ABS, stability, regen and more disabled

[steilkurve]

Hello all.

About 3 weeks ago, errors started showing up on my 2017 X100D.

They first appeared as I was backing into my garage. It was first just Park Assist Unavailable but later ABS, regenerative braking, emergency braking, autopilot/convenience features, stability control and traction control disabled alerts got added to the list. Leaving the car for a while after I parked would make the issue go away.

Left on a 5-day road trip recently and the errors showed up again 2 hours into it. Pulled over and tried powering off the car. Errors remained. Called support who made me try soft reboots and powering off from the menu to no avail. They said the car was still driveable and to have it looked at when possible so I continued on. I got a firmware update during my trip (28.3) and it made the errors go away. However, they came back after a short drive and now won’t go away at all.

At any rate, I’m now back home after a 600-mile journey and drove with the alerts present as support advised the car was ok to drive. It made it a little less fun but I’m pleasantly surprised it didn’t disable the car completely as I was in a fairly remote area. As I await my mobile service appointment in a couple of weeks, I’m trying to pinpoint the cause. I understand others have had similar issues and got either a wheel sensor or steering column module replacement but I wonder:

1) Could the brake controller for a travel trailer be the cause of this? It was installed as advised by Tesla meaning connected into the connector service pulled out for me in the footwell area. Note the issues happen even with the brake controller removed and not towing (which I wasn’t on this last road trip). And the controller I’m using is used by others on TMC with no worries from what I gather.

2) Could it be firmware-related. An update made it go away but it came back. Should I consider a factory reset?

3) Anything to read into the errors happening initially only when backing up the car? Sensor/hardware related?

4) When I power off the car from the service menu, applying the brakes doesn’t wake it up. I have to open the door. Does that point to another issue?

5) Have others been successful at solving this without a service appointment. If so, how?

I fully realize I may have to wait until my appointment to fix this but I am asking in case the collective wisdom can help here!

Thanks in advance. Any thoughts welcome.

 

[steilkurve]

Well, it appears I have found the culprit. Reading other posts, some had an issue where the wheel sensor cable was rubbing against the wheel. Inspected my wheels and noticed the right wheel sensor cable detached from its latch and rubbed against the wheel and got worn out to the copper. Had my car inspected for vibrations recently And wheels were taken off. I can only assume that’s where it accidentally got detached.

I will try and temporarily repair the cable, hoping the sensor itself didn’t get fried by this all. Will report back.

 

[steilkurve]

Even though it looks like I’m mostly responding to own posts, I’ll still go ahead and provide the conclusion to the story in case it helps someone. ;-)

So I successfully repaired. Had to splice one of the two strands in the cable as it was completely severed.

I also noticed that the rubber piece that latches the cable to the wheel was absent. I assume it was forgotten to put it back when my wheel was disassembled to replace the half shafts. That’s likely what caused the cable to rub like that or that’s my theory.

Any way, I spliced the strand and taped the whole cable back together and used a tie wrap to secure the cable to the wheel. Should do until I visit the SC.

Errors are now gone.

See attached photos of repair.

 

[Silicon Desert]

That looks nice, but out of curiosity, if it is a 2017, I assume it is still under warranty. How come the service center didn't fix it?

 

[steilkurve]

That looks nice, but out of curiosity, if it is a 2017, I assume it is still under warranty. How come the service center didn't fix it?

I’m sure they will. Earliest I could get in is 2 weeks from now. This temporary fix just allows me to operate the car normally until then.

 

[akim88107]

Hi i had exactly the same problem after driving in the mountains. However my observation. I also had a Tesla Service before this problem. So it looks that the service technicians forget to put the cord back into its place then it causes the damage of the cable in a short time after the service visit.

 

[akim88107]

on the other wheel the cable came off (or was not put by the service team back on its place) from the holders but was not damaged so i put it back.

 

[akim88107]

i also noted some other damage, not related to the service messages such as lower control arm bushing crack.
let me know how you resolved it.
was it covered by warranty or it is considered normal tear and wear.

 

[akim88107]

assumption 2: maybe when driving in the mountains with suspension on high settings the ABS cables are coming off and then getting damaged. More specifically serpentine roads with sharp curves and high elevations.

 

[DocX]

Aim88107, thanks for your post and pics. I had 6 error messages relating to the wheel speed sensor. I checked the right side and found that it had come loose from the bracket and contacted the tire. I spliced soldered and re attached the wire to the bracket with cable ties. Everything works fine and I saved myself a two hour trip to the service center.

 

[rakienholz]

I just wanted to say thank you to the OP I had this exact issue 500 miles into a 800 mile road trip. Driving with no Regen, ABS, cruise or auto pilot isn't tons of fun. Going to splice and repair.

Is the cable easily removed to splice and solder on the bench?

Also did the SC give anyone grief for splicing and soldering before they brought it in?

 

[steilkurve]

I just wanted to say thank you to the OP I had this exact issue 500 miles into a 800 mile road trip. Driving with no Regen, ABS, cruise or auto pilot isn't tons of fun. Going to splice and repair.

Is the cable easily removed to splice and solder on the bench?

Also did the SC give anyone grief for splicing and soldering before they brought it in?

I don’t think it’s easy to remove. I didn’t solder. I twisted the wires by hand in place and then taped them together with electrical tape. Lasted quite a while. No greed whatsoever from SvC. Better not! They created the issue by not fastening the cable in the first place during a half shaft replacement.

 

[X-Man]

I just had the exact same issue and they are telling me I need a new ABS sensor. 12k miles on odometer. Drove from Bay Area to Tahoe no problem. Then, after being in park, I turned on the car and all the alerts showed up. Reset and did everything. Still there. Randomly all turned off and then reappeared again. Tech said 1 wheel is not communicating with MCU and that I shouldn’t drive downhill (back to bay (7k elevation drop)) with no safety/regen features since I’m going downhill in a 3 ton car. Too much pressure on just the brakes...also with icy road conditions. Roadside got it towed to Reno Tesla. The other fixes on here worry me that I won’t have my car back in time for my trip home as Tesla is waiting for the ABS part to ship. At least they gave me a rental, but would suck to have to drive home then back again. Fingers crossed...

 

[steilkurve]

I just had the exact same issue and they are telling me I need a new ABS sensor. 12k miles on odometer. Drove from Bay Area to Tahoe no problem. Then, after being in park, I turned on the car and all the alerts showed up. Reset and did everything. Still there. Randomly all turned off and then reappeared again. Tech said 1 wheel is not communicating with MCU and that I shouldn’t drive downhill (back to bay (7k elevation drop)) with no safety/regen features since I’m going downhill in a 3 ton car. Too much pressure on just the brakes...also with icy road conditions. Roadside got it towed to Reno Tesla. The other fixes on here worry me that I won’t have my car back in time for my trip home as Tesla is waiting for the ABS part to ship. At least they gave me a rental, but would suck to have to drive home then back again. Fingers crossed...

Rooting for you. Hope they get the part quick. Surprised it's not in stock. The root cause of my issue was different from what you describe. The cable between the wheel sensor and MCU was untethered and severed. The sensor itself was fine. Easy repair. At any rate, fingers crossed for you.

 

[X-Man]

Rooting for you. Hope they get the part quick. Surprised it's not in stock. The root cause of my issue was different from what you describe. The cable between the wheel sensor and MCU was untethered and severed. The sensor itself was fine. Easy repair. At any rate, fingers crossed for you.

Thanks... unfortunately, just got an update that the part is not in until next Wed. Sucks. I have no idea why they wouldn't have that part in as well. I'll have to drive back to the bay then back to Reno 3 days later to pick up the car. Such a huge inconvenience...esp with a dog and a 2 month old. Yikes! Already getting an earful from my wife. lol

 

[steilkurve]

Thanks... unfortunately, just got an update that the part is not in until next Wed. Sucks. I have no idea why they wouldn't have that part in as well. I'll have to drive back to the bay then back to Reno 3 days later to pick up the car. Such a huge inconvenience...esp with a dog and a 2 month old. Yikes! Already getting an earful from my wife. lol

Sorry to hear. Hopefully the loaner is a Tesla?

 

[X-Man]

Thanks all and sorry for the late update. SF Tesla shop came thru and overnighted the part to Reno, so got the car back in time! Looking at the invoice it turns out it was the same problem as everyone above. The abs wire was rubbing against the wheel/tire. Thank you all to those who previously posted their information!

 

[Tbone84]

Thank you so much..... found my 2017 MX suffered the exact same issue....... 2 weeks ago I had the axles and clevis mount replaced by SC. Coincidentally all the error messages popped up after a software update so I just assumed it was software related, but after reading this I went out and looked to find my front right wheel sensor wire in the same condition of the pictures. Set up a service appt. through the app for Friday and the tech told me to contact roadside assistance. They said I should not drive it. I am currently waiting for the tow truck. Tempe said they should have it fixed by tomorrow if they get it tonight. im surprised it didn't short something causing more damage.

on a side note...... the Model X has amazing coasting abilities without regen braking, but you really feel the weight when trying to stop

 

[mbp11]

Thanks, akim88107 for posting this. Important information to use for troubleshooting for we model X owners

​

 

[Jeffsvolta]

Well, it appears I have found the culprit. Reading other posts, some had an issue where the wheel sensor cable was rubbing against the wheel. Inspected my wheels and noticed the right wheel sensor cable detached from its latch and rubbed against the wheel and got worn out to the copper. Had my car inspected for vibrations recently And wheels were taken off. I can only assume that’s where it accidentally got detached.

I will try and temporarily repair the cable, hoping the sensor itself didn’t get fried by this all. Will report back.

Thank you for posting this. After racking my brain for a couple days, I discovered your post and sure enough I have the exact same issue. What’s crazy is, I too had my MX checked for vibrations. They replaced some drive shafts in the front during that. They must have forgotten to snap that wire back in.