Day 2 of 2024 Model S Plaid ownership... 12v failure

[vinnysaj]

I can't believe this issue is still a thing with the newer Li-ion batteries, but after hitting a pretty awesome drag-strip launch, I was hit with "vehicle shutting down" messages within 5 minutes of it.

Not sure if the launch is related. I immediately went to service mode to check the alerts, and it was complaining about the PCS voltage being too far apart from the 12v battery voltage. Looks like the power conversion system failed here, or maybe the battery did. Either way, this is pretty unacceptable for a 2 day old vehicle that just made it out of the factory.

Used Tesla's roadside assistance to get them to bring the car to a service center. Oddly enough, 15 minutes before the tow arrived I went to the car to grab my belongings and found that all the warnings had gone away. I guess the battery eventually got charged? Still, the roadside assistance support advised me to continue with the tow as the battery definitely needs to be replaced.

Very disappointing. Hoping that the roadside-tow to center will move me a bit higher in the service queue. My local service center usually isn't until 3+ weeks in advance. If it's just the 12v battery, it's a less than 30 minute fix.

 

[vinnysaj]

It was a faulty PCS. Disappointing. They have to take the whole car apart!

 

[Yelobird]

Do you often take day old cars to the drag strip to test them? It’s a battery, stuff happens. Maybe give it a few days before racing it again.

 

[vinnysaj]

Do you often take day old cars to the drag strip to test them? It’s a battery, stuff happens. Maybe give it a few days before racing it again.

Although I would normally agree with you, the vehicle should be able to handle this just fine as there are no fine texts that say to not use drag strip mode until the vehicle is “broken in”. It makes sense for a new owner to enjoy and try the acceleration, which is what the Plaid was built for!

It wasn’t the battery anyways, so I believe this issue would have came up eventually no matter what, but the stress of recharging the 12v (I’m assuming cheeta stance and other adjustments that draw a lot of power during the launch) caused the PCS to reveal its failure sooner than later.