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Model S Technical / Mechanical Issues

Discussion in 'Model S' started by DrComputer, Sep 27, 2012.

  1. Ben W

    Ben W P85 #61, Roadster #108

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    Location:
    Santa Barbara, CA
    Most hairdryers advertise 1875 watts, which is >15 amps on a 120v circuit; I wonder how they get away with that? I never had a problem using my Roadster mobile connector at 15 amps continuous. (16 amps shown on the Roadster display.) Incidentally, this is for use in a 200-car garage, which has a total of ONE electrical outlet... Fortunately, they gave me the only parking spot next to the outlet.
     
  2. ElSupreme

    ElSupreme Model S 03182

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    Atlanta, GA
    The NEC considers 'continuous load' to be more than 3 hours. So your microwave and hairdriyer and toaster can all pull rated amperage, as they typcically don't run for 3 hours, and well have mechanisms to prevent it. A car charging is almost always going to end up going over the 3 hour mark.

    The roadster may have been on a 20A circuit, and thus 16A was the correct charging current. But it could also have been risking melting all of those wires.
     
  3. Ben W

    Ben W P85 #61, Roadster #108

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    Location:
    Santa Barbara, CA
    More technical issues with my Model S... The 12v battery is dying (oh the irony); a warning on the dashboard says it needs replacement soon. Must be the alternator :)

    The sunroof has started making some noticeable crackling/creaking noises when closed while driving. Probably just needs a touch of silicone somewhere.

    Also, the floormat material is fairly fluffy, and is starting to kick up dustbunnies. This was an issue for the early Roadsters too, before they replaced and bolted the floormats down. Presumably if this becomes problematic for too many people, Tesla will replace them the same way, so I'm not too worried.
     
  4. Doug_G

    Doug_G Lead Moderator

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    Frankly I find it hard to understand 3 hours as being an "intermittent" load. Surely the entire circuit breaker/wiring/switch/outlet chain would have already settled in at their maximum temperature long before then. Does anyone know the technical rationale the NEC uses?
     
  5. jerry33

    jerry33 (S85-3/2/13 traded in) X LR: F2611##-3/27/20

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    I'd like to think they ran test loads and it took three hours at 100% for the wiring or breaker to either reach thermal equilibrium or to exceed a target temperature. However, I don't actually know.
     
  6. kevincwelch

    kevincwelch Active Member

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    <sigh...>
     
  7. ElSupreme

    ElSupreme Model S 03182

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    I am not sure either. But I believe Jerry has is correct. I might have access to a NEC book at my office. If I ever get off site I'll see if they have some background of why it is '3 hours or longer' for continuous load.
     
  8. donauker

    donauker Member

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    Sep 5, 2006
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    798
    I had a number of error messages concerning the 12v battery when car completed the latest software update on Sunday evening. Haven't seen anything since that.
    I have also noticed the creaking noise in the sunroof.


    In about 3 hours of time on Sunday I had center screen totally lock and require a reboot about 6 times. This occurred while using the NAV and playing FLAC files from a thumb drive. You would see a message on the media player indicating it was unable to play file. Upon rebooting it had no problem playing the same file.
     
  9. FlasherZ

    FlasherZ Sig Model S + Sig Model X + Model 3 Resv

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    Yes - it's the delineation chosen based upon temperature rise for thermal protection devices operating near capacity. It's a specification that is designed to provide protection against heat generation at near-100%-load while minimizing nuisance tripping or opening of over-current devices. It takes into account ambient temperature rise in enclosed panels and raceways, and how that affects things like thermally-tripping circuit breakers. It's also coupled with the UL listing requirements. It seems rather arbitrary, but they had to start somewhere, and I imagine it's based on some real-world data on thermal fuses and the like. :)

    The NEC unfortunately doesn't list rationale, only the rules.

    The NEC does allow for certain types of continuous load circuits to be sized for 100 percent instead of 125 percent if all components of the "assembly" to include breakers, conductors, panels, appliances, etc., are rated for 100% continuous load utilization.
     
  10. ckessel

    ckessel Active Member

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    4,442
    Between this and donauker's 6 reboots in 3 hours, I'm wishing I had deferred instead of finalized. I'm not terribly confident Tesla can deliver me a car that won't be back in the shop on a regular basis :(
     
  11. donauker

    donauker Member

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    To be clear, the lockups occurred prior to installing the latest software and I would certainly expect this to be dealt with through software updates if the recent upgrade hasn't already fixed it. I haven't seen this occur at anytime other than the listed combination of functions although this would be a typical combination.
     
  12. gg_got_a_tesla

    gg_got_a_tesla Model S: VIN 65513, Model 3: VIN 1913

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    I had my doubts about the pano roof's reliability overall given that it's the biggest piece of mechanical gadgetry outside of the drivetrain and suspension. I did punt on it to save money too but, kinda' feel vindicated.

    Sorry about your troubles with it... hope there's a simple fix.
     
  13. MikeK

    MikeK R#129, TSLA shareholder

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    I'm not sure how to read your first sentence there. Do you mean "it makes noises if it is in the closed position while you are driving", or "it makes noises if you tell it to close while you are driving"?

    I'd be more concerned about the former than the latter, although both should be fixed.
     
  14. donauker

    donauker Member

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    I didn't pick up on the dual possibility. Mine is definitely in the "it makes noise when it is in the closed position while driving" category.
     
  15. mknox

    mknox Well-Known Member

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    Toronto, ON
    I plan on configuring with the pano roof, but this concerns me. My current car has a very large 2-panel sunroof. The only difference from the Model S's is that on mine, the opening panel slides under the rear glass panel, not above. The center bar is also considerably smaller and thinner than Model S's. My current "pano" roof has been rock solid... no wind noise, no mechanical issues and no leaks. I hope this is dealt with!
     
  16. 4sevens.com

    4sevens.com Member

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    Aug 20, 2012
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    418
    The further down the waiting list you are the more likely it'll get fixed. I'm just over 1000 so it does concern me a bit.
    However when i test drove one in dallas I didn't notice any noises from the sunroof - but then again I could have been caught up in the adrenaline.
    Whatever the issue - if it's big enough you can be assured that tesla is going to fix it... the question is when... :p
     
  17. stephenpace

    stephenpace VIN S00219

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    Dec 22, 2011
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    607
    Location:
    Houston, TX
    Just a brief update. I'm on the latest firmware now. I haven't had any more pixelation issues with the screens since the first couple days. However, I do have the panoroof creaking issue. Ranger took a look and initially it went away with an open / close (I wasn't sure it was the pano until that point) but it later returned. I don't have the Homelink issues--I've got Homelink on two openers of two types and both work great. Bluetooth I use a lot for streaming music and to make calls, but I have had the issue (rarely) where pairing goes away. When it does, repairing can be as simple as rebooting the phone (I wasn't 100% the issue wasn't my iPhone 4S on iOS6) or (once) as hard as not being able to repair after rebooting both the screens and iPhone and waiting until the next day when pairing worked fine again.
     
  18. kevincwelch

    kevincwelch Active Member

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    Thanks, stephenpace.

    Anyone else having sunroof issues? Seems like a mechanical issue, which bothers me much more than software issues. Still on the fence re: the sunroof. I rarely use the one I have now, and I did notice glare on the 17inch screen with it open.
     
  19. Todd Burch

    Todd Burch Voltage makes me tingle.

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    Software issues: don't concern me...they'll get worked out. It's just natural as Tesla has gone from a limited number of testers to hundreds of testers in very different real-world situations every day. That's what's great about it all being software. The issues will be fixed.

    Pano roof or other mechanical issues: While these are more of a concern than software, remember that we'll all have the warranty, so the pano roof creaking should be covered free of charge. Yes, it's a bit of a nuisance, but a small thing to deal with in the overall picture. Even less of a nuisance if you have the Ranger service. If you're not expecting these things, you signed on the dotted line for the wrong car! Just remember that the warranty will cover them.
     
  20. kevincwelch

    kevincwelch Active Member

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    Oh, I'm aware of that.

    The negative side of me worries about weekly or monthly trips to a service center to have things addressed. Not saying it will happen, but it's the little things that pop up and interfere with general functionality or appreciation.
     

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