Front bottom clearance problems

[100%power]

Does anyone have or know of a possible way to avoid scraping bottom or hitting bottom of front end underneath due to sensors not being able to detect some of tire cement barriers when parking, due to sensors only seeing biggest Obstacles in front of you such as another car .that are seen on inside display. Possibly are my sensors maybe Calibrated to high up?. When I am parking in lot with low cement tire barriers or even going up on unknown inclines on driveways some how I still manage to hear a occasional scraping sound and by then late to do anything about it. Have to remember never to go up those drives , and watch out any new parking lots for this to happen , before I never had any concern over when I parked. I have tried to move as slowly as I can and get out of car and visually check to avoid this type situation, only if they had that that true distance sensor from bottom to the ground under clearance in front to stop scraping and destruction of underneath carriage or even a crack punctured section. These are time I wish had those extra 2 inches of air adjustable shocks upgrade and just maybe would give that extra cushion. Like I said only way I found on cement wheel barriers when parking , is physically out of car and make a judgement of safe distance without hitting underside just try explain that to someone that may see you do this and preform a visual check every time that you park or go a incline. LoL Since I had the car apx. 7 months it has happen about about 10x being careful as possible thanks to faith ,no damage yet under the fame carriage except very deep wide scratches that can not be seen unless you look underneath.
When I purchased the car I ask about in winter if snow would effect it , they said in
Michigan winter snow they never had any complaints on or ever of it being to low.
Any insight is greatly appreciated. I have a Model S,Mgf date 12/16 , 19” wheels ,no shockupgrade. Mileage 4k

 

[Tam]

...scraping bottom or hitting bottom of front end underneath due to sensors...

I have never trusted sensors to avoid scraping the bottom against cement barriers.

I do trust raising my air suspension though.

But since you don't have air suspension, I would suggest to park back in because the back seems to have better clearance than front.

...they said in Michigan winter snow they never had any complaints on or ever of it being to low...

I guess those are salespeople?

Michigan winter is not the same as Tesla Fremont factory's California winter!

 

[boaterva]

And there’s always adding the front camera which @artsci is working on getting the boards produced for. It’s definitely a good project for S’s which are lower than X’s (I haven’t found parking to be that hard with the higher clearance).

 

[100%power]

I have never trusted sensors to avoid scraping the bottom against cement barriers.

I do trust raising my air suspension though.

But since you don't have air suspension, I would suggest to park back in because the back seems to have better clearance than front.



I guess those are salespeople?

Michigan winter is not the same as Tesla Fremont factory's California winter!

I have never trusted sensors to avoid scraping the bottom against cement barriers.

I do trust raising my air suspension though.

But since you don't have air suspension, I would suggest to park back in because the back seems to have better clearance than front.



I guess those are salespeople?

Michigan winter is not the same as Tesla Fremont factory's California winter!

 

[David29]

Right. I know what you mean. This is in my condo parking lot. My car just clears the cement. The sensors do see the concrete barrier from a distance, and then the warning shuts off as I get closer. My theory is that the beam is aimed in such a way that it hits the ground a few feet in front of the car, so as you get closer to the object, the beam goes over it. I guess this is why I have gotten curb rash when using the self-parking feature -- the side sensors do not always see the curb, either.

 

[BrettS]

This is actually a great use for summon. When you’re in an unfamiliar parking lot you can pull in as far as you feel comfortable, then instead of getting out of the car to check, then getting back in and pulling forward a few inches and possibly repeating, you can get out, see how far the car has to go and use summon to pull forward the last little bit as you watch to make sure it won’t hit anything.

The other option is to back into the parking places so you can use the rear camera to see exactly how close you are to the barrier.

That said, though, as you get used to parking the car this will probably be less of an issue as it will eventually become second nature to pull up to the barrier without actually going over it.

 

[100%power]

Thanks Tam, I totally agree with you on both comments. I like idea of backing in parking to avoid that but after paying 100k+ on this car already you could proceive that making this into reality,the engineers,designers, group@ or others would had some concern over this and all other issues,? And make sure been addressed to customer keep down foreseeable repair costs, unless you could afford to store and only drive it on perfect conditions or some special events ,I would love that situation for for you and everyone out there. I don't have numbers what effect that this has caused damage to system. But I am sure adding a lower sensors or camera addPenny's to cost causes ripping down to a reailty more worrysome free driving experience for youbecause we are are all wanting that Nirvana . I am aware this is real world and company did it best for the time constraints they had to meet because it always seems to based on that one single factor, that rules and controls each one of our mindsets ...
Your last question only way without mentioning names or locations ,were all raised in this area. So there must good plausible answer for there response for that question I asked.

This is actually a great use for summon. When you’re in an unfamiliar parking lot you can pull in as far as you feel comfortable, then instead of getting out of the car to check, then getting back in and pulling forward a few inches and possibly repeating, you can get out, see how far the car has to go and use summon to pull forward the last little bit as you watch to make sure it won’t hit anything.

The other option is to back into the parking places so you can use the rear camera to see exactly how close you are to the barrier.

That said, though, as you get used to parking the car this will probably be less of an issue as it will eventually become second nature to pull up to the barrier without actually going over it.

yes I like your answer about backing in for all direct parking for far as of now I don’t totally trust self parking mode it doesn't detect those cements wheel stops either and using summons is great for spring and summer but winter causes related other problems using app due to extremely low temperatures and other winter related problem using it.
This is to Brett S thread

 

[GHammer]

View attachment 255810 Right. The sensors do see the concrete barrier from a distance, and then the warning shuts off as I get closer.

This is exactly how you use the sensors to not park over the curb or parking stop. When the sensors shut off, stop.

 

[David29]

This is exactly how you use the sensors to not park over the curb or parking stop. When the sensors shut off, stop.

I was curious so I did some testing on this point today.
If I have time, I will try to make a video with my observations.

As you can see from the photo, the concrete barrier in my parking space just barely clears the underside of my Model S front valence. (I have coil suspension, not air.) So, any taller bumper would do damage, but this one does not so long as I do not park any further forward. Driving into the space slowly, I found that the sensors displayed the first white arc on the screen at about 64" to the front edge of the concrete barrier, and 67" to the front edge of the top surface. The display turned from white to yellow at a distance of 45” to the front edge and 48" to the top edge. The first time the screen showed a measurement in inches, the front edge of the valence was 33" from the top of the sloped surface of the concrete barrier. It continued to show measurements down to about 13". That turned out to be the distance to the back edge of the barrier. So that means the sonar beam is just barely hitting the top of the barrier. The screen displays "STOP" at about that point, but the message disappears quickly if you keep moving forward, even very slowly. The screen then switches to show a white arc with another measurement. In my case, it showed 31", which happens to be the distance from the front of the valence to the concrete base of the wrought iron fence in front of the parking space. In other words, the sonar beam is passing over the concrete bumper and hitting the ground or an object beyond the bumper, even though the car has not actually reached the bumper yet.

My conclusion is that the parking sensors should detect any barrier that is tall enough to hit the underside of my car, so long as it is solid enough and of the right shape to return a good signal. I have not done extensive testing, but my observation is that concrete and granite curbs and bumpers seem to be a bit more detectable than asphalt bumpers, possibly because the asphalt ones tend to be rounded. (That would be something useful to test.)

I suspect what some people experience is that they either pull into the space too quickly, or they pull past the point where the sensor “sees” the bumper and they get lulled into thinking it is still ahead of them when actually the car’s sensor beam is past the barrier. Which is exactly the point you are making.

The measurements listed here could vary in other situations, by the way -- barriers vary in size and shape, and it also may depend on exactly how the car was lined up with the bumper -- even a slight angle makes a difference, apparently.

 

[kort677]

You could always back the Into the spot and since the rear end is higher you won't have issues with those parking stones. Seems as if tesla isn't the only car with this issue
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[David29]

You could always back the Into the spot and since the rear end is higher you won't have issues with those parking stones. Seems as if tesla isn't the only car with this issue
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True. Rear end is higher. But only a little higher. Once you pass over an object it can strike the bottom. I am not sure what it strikes, but when i tested today, the contact felt more serious, as if it was a metal part, not the plastic valence as in the front.

 

[jerry33]

Does anyone have or know of a possible way to avoid scraping bottom or hitting bottom of front end underneath due to sensors not being able to detect some of tire cement barriers when parking

This is easy to do:

1. Always back in (it's far safer anyway).
2. Use the rear view mirrors to align the car between the stripes.
3. Use the rear camera and stop when the curb, barrier, or painted line are at the bottom of the screen.

Works every time.

 

[kort677]

True. Rear end is higher. But only a little higher. Once you pass over an object it can strike the bottom. I am not sure what it strikes, but when i tested today, the contact felt more serious, as if it was a metal part, not the plastic valence as in the front.

I have never encountered a parking stop that is high enough to touch the rear which sits far higher than the front.

 

[David29]

This is easy to do:

1. Always back in (it's far safer anyway).
2. Use the rear view mirrors to align the car between the stripes.
3. Use the rear camera and stop when the curb, barrier, or painted line are at the bottom of the screen.

Works every time.

Right. I do that frequently, not always. Tough in rain or snow, though, as the camera becomes less useful or even useless.

 

[jerry33]

Right. I do that frequently, not always. Tough in rain or snow, though, as the camera becomes less useful or even useless.

I don't have much problem in the rain, but snow and mud do make it tough. If that happens, just put the suspension in very-high.

 

[scottm]

Personally, I went with a front mounted "curb camera" for this problem... fits nicely just under the nosecone. Remember nosecones!? Yep that's me.

Speaking of memories.. I recall this low tech solution ...

Maybe add whiskers to the car.. or "curb feelers" as they're normally called. On the nose.