Braking in rain

[dave]

FYI, I just noticed this for the first time today - after coming out of the car wash. Braking performance was very bad. I did 4 back to back "emergency" stops from 50 MPH, and the performance was pathetic. It was dry pavement and I was expecting ABS to engage, or tires screeching, but the car just slowly came to a stop. It did not get any better after the 4th test either.

I hadn't noticed any issues until today - after a year of ownership. I've only been through a handful of car washes though...

She's sitting in the garage now. I'll report back later after she's all dried out.

 

[Atebit]

Nope. It is really noticeable coming out of a car wash. That is understandable since the rotors would be soaked, but again, I've never noticed anything nearly like this on any other car. Also happens just driving on wet and/or slushy highways. Service is going to take a look for me (as soon as I can get it in -- my fault not Tesla's as I've just been so busy).

Has anyone had Tesla take a look at their car yet?

 

[Morristhecat]

They took a look at my car, rebuilt the brakes and told me that they did find some minor issues. But I still have the problem. They tell me that Tesla engineering is reviewing the problem and when they have a solution I'll be the first to know. In the meantime I just tap on the brakes to dry them off whenever they get really soaked. My SC also told me that as a result of my car, Tesla is changing a policy to do a thorough brake check at the annual service. Especially for cars in northern wet climates.

 

[Ven Rala]

Has anyone had Tesla take a look at their car yet?

They looked at my car too. I didn't get a chance to ask them if they found anything when I picked up my car (as it was there for other reasons). However, they did say corporate was looking into it and my brakes did feel more stiff after I picked it up (though this may not do anything for the actual problem).

 

[Discoducky]

Since I have never experienced this issue I have the questions:

1. Is this reproduced in warmer wet weather? Say above 50 where there is no chance of slush or ice?

2. If so, could it be reproduced by driving through say 6 to 8 inches of water where all four calipers get soaked?

I'm trying to better understand why some are seeing this and others are not.

 

[dave]

Can't decide if it is creepy or great customer service, but Tesla folks read this post, figured out who I was, and reached out to me directly offering to take a look at the brakes for me!

Haven't had a chance to bring it in yet, but I'll add it to the list of little things to check out next time I bring it in.

 

[Chris]

Can't decide if it is creepy or great customer service, but Tesla folks read this post, figured out who I was, and reached out to me directly offering to take a look at the brakes for me!

Haven't had a chance to bring it in yet, but I'll add it to the list of little things to check out next time I bring it in.

Ha ha the same happened to me when I brought my MS in for an unrelated issue. The Rockville service center was already aware of the braking issues I reported prior here on TMC. I am considering it great customer service (creepy it gets when you realize that Tesla knows where we are driving. I happened to see a small google maps window on a service computer screen with the location of my car).

Anyway, they replaced the front rotors. If that resolved the issue I cannot say yet.

 

[mknox]

Has anyone had Tesla take a look at their car yet?

Yes. I got it back yesterday, but haven't yet received the e-mailed Service Order to see what they've done. The Loaner Model S had the exact same problem. As I was leaving my office in it, re-gen was disabled due to the cold and I almost couldn't stop the car at the end of our driveway despite pressing down on the pedal as hard as I could. Later, they were fine.

- - - Updated - - -

1. Is this reproduced in warmer wet weather? Say above 50 where there is no chance of slush or ice?

2. If so, could it be reproduced by driving through say 6 to 8 inches of water where all four calipers get soaked?

Yes. I've experienced it coming out of a car wash in mid-summer. I also see it just driving in the rain... no need for standing water.

 

[dave]

Ha ha the same happened to me when I brought my MS in for an unrelated issue... Anyway, they replaced the front rotors.

I'm confused. If you brought the car in for an unrelated issue, why did they replace your rotors?

 

[Chris]

I'm confused. If you brought the car in for an unrelated issue, why did they replace your rotors?

Because I reported (on TMC) having experienced the known braking issue in rain/wet snow conditions. They wanted to be proactive I guess. It was also on my list of secondary problems I discussed with them at the service center.

 

[Ven Rala]

Can't decide if it is creepy or great customer service, but Tesla folks read this post, figured out who I was, and reached out to me directly offering to take a look at the brakes for me!

Haven't had a chance to bring it in yet, but I'll add it to the list of little things to check out next time I bring it in.

I had the same feeling, but I guess I'm happy they are actually reading our concerns/complaints, etc and responding proactively rather than how other auto manufacturers handle problems (ahem...GM)

 

[lolachampcar]

I commented on the delivery of my wife's replacement car a few weeks back that the passenger door being harder to close than the others when the windows were up problem was still around. Tesla does follow a lot of these threads and called me to set up an appointment and bring the car in. The funny thing was that I discussed the very same issue with the delivery specialist during the delivery process saying that my car (July delivery) did not have it but that my Feb 13 and my wife's Sept 13 deliveries did. The feedback channel seems to be the public forums and not the Service Centers which I found a little strange.

Anyway, Tesla cares deeply about their product and they want it right. You simply can not ask for any more out of any company.

 

[mitch672]

My car is at the service center now.. It was there to replace the brake booster, but they are not sure what the exact problem is, so they are keeping it over the weekend, and will work in it on Monday. They felt the issue was noticeable enough to not let me leave with the car. I have an older Model S (built December 2012), so many of the early production issues are being addressed (still).

To answer an earlier question, the problem is most noticeable in extremely cold weather, when regen is disabled, and in soaking wet weather. In those conditions, I had very little braking, very difficult to stop the car quickly.

 

[rdrcrmatt]

My brakes absolutely SUCK the first application after they get wet.. and in the rain they are not good if they get wet.

Is the service center fixing issues like this?

 

[Gizmotoy]

My brakes absolutely SUCK the first application after they get wet.. and in the rain they are not good if they get wet.

Is the service center fixing issues like this?

I think they're being very aggressive addressing this particular complaint. I posted earlier that I had noticed this one time coming out of a car wash, and Tesla reached out to me to have a workup done. I'm keeping an eye on it, but happening one time after getting blasted with high pressure water didn't seem particularly worrisome to me, so I deferred until the next time I have it in.

If yours is bad, give them a call and let them take a look at it.

 

[lolachampcar]

This is odd and it will be interesting to see what Tesla finds. They have gone out of their way (from a cost standpoint at least) to use the very best brakes available to OEMs and the dry performance is phenomenal. I wonder if it is simply a matter of moving to drilled or slotted rotors as other mfgs have had to do.


On a different thought, is there anyone out there that has a repeatable issue that would be interested in trying carbon pads?

 

[Seven7]

I first noticed it coming out of a car wash. No problem with the hydraulics, but almost no stopping power until they dried out.

Just a wild guess but maybe your car wash is getting carried away when they spray wheel cleaner or tire dressing and that's getting on the rotors & pads.

 

[brianman]

Can't decide if it is creepy or great customer service, but Tesla folks read this post, figured out who I was, and reached out to me directly offering to take a look at the brakes for me!

Haven't had a chance to bring it in yet, but I'll add it to the list of little things to check out next time I bring it in.

They probably just contacted every owner named "Dave" in Florence, KY.

- - - Updated - - -

I commented on the delivery of my wife's replacement car a few weeks back that the passenger door being harder to close than the others when the windows were up problem was still around. Tesla does follow a lot of these threads and called me to set up an appointment and bring the car in. The funny thing was that I discussed the very same issue with the delivery specialist during the delivery process saying that my car (July delivery) did not have it but that my Feb 13 and my wife's Sept 13 deliveries did. The feedback channel seems to be the public forums and not the Service Centers which I found a little strange.

Anyway, Tesla cares deeply about their product and they want it right. You simply can not ask for any more out of any company.

I drew a different conclusion. Compare the underlines.

 

[dave]

They probably just contacted every owner named "Dave" in Florence, KY. .

Well I didn't say it would be hard to figure out who I was. Just that they put forth the effort to look me up and contact me.

Great customer service. I called up the Cinci service center and they were practically begging me to bring it in to make sure I was happy. It's not a big issue (only noticed it out of the car wash), so I'll probably just have them look at it next time I need something worked on.

 

[lolachampcar]

brian,

Not sure if I understand your comment so I will assume I was unclear-
I demonstrated the passenger door closing issue to the delivery specialist and a tech when my wife's car was delivered and commented that engineering still has not got that one figured out. I believe I also said it was an issue on my wife's first car but not on my second.

I later followed up on an old end of quarter quality control problem thread to add that my wife's car was perfect apart from the very small issue of the door which Tesla has yet to figure out. It was after this post that I received a call indicating to me that the forum triggered the response and not the delivery process. Of course, I could be wrong but the timing would be highly coincidental if the feedback chain was the delivery process.