Hello all,
My late 2015 MS P90D, 100.000KM, AP1 Air suspension Tesla, has a very weird issue, that was simply there one day. My wive drives the car as well, but neither of us ever had an accident. The car is standing on staggered 21” Turbines with pretty new Michelin PS4 Acoustic (good profile still) and the issue is also there with a different set of 21” Turbine wheels (4x245 winter tires, non staggered).
What’s wrong?
It feels like the car’s geometry is shifting slightly under medium-moderate (and definetely when flooring it) acceleration. It’s like the front of the car is taking a small step to the right, then a moment later the rear comes to the right and the car feels more straight again
. When I release the pedal, as in cut power output to the motors, the car shift back left a bit again.
There is no noise when all of this happens, and it also does not happen or is atleast much less noticeable when I accelerate very slowly.
Apart from this issue, the car drives very well, but sometimes there is a kind of single “clunk” sound, when driving (even, but not exclusive to low speeds) over a pothole or bump, ESPECIALLY while taking a turn. Not sure if related, but I wouldn’t be surprised and believe it comes from the front.. but not 100% sure.
What was done so far:
Tesla charged me to test drive my car, said the mechanic didn’t feel anything. He only said it’s probably caused by my 15mm wheel spacers in combo with the 21” original turbines. They ignoring my part of the report in the Tesla app service request that this issue was already there BEFORE I installed these wheel spacers.
Also they didn’t want to check alignment on my car because of the spacers (which I guess is their common approach; annoying but so be it).
So, I took my loss and went to a n independent garage which also services and aligns many Tesla’s.
They put my car on their lift, and during inspection of the front suspension they measured that my passenger side (Right) front wheel was atleast 5mm closer towards the back, in comparison to the other (left) side. Also the angle of the suspension components looked different.
I took a picture during the inspection:
They recommended to replace both lower control arms on both sides.
1027351-00-C
6007998-00-C
Next I did some due diligence on the matter and agreed to the repair. According to my instructions they cut the bolt instead of dropping the battery, and replaced all the bolts that they had to loosen during the process with new, original ones.
They did not replace the upper control arms, nor those thin front (steering?) links (not sure about the name), nor did they look at the tie rods, subframe nor steering rack etc.
So, after they replaced the control arms, they did an alignment, but the issue as I described in the beginning of this post still remained.
Next thing, I put the car on jackstands, both front and rear, and pulled and pressed pretty hard one by one on all four wheels, in all directions, but couldn’t feel any play. (Not sure how much force would be required tho, or which movements in what directions I should’ve focused on TBH..)
Hours of searching online later:
During this time I think I’ve read all the posts on multiple forums describing similar issues; came across things like rear toe links causing similar issues, but also came across (some more costly) issues like cracked subframes, tie rod issues, broken steering racks, bushings and I even read about issues with the front axles.. (which I can’t somehow relate to this issue).
So, question to everyone who might be able to help me understand: How can I check / see that my rear toe links or subframe OR something else is the cause? Could this be caused by air suspension (leaks or miscalibration?)
I have all tools (pneumatic tools, torgue wrenches and most other tools required to take the average car apart. I also have access to a car lift during the evening hours. I’m not a mechanic, but I have experience doing repairs on my other cars and bikes throughout the years.
Any advise on where to start, apart from simply throwing new parts at it, would be greatly appreciated. I also do not necessarily have to DIY this thing, but I don’t mind at all to get my hands dirty and have some friends who are similar minded.
Thanks in advanced for taking the time to read and possibly help me solve this
I have notifications turned on on this thread and am keen on working and solving this issue, and keep everyone up to date.
My late 2015 MS P90D, 100.000KM, AP1 Air suspension Tesla, has a very weird issue, that was simply there one day. My wive drives the car as well, but neither of us ever had an accident. The car is standing on staggered 21” Turbines with pretty new Michelin PS4 Acoustic (good profile still) and the issue is also there with a different set of 21” Turbine wheels (4x245 winter tires, non staggered).
What’s wrong?
It feels like the car’s geometry is shifting slightly under medium-moderate (and definetely when flooring it) acceleration. It’s like the front of the car is taking a small step to the right, then a moment later the rear comes to the right and the car feels more straight again
. When I release the pedal, as in cut power output to the motors, the car shift back left a bit again.There is no noise when all of this happens, and it also does not happen or is atleast much less noticeable when I accelerate very slowly.
Apart from this issue, the car drives very well, but sometimes there is a kind of single “clunk” sound, when driving (even, but not exclusive to low speeds) over a pothole or bump, ESPECIALLY while taking a turn. Not sure if related, but I wouldn’t be surprised and believe it comes from the front.. but not 100% sure.
What was done so far:
Tesla charged me to test drive my car, said the mechanic didn’t feel anything. He only said it’s probably caused by my 15mm wheel spacers in combo with the 21” original turbines. They ignoring my part of the report in the Tesla app service request that this issue was already there BEFORE I installed these wheel spacers.
Also they didn’t want to check alignment on my car because of the spacers (which I guess is their common approach; annoying but so be it).
So, I took my loss and went to a n independent garage which also services and aligns many Tesla’s.
They put my car on their lift, and during inspection of the front suspension they measured that my passenger side (Right) front wheel was atleast 5mm closer towards the back, in comparison to the other (left) side. Also the angle of the suspension components looked different.
I took a picture during the inspection:
They recommended to replace both lower control arms on both sides.
1027351-00-C
6007998-00-C
Next I did some due diligence on the matter and agreed to the repair. According to my instructions they cut the bolt instead of dropping the battery, and replaced all the bolts that they had to loosen during the process with new, original ones.
They did not replace the upper control arms, nor those thin front (steering?) links (not sure about the name), nor did they look at the tie rods, subframe nor steering rack etc.
So, after they replaced the control arms, they did an alignment, but the issue as I described in the beginning of this post still remained.
Next thing, I put the car on jackstands, both front and rear, and pulled and pressed pretty hard one by one on all four wheels, in all directions, but couldn’t feel any play. (Not sure how much force would be required tho, or which movements in what directions I should’ve focused on TBH..)
Hours of searching online later:
During this time I think I’ve read all the posts on multiple forums describing similar issues; came across things like rear toe links causing similar issues, but also came across (some more costly) issues like cracked subframes, tie rod issues, broken steering racks, bushings and I even read about issues with the front axles.. (which I can’t somehow relate to this issue).
So, question to everyone who might be able to help me understand: How can I check / see that my rear toe links or subframe OR something else is the cause? Could this be caused by air suspension (leaks or miscalibration?)
I have all tools (pneumatic tools, torgue wrenches and most other tools required to take the average car apart. I also have access to a car lift during the evening hours. I’m not a mechanic, but I have experience doing repairs on my other cars and bikes throughout the years.
Any advise on where to start, apart from simply throwing new parts at it, would be greatly appreciated. I also do not necessarily have to DIY this thing, but I don’t mind at all to get my hands dirty and have some friends who are similar minded.
Thanks in advanced for taking the time to read and possibly help me solve this
I have notifications turned on on this thread and am keen on working and solving this issue, and keep everyone up to date.
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