Table 1 shows one common wheel related problems of the 2023 Tesla Model S.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Wheel problems |
Driving on freeway when the rear tire tread peeled off the inside tire tread wheel/blow out almost causing an accident. The vehicle pulled hard while driving and almost lost control. The problem has been inspected and confirmed by the Tesla dealer. The tire warning did alert after the tire blew out. This is a very frequently reported incident with the Model S plaid. A defect in the factory camber causing the blowout. Extensive wear is seen on the very inside wall of the tire. You couldn’t see or measure the tire wear from the outside of the vehicle. This is a scary and dangerous problem that needs to be fixed. I bought this vehicle brand new from Tesla factory and the vehicle had less than 13,000 miles. The alignment was also measured when getting repaired and had bad results.
The vehicle is over reporting it's speed by 5% this is a large discrepancy which effects safety by causing people drivers around you to change lanes because you are traveling under the speed limit. Tesla is unable to calibrate the speedometers are the service center. They have documented the failure. It also adds miles to the odometer prematurely. This problem started after Tesla upgraded the car with a track package which is a $24,000 upgrade.
Both of my rear tires have the inner tread (closest to the center line of the vehicle) separating from the sidewall. Tesla blames the issue on michelin because the alignment is within specification, and michelin blames Tesla claiming that the problem is the rear alignment. Every single Tesla Model S plaid owner I know that has the factory 21” wheel option is having this issue somewhere between 6,000 miles and 16,000 miles (estimated). My vehicle has 12,151 miles on it now, and I first noticed the issue at approximately 11,100 miles. The vehicle is close to being unsafe to drive due to potentially catastrophic issues associated with one or both tires failing at speed. There is absolutely no indication of impending failure, and because it is the inside edge of the tires which are separating, and there is plenty of tread left on the tire, owners are unlikely to notice the issue, especially since the tires are failing well before anyone would expect a tire to fail. Thanks for your consideration. Dr. Joe west.
I purchased my new 2023 Tesla Model S in 02/2023 (delivered in fife, wa). The vehicle has staggered wheel sets - rear wheels/tires wider than the front. after being hit by a vehicle in 07/2023, the two back wheels were damaged. I took the vehicle to exotic collision center in bellevue, wa, a Tesla-approved body-shop. While replacing the wheels in 09/2023, the body-shop found that the front wheels were installed in the rear, and vice versa. As a result, the tires didn’t fit properly which internally damaged the two wheels where wider tires were fit on narrower wheels, and all four tires. This was unrelated to the accident, hence not covered by insurance. I reached out to Tesla in 10/2023, with photos from the body-shop, and contact info of their technician. However, Tesla had denied accountability and demanded I pay in full for replacement tires/wheels. The two reasons they provided are - 1) I should have heard a noise, and brought back the vehicle to them immediately, instead of waiting for a body shop to find it, and 2) I couldn’t provide evidence that I didn’t change the wheels out myself. to me, neither reasoning makes sense. For #1, Tesla couldn’t show me what kind of noise I should have expected. Also, my vehicle is the proof that there would not be noticeable noise from the issue in every case. On #2, it is a case of proving a negative, which does not seem logical in this case. I know this to be an issue at the time I took delivery, given nothing else was done to the wheel-tire assembly until the body-shop tried to replace them in September. Also, this seems to be a safety issue. the body-shop recommended we do not drive as-is, and I had to pay $2718. 00 at a local les schwab tire store (on 10/23/2023) to purchase a set of tires and wheels so that I can drive the vehicle safely. I strongly believe this should be Tesla’s accountability to resolve. Along with sharing this safety issue with you, I urge your help to resolve the matter.