Tesla model s rear suspension leak

[mmmnnn]

2013 Tesla model S P85
I've been noticing the rear suspension both sides equally sagging when parked overnight.

Left for a week and came back to the whole rear of the car on the ground (there was no clearance between the rear side of the battery and the ground) the front suspensions was normal.

Powered up the car and the rear air springs filled up again, and the back became level with the front

Looking at the tesla part catalog, i'm thinking it's either the two rear struts are leaking at the same exact pace or there's a common pressure line or junction to the rear springs that is having a leak affecting both the rear (right and left) air springs

Since this doesn't affect daily driving until the leak gets more agressive, i'd appreciate help on how to diy / troubleshoot and find the leak source before sorting to replacing the two rear air springs

attached is the air suspension diagram from the tesla parts catalogue

Thanks in advance

 

[Lukez]

2013 Tesla model S P85
I've been noticing the rear suspension both sides equally sagging when parked overnight.

Left for a week and came back to the whole rear of the car on the ground (there was no clearance between the rear side of the battery and the ground) the front suspensions was normal.

Powered up the car and the rear air springs filled up again, and the back became level with the front

Looking at the tesla part catalog, i'm thinking it's either the two rear struts are leaking at the same exact pace or there's a common pressure line or junction to the rear springs that is having a leak affecting both the rear (right and left) air springs

Since this doesn't affect daily driving until the leak gets more agressive, i'd appreciate help on how to diy / troubleshoot and find the leak source before sorting to replacing the two rear air springs

attached is the air suspension diagram from the tesla parts catalogue

Thanks in advance

I had a similar issue and the actual air struts were leaking (near the bottom) . I found the leak by hearing it hissing in the garage after driving in the rain, I'd suggest you do the same. Or spray soapy water on them and look for bubbles, just don't do it on jacks because you won't have the compression.

If it is the air struts, note that aftermarket air springs can be had for 1/4 of teslas prices.

 

[mmmnnn]

Will a leak in one strut cause sagging on both sides?

 

[GHammer]

Will a leak in one strut cause sagging on both sides?

I had a leak in one of my rear struts and only that corner sagged, not both.

 

[mmmnnn]

Yeah, for me both sides sag

 

[teslick2]

I have an early 2013 model (4xxx vin) and I noticed that the rear drivers side sags if I don’t drive the car for a week.

Curious to know what the Tesla service center quote was vs 3rd party.

My thought is that I won’t address it until it’s worse. Is there harm in waiting?

 

[WallysRide]

@teslick2 The potential harm in waiting is that you would be working your compressor harder than normal. For a sag in one corner only, it's likely to be a leak in that strut. This is a repair that an indy mechanic can do for much less than Tesla, if you can provide the part yourself. My indy mechanic charged me only $130 in labor.

 

[mmmnnn]

@WallysRide where did you order the air strut? from tesla or is there an aftermarket?

 

[WallysRide]

@mmmnnn I got an OEM strut off of eBay for $500 after carefully researching the part number on this forum. I have the plus suspension, which uses a different strut. It was advertised by the seller in new condition, and while it was impossible for me to confirm this, the strut has worked perfectly. The seller seemed to be a foreign car dealership, so not sure why they had this part in their inventory.

With past luxury cars I was willing to use aftermarket struts from Arnott. I didn't bother to research aftermarket this time because it wasn't hard for me to find an OEM on eBay that looked good enough to use.

 

[mmmnnn]

@mmmnnn I got an OEM strut off of eBay for $500 after carefully researching the part number on this forum. I have the plus suspension, which uses a different strut. It was advertised by the seller in new condition, and while it was impossible for me to confirm this, the strut has worked perfectly. The seller seemed to be a foreign car dealership, so not sure why they had this part in their inventory.

With past luxury cars I was willing to use aftermarket struts from Arnott. I didn't bother to research aftermarket this time because it wasn't hard for me to find an OEM on eBay that looked good enough to use.

wow, just checking on ebay, two for $575! Rear Pair Air Suspension Air Strut Assemblies for 2012-2016 Tesla Model S | eBay

 

[WallysRide]

@mmmnnn There may be a particular aftermarket brand that is the most reliable, but I didn't research that myself. If you can find an OEM on eBay, I think the going price is $500-600, which is still reasonable compared to what Tesla charges (I believe around $900 for the part).

 

[Lukez]

Will a leak in one strut cause sagging on both sides?

No you would have two leaking struts. It happened to me even tho it sounds unlikely! Do the water test first before swapping the struts to save yourself time and money.

 

[gavinli2007123]

THE ALMIGHTY BLESSED SOAPY WATER COMES IN CLUTCH AGAIN!!!!

 

[delucat2]

So a drop to one side is failure of simultaneous leaks in F and R on the same side.
Crazy.

 

[Tech Geek]

I have 2014 Model S, and Tesla is recommending a $1,650 repair without even trying to look for a leak. The compressor is not completely dead. Had I known that Tesla had this air suspension issue, I would have probably never bought the car.

 

[Doanster1]

I have 2014 Model S, and Tesla is recommending a $1,650 repair without even trying to look for a leak. The compressor is not completely dead. Had I known that Tesla had this air suspension issue, I would have probably never bought the car.

Need more information as to what your specific issues/symptoms are. Unless only one corner is sagging, it most likely is the compressor. You can/should ask for more details if you’re not happy with their explanation.
However, a $1600 repair is certainly not something that would put me in the “never would’ve bought the car” category. Many compressor replacements documented here (myself included), but that’s the nature of forums. Problem reporting. There are a ton more cars that haven’t had the failure.

 

[WallysRide]

There's also nothing special about Tesla's air suspension system that a qualified independent mechanic can't handle. If you're paying out of pocket, you might want to take this issue to a 3rd party mechanic whom you trust.

 

[Tech Geek]

Need more information as to what your specific issues/symptoms are. Unless only one corner is sagging, it most likely is the compressor. You can/should ask for more details if you’re not happy with their explanation.
However, a $1600 repair is certainly not something that would put me in the “never would’ve bought the car” category. Many compressor replacements documented here (myself included), but that’s the nature of forums. Problem reporting. There are a ton more cars that haven’t had the failure.

There was a loud noise that kicked off for maybe 12 hours (

). Since then the front of the car is low and will not rise. The back does seem to not rise either.

And a $1600 repair, is just the beginning. Others who have had the same problem say they have done several replacements (compressor, suspension parts, etc) and Tesla cant pin point the issue and are unwilling to find the root cause. Sounds like a pretty good money maker to me.

These are documented service center experiences too, not just reporting the issue or even Safety board complaints (more than 50 of those)

 

[Tech Geek]

There's also nothing special about Tesla's air suspension system that a qualified independent mechanic can't handle. If you're paying out of pocket, you might want to take this issue to a 3rd party mechanic whom you trust.

Most 3rd party mechanics dont even want to touch a Tesla for a Air Suspension issue (No experience or they dont want the liability.). This is a complicated issue, hence Tesla Service Center poor success at fixing it.

 

[Doanster1]

Actually it’s not very complicated. Compressor, valve block, reserve tank, and each individual strut. That’s it. Compressor and block are the same as Jeep, Audi, etc.
Plenty of threads on this from me, BostonBurley, Aggmeister, GTech, etc.
Very easy to check for leaks. Remove the frunk. Check pressure at the reserve tank. Spray soapy water on the compressor and block Voss connectors and see if bubbles come up. However, as your front end is slammed and it ran for 12hrs, your compressor needs replacing. Not sure why it ran for 12hrs because it should’ve therm-tripped well before that. The block is cheap and the system is depressurized when replacing the compressor so is cheap insurance, but certainly not necessary.
The SC has a high success rate at fixing. People are golden after compressor swap, which is the bulk of the issues. Sure, there are reports of actual leaks, like air lines having micro holes due to rubbing, but again, you can self diagnose that.

Don’t get me wrong… I hated spending the $$ to replace the compressor, especially after multiple attempts with aftermarket parts, but my point is that it’s an “easy” fix, albeit an expensive one.