Suspension exposed hidden safety hazard Tesla will recall 29000 Model S and Model X in China

SMM: October 23, according to the official website of the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration, Tesla Automobile (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Tesla) will recall some imported Model S and Model X electric vehicles from now on.

Recall information shows that the recalled vehicles will be recalled in two batches. One batch is a recall of some imported Model S and Model X vehicles with production dates from September 17, 2013 to August 16, 2017, totaling 29193 vehicles. The reason for the recall is that the ball head bolt of the rear connecting rod of the front suspension will have an initial crack when some vehicles in the recall area are subjected to a large external impact, which may extend and cause the ball head bolt to break when the vehicle continues to be used. In extreme cases, the ball head conical seat may extricate from the steering knuckle, affect the control of the vehicle, increase the risk of accidents, and there are hidden dangers. Tesla will replace the improved left and right front suspension rear connecting rods for vehicles within the recall range free of charge to eliminate safety risks.

The other batch is the recall of some imported Model S vehicles with production dates from September 17, 2013 to January 15, 2018, totaling 19249 vehicles. The reason for the recall is that when some vehicles within the recall scope undergo a larger external impact, the connecting rod on the rear suspension may be deformed, and the component will be further weakened when the vehicle continues to be used. In extreme cases, it may break, affecting the handling of the vehicle and increasing the risk of accidents. Tesla will replace the connecting rods on the improved left and right rear suspensions for vehicles within the recall range free of charge to eliminate safety risks.

Tesla said in the recall plan that 18608 vehicles need to be recalled to replace the rear connecting rod of the front suspension and the connecting rod on the rear suspension at the same time, 10585 vehicles need to be recalled to replace the rear connecting rod of the front suspension, and 641 vehicles need to be recalled to replace the connecting rod on the rear suspension. Before the vehicle recall and repair, the owner should drive the vehicle carefully and contact the service center for maintenance as soon as possible after the recall begins.

It is understood that Tesla will notify relevant users in the form of registered letters, e-mails and so on. Tesla service center will also take the initiative to contact the relevant car owners to arrange the recall and maintenance. Users can call Tesla's customer service hotline at 400,910-0707 through mobile phones and landlines.

In fact, the safety risks caused by imported Model S and Model X suspension connecting rods have been similarly reported abroad recently. on October 6 this year, a new energy information media in the United States interviewed several owners of Tesla about the suspension of Tesla models. Among them, the owners of Model S in 2016 and Model X in 2017 said that there were varying degrees of problems with their front suspension.

The owner of the Model X described, "when I first bought the car, I noticed a serious shaking of the front suspension during rapid acceleration, especially uphill." But Tesla repairman believes that this does not need to be repaired, this is only part of Tesla's eccentric nature. But later, they replaced the control arm on the front suspension. " The car owner said that one year after the purchase of the Model X, the problem of severe shaking of the front suspension still exists. Tesla mechanic said that this is a known problem and they are solving the problem due to the force of high torque and uphill acceleration, but there is no solution yet and will be repaired in the future.

Another Model S owner also said that after driving about 58000 miles, the suspension of her car was broken and the control arm of the right front and lower suspension was broken. His car was then towed to Tesla's local dealer for repairs, which cost more than $600. The car owner said, "Tesla technicians said that cracks were found in the front and rear connecting rods of the front suspension." However, as there is no failure in the connection (just cracking), repair is not recommended. " After communicating with the technical staff, the car owner thought that he was very disappointed with Tesla's stingy repair of the car during the warranty period, and then it was difficult to become a fan of Tesla.

Previously, it has been reported that the, Model S front suspension is a double-wishbone independent suspension commonly used by most performance sports cars with exercise genes. The An arm is not the whole An arm in the traditional lower fork arm design, but consists of two aluminum components connected separately to the ball. There is a view that Tesla adopted such a design to a certain extent in order to lose weight. There is also a view that when Tesla continues to show his self-driving functions to users, the traditional mechanical problems of vehicles should also be paid attention to.