Tesla legal claims MCU is a wearable part, like tires

[whitex]

Tesla Vice President Of Legal Tells NHTSA That MCUs Are Wear Parts/

They already told us that MCU's oxidize and deteriorate in Earth's atmosphere, starting to show visible signs in as little as 6 months. Now their legal council claims owners were supposed to know it's a wearable part. Nowhere in the manual of Tesla marketing materials was it listed. Anyone have a copy of the "cost of ownership" Tesla used to advertise? I am sure a periodic $3000 replacement (the cost of new MCU1 when mine failed the first time) was not showing in the 5 year cost of ownership for sure.

 

[KArnold]

They said that about yellow screens too. Didn't work then, won't work now.

 

[viper2ko]

Bunch of morons. Cant believe the cult like sheep that try to defend them

 

[AMPd]

*elon musk*

 

[ucmndd]

It's an interesting argument, and one I'd consider technically correct. eMMCs indeed have finite lifespans and published expected write cycles / MTBF. They don't last forever and nobody should be surprised by that.

The actual argument here is whether or not it's reasonable/responsible for Tesla to spec a "wear item" like this that has no chance of lasting even a fraction of the usable service life of the car. I think the answer to that is no, it's clearly not reasonable. NHTSA would probably also have a problem with manufacturers installing "starter" brake pads on cars that only lasted 5k miles.

 

[whitex]

They said that about yellow screens too. Didn't work then, won't work now.

Yea, but yellow screen, like yellow tire, only a cosmetic issue. Failed MCU, like a failed tire, unsafe.

 

[pabla]

This is why almost all other manufacturer uses some sort of hard buttons for the main functions of their vehicles so if and when their head units die they can claim the car is still driveable vs a tesla where you lose key controls like lighting etc.

 

[AMPd]

Yea, but yellow screen, like yellow tire, only a cosmetic issue. Failed MCU, like a failed tire, unsafe.

Yellow colored tires are actually quite unsafe in some parts of the country.

 

[whitex]

It's an interesting argument, and one I'd consider technically correct. eMMCs indeed have finite lifespans and published expected write cycles / MTBF. They don't last forever and nobody should be surprised by that.

The actual argument here is whether or not it's reasonable/responsible for Tesla to spec a "wear item" like this that has no chance of lasting even a fraction of the usable service life of the car. I think the answer to that is no, it's clearly not reasonable. NHTSA would probably also have a problem with manufacturers installing "starter" brake pads on cars that only lasted 5k miles.

Had they said at the time of the sale that, the MCU must be replaced every 2 years, even if it costs $4000 and is subject to up to few months lead time, they would have been in the clear - again, if they disclosed that at the time, which they didn't (they actually lied about the cost of ownership if they really knew this was a consumable part).

 

[whitex]

Yellow colored tires are actually quite unsafe in some parts of the country.

You can buy yellow car tires: New Design Colorful Tire Car Tires 175/60r13 205/60r15 123/55r18 All Size Coloured Car Tyres - Buy China Car Tyres,Colorful Tires,Coloured Car Tyres Product on Alibaba.com
New Design Colorful Tire Car Tires 175/60r13 205/60r15 123/55r18 All Size Coloured Car Tyres - Buy China Car Tyres,Colorful Tires,Coloured Car Tyres Product on Alibaba.com

 

[AMPd]

You can buy yellow car tires: New Design Colorful Tire Car Tires 175/60r13 205/60r15 123/55r18 All Size Coloured Car Tyres - Buy China Car Tyres,Colorful Tires,Coloured Car Tyres Product on Alibaba.com
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View attachment 634022

According to one of our employees who’s a former Latin Kings gang member, I’m going to pass on repping yellow like that. Could be bad for the health depending on where you live

 

[whitex]

According to one of our employees who’s a former Latin Kings gang member, I’m going to pass on repping yellow like that. Could be bad for the health depending on where you live

As could be driving a Tesla into certain parts of certain places.

 

[hitparader]

They definitely weren’t saying anything about this when I bought my 2017. In fact, I remember the exact opposite being boasted that these cars lasted longer than ICE vehicles. I’ve got old electronics that work far better than MCU1 and still provide good use to this day and are much older.

 

[whitex]

View attachment 634033
They definitely weren’t saying anything about this when I bought my 2017. In fact, I remember the exact opposite being boasted that these cars lasted longer than ICE vehicles. I’ve got old electronics that work far better than MCU1 and still provide good use to this day and are much older.

Welcome to Tesla. Just like they claimed with a straight face that it was absolutely true to advertise the P85D with 691hp, then couple of years later admit that the battery limits the power to 463hp, they will make a straight face claim here that their vehicle lasts longer than ICE vehicles, just not the MCU. Heck, the statement they just made pretty much says the MCU is like tires, you have to change it out periodically, and obviously they didn't claim tires last longer on a Tesla than ICE vehicles. They are very creative when it comes to weaseling out of their claims after they got your money and are no longer shipping the old product in new cars. I'm sure they will not admit that MCU3 is a consumable until MCU4 comes out.

 

[Sunshine State]

It's an interesting argument, and one I'd consider technically correct. eMMCs indeed have finite lifespans and published expected write cycles / MTBF. They don't last forever and nobody should be surprised by that.

The actual argument here is whether or not it's reasonable/responsible for Tesla to spec a "wear item" like this that has no chance of lasting even a fraction of the usable service life of the car. I think the answer to that is no, it's clearly not reasonable. NHTSA would probably also have a problem with manufacturers installing "starter" brake pads on cars that only lasted 5k miles.

Anything can then be considered a wear item using the same argument.

 

[FlatSix911]

Tesla will eventually be forced to improve their customer service once the legacy automakers join the game.

 

[ucmndd]

Anything can then be considered a wear item using the same argument.

Most certainly. Indeed, over an arbitrarily long period of time, anything IS in fact a wear item. This shouldn’t be surprising to anyone. Stuff wears out and eventually needs replacement, be it fabric, paint, metal, or silicon.

My point is, if Tesla designed an MCU that was reasonably expected to last for 15+ years and 150,000+ miles, this would be a complete non-issue. There wouldn’t be any recall. But they didn’t, so here we are. It’s the expected lifespan that’s the problem, not the fact that things eventually wear out.

 

[Sunshine State]

Most certainly. Indeed, over an arbitrarily long period of time, anything IS in fact a wear item. This shouldn’t be surprising to anyone. Stuff wears out and eventually needs replacement, be it fabric, paint, metal, or silicon.

My point is, if Tesla designed an MCU that was reasonably expected to last for 15+ years and 150,000+ miles, this would be a complete non-issue. There wouldn’t be any recall. But they didn’t, so here we are. It’s the expected lifespan that’s the problem, not the fact that things eventually wear out.

I wasn’t disagreeing with you. I just think their argument is humorous

 

[ucmndd]

Tesla will eventually be forced to improve their customer service once the legacy automakers join the game.

Yes, Tesla will definitely be forced to up their game to compete in an industry of competitors so fiercely known for providing stellar customer service!

lol, give me a break. You obviously come from the Porsche world where reality is distorted by the sort of “customer service” that only $3500 “contrast stitching” and “carbon fiber volume knob” options can finance… but you’re in full fantasy land if you think the rest of the industry has this figured out and Tesla is the egregious outlier just waiting to be steamrolled by Ford’s stellar quality control and customer service organization.

 

[pabla]

Yes, Tesla will definitely be forced to up their game to compete in an industry of competitors so fiercely known for providing stellar customer service!

lol, give me a break. You obviously come from the Porsche world where reality is distorted by the sort of “customer service” that only $3500 “contrast stitching” and “carbon fiber volume knob” options can finance… but you’re in full fantasy land if you think the rest of the industry has this figured out and Tesla is the egregious outlier just waiting to be steamrolled by Ford’s stellar quality control and customer service organization.

can definitely tell you the service/buying experience for Audi’s and Porsches make you feel valued. While With Tesla you’re just a number to them. Also servicing at Tesla you get treated like you bought a 25k car not a 100k+ car. Oh an Porsche charging X $ for contrast stitching at least they allow more than 5 exterior colours on their cars..