Door handle won't open

[TESLER2013]

Hi Forum,

I have a strange problem with my Model S. I know that people have issues with the door handle not presenting. But mine is different. My back passenger door (where we put the baby side) doesn't open for approx 10 seconds. The door handle will present itself along with the other 3 doors but when you tug, nothing happens. Tug tug tug tug until 10 seconds later it will open. But the crazy thing is it only happens in certain times. I feel like it happens when the computer is not fully running or sleeping. BUT, the other doors don't have the same problem. All the other doors open fine right away.

On youtube, the only videos I found were people who had the door not presenting. But I didn't find anything for not opening.

I contacted Tesla and they quoted me approx $400.00 but I'm afraid they won't experience the problem or I'm also afraid they will say they fixed it and it happens again. I went ahead and scheduled the appointment for the 16th (earliest they had).

I just wanted to see if anyone experienced the same problem and what the resolution was..? Thank you in advance.

 

[oldpueblo]

Had the same issue on my driver door. Try fully seating your door fuses. I'll try to find the article that worked for me. It might still need to be replaced, but this might get it working again.

Door handle issues! Self-fix by fuse pull/re-insertion!

 

[TESLER2013]

Had the same issue on my driver door. Try fully seating your door fuses. I'll try to find the article that worked for me. It might still need to be replaced, but this might get it working again.

Door handle issues! Self-fix by fuse pull/re-insertion!

Sweet. That helps. Thanks a lot

 

[Rockwell]

Sweet. That helps. Thanks a lot

Hi, It can also be your pressure sensor inside the door handle. You are more than welcome to stop by our shop and we can have it fixed for you.

 

[TESLER2013]

Hi, It can also be your pressure sensor inside the door handle. You are more than welcome to stop by our shop and we can have it fixed for you.

I'd love to. Open a shop in the bay area or let me know if you have a referral!

 

[LaurS]

Passenger door did the same thing. The wire to the front pressure switch was broken. Tried to order parts from Tesla, but the voice mail box was full. I ended up cutting into the rubber and soldering a stranded wire. I used liquid tape over. All good now.

 

[Vinc]

Oddly, my rear driver's side door is doing something similar, but the delay seems to be just a couple of seconds. So, if I pull right after the handle extends, the door won't open. But if I try right away, it will. Or if I pull and I keep pulling for a couple of seconds, it will work also.

Have a ranger scheduled to come over in a couple of days. Will update...

 

[Vinc]

Oddly, my rear driver's side door is doing something similar, but the delay seems to be just a couple of seconds. So, if I pull right after the handle extends, the door won't open. But if I try right away, it will. Or if I pull and I keep pulling for a couple of seconds, it will work also.

Have a ranger scheduled to come over in a couple of days. Will update...

Quick update. I had the ranger come this morning and he replaced the entire handle mechanism. As he was ready to walk away, I tested the door and... the problem was still there. So back to square one. Luckily the ranger was around to see it, so I have been rescheduled and this time they will try replacing the latch side.

 

[Vinc]

And last update (hopefully). A second ranger came today to replace the latch mechanism. With that, the problem is solved. So, add this option to the bag of possible fixes. The guy had to remove the back seat and some side trim, but parts wise, it seems less involved than changing the door handle (no electronics there, all mechanical).

 

[David_Cary]

Great thread. I have a driver's rear issue that sounds similar.
Intermittent and the glass drops but door doesn't open.
But mine will be stubborn and I have to drive around and then it usually works.

Question for people. When this happens, does the interior handle also not work? Because mine doesn't which makes me think it has nothing to do with the exterior door handle and everything to do with the latch.

Not in warranty. 2015 70D.

 

[LaurS]

Question for people. When this happens, does the interior handle also not work? Because mine doesn't which makes me think it has nothing to do with the exterior door handle and everything to do with the latch.

Mine was the front door and for the front doors the interior handle is mechanical, it worked just fine. For the rear doors the interior handle is electrical same as the exterior. I am not sure if when using the interior handle, the car first tells the exterior one to present and then unlatch. If the exterior handle malfunctions the car might not unlatch. Is the mechanical release under the seat working?

 

[pavel.zn]

Here is my personal experience, when I had the same issue with my Tesla's handle, a local repair shop specialized in Electrical Vehicle repairs (Total Auto Tech in San Jose, try to google it for the address), fixed all of my issues.
They even replaced my bubbled MCU LCD screen and provided a warranty on all repairs.

 

[David_Cary]

Mine was the front door and for the front doors the interior handle is mechanical, it worked just fine. For the rear doors the interior handle is electrical same as the exterior. I am not sure if when using the interior handle, the car first tells the exterior one to present and then unlatch. If the exterior handle malfunctions the car might not unlatch. Is the mechanical release under the seat working?

That is a possibility. Would seem like a bad idea from a safety standpoint (making the interior handle go a round about way) but I forgot about the mechanical release. Right now the handle is working - and so is the emergency release. So I will have to wait for it to not work again to see if the cable still works. Thanks.

 

[Phetron5000]

I've had multiple door handle issues