New Model X - Did they fix the shudder problem?

[FirstInTown]

So it's the angle and was a 'design overlook' Well are they fixing in the extended shutdown? A redesign to lower the motor and decrease the angle would be one fix or a 'portal axle like a Hummer??? Or what ever that is. Now would be the time to fix as no new X being made since Dec 24. Not like they didn't know about this. THIS fix would be more important to me that that 'yoke' steering thingy (Not a wheel) that no one asked for.

 

[Yinn]

So it's the angle and was a 'design overlook' Well are they fixing in the extended shutdown? A redesign to lower the motor and decrease the angle would be one fix or a 'portal axle like a Hummer??? Or what ever that is. Now would be the time to fix as no new X being made since Dec 24. Not like they didn't know about this. THIS fix would be more important to me that that 'yoke' steering thingy (Not a wheel) that no one asked for.

They fix it every time they shut down. They fixed it in 2016 with a redesign. 2017 with a redesign. 2018 with a redesign. 2019 with a redesign. 2020 with a redesign. The shudder in the 2021 will be a different shudder. Promise.

 

[ABC2D]

Put it on super low

but that will introduce camber wear and eat up your tires - I've tried this with a new set of tires and had tread separated on the inside of my rear tire in about 10k miles - I just installed new set of tires and keeping the car at standard height
Chill mode alone could be enough to mitigate the shudder as it limits the acceleration - does it not?

 

[NewHorizons]

but that will introduce camber wear and eat up your tires - I've tried this with a new set of tires and had tread separated on the inside of my rear tire in about 10k miles - I just installed new set of tires and keeping the car at standard height
Chill mode alone could be enough to mitigate the shudder as it limits the acceleration - does it not?

Yes and no.
Mounting the motor too high increases the downward angle of the axles (half-shafts) and therefore increases the stress and binding forces on the cv joints (flexible joints of the half-shafts). The weight of the X coupled with high torque motors with the excessive angle of the half-shafts can quickly deform the insides of the cv joints and then you have vibration. This is much less common on the S because it sits lower and therefore has a more straight angle in the half-shafts.

So what can be done to reduce the angle of the half-shafts is to lower the vehicle a bit. The problem with this is that it changes the geometry of the suspension which now eats up your rear tires. They created an acceleration shudder kit that addresses all of these issues to help eliminate the vibration and preserve you tires. More details and thorough explanation here: www.N2itive.me

 

[NewHorizons]

They fix it every time they shut down. They fixed it in 2016 with a redesign. 2017 with a redesign. 2018 with a redesign. 2019 with a redesign. 2020 with a redesign. The shudder in the 2021 will be a different shudder. Promise.

Elon Musk admission

Shareholder Meeting transcript 6/6/2017

Tesla Motors' (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk Hosts Annual Shareholders Meeting Conference (Transcript)

Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:NASDAQ:TSLA) Annual Shareholders Meeting Call June 6, 2017 5:30 PM ETExecutivesTodd Maron - General CounselElon Musk - Chief Executive...

seekingalpha.com

Article: 7 things we learned from Elon Musk’s Tesla shareholder meeting

 

[NewHorizons]

So it's the angle and was a 'design overlook' Well are they fixing in the extended shutdown? A redesign to lower the motor and decrease the angle would be one fix or a 'portal axle like a Hummer??? Or what ever that is. Now would be the time to fix as no new X being made since Dec 24. Not like they didn't know about this. THIS fix would be more important to me that that 'yoke' steering thingy (Not a wheel) that no one asked for.

Elon Musk admission

Shareholder Meeting transcript 6/6/2017

Tesla Motors' (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk Hosts Annual Shareholders Meeting Conference (Transcript)

Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:NASDAQ:TSLA) Annual Shareholders Meeting Call June 6, 2017 5:30 PM ETExecutivesTodd Maron - General CounselElon Musk - Chief Executive...

seekingalpha.com

Article: 7 things we learned from Elon Musk’s Tesla shareholder meeting

 

[precisionmike2]

As much as I love the upgrades I wouldn't think of buying one until I know they addressed it.

And to date it has not been fixed. Temporary fixes, yes, permanent ones, no.

I would not be convinced it's fixed until I hear multiple reports with 20K miles with no evidence of it.

I have a Model X bought in March of 2020... i.e. in the middle of the pandemic. At this point 18 months later we only have 11,000 miles on it and we've noticed the shudder getting worse for the last two months... normally driven in "standard" height... when the service tech felt the shudder in the test drive he lowered the suspension and the shudder decreased but did not go away. He talked about angle being too steep, "you must be race car accelerating it" etc. I'm about 50 years past being a teenager in a hot rod. We did not buy this as a race car so "pedal to the metal" is not how this car has been driven. I would think that they have not figured out how to design this problem out... and, I am happy to report we will be getting new "axel kits" next week.

 

[mswlogo]

I have a Model X bought in March of 2020... i.e. in the middle of the pandemic. At this point 18 months later we only have 11,000 miles on it and we've noticed the shudder getting worse for the last two months... normally driven in "standard" height... when the service tech felt the shudder in the test drive he lowered the suspension and the shudder decreased but did not go away. He talked about angle being too steep, "you must be race car accelerating it" etc. I'm about 50 years past being a teenager in a hot rod. We did not buy this as a race car so "pedal to the metal" is not how this car has been driven. I would think that they have not figured out how to design this problem out... and, I am happy to report we will be getting new "axel kits" next week.

My X is in Chill mode 99% of the time and I had it in Auto Low since day one. It doesn't get any gentler.
It is a flawed design. A Video of after market links explains the problem.
It definitely is better with some software updates, which I think they lower the car further on auto low.
In Chill and on Auto Low (which is pretty low) I almost never feel it. But occasionally I do.
I've seen to many repairs that make it worse so I'm leaving it for now.

 

[precisionmike2]

My X is in Chill mode 99% of the time and I had it in Auto Low since day one. It doesn't get any gentler.
It is a flawed design. A Video of after market links explains the problem.
It definitely is better with some software updates, which I think they lower the car further on auto low.
In Chill and on Auto Low (which is pretty low) I almost never feel it. But occasionally I do.
I've seen to many repairs that make it worse so I'm leaving it for now.

Thanks for the input... I did lower mine to the max so it seems to have minimized the shudder... but at standard height it was pretty bad so I think I am going ahead with the repair... fingers crossed.

 

[dmurphy]

I've seen to many repairs that make it worse so I'm leaving it for now.

In the past, I would've agreed with you. But the latest fix seems to really be The One. I haven't seen one report yet of the newest half shafts having shudder again. I'm thinking maybe they really got it!

 

[mswlogo]

In the past, I would've agreed with you. But the latest fix seems to really be The One. I haven't seen one report yet of the newest half shafts having shudder again. I'm thinking maybe they really got it!

That’s partly because I think the software pushes it towards low.

 

[rpo]

I had a MS P90D and currently have a newer MS Performance. Both have the shudder. Putting in low does nothing to help. Seems to just be a design defect across both S/X.

 

[precisionmike2]

Thanks for the input... I did lower mine to the max so it seems to have minimized the shudder... but at standard height it was pretty bad so I think I am going ahead with the repair... fingers crossed.

update.... first appointment was in September, and the day before they sent me a msg saying "sorry, no loaner available and your car needs to be here overnight. Please reschedule"... Ok, so I rescheduled for yesterday... with a loaner. you need to leave the car overnight, pick up tomorrow after 4:30." And then this morning, about 10 AM they call and say... "sorry not going to be ready until tomorrow after 4:30..." why aren't they able to do the job in the allotted time? So, still waiting to see how the repair turns out.

 

[RedXowner]

So far (fingers still crossed), I don't have the issue in my P100. I drive in Ludicrous always and accelerate (pedal to the floor) whenever I feel like it, which is honestly not very often - just when some jackleg thinks he owns the road. What I found is that a) I don't have the dreaded shudder, and b) fast ICE cars have the advantage when accelerating at speed (65mph +). When we go from zero, I win always, but not true when the ICE car already has the rpms to generate max torque (cars like the Dodge Challenger Demon or the Mustang Shelby GT500). The MX P100D w/L is fast for sure, but I'm thinking about the Plaid.

 

[Sunshine Speed]

So far (fingers still crossed), I don't have the issue in my P100. I drive in Ludicrous always and accelerate (pedal to the floor) whenever I feel like it, which is honestly not very often - just when some jackleg thinks he owns the road. What I found is that a) I don't have the dreaded shudder, and b) fast ICE cars have the advantage when accelerating at speed (65mph +). When we go from zero, I win always, but not true when the ICE car already has the rpms to generate max torque (cars like the Dodge Challenger Demon or the Mustang Shelby GT500). The MX P100D w/L is fast for sure, but I'm thinking about the Plaid.

Are you driving in Low or Standard suspension height?
Also - I agree that above 60mph the Performance X is only medium fast.

 

[RedXowner]

Are you driving in Low or Standard suspension height?
Also - I agree that above 60mph the Performance X is only medium fast.

I don't think too much about the suspension. It now defaults to Standard for driving under 50mph. I have it set (or the default software now has it set) to go into Low above 50mph, and I have verified that this is the case, and it seems reasonable to me. I also have not seen the tire wear issues people describe about driving in Low. I have replaced 2 rear tires due to nail and screw punctures, but I have yet to replace tires due to tread wear. Have driven my X for 20K+ miles.

 

[Mark J]

I posted this in another forum but it also applies here and gives folks out of warranty another option to consider. The only modification that I have done to my car was during last July, I had the N2itive’s Alignment Kit 1 installed which got rid of the shudder, and also lowers the car about 1” in standard without wearing the inside of the tires. The shudder issue is caused by the drive shafts being at too large of an angle from the wheel to the gear box, which destroys the CV joints. No different than when as a kid I put a lift kit in my pickup, but ended up destroying the universal joints in a short time. So to avoid this happening, you can lower the car to reduce this angle, but then the car will wear out the inside of the tires very quickly but the outside tread looks like no wear. So this kit replaces the linkage in both rear wheels so the camber can be adjusted and the lowering links are installed at all 4 wheels. I had to drive 400 miles to the coast to a shop to do this install and align the car and the first thing I noticed after installing the kit and aligning the car is my WH-Mile improved quite a bit, any where from 280 - 325 WH-Mile . I attached the alignment sheet showing the alignment before the kit was installed and not able to adjust the camber. (A side note, I had the Tesla shop align the car right before I drove to the coast in the hopes this would reduce the wear on my tires) and the bottom of the page shows after the kit was installed and the final alignment. Hope the link works. Please let me know if it doesn't.

 

[Sunshine Speed]

I don't think too much about the suspension. It now defaults to Standard for driving under 50mph. I have it set (or the default software now has it set) to go into Low above 50mph, and I have verified that this is the case, and it seems reasonable to me. I also have not seen the tire wear issues people describe about driving in Low. I have replaced 2 rear tires due to nail and screw punctures, but I have yet to replace tires due to tread wear. Have driven my X for 20K+ miles.

With your settings, when you hit 50mph the car will go to Low suspension, and I've heard it stays there even if you slow down to 30mph for example. Maybe the reason you're not getting the Shudder is because your car is in Low suspension mode the majority of the time. The Low suspension means that you are likely getting the premature tire wear on the inside of the tires, and will need to change tires soon after 20K miles.

I drive in Standard suspension height up to 90mph, but I'm considering switching to driving in Low suspension to avoid the Shudder, even if tire wear is faster. I also think I'll get faster acceleration in Low suspension mode in my P90DL.

 

[BryWay]

As much as I love the upgrades I wouldn't think of buying one until I know they addressed it.

And to date it has not been fixed. Temporary fixes, yes, permanent ones, no.

I would not be convinced it's fixed until I hear multiple reports with 20K miles with no evidence of it.

Early 2019 Model X P100D here and have over 37,000 miles on the car. No shudder whatsoever.

 

[Sunshine Speed]

Had my half shafts/clevis mounts replaced with newest parts from TSB. After only 2 months, the shudder is back when flooring it in ludicrous, and this week even a bit of grinding sound. I drive in standard suspension mode up to 90mph. This was likely a mistake, I should be driving in Low suspension mode always. Maybe I'll change to always Low suspension today, but I hope the ride is not rougher then.