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Model 3 Pulling to Right (FW Bug!)
- Thread starter Sabinanners
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- Driving Dynamics Model 3
Seeing if anyone else has had this problem come up recently.
My car used to track perfectly straight, upgraded to 32.2.2 a couple days ago and the very first drive after the update I noticed the car pulling to the right. The steering wheel is also pointing in that direction when hands are off the wheel. It takes a good amount of force to hold the steering wheel straight.
Don’t see how this could be an alignment issue because it literally happened overnight while it was sitting in the garage.
My car used to track perfectly straight, upgraded to 32.2.2 a couple days ago and the very first drive after the update I noticed the car pulling to the right. The steering wheel is also pointing in that direction when hands are off the wheel. It takes a good amount of force to hold the steering wheel straight.
Don’t see how this could be an alignment issue because it literally happened overnight while it was sitting in the garage.
Dang, I hope Tesla doesn't have a software regression issue going on.
Supposedly, there's an algorithm in the firmware that takes into consideration "road crown," and prevents the car from pulling one way or the other based on your position on that crown. Apparently, there was a bug in the firmware that was causing cars to always pull to the right; the algorithm wasn't working correctly. But that was fixed last year.
I'm on .32.2.1, so no help from me.
Yours is the first post I've seen about it, but you know what they say... for every one post of someone with a certain experience, there are dozens more out there with the same thing going on. Hopefully we'll hear from them.
Man, there have been so many reported problems with .32.2.2...
Wow I experienced this back in June. It was pulling to the right on a roadtrip so I mentioned it when I went in for a service visit to address other items. The tech even came for a ridealong and confirmed it was pulling to the right slightly. I ended up declining the alignment since they wanted $200+ and I didn't feel like it was that bad. Crazy to read it could have been caused by software. I was even thinking just last night that it didn't seem to be pulling anymore. Anyway seems to be fixed for me now in current version.
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Hi Folks, just wanted to post my recent experience (Jan 2021) on this topic.
My Model3 is a Nov. 2017 LR RWD (the only option at the time). The car started suddenly pulling to the right despite no known road hazards causing a mechanical issue.
Long story short, the service center performed the alignment and found it to be dead on. I picked up the car and it was still pulling to the right so immediately took it back. If the steering wheel was held straight, the car went straight, however immediately after releasing the wheel it would veer right.They checked the alignment again and eventually found that the steering rack calibration algorithm was the issue and reset the calibration parameters. The car is now back to normal.
I'm not sure if this was a firmware regression or if it's a different issue than that posted in this thread a couple years ago. I'll be more closely monitoring if this issue pops up again after each future firmware update.
Might not hurt to have a user option to reset this calibration just like we can reset TPMS or Autopilot camera calibration.
Anyone else seeing this in 2021?
My Model3 is a Nov. 2017 LR RWD (the only option at the time). The car started suddenly pulling to the right despite no known road hazards causing a mechanical issue.
Long story short, the service center performed the alignment and found it to be dead on. I picked up the car and it was still pulling to the right so immediately took it back. If the steering wheel was held straight, the car went straight, however immediately after releasing the wheel it would veer right.They checked the alignment again and eventually found that the steering rack calibration algorithm was the issue and reset the calibration parameters. The car is now back to normal.
I'm not sure if this was a firmware regression or if it's a different issue than that posted in this thread a couple years ago. I'll be more closely monitoring if this issue pops up again after each future firmware update.
Might not hurt to have a user option to reset this calibration just like we can reset TPMS or Autopilot camera calibration.
Anyone else seeing this in 2021?
Yes this is a known problem on 3s/Ys requiring repairs on a structural frame alignment bench even after a factory alignment is restored, or ones where an update is initiated with the front wheels not pointing straight with the steering wheel in a neutral dead center position. Crazy.
Why they would allow this to happen and not expose the calibration params reset beats me. Maybe one day if this becomes a more wide spread or widely reported issue.
Why they would allow this to happen and not expose the calibration params reset beats me. Maybe one day if this becomes a more wide spread or widely reported issue.
My model3 is also around the same built. I do notice it veerinng to the right but very slightly, not sure if that's b/c the road but your post is helpful. I will also be monitoring. Yes, it would be nice the a user option to reset by ourselves.
I have a 2021 LR AWD that pulls to the right. Steering wheel doesn’t always sit on centre. Usually a bit to the right but varies. Tesla service has done 3 alignments on it. After the second alignment appointment it was about 50% better. When I leave the service centre the steering wheel is band on centre. Then it starts getting worse the more I drive again. Only 3000 kms on the car. Does anyone know if the FW update mentioned previously in this thread was actually implemented?
Updating this one…after doing more testing and inspection Tesla techs found a slight pressure variation between left and right in the steering gear assembly. They replaced that and car now rides perfectly straight with the steering wheel bang on center.
I see a lot of threads on this... now that I'm having the issue. My AWD Model 3 was built in Aug 2018. I wore out a set of tires in 30k miles, the insides were feathered and worn way more. So with new tires I went to get an alignment. At this point, the car went straight reliable, and I only wanted the alignment to ensure better tire wear and efficiency.
Local tire place tried to align it, and when they were done, the car pulled right. When I brought it back, they agreed (most places just say "road crown" and wash their hands). They tried again and swapped tires... no difference. They gave me my money back when I asked. The car is now driving worse than before alignment.
Took it to nearest SC (trying to avoid driving out of town for an alignment at first!). They found the car was "out of spec" and aligned it to their specs. It pulled to the right slightly less, but the wheel was now two degrees off center. I took it back a week later and they agreed that it was still pulling right and that the wheel was off. Tried all day to fix it with tire swaps, inspections, realignment, test drive. wanted to keep it over night. Next day drove it more, still couldn't figure it out until afternoon when they decided it was the steering rack. Would need to keep it over night again.
On the third day they replaced the steering rack. Realigned, tested and declared it fixed. I picked it up, and it was perfect. Wheel straight, no drift. Super happy even if I'd now spent five days on the alignment project. Drove the car for 500 miles, including one 300-mile trip on wonderful, smooth, flat county roads. The steering was perfect! Then the next day (this morning!) I'm driving on my same local roads to work as always and.... crap. Again pulls to the right.
What the hell is going on? I'm confident that the alignment is not the problem. The wheels and tires are not the problem. The steering rack is apparently not the problem. So.... is this firmware?? for real? This idea that it "adapts" to road crown is nuts. As if we all drive on the same-crowned roads exclusively? I understand if my car follows the crown. That's just physics. But every road is different, and some of my roads are crowned left.... many right.
After reading all these threads (many from three years ago of course) I am still no closer to grasping what the problem is here, nor what the fix is. And for those who say that an alignment on this car is no different from any other.... well, technically that is true. But getting the car to actually go straight is apparently different. My car (now) feels as if it has more power steering to the right, and less boost to the left. Letting go of the wheel leaves the lane to the right. A small tweak of the wheel to the left re-centers. The same small tweak to the right stays to the right, and off we go. It is not drastic. But constant left pressure must be applied to go straight on a flat road.
Man this is frustrating.
Local tire place tried to align it, and when they were done, the car pulled right. When I brought it back, they agreed (most places just say "road crown" and wash their hands). They tried again and swapped tires... no difference. They gave me my money back when I asked. The car is now driving worse than before alignment.
Took it to nearest SC (trying to avoid driving out of town for an alignment at first!). They found the car was "out of spec" and aligned it to their specs. It pulled to the right slightly less, but the wheel was now two degrees off center. I took it back a week later and they agreed that it was still pulling right and that the wheel was off. Tried all day to fix it with tire swaps, inspections, realignment, test drive. wanted to keep it over night. Next day drove it more, still couldn't figure it out until afternoon when they decided it was the steering rack. Would need to keep it over night again.
On the third day they replaced the steering rack. Realigned, tested and declared it fixed. I picked it up, and it was perfect. Wheel straight, no drift. Super happy even if I'd now spent five days on the alignment project. Drove the car for 500 miles, including one 300-mile trip on wonderful, smooth, flat county roads. The steering was perfect! Then the next day (this morning!) I'm driving on my same local roads to work as always and.... crap. Again pulls to the right.
What the hell is going on? I'm confident that the alignment is not the problem. The wheels and tires are not the problem. The steering rack is apparently not the problem. So.... is this firmware?? for real? This idea that it "adapts" to road crown is nuts. As if we all drive on the same-crowned roads exclusively? I understand if my car follows the crown. That's just physics. But every road is different, and some of my roads are crowned left.... many right.
After reading all these threads (many from three years ago of course) I am still no closer to grasping what the problem is here, nor what the fix is. And for those who say that an alignment on this car is no different from any other.... well, technically that is true. But getting the car to actually go straight is apparently different. My car (now) feels as if it has more power steering to the right, and less boost to the left. Letting go of the wheel leaves the lane to the right. A small tweak of the wheel to the left re-centers. The same small tweak to the right stays to the right, and off we go. It is not drastic. But constant left pressure must be applied to go straight on a flat road.
Man this is frustrating.
This is EXACTLY where I am minus no steering rack replacement yet.
In your case I bet they used the so called v2 rack which is what they put into the newer 2020+ cars, slightly different mounting points etc. Sad to hear that too doesnt fix it.
In your case I bet they used the so called v2 rack which is what they put into the newer 2020+ cars, slightly different mounting points etc. Sad to hear that too doesnt fix it.
Part of me feels good to not be alone. And yet... Sucks to see this happening to so many.
Different mounting points? That must make for a retrofit challenge. Would the part number of the rack tell us anything? It is:
LHD(1044831-00-H)
That is the v2 or rev2 part currently being jnstalled at the factories on Model 3s since circa mid/late 2020 (and any more recent part numbers are also rev2s).
The service manual talks about the removal and reinstall and retrofit is mentioned, along with notes for the SC techs. Use of different mounting location, bolts, shims etc.
Pity that the new rack 'fix' doesnt seem to offer a permanent solution... that was my next hope after endless alignments, rotations, wheel balance and bend checks.
It boggles the mind how sensitive, inaccurate and unadjustable the alignment is on these things.
Coupled with the luckluster steering, hopefully things improve as Tesla becomes another mainstream A to B appliance producer.
The service manual talks about the removal and reinstall and retrofit is mentioned, along with notes for the SC techs. Use of different mounting location, bolts, shims etc.
Pity that the new rack 'fix' doesnt seem to offer a permanent solution... that was my next hope after endless alignments, rotations, wheel balance and bend checks.
It boggles the mind how sensitive, inaccurate and unadjustable the alignment is on these things.
Coupled with the luckluster steering, hopefully things improve as Tesla becomes another mainstream A to B appliance producer.
Thanks for all that info on the part. And yes this is so odd. There's always the folks who chime in and say that there's nothing different about aligning a Tesla. And I always thought that was true. I mean how could there be a difference? Well... now I'm experiencing the difference first hand. They physical bits are all standard. A mechanical alignment is not magic when you have the proper tools and knowledge. But *something* is telling this car to bias to the right. It feels like it is trying to compensate for a crown to the left. Or to put it another way, it feels like there is a constant crown to the right, even when there isn't.
I am going through a similar situation right now and feel like I’m losing my mind. I have a 2021 SR+ with 800 miles on it. Randomly on the freeway I received a bunch of errors. No traction control no emergency braking no autopilot. I drove it home. The next day I had it towed to the SC as I was home with my 3 year old and did not want to Uber home with a car seat. It has been there since Tuesday. They said the car was “hit” and the suspension arm was bent and that’s the reason why the errors came on. They came to this conclusion after they could not get the car in alignment no matter what they did. I know for a fact I never once drove over a pothole etc. the car has zero damage. They said the warranty would not cover it. I argued but finally decided I just wanted my car back and since it was like 400 bucks I agreed to pay. Today I was supposed to get the car back but the arm did not fix the problem so they replaced another arm. The car alignment is in spec now but is pulling to the right when the car is over 45mph. So they are now saying it’s something with the steering. The service manager told me that when they received the car was undrivable due to massive alignment issues. I am so confused because when I dropped off the car it had zero alignment issues and only went up service because of the safety errors.
Oh man. That's next-level bad. I don't understand what they could be thinking here.
Interestingly enough, my journey to the "right-pull" started without it pulling right as well. I just got new tires and wanted an alignment check. And ever since then, no amount of alignments or tire swaps or a new steering rack has been able to make it right. But they aren't telling me that I crashed the car and screwed up the front end. At 32,000 miles I don't have a spec of curb rash on the wheels, or a single ding in the paint.
I keep saying show me the bent arm. I want side by side photos of the bent and new one. They will not show it to me. I’m so frustrated. Waited months for this car. Took it in for what I thought was a software issue and now they are just adding more and more work that it needs.
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