_Rael]

Hopefully you reported the shuddering issues to the SC each time you went in. That way you have a record that the car was bad at delivery and should be covered by the warranty.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

What's the list of things they're covering versus what they're not covering?

 

[Don85D]

Bent rims are common in my experience although not all at the same time. There are service companies that can straighten a rim for about $75 and it works. Tires can absorb some of a bent rim problem but in your case a worn suspension part is probably the source of the vibration.

Seized callipers would also be rare on such a new model car even if brake fluid was never changed. Cleaning the sliding parts is usually all that is required.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

Sounds like this car may have been "airborne" at sometime during its life. Bending wheels is easy when this car weighs 5000 lbs and the aluminum wheels are only rated to 1980 lbs per corner. Sounds like it was driven hard on some pretty bad roads or jumped like the General Lee..

 

[MuppetOwl]

Both the 21 and 19 Tesla wheels is not so good quality. They are made of cheap aluminum and made in Mexico.

 

[habanero69]

4 Caliper pistons seized?
On a CPO?

THAT, ain't right and should be covered by the CPO guarantee. If not, it might as well mean CP-UHOH

 

[ecarfan]

Both the 21 and 19 Tesla wheels is not so good quality. They are made of cheap aluminum and made in Mexico.

Tesla wheels are not pure aluminum, your post does not mention any other metals so that is what you are saying. The wheels are an alloy. Many automotive wheels are aluminum alloy. Please provide data for why you believe that they are "cheap aluminum".

And what is your source for stating that they are "made in Mexico"? By the way, just because something is made in Mexico does not mean it is low quality.

 

[CUBldr97]

i have complained from the start about the shuddering, and or growling of the car. The service rep says basically tough, its due to pot holes or something...they are replacing the sway bar, and putting all new brake calipers on it.
i am not paying them $1672 for four new rims..

anyone know the SPECS on them? weight tolerance etc?

 

[CUBldr97]

Sounds like this car may have been "airborne" at sometime during its life. Bending wheels is easy when this car weighs 5000 lbs and the aluminum wheels are only rated to 1980 lbs per corner. Sounds like it was driven hard on some pretty bad roads or jumped like the General Lee..

where did you get the wheel rated to 1980 lbs? is that a source document somewhere?

 

[Xenoilphobe]

The wheels on the Tesla are HEAVY Mexican made aluminum wheels. We know this because there is a stamp on the barrel or spoke of the wheel that says Made in Mexico.

Superior Industries makes the current wheels for Tesla and a lot of other OEMs. Learn about custom aluminum wheel manufacturing from Superior Industries see logo at bottom of page on their website. BMW, FCA Ford, GM, Mazda, Nissan & Subaru & TELSA.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

where did you get the wheel rated to 1980 lbs? is that a source document somewhere?

I used the TST 19" Aluminum Alloy specs which state 900 kilos (1980 lbs = 900 * @2.2lbs per kilo). TST claims to follow the Telsa Specs.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

BTW I would never put 22" on this car - I was comparison shopping specs on some carbon fiber wheels that have 3860 lbs load rating and only weigh 12 lbs, they are ~2/3 lighter than the stock 21 (~35 lbs) and double the load carrying capacity. If you notice on the Model X they reduce the towing capacity with the larger wheels - the reason is that the wheels can't handle the towing load.... The 20 inch wheels on the X are actually stronger than the 22's..... and likely the 19's on the Model S are stronger than the 21's....

Hello XXXX

Thank you for your inquiry.
The Load Rating is: 900kg (1980 lbs)
And weight is:
22x90 27.8lbs
22x10 30.2lbs
For more details visit:
MX115 22\" Wheels for Tesla Model X
Thanks,


Mike P./Customer Service[email protected]

EVannex / Aftermarket Tesla Accessories http://www.evannex.com

 

[CUBldr97]

BTW I would never put 22" on this car - I was comparison shopping specs on some carbon fiber wheels that have 3860 lbs load rating and only weigh 12 lbs, they are ~2/3 lighter than the stock 21 (~35 lbs) and double the load carrying capacity. If you notice on the Model X they reduce the towing capacity with the larger wheels - the reason is that the wheels can't handle the towing load.... The 20 inch wheels on the X are actually stronger than the 22's..... and likely the 19's on the Model S are stronger than the 21's....

Hello XXXX

Thank you for your inquiry.
The Load Rating is: 900kg (1980 lbs)
And weight is:
22x90 27.8lbs
22x10 30.2lbs
For more details visit:
MX115 22\" Wheels for Tesla Model X
Thanks,


Mike P./Customer Service[email protected]

EVannex / Aftermarket Tesla Accessories http://www.evannex.com

thanks for the information

 

[Az_Rael]

i am not paying them $1672 for four new rims..

Discussions about getting them to cover this under warranty aside, that actually doesn't look like too bad of a price from an OEM for 4 rims.

I once bent a rim on my Lexus IS250 (a much cheaper car with only 17" rims), and one rim was $600 to replace. I about had a kitten when I found that out.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

I would try and find an aftermarket wheel that has the highest load rating and balance that against the weight/cost. For $1600 you have lots of aftermarket options.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

I would ask the SC team if they do a runout test of the wheels in their Cpo certification process. Then ask for a copy of the results. Tesla uses the hunter road force balancing system. They would have known immediately that there was an issue with the rims if they had balanced them during the CPI delivery. Ask for a copy of the road force printout for your car.

It is highly unlikely that you bent all four rims unless you have a teenager that took your car for a joy of ride through a field of rivers stones