NHTSA Investigates Failing MCUs

[AMPd]

Someone on reddit said older cars lose turn signals when the MCU goes. Not sure if thats true. I know mine loses sound, not sure about the lights

Mine lost sound but the actual turn signals still worked. 2015 model s

 

[HHHH]

Mine lost sound but the actual turn signals still worked. 2015 model s

Did you eventually get it fixed? or is it still like that?

 

[Chaserr]

Mine actually went out last weekend and luckily Tesla reset it without replacing it, but I'm told this may be an indication it will need to be replaced. It could be part of the reason for me to replace my aging 2013 P85+

It will fail permanently on the next update or in a few months if you skip updates. They have 2 partitions and each update moves from one to the other. When it fails on one they fix it by moving you to the other, but that only works once.

 

[Chaserr]

MCU1 failure is an expensive nuisance to fix, to be sure, but I think it is a stretch to call it a safety issue, even with climate control and window defogging being unavailable.

I don't expect any help from NHTSA.

NHTSA considers failure of light controls to be a safety issue.

 

[viper2ko]

My line of thinking is that NHTSA now has to answer two questions.

1. If this a safety issue?

2. Did Tesla contribute/cause this issue, or is it normal wear?


1. Debatable. This is where the case will be won or lost for Tesla.

2. Clearly they did cause or accelerate this issue. They even admitted so by issuing software updates to decrease the logging.

 

[AMPd]

Did you eventually get it fixed? or is it still like that?

I got home and the next day everything was normal. All the screens worked as usual.

 

[boaterva]

The actual text from NHTSA: 2014 TESLA MODEL S:

So they know it impacts the Model X as well. (And goes to early 2018.)

So we can chalk it up to reporters not reading, as usual. Shocker.....

Thanks!

 

[sonofagunn]

Link where you can file a complaint for your own car: File a Vehicle Safety Complaint | Safercar.gov | NHTSA

The more people file, the more likely Tesla will offer a real fix.

 

[slainla]

MCU1 failure is an expensive nuisance to fix, to be sure, but I think it is a stretch to call it a safety issue, even with climate control and window defogging being unavailable.

I don't expect any help from NHTSA.

I beg to differ. I was driving In California during winter of 2019 and the MCU experienced an endless reboot that Tesla support couldn’t fix. Manual reboots didn’t work either. I had to manually defog before I first got in. And when the windshield fogged up to the point I could not longer see while driving, I had to pull over to wipe. It was definitely a safety issue.

 

[dgpcolorado]

Someone on reddit said older cars lose turn signals when the MCU goes. Not sure if thats true. I know mine loses sound, not sure about the lights

The MCU controls sound, so the turn signals work and flash on the IC but don't make a sound. Once the dead MCU is replaced everything is back to normal.

My big problem was that I couldn't charge my car at more than about 0.5 kW with the dead MCU. That's too slow to be useful. I've heard that Supercharging still works but the nearest one is 95 miles away and that was way too far away for me to get to for an experiment that could leave me stranded.

 

[Akikiki]

First thing I thought on reading about this today was 'why not include Model X's' and why not every model year up to the MCU 2's? Nothing was ever done to upgrade the MCU 1's, so, why do an incomplete investigation/analysis? Or have I missed something?

That's a valid question. Why 63,000? That number does not account for any one single year from '12 thru 1Q'18. And its not a combined count for any two years. For instance, 2015 sales were 51,773 so where's the other 11,000+ counted from?

 

[drklain]

Can we move all the discussion about the NTSB investigation and/or issues with MCU1 EMMC to another thread? This thread is supposed to be about upgrading from MCU1 to MCU2...

[Moderator Note: This and 10 other posts concerning the NHTSA investigation were merged from another thread into this thread.]

 

[dgpcolorado]

I beg to differ. I was driving In California during winter of 2019 and the MCU experienced an endless reboot that Tesla support couldn’t fix. Manual reboots didn’t work either. I had to manually defog before I first got in. And when the windshield fogged up to the point I could not longer see while driving, I had to pull over to wipe. It was definitely a safety issue.

You may be right but isn't that the same as the climate control system breaking and you need to park the car until you can get it fixed or limp along as best you can (and did)? I guess I think of a safety issue as the brakes or steering or headlights going out while driving (point of curiosity: what happens to the lights and wipers in the Model 3 when the MCU dies?).

 

[Akikiki]

U.S. probes touchscreen failures in Tesla Model S cars

Hopefully they are forced to recall and repair cars with mcu1.

Do not fool yourself in believing a response from the feds is coming soon. This will take years to flush out.

 

[MP3Mike]

Do not fool yourself in believing a response from the feds is coming soon. This will take years to flush out.

Yep, unless Tesla decides to do it voluntarily. (Which NHTSA just opening a PE might be enough to push Tesla into doing the right thing.)

 

[David.85D]

Someone on reddit said older cars lose turn signals when the MCU goes. Not sure if thats true. I know mine loses sound, not sure about the lights

my turn signals did go out.

Luckily I had ESA so the repair was covered.

 

[viper2ko]

Yep, unless Tesla decides to do it voluntarily. (Which NHTSA just opening a PE might be enough to push Tesla into doing the right thing.)

Wonder if we could get our lord and savior Elon to acknowledge the investigation on twitter

 

[TravelFree]

Come on, we all know the number is far greater than 11 and extends all the way until 2018 when MCU1 was discontinued.

Everyone who's had to replace their MCU1 should file a complaint with NHTSA now.

You obviously have some sort of "I hate Tesla" thing going on rather than just looking at the facts. Wake me up when that 11 number grows to 6000. Most are getting their MCU1's swapped out because they want newer technology. They are paying for that upgrade. I don't count that as a failure. In fact the investigation confirmed there is no suspect of safety issue since these cars never lost control. The only issue was loss of the visual on the backup camera but legally these were not required until 2018. The most recent MCU failure reported was in 2015 build date and reported within the past 13 months.

To be fair, I have heard more reports of Model 3 screens blacking out momentarily more frequently on the forums. Also, a yellowing of the screen border on very old Model S. You can search for these reports on many of the forums. Those defects are not part of this investigation but are pretty common knowledge.

U.S. probes touchscreen failures in Tesla Model S cars

 

[Huachipato]

I'm interested to learn how this plays out. My car is starting to freeze up a bit and reboot randomly. I can actually get it to reboot just searching for a radio station on TuneIn... I got it to reboot twice doing the same thing while waiting for my ice cream at Sonic. AC turns off completely every time it reboots. Blinker sound goes mute at times as well - and screen freezing.

It's getting worse - hope this results in some permanent fix going forward.

 

[TravelFree]

So we can chalk it up to reporters not reading, as usual. Shocker.....

Thanks!

Thanks for the source link. I was able to get the facts of the investigation:

NHTSA Action Number: PE20010

Components ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, BACK OVER PREVENTION

Opened From: June 22, 2020–Present

Summary

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received eleven (11) complaints (VOQs) alleging failures of the touchscreen/Media Control Unit (MCU) in 2013 through 2015 Tesla Model S vehicles. The reports have been received over the past 13 months at service intervals ranging from 3.9 to 6.3 years.

The display control unit subassembly of the subject MCU is an NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor with an integrated 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory device. EMMC NAND flash devices have a finite lifespan based upon the number of program/erase (P/E) cycles. The subject MCU allegedly fails prematurely due to memory wear-out of the eMMC NAND flash. Tesla used the same MCU with the Tegra 3 processor in approximately 159 thousand 2012-2018 Model S and 2016-2018 Model X vehicles built by Tesla through early-2018.

MCU failures resulting from eMMC memory wear-out are likely to occur after periods of progressively degraded performance (e.g., longer power-up times, more frequent touchscreen resets, intermittent loss of cellular connectivity, loss of navigation). Final MCU failure results in loss of audible and visual features provided by the touchscreen, such as infotainment, navigation, and web browsing. This includes loss of rear camera image display when reverse gear is selected, resulting in reduced rear visibility when backing. Other effects of MCU failure include climate control defaulting to Auto mode and limits on battery charging current and maximum state of charge when recharging. MCU failure does not affect vehicle control systems (e.g., braking, steering, speed control) or supplemental restraint systems.

A Preliminary Evaluation has been opened to assess the scope, frequency, and safety consequences of the alleged defect.

The following VOQ numbers were referenced in the defect petition: 11317875, 11317499, 11315374, 11312177, 11288980, 11281197, 11279959, 11257209, 11232852, 11207819, 11302674