NHTSA asks Tesla to recall 158,000 [now 135,000] vehicles for eMMC failure. Voluntary Recall issued

[plumazul]

Another consideration: my eMMC replacement took three days. This was around October 2020. I, like others, subsequently went to MCU2 as I’d already had HW3 installed. I was afraid that if I stayed with MCU1, I’d end up with less than FSD operations.

It's obvious that FSD will NOT work properly with MCU1/HW3. Don't be "afraid", demand what you paid for.

 

[cduzz]

I was at A SC Tuesday and the service writer told me I needed to document the outages (2 days of black last week and several reboots and freezes ) .And make an appointment (@ 2 week backlog at this point ) . I guess I will wait to make the appt at this point . I can't imagine replacing the chip with anything but a uprated chip .I was going on a trip to the local mountains but turned around and changed to my Bolt as I didn't want to proceed without climate change control.. Like most of you I was contacted by the class action lawyers and recieved a email from Tesla describing the problem . I hear Elon is now the richest guy around and is taking his company to Texas because he can't be bothered by CA's rules . SO what are you gonna do for us . I love my car and just want a speedy repair that keeps me on the road .

As far as I know, all MCU1 repairs involve installing the larger memory chip which should result in substantially better wear than the original chip.

Tesla really missed an obvious opportunity to fix this when they made the MCU2 incompatible with the MCU1; the team that made the MCU2 should have included provisions to talk to the legacy IC and the analog radio; even if they're just traces / unused features on the "production" board but with populated components on the "repair" board. There's no way refurbishing / building new MCU1s is cost effective. It would have added months / 10s/100s of thousand $ to the front end of the MCU2 project but fully avoided these issues.

They're not going to get far into the supercar or commercial trucking market with these support antics.

I've also taken my car in for glitchy controls and been given the runaround.

 

[dannycamps]

Newer software making old hardware obsolete is not a software bug, it’s a feature!

Sounds like something Tim Cook would say

Wow I just got a message from SC that they can fix my car (occasional black center screen, no blinkers) remotely! We're not having daily or even weekly issues but have had it act up a few times. Directed to contact SC by roadside assistance during the last episode about three weeks ago. Have not had an issue since. My appt for the daughter board replacement was scheduled for next week.

There is no way a remote software update can correct a failing hardware component. The only thing they can do is delay the inevitable by clearing up some log/cache space.

Tesla can address this issue (and the larger MCU1 performance issue) if they want but they would need to basically build a stripped down version of their OS that will run properly on the older hardware. There is no point in doing this however as they would effectively be throwing resources at a dwindling population of owners.

 

[BrownOuttaSpec]

I had the daughter-board replacement and it simply doesn't help solve the core problem, though it did solve my problem about a black/bricked MCU1

* Random reboots
* Freezes / lagging
* Disabling of Autopilot

Went back to the dealership and at the time (30-45 days ago) was told that there was no option to replace the MCU1 for the vehicle. They only were able to reflash the firmware (which meant reprogramming everything, including the garage door).

I am glad someone else documented that the Tegra DB replacement doesn't fix the issue. I had mine replaced and they had to fully wipe my MCU. I set it all back up and still continued to have freezes, bluetooth connections issues, corrupted graphics, reboots and even my passenger side window wouldnt work once time until i rebooted.

I was going to take my car back in but they wanted me to do another factory reset to see if that fixed the issue. I did it again and still have the same probelms again. I really think that MCU2 is the only fix.

 

[Saabstory88]

Tesla can address this issue (and the larger MCU1 performance issue) if they want but they would need to basically build a stripped down version of their OS that will run properly on the older hardware. There is no point in doing this however as they would effectively be throwing resources at a dwindling population of owners.

Just got 2020.48.35 this morning. Fewer animations in the menus, toys are slower, but Map, Nav, Music, and Voice commands now work promptly, if with less flourish. Looks like they did just that. Maybe a backport to an lighter version of QT combined with deleting some of the visual frills. The IC display is unaffected unlike MCU2 cars. Same big font.

 

[Droschke]

For the AP1 cars, what functionalities are lost if upgraded to MCU2?

 

[thimel]

For the AP1 cars, what functionalities are lost if upgraded to MCU2?

You lose FM radio and the backup camera doesn’t see well in the dark. Not sure if you also lose XM radio.

 

[stopcrazypp]

Just got 2020.48.35 this morning. Fewer animations in the menus, toys are slower, but Map, Nav, Music, and Voice commands now work promptly, if with less flourish. Looks like they did just that. Maybe a backport to an lighter version of QT combined with deleting some of the visual frills. The IC display is unaffected unlike MCU2 cars. Same big font.

Yeah, that seems like the far easier way out than upgrading all cars to MCU2 (as some wish). By doing so they have to deal with anger from those that did already (and likely be forced to do refunds), plus it'll cost more in hardware.

 

[stopcrazypp]

There is no way a remote software update can correct a failing hardware component. The only thing they can do is delay the inevitable by clearing up some log/cache space.

They already have a fix for that, with a far larger 64GB eMMC to replace the 8GB eMMC that makes the logging irrelevant.

Tesla can address this issue (and the larger MCU1 performance issue) if they want but they would need to basically build a stripped down version of their OS that will run properly on the older hardware. There is no point in doing this however as they would effectively be throwing resources at a dwindling population of owners.

They have to support those owners regardless, especially in the face of this recall. It's just a matter of what costs less money. Replacing the 8GB eMMC with 64GB eMMC (which supposedly they can do just with daughterboard swaps, and then taking back the old one to refurb) and doing a software update to strip some of the performance robbing elements (which someone posted they are doing exactly that) to address the slow performance (which notably is not part of this recall request) likely costs far less than full MCU2 replacements for everyone with MCU1.

 

[brkaus]

For the AP1 cars, what functionalities are lost if upgraded to MCU2?

You lose FM radio and the backup camera doesn’t see well in the dark. Not sure if you also lose XM radio.

You can get FM + XM radio for an additional $500 by replacing your existing analog tuner with the newer compatible digital tuner. There is no AM radio available on the newer digital tuner.

 

[brkaus]

Yeah, that seems like the far easier way out than upgrading all cars to MCU2 (as some wish). By doing so they have to deal with anger from those that did already (and likely be forced to do refunds), plus it'll cost more in hardware.

Yup. Convince the feds they have a handle on the hardware issue with the auto detection and the claim the rest is software that they are addressing with the highest priority.

 

[Chaserr]

The problem I see with most Tesla owners is they do not press warranty issues. If you are not near a service center, it is impossible to talk to anyone. A lot of owners had rather just pay for an upgrade than try to an pursue. an issue... .My expectations are, you pay for a car and everything on it is supposed to work or be repaired at no additional cost during the warranty period established by the manufacture. . We get a lot with Tesla, software updates etc. Upon purchase, this was the deal they offered and we paid the price. I for one got nothing free.. One big hint. How many people have MCU1 with a working browser? This was a feature on my car and I expect it to be fixed. I will do what it takes

The recall might help the browser work again. One of the biggest reasons MCU1 isn't getting things it should get is the old EMMC was too small and adding more large programs increased the chances of failure every time. once all MCU1 have new 64GB chips they can update without worrying about the warranty costs of accelerated failure of 8GB chips still under warranty. They probably won't update MCU1 like they should, but they won't have any technical excuses any more. Feature bloat leading to faster wear was a good reason to withhold.

 

[Chaserr]

As far as I know, all MCU1 repairs involve installing the larger memory chip which should result in substantially better wear than the original chip.

Tesla really missed an obvious opportunity to fix this when they made the MCU2 incompatible with the MCU1; the team that made the MCU2 should have included provisions to talk to the legacy IC and the analog radio; even if they're just traces / unused features on the "production" board but with populated components on the "repair" board. There's no way refurbishing / building new MCU1s is cost effective. It would have added months / 10s/100s of thousand $ to the front end of the MCU2 project but fully avoided these issues.

They're not going to get far into the supercar or commercial trucking market with these support antics.

I've also taken my car in for glitchy controls and been given the runaround.

I was always surprised they didn't make an MCU2 daughter board since the MCU itself was designed to have the computer quickly upgraded.

 

[ethange]

I’ve an affected mcu in my MS 2017, anyone expect Tesla to offer a discounted MCU2 upgrade rather than just fixing the old mcu??

I totally agree

 

[studioloft]

So this is interesting. I can't pick up my car out of service.

I dropped my 2017 Model X at my local SC on December 14th for a powertrain issue and (for the 5th time) attempting to address autopilot making maneuvers without auditory notifications. As the MCU issue is intermittent the SC tells me (essentially) that I am crazy and they were unable to reproduce the issue BUT they cleared the cache and flashed the firmware. 5 times now.

Wednesday I get an invoice stating "Customer states autopilot changes lanes automatically. Resolution: lane change disabled". I emailed the SC and said this absolutely is not my issue - my issue is that it changes lanes without any auditory chimes and I frequently am not aware of the maneuver until the tire is over the line. I told them to rephrase the invoice to the issue I relayed then I will come pick up the car. Fast forward to Wednesday night the NHTSA letter is issued. They can no longer hide behind the "cleared the cache" resolution. I have sent multiple emails, text messages, and have waited on hold twice (1hr the first time 2.5hrs the second). My car has been in for service 10 times now in my 13 months of ownership. I am familiar with their technicians and this is out of character for them to completely ignore me. My best bet is that don't want to legally admit to handing the car back to me with a now known safety issue. Has anyone else been able to retrieve their 2017 or earlier Model S or X recently?

 

[gearchruncher]

I was afraid that if I stayed with MCU1, I’d end up with less than FSD operations.

For me, if that was true, I'd take Tesla to court. "All cars include hardware required for FSD." If MCU2 is required to do FSD, it has to be free when you buy FSD.

 

[gearchruncher]

My car has been in for service 10 times now in my 13 months of ownership.

What are CT's lemon laws? In many states, if they have the car for >30 days total, it's a lemon and you can return it.

 

[Cal1]

This has been my stance from the onset of MCU problems. I don't care about games and I don't need side camera views when I'm in FSD mode. I'll be with you in court if it's needed for FSD. I only bought because Elon said they would pay to get me whatever hardware is necessary to FSD.

 

[aerodyne]

I was at A SC Tuesday and the service writer told me I needed to document the outages (2 days of black last week and several reboots and freezes ) .And make an appointment (@ 2 week backlog at this point ) . I guess I will wait to make the appt at this point . I can't imagine replacing the chip with anything but a uprated chip .I was going on a trip to the local mountains but turned around and changed to my Bolt as I didn't want to proceed without climate change control.. Like most of you I was contacted by the class action lawyers and recieved a email from Tesla describing the problem . I hear Elon is now the richest guy around and is taking his company to Texas because he can't be bothered by CA's rules . SO what are you gonna do for us . I love my car and just want a speedy repair that keeps me on the road .

Ask your SA where it says in the SB (Posted above in post number 153, thanks @MP3Mike!) that you as the owner have to do anything!

This might clue them in that you are a squeaky wheel..

Attach a short vid of the blank screen to the service App.

Bring a copy of the SB with you to the appt.

Let us know how it went if you can.

 

[studioloft]

What are CT's lemon laws? In many states, if they have the car for >30 days total, it's a lemon and you can return it.

Sadly I looked into this an am not eligible. I purchased the car in December of 2019 with 22k miles on it. CT Lemon Law only covers up to 24k miles.
Related to this thread obviously I have reported the MCU issues a number of times.. but among the list of issues my rear motor completely failed, the "charger rpd splitter" failed, quarter glass askew causing whistling noises at 50+mph, rear right passenger window would not move, falcon door weather stripping peeled off, windshield wipers would not operate, top right falcon glass panel detached, 12V battery replaced, "Front left safety restraint system fault", left window regulator replaced, air suspension compressor replaced.... I love my tesla but if those are the issues I have faced in 13 months of ownership I can't imagine how much this car would cost to own beyond the warranty. Taycan in my future at that point

Edit: In my 13 months of ownership and 10 service visits I have kept track of time in the shop. We're at 71 days collectively, 33 days on the current visit. Over 2 of 13 months it has been out of my possession!