Bugs in Tail Light!

[Sawyer8888]

Service visit #11 this first year will be to address this issue. If the bugs are getting in, then there's a good chance the seals are also failing to keep water out.

Left & right tail lights:

Tesla's apparent attempt at a fix for this deficiency? Lead tech - "Use more cow bell, err, I mean more clear silicone."
This was how my car was delivered in March '17...

Edit: Response to next post...

I take it that the risk in cleaning them yourself once out of warranty is really just the $208 for them to reinstall the finicky applique.

If bugs continue to enter the lights after the warranty expires then I will ask that my SC take care of this non-wear-and-tear problem. Burning $208 because of Tesla's problem is not something I will do.

 

[David.85D]

I talked with the service center this morning and the quote is to replace both taillights they don't flush or reseal them. One hour labor for $175 and the lights are $243 x 2 and the rear applique replacement $208. I think I'm going to try and do it myself @ home and if it breaks or whatnot I can fork over the $1,000.

I know this is an old post, but it is encouraging to me. I take it that the risk in cleaning them yourself once out of warranty is really just the $208 for them to reinstall the finicky applique. Certainly most home tinkerers should be able to remove, clean, etc, put the taillights back, and then take it to Tesla for a new rear applique.

 

[scaesare]

I'm WAAAAY out of warranty and have this problem.

Looks like no relatively easy fix?

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Tesla replaced my tail lights once for this issue. Today I found a dead fly in my passenger side tail light. Never in any other vehicle have I had this problem. Tesla doesn't know how to make cars.

 

[KidDoc]

Tesla replaced my tail lights once for this issue. Today I found a dead fly in my passenger side tail light. Never in any other vehicle have I had this problem. Tesla doesn't know how to make cars.

I really think the main issue I've noticed in my aging Model S is their adhesives don't hold up over time. I know nothing about automotive adhesive technology but thus far I've had a leak in the headliner over the driver side passenger door and now this light issue which seems to occur where the chrome thing is attached to the tail-light. I'm not sure if they used some unproven adhesive or if they cannot use the same adhesive used in common cars due to California restrictions but it sure is annoying.

My bugs are still in there. When I go through the car was I blow out the water with some compressed air but it hasn't blasted the bugs yet. I'm hoping they just decay away eventually but if I get really bored one day maybe I'll try to take it apart and re-adhese the chrome piece.

 

[Buster1]

Tesla doesn't know how to make cars.

Correct. But we all knew that going in. We bought a Tesla cause we’re early adopters, visionaries of sorts...and we all know Tesla is a Tech company.

Anyone who thinks their Tesla should be up to the fit and finish of a German lux is kidding themselves. Tesla just sold its 300,000 car. BMW sells 2.3 million PER YEAR! BMW Group achieves sixth consecutive all-time sales high and remains world’s leading premium car company

We’ve got a way to go before our Tesla’s don’t have bugs stuck in places, wrinkled seat fabrics, and leaky seals...

...but I still think it’s a phenomenal car.

 

[cruiserlarry]

I, too had a spider in my P/S taillight...showed it to the tech when I last stopped by the service center, and they installed a new taillight without a hint of resistance. Of course, owning a vehicle that never has any issues would be fantastic (oh, wait, that's every Toyota I've ever had lol), but as @Buster1 noted above, Tesla is new to the game, and most of us went into this hoping for the best, but knowing there might be things to work out. This is the only car I've ever had where I look forward to visiting the service center staff, and it's still an amazing vehicle to drive...w/ or w/o insects going along for the ride

 

[KidDoc]

I, too had a spider in my P/S taillight...showed it to the tech when I last stopped by the service center, and they installed a new taillight without a hint of resistance. Of course, owning a vehicle that never has any issues would be fantastic (oh, wait, that's every Toyota I've ever had lol), but as @Buster1 noted above, Tesla is new to the game, and most of us went into this hoping for the best, but knowing there might be things to work out. This is the only car I've ever had where I look forward to visiting the service center staff, and it's still an amazing vehicle to drive...w/ or w/o insects going along for the ride

Are you still under warranty? Did they replace it for free outside of warranty?

Outside of warranty they want $1000 for silly tail lights that work fine just need to be blown out and resealed. It is frustrating that their approach is always to replace entire parts instead of fixing things. That is fine with warranty but gets expensive quickly once out of the warranty phase.

 

[mknox]

Tesla replaced my tail lights once for this issue. Today I found a dead fly in my passenger side tail light. Never in any other vehicle have I had this problem. Tesla doesn't know how to make cars.

Me too... except it wasn't bugs in my case. The lamp filled up with water and shorted out the lower section of LEDs that make up the "circle" of red light when the parking or headlights are on.

 

[Sawyer8888]

The lamp filled up with water and shorted out the lower section of LEDs

Insufficient brake light seals are apparently more of a cosmetic issue as opposed to a safety concern. So perhaps that is why Tesla hasn't done anything to address this deficiency other than to replace the lights with perfectly defective seals?

April 2015 article...

Many users report seeing condensation inside the rear light clusters, or the trim pieces that run between the rear lights across the back of the car. This is a purely cosmetic issue believed to be caused by faulty seals allowing water in.
​

Searching around the internet for related issues, I came across this article which helps put things into perspective. There's always something, no matter who makes the car.

On a positive note, I sent an email to my SC yesterday inquiring about the bugs in the lights and they immediately scheduled a service for tomorrow. The immediacy was due to the apparent safety issue of my steering wheel being off/turned a few degrees to the left (car drives straight though). Don't you all go out to your SC at once claiming the same to get your service appointment pushed up.

 

[mknox]

Many users report seeing condensation inside the rear light clusters, or the trim pieces that run between the rear lights across the back of the car. This is a purely cosmetic issue believed to be caused by faulty seals allowing water in.​

Well, in my case it was a lot more than condensation. You could see water about 1/3 the way up the light sloshing around as the car moved.​

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Correct. But we all knew that going in. We bought a Tesla cause we’re early adopters, visionaries of sorts...and we all know Tesla is a Tech company.

Anyone who thinks their Tesla should be up to the fit and finish of a German lux is kidding themselves. Tesla just sold its 300,000 car. BMW sells 2.3 million PER YEAR! BMW Group achieves sixth consecutive all-time sales high and remains world’s leading premium car company

We’ve got a way to go before our Tesla’s don’t have bugs stuck in places, wrinkled seat fabrics, and leaky seals...

...but I still think it’s a phenomenal car.

Of course you're right, and to be fair Tesla replaced my tail light the first time without hesitation and it was covered under warranty. I haven't asked this time because I'm hoping the fly will fall away and become unseen. Right now it's stuck to the inside of the center of the tail light, so kind of icky. Not sure how it got "stuck". These are annoyances that we don't have to deal with in other cars, for the most part. Expecting a proper tail light seal is quite far removed from expecting German luxury. This didn't happen even in my $20,000-$30,000 Japanese cars and neither in my $35,000 Volkswagen Jetta that was manufactured in Mexico.

It's just annoying is all. Still love my car and I own TSLA stock, so I'm obviously on board! lol

 

[Buster1]

Oh, don’t get me wrong. A bug in my light would drive me nuts!

 

[cruiserlarry]

@KidDoc Yes, my vehicle is still under warranty.

As a custom vehicle builder by profession, I can say that disassembling most lens/reflector units on sealed LED taillights or headlights is no simple task. The adhesives used to construct these components were not designed to be undone. Separating the lens (or in this case, the plastic cover) requires precise heating, and can often result in damage to the plastic or electronics if not done correctly. From a purely cost / benefit point of view, it is much more efficient, time- and money-wise, to have any basic tech replace the entire assembly than to hope a specialized tech is successful unsealing, cleaning, and resealing the unit. I certainly understand the frustration with the price; but not with the procedure...

 

[KidDoc]

I actually just purchased a third party extended warranty from Car Shield for $5200 after being out of warranty for a year. I was hoping it would require less long term work but I've already pain $1000 for a busted seal in the headliner and I don't see problems getting less over the next four years. Ah well as mentioned I knew I was buying a car from a new company and still would do it again.. just with the extended warranty after the factory one wore out. Those $175/hr shop fees are a killer!

 

[P85DBeast]

Tesla has replaced the tail lights in my wife's 85D for condensation build up. They are also about to replace BOTH of the headlights on my P100D for the second time since I purchased the car.

 

[smsprague]

I had my 2014 taillights replaced at about 2 years in for bugs in them. Almost 2 years on second set no bugs so far.

 

[WATTS-UP]

This may help anyone thinking about cleaning the bugs out of their tail lights. You have to remove the large piece of molding from the trunk and in order to do that you have to first remove the molding at the top of the trunk and the side pieces so that you can remove the large trunk molding. Once all that is out you can then unscrew the one nut that is inside the trunk and the two that can be accessed form the outside. To do the job right you should remove the chrome applique before you unscrew the tail lens. Total time with little help Hour hour and a half if you don't have a problem putting that large piece of molding back.

How you get the bugs out of the lens, good question never tried it. If some one is going to charge you $1500.00 to do that go out and purchase a lighted applique for say $800.00 two new tail lenses $250.00 each plus the labor to install the applique should be around $300.00. You get a light applique two new tail lenses ( installed )all for less then the crazy quote of $1,500.00.

 

[Dborn]

Couple of years ago, I was at the service center and a guy was getting a new tail light because he had a LARGE lizard that committed suicide in there!! I kid you not!! Saw the photo! How could something like that get in? Who knows. I believe the removed part was sent back to the factory for investigation but have no idea of the result.
Both my lights were replaced under warranty for major water intrusion. Actual water levels in there a third of the way up. I got the new appliqué as part of that so I also no longer get the irritating condensation I always got after a car wash.

 

[Dborn]

Thinking about it, maybe the lizard went in after the bugs? Looking for a quick easy meal? Clearly not the best thing for its health, though!!