driver seat feels like it is moving when driving? [in 2019]

[Kitfox]

Did you have any knocking sounds as a result of your seat "shift"? Could you post a pic of your invoice? thanks

To me, "knocking" is a gas engine term. *chuckles*. But yes, it made a "clunk" when it shifted and hit the end of the motion. It was about 3mm at the bottom, which translated to about an inch when amplified by the length of the seat as a lever.

Not the full invoice, but the relevant section. The invoice is a PDF for the SC here.

It was there fr about 48 hours total, and they also adjusted door fitment and the left fender panel fitment that other people have complained about causing rust. I did have 0.05mm of gap for the fender, but now I have 3mm, which is much better. They also had a new driver's seat pre-ordered and already present in case they needed to replace it if it was more than just bolts.

For the seat thing, I really want to emphasize to people that a springy move is normal. The seat needs to have some spring and give for comfort and safety. A move that ends in a sudden clunk of a stop is not. That is, on a good day, a loose bolt. The base of the seat should stay stationary and then the whole seat has a springy, squishy movement that always returns to position at rest. Shift-clunk? Not good.

It's good to know I'm not the only one. My driver's seat feels like it moves back a few mm upon initial acceleration. Very noticeable if I'm coming to a hard stop and then accelerate again. I told the SC about it when I was having other work done and I don't think they even looked at it because it still feels the same and it never showed up on my receipt.

The service center should normally have a Job Number item (Like my image) for anything they do, even if it's just checking and not doing anything, unless they are able to immediately assuage your concern when you are there.

 

[ultimate_99]

Mine has a clunk also when going from breaking to accelerating. It is NOT a pleasant feeling and it will only get worse.
I can feel it when my fingers are placed on the floor / seat.
I asked mobile service about it while he was replacing the seat belt wiring harness, he said it's common, and he thought they were working on some special replacement shoulder bolts correct the problem.
Do you think we should schedule service? I don't wan't the guarantee to run out. Can we voice call mobile service?

 

[EV-by-the-Sea]

Yea I can feel it when on/off the accelerator, but I can definitely grab the seat back and get it to do it too while I sit in it. Can you?

Forgot about this, but yes, it visibly moves when I do this. For reference, the passenger seat does not.

I actually made another service center visit and took the car there to have this fixed again along with an issue with the door.

Unfortunately, seems the SC in San Francisco is more concerned with cost cutting than fixing issues now, as I was literally turned away when I brought the car in. What a waste of time.

They claimed that the issue was "within spec." When I pressed, mentioning that they'd fixed it once before when it wasn't as pronounced, they said because the last fix didn't work that there's no point in trying again. Infuriating.

I've had every intention of finding a way to escalate this as it feels like a safety issue (aside from being a shitty experience), but frankly life has gotten in the way.

I was very turned off by this latest SC experience -- seemed they were looking for any excuse to avoid doing work as opposed to acknowledging and fixing problems. One of the issues I took it there for was acknowledged by a mobile service tech, but said it was something that needed to be done at the SC. If anyone has any tips on how to get this escalated, let me know. Otherwise I'll start copying random folks I find on LinkedIn.

 

[Occar]

Yes, - It's a worn fastener (rivet) on the seat. You can feel it with your fingers if you reach under the left and right side front of the seat - place your finger over the rivet head and hit the accelerator (mind the road while doing so!), and you'll feel the play.
I haven't fixed mine yet, requires removing the whole damned seat, and my problem is not bad enough(yet) to justify the 2 hours of my time to do that.
The SC may or may not repair it - it is so hard to get them to identify it. My SC identified it and the solution was a new seat - I'm out of warranty - I'm sure a quick tap from a tack welder would do the trick for far less money.

Out of warranty on a car that first went to customers less than 2.5 years ago comes with a 4 year warranty? Why do I find your post suspect?

 

[ry-ballz]

Out of warranty on a car that first went to customers less than 2.5 years ago comes with a 4 year warranty? Why do I find your post suspect?

Or he drives a lot of miles?

 

[Occar]

Or he drives a lot of miles?

This is true, and so far from my reality that I didn't even consider it since I only do ~6k miles per year and the concept of already having 50k miles on a Model 3 is so foreign to me that the possibility never even entered my mind.

That's far too much of a percentage of your life to spend sitting in a car!

 

[RandomJohnny]

Just an update. Brought car to SC a couple of months ago for another issue and asked them to fix seat. I referenced SB related to pivot bolts but lead tech kind of ignored me and said it could be many things. After my other issue was fixed my invoice said they examined the seat and there was no movement in comparison to passenger side and they compared to new cars and it was the same. This was a complete lie as it was obvious when you pulled the seat from the back you could see the lower cushion move.

I contacted mobile about another issue that was screwed up by the SC and listed the seat movement to be addressed as well. Mobile comes out, puts the seat up, has me sit in the back and move the seat. He confirms it is moving more than normal. It is in fact the pivot bolts he sees play in. Replaces the pivot bolts with updated version and seat is just like new.

So happy that mobile exists as it is such a superior form of service compared to what I've experienced at my SC (which is 2 hrs away). I hate to complain but every experience I've had at the SC has been full of what seems like complete laziness and disregard for doing anything with professionalism and quality. The SAs are friendly but that is about where it ends. There is no excuse for treating the customer like they are making stuff up on a consistent basis. This latest incident with my seat just confirms what I already experienced and it just sucks. I wish mobile could do everything---maybe someday.

 

[mlkmade]

I have this same issue and was told I needed the whole seat replaced and I needed to wait for approval for 5-6 weeks.

How do I get the SC to acknowledge the bolts? I even brought it up when I took it in, cause it just feels like some of the bolts aren't tightened down. I'm so extremely frustrated with this situation.

It also bothers me the lack of shared knowledge from service center to the next. One SC says its normal, another SC knows its a known issue and replaces with new bolts. This is really annoying and just adds to my frustration with SCs.

 

[Hank101]

I had the seat bolts replaced by mobile service per Service Bulletin, issue stopped and then returned after a week.
Scheduled another mobile service visit for next week.

Very annoying feeling when it occurs. Will give Tesla another chance to fix, then I will take on the challenge myself.

 

[Big Dog]

I have this same issue and was told I needed the whole seat replaced and I needed to wait for approval for 5-6 weeks.

How do I get the SC to acknowledge the bolts? I even brought it up when I took it in, cause it just feels like some of the bolts aren't tightened down. I'm so extremely frustrated with this situation.

It also bothers me the lack of shared knowledge from service center to the next. One SC says its normal, another SC knows its a known issue and replaces with new bolts. This is really annoying and just adds to my frustration with SCs.

If you have Gen1 seats, by waiting, you'll get Gen2!

 

[mlkmade]

If you have Gen1 seats, by waiting, you'll get Gen2!

My car was built on August 5th. I think I have the newest.

 

[Hank42]

Out of warranty on a car that first went to customers less than 2.5 years ago comes with a 4 year warranty? Why do I find your post suspect?

I see the confusion - I was referring to S85 that I've had since Dec 2012. Of course, I also have a Model 3 that does NOT have this issue (yet).
In any event the SC determined the cause and wanted to replace the seat. It is getting worse over time, but like I said, not so much so as to spend the money on a new seat, or take it apart and fix it myself. I'm sure that day will come.

 

[Occar]

I see the confusion - I was referring to S85 that I've had since Dec 2012. Of course, I also have a Model 3 that does NOT have this issue (yet).
In any event the SC determined the cause and wanted to replace the seat. It is getting worse over time, but like I said, not so much so as to spend the money on a new seat, or take it apart and fix it myself. I'm sure that day will come.

A 2012 Model S seat and a Model 3 seat bear very little in common. Your reports of something broken on your Model S isn't really going to help the folks here.

 

[MagnusMako]

Just thought I'd give an update on the sliding seat issue for me. Tesla mobile tech replaced mine under warranty. The tech confirmed it was a known issue with earlier 3's and they change the bole to have a bigger bore. So he replaced with the newer one and used Locktite. The sliding is all gone now. Invoice receipt below to show the job was performed for free.

 

[Hank42]

A 2012 Model S seat and a Model 3 seat bear very little in common. Your reports of something broken on your Model S isn't really going to help the folks here.

Ya' think?

 

[Hank101]

Just thought I'd give an update on the sliding seat issue for me. Tesla mobile tech replaced mine under warranty. The tech confirmed it was a known issue with earlier 3's and they change the bole to have a bigger bore. So he replaced with the newer one and used Locktite. The sliding is all gone now. Invoice receipt below to show the job was performed for free.

View attachment 486514

Had the same procedure on my seat, lasted about a week - please keep us informed.

 

[CuriousM3]

My driver seat back at 47k miles moves back 1/4 inch from time to time when accelerating, the slider seems tight, but the attachment to the seat base and the rear seat back is moving. Passenger side is tight as it has less wear. SC is saying that movement is normal unfortunately