Model 3 disabling Traction Control, ABS, etc.

[atvrida92]

Hi all,

So the other day I was driving down the highway, hit a bump (nothing crazy, just a moderate bump on the highway) and all my safety features disabled (traction control, abs, emergency braking). Today about a week later, I am trying to race autocross and by the second turn, the same thing keeps happening.

Any idea what's going on? Do I have a loose connection somewhere? I would say a loose fuse but I don't believe these have fuses?

Hopefully there is a quick fix, because driving this thing without any help on this autox course is challenging haha

 

[GtiMart]

I think I've heard people disable traction/stability control/abs by unplugging an abs sensor on one of the wheels. I suggest checking the abs sensor wires for any sign or wear/cut.

EDIT: No, there aren't any typical fuses, they are e-fuses that reset when the car sleeps.

 

[atvrida92]

I think I've heard people disable traction/stability control/abs by unplugging an abs sensor on one of the wheels. I suggest checking the abs sensor wires for any sign or wear/cut.

EDIT: No, there aren't any typical fuses, they are e-fuses that reset when the car sleeps.

Thanks for the info! I checked the wheel that I thought was causing the issue. Didn't see any issues with the sensor. Unfortunately didn't have time to check them all in between races but when looking through the wheels I couldn't see anything obvious. Have service scheduled since I'm well within my warranty period, so I will update with what Tesla says.

 

[dum24]

Hello, has your problem been resolved and what was the cause?
Tank you

 

[drift]

Hello, has your problem been resolved and what was the cause?
Tank you

Also a bad wheel alignment can cause all those systems to go offline too.

 

[GabeM]

@atvrida92 drift is right, if your alignment is off it’ll set off all those warnings and disable. I found out when resetting my alignment back from AX to street settings and didn’t realize I forgot to lock the steering wheel. The alignment was off a bit and test drove it and got a bunch of warnings and TC disabled. Fixed the alignment and all’s good now.

If it‘s not your alignment then has to be a sensor or wiring problem. BTW did you find out what the problem was?

 

[atvrida92]

Realized I never responded to this a few months ago - updating with my latest updates for history's sake, and then my dilemma.

As of September '23, Tesla replaced the Front right wheel speed sensor, which seemed to fix the issue (8 months later I found this was temporary). Here is the write up from Tesla:

"Unable to duplicate during time of service. Looked back in vehicle logs and found the Front Right Wheel Speed Sensor to be giving alerts for being bad, also found very fine dirt on the hub ring which can also cause false readings. Replaced Front Right Wheel Speed Sensor and cleaned out hub ring. Vehicle is also lowered which can cause issues with ABS if the vehicle hits a big pot hole due to less travel in suspension. "


Now, June '24 - Seems like I am having the same issue (see below).

2023 M3P, with aftermarket wheels and H&R Lowering springs. Last year, at about 8700 miles I raced autocross, and in the first run (in track mode) I drove for about 5 seconds and then got a ton of errors - no ABS, no TCS, no stability control, no regen, momentarily lost power, and kicked out of track mode. This was my second autox race of the season (first race did not have this issue). I parked the car in between runs, everything reset, then within 5 seconds of starting the run, same thing happened. Within the next week or two after the race, when hitting a larger bump, or anything that unloaded and loaded the suspension, the same thing would happen - like 10 error messages, no ABS/traction/stability/regen, until I stopped driving and turned off the car. Tesla service replaced a wheel sensor and it seemed to fix the problem.

Now about 1 year later, and with 18k miles, did my first autox race for this season, and within the first 2 turns, same issue - error message/lost power/ abs and all settings. Happened every run. Resulted in me putting multiple flat spots in my tires as the electric brake actuators are very difficult to modulate without ABS . The error messages looked a little different, but resulted in the same as before. Since the race last weekend, I have had the error occur once when driving over railroad tracks. In addition, a few times when driving on the highway and hitting a bump that loads/unloads the suspension, I can feel the power cut for a split second, like the system momentarily freaks out but it is quick enough to keep going. I also do not drive aggressively when not racing, so I imagine that is part of why I haven't had the error since...

I pulled all the wheels to check the wheel speed sensor wiring and ALL of the sensor wires looked totally fine. I forgot about Tesla's service write up when I pulled the wheels, but I will go back and make sure there is no "fine dirt" on the hub rings... Anyone else experience this issue? Also, does anyone know if it is possible to see the tesla logs to see the indication of a bad wheel sensor? My alerts only show that all my systems failed, but I can't tell from the "alerts" which sensor it thinks failed.

Also also, regarding alignment, my alignment is not great, but it's not bad. Castor is within spec, Passenger side F/R camber at -2deg, driver side F/R Camber at -1deg, Front toe well within spec, Rear toe driver side at .22deg, rear toe passenger side at .25deg (so out, but not super far out)...

Thanks in advance!
Greg

 

[GtiMart]

regarding "as the electric brake actuators are very difficult to modulate without ABS"... as far as I know the brakes are hydraulic like in any other car. The electric actuators on the rear are only there to put the "parking brake" on.

 

[atvrida92]

regarding "as the electric brake actuators are very difficult to modulate without ABS"... as far as I know the brakes are hydraulic like in any other car. The electric actuators on the rear are only there to put the "parking brake" on.

That's fair - maybe it's because ABS was not working, but there was basically no change in pedal pressure between locked and rolling wheels. In previous cars, I've been able to feel the wheels lock via pedal feedback/ABS surge. No such case in the Tesla (again, could be because there was no ABS).