Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Be aware! Missing Control Arm Nut: Potential Safety Issue

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
So for someone like me who is not well versed in these parts of a car, can someone let us know the easiest way to check for this issue? I assume you don’t need a lift to do it? Can I simply turn the front wheels one way or the other and see this, or is it more involved? Tire need to come off?

Apologize in advance for the question...but my two-year-old and I thank you.
 
Last edited:
Does anyone know the torques specs on these nuts? Am ordering a Y tomorrow. I will ask for these nuts be torque checked before pick up but it would be nice to know the specs so I could do the occasional check myself down the road (no pun intended). Not sure why they don't use cotter pins as a safety precaution.
 
So for someone like me who is not well versed in these parts of a car, can someone let us know the easiest way to check for this issue? I assume you don’t need a lift to do it? Can I simply turn the front wheels one way or the other and see this, or is it more involved? Tire need to come off?

Apologize in advance for the question...but my two-year-old and I thank you.

Just poke your head under the front and look behind the wheel. It would be the bottom bolts attached to "A" arms (they look like an A .. not as obvious on the Y)

If you're not sure, compare to the other side, they should both have a nut attached to any large threaded screw like thing poking thru.
 
Last edited:
I'm waiting for the two usual fanbois to swoop in saying "well, every manufacturer has issues like that". Well, guys... no they don't!

Well actually they do. Here are a couple examples from a quick search.

2014 CHEVROLET Impala Recall NHTSA 14V409000
Chevrolet Recall 15V031000: Rear Suspension Ball Joint Link Separates
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2018/RCONL-18V324-3227.pdf

But by no means does that mean we should give Tesla a pass. This shouldn't happen on any car, of an cost. And I recall that Tesla had said that they had the torque of every bolt recorded in a database, and I thought they even said it took a picture of it.

This should be a recall, immediately.

I don't think immediately is necessary. Tesla needs to have some time to research the issue to see if they can determine the conditions and which vehicles are impacted first. (Some recalls include as few as 1 vehicle.)
 
My guess is the nut was never installed. Either a machine or operator fault, likely affecting cars that were being manufactured for a certain period on a line. They will figure out when and recall all cars in a certain period to have those nuts checked. If you don't know how to check them yourself, any automotive shop can quickly take a look and I'm sure wouldn't charge you. "Hi, can you see if my ball joints are actually bolted on"... yikes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1208 and MP3Mike
So for someone like me who is not well versed in these parts of a car, can someone let us know the easiest way to check for this issue? I assume you don’t need a lift to do it? Can I simply turn the front wheels one way or the other and see this, or is it more involved? Tire need to come off?

Apologize in advance for the question...but my two-year-old and I thank you.

So I'm like you... But this is what I did...

I started by putting a light under the car right behind the front tire. I took my cell phone out and went selfie mode, put my phone under it and I could see it on the screen- but I took a picture so I can see both nuts. If you're worried its getting loose, if you can color one of the sides of the nut with a sharpie and take a picture... then take a picture later and see if the shaded side moved.

Not sure if that's perfect, but that's what I'm doing...

That said, My SN is mid 10ks and they looked fine. Tires look fine at 2k miles too.
 
I’ve seen old cars/trucks with components like this where if they cam loose could cause a serious crash were tightened and secured with a cotter pin so that they could never loosen and fall off accidentally.

Cotter pins and castle nuts are expensive tho. :shrug: either way you’d think a good QC department would save money in the long run.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1208
Please check the tie rods under your Model Y so that they are securely in place!

We noticed the other day that our Model Y's (VIN 0307xx, barely a month old) front right tire was pointing inward (top pointing inward) more than it should be. Upon inspection, we found that the tie rod was sideways and there was nothing holding it in place! Normally, a tie rod is held in place by a castle nut and cotter pin to keep the tie rod securely in place. None of this was there. Just the end of the tie rod.

As soon as we realized this car is not safe to drive, we called Tesla. They called a tow company to tow our Y to the nearest SC here in Florida to get it fixed. Thank God nothing worse happened to us as we have already driven the car more than 2000 miles on road trips! However, for a $60,000+ car, this should not happen! Please check over your Model Y to make sure yours is safe to drive. You don't want to have tie rod come loose while driving down the road.

Has anyone else encountered this before?
View attachment 582441 View attachment 582442
Not the first time I have herd of a critical fastener not secured properly on units built in the tent or any of the MDL3 off line processes that are not interlocked to the assembly line.
 
  • Like
Reactions: RoyalDoveMY
^ well it's a two-off now!

That is ridiculous, you complain about "popping/lurching experience when turning the wheel hard at lower speeds" and they didn't even put it up on a lift?

I'm waiting for the two usual fanbois to swoop in saying "well, every manufacturer has issues like that". Well, guys... no they don't! Tesla is a mess right now... and it's not even Q3 end yet. Wait a couple of weeks and we'll probably see wheels falling off the cars. Stop apologizing for them, Tesla is not the company they were 3/4/5/6 years ago where they rolled out the red carpet for you when you purchased your Model S.

NOT to excuse Tesla, but it seems that lots of car companies have issues--airbags w/ shrapnel, and so many other issues. When our RDX was very new, the electronic power steering went out all of sudden. Glad I was driving and not my wife who would have been scared to death. Took several trips to each of our two local dealers before someone finally found the loose wire. I called Acura and they were worthless--go back to the dealers who like I said took forever.
 
Please check the tie rods under your Model Y so that they are securely in place!

We noticed the other day that our Model Y's (VIN 0307xx, barely a month old) front right tire was pointing inward (top pointing inward) more than it should be. Upon inspection, we found that the tie rod was sideways and there was nothing holding it in place! Normally, a tie rod is held in place by a castle nut and cotter pin to keep the tie rod securely in place. None of this was there. Just the end of the tie rod.

As soon as we realized this car is not safe to drive, we called Tesla. They called a tow company to tow our Y to the nearest SC here in Florida to get it fixed. Thank God nothing worse happened to us as we have already driven the car more than 2000 miles on road trips! However, for a $60,000+ car, this should not happen! Please check over your Model Y to make sure yours is safe to drive. You don't want to have tie rod come loose while driving down the road.

Has anyone else encountered this before?
View attachment 582441 View attachment 582442
thanks for this, My MY is in the shop now for typical body alignment issues, and I’ve called and told them to please check this too. We got it last Monday and it went back to shop on Wednesday and has been there ever since. It was pulling slightly on delivery day, and I didn’t give it any thought, but now I’m double checking this issue for sure. Thank you.
 
Looking at those pictures is interesting. Tesla has elected to use Nord Lock washers, which I've never seen an automaker use. They're an interesting lock washer design, but they're fussy and need to be torqued correctly or they will fail. Other auto makers use a castle nut and cotter pin, which is likely a cheaper solution than those expensive Nord washers.

You can see from the witness marks on the failed joints that the nuts were torqued, but never correctly/sufficiently. This is a serious manufacturing deficiency and there should be an immediate investigation and possible recall. Don't hold your breath though.
 
Please check the tie rods under your Model Y so that they are securely in place!

We noticed the other day that our Model Y's (VIN 0307xx, barely a month old) front right tire was pointing inward (top pointing inward) more than it should be. Upon inspection, we found that the tie rod was sideways and there was nothing holding it in place! Normally, a tie rod is held in place by a castle nut and cotter pin to keep the tie rod securely in place. None of this was there. Just the end of the tie rod.

As soon as we realized this car is not safe to drive, we called Tesla. They called a tow company to tow our Y to the nearest SC here in Florida to get it fixed. Thank God nothing worse happened to us as we have already driven the car more than 2000 miles on road trips! However, for a $60,000+ car, this should not happen! Please check over your Model Y to make sure yours is safe to drive. You don't want to have tie rod come loose while driving down the road.

Has anyone else encountered this before?
View attachment 582441 View attachment 582442

Thank you so much for sharing these photos and identifying this issue. We have taken delivery of two Model Y’s in the last 60 days, but I will certainly check for these nuts asap. While both of our Model Y’s have performed great, one of the two was missing fasteners on the inside wheel well (which this forum alerted me to look for).

I believe Tesla has done a great job developing this new breed of technology, but certainly needs to shore up quality control. This is a problem which can be solved, and through posts like your’s they will know where to look. Thanks!