SPEED JOURNEY: The support arm on the rear wheel has broken. Here’s what the car looked like when the owner pulled over. Photo: private
The Swedish Road Administration is now deciding whether to require Tesla to recall Model S and X models in Norway to replace the control arms.
Published:
Less than 20 minutes ago
Updated right now
- The Swedish Road Administration is considering asking Tesla to recall Models S and X in Norway for replacement of control arms.
- Bæream’s problems have been known to the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and the NAF for a long time.
- The Swedish Road Administration is still assessing the risk to road safety from sudden wheel suspension failures.
- Approximately 21,500 Model S and 14,300 Model X are registered in Norway.
- Tesla believes that this type of error occurs very rarely and does not pose a safety risk.
- The NAF believes there should have been a recall campaign for the affected cars.
Sea-view
It is not known exactly how many suspension arms on Tesla models have broken.
But the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and the NAF have followed up on the control arm problems control arm problems A part of the wheel suspension. The lower rear support arm is called the RLCA (Rear Lower Control Arm). for a long time.
give us a tip
Already in November 2022, the Swedish Road Administration sent a letter to Tesla regarding this matter. VG had access to the letter and Tesla’s response. The latter is partially sloppy.
Previously, Tesla was summoned to a meeting at the headquarters of the Norwegian Public Roads Administration.
– The meeting covered the numerous reports of concern that the Norwegian Road Administration has received regarding the wheel suspensions of Tesla Models S and X, writes the Department of Traffic and Vehicles.
The concern is whether sudden and unexpected wheel suspension failures pose a risk to road safety.
– This is an ongoing case that has been going on for a long time and is still being assessed by the Norwegian Road Administration. The case concerns messages of concern we received from Norwegian Tesla owners, where the topic concerns the rear wheel suspension on the S and X models, senior engineer Tor Ove Sætren tells VG.
– Incredibly terrifying
Einar Nordén by Asker in 2022 was walking into the cockpit of his Tesla Model S with two small children in the backseat when suddenly the car wouldn’t start.
– I had just exited an 80 zone and was on a bend when the car abruptly moved to the side and entered the oncoming lane, he tells VG about the accident.
He believes they were very lucky to avoid a head-on collision. They had just met another car, he says.
– It was terribly scary. When I managed to reduce my speed, I was able to get the car back into my lane and stop on the side of the road. Then I saw that the wheel was crooked, she says.
HE WAS SCARED: – I think it’s scary and dangerous, and that’s why I want to talk about it in the media, says Tesla owner Einar Nordén. Photo: private
He goes on to say:
– Tesla replaced the broken support arm on his cape, but did not want to replace the others. I had to pay for it myself. I have not taken the risk of driving a car that I consider essential for safety. My opinion is that Tesla took this too lightly.
Nordén tells VG that he did not report his case on the 2016 model to the Norwegian Public Roads Administration.
SHOULD BE REMEMBERED: The NAF believes the possible suspension arm failure is so serious that there should have been a recall campaign on affected cars, says technical consultant Benny Christensen. Photo: Haakon Nordvik
– Dramatically
NAFNAFNorges Automobil-Forbund, member organisation. has been aware of the problem for several years, confirms NAF technical advisor Benny Christensen.
– Broken control arms are a known problem on older Tesla Model S and Xs and is something that has scared many owners.
He explains:
In short, the rear wheel loses its lower attachment point. This causes the rear wheel to spin and come completely out of position.
– It sounds dramatic, and it is. The car cannot be driven, but must be recovered, says Benny Christensen.
– The potential for danger is great
A failure of the wheel suspension components can lead to the risk of wheel lockup. The car can therefore lose its steering properties, with the consequent risk of fatal accidents.
– Consideration of road safety is fundamental to our supervision. The potential for danger is particularly high during winter driving on smooth/low-friction road surfaces, the regulator, road users and the Vehicle Department write in their letter to Tesla.
It is registered registered Source of registration numbers: Road Traffic Information Council. The Model S was launched in 2013, the Model X in 2016. From 2013 to 2018, 15,821 new Model S and 6,175 new Model
Tesla: Very rare
Tesla’s response is that this type of error occurs very rarely.
If this were to happen anyway, the driver would notice it immediately and the car would still be fully controllable, they write. In the response letter, Tesla Norway refers to concrete events to prove this.
“Tesla believes there is no safety risk related to a broken or weakened rear lower control arm (support arm).
– Based on customer cases and service history, Tesla is not aware of any incidents in which control arm support arm failure resulted in loss of vehicle control, collision, or injury personal or property damage. Furthermore, the frequency of such accidents is low, Tesla replies to the Swedish Road Administration.
Tesla did not respond to VG’s repeated questions on the matter.
It was Motor who was the first in the Norwegian media to mention that the Swedish road administration is considering a Tesla recall in Norway. This happened after the Reuters news agency published an article about it on December 21.
– Edited not required
Other Tesla owners have experienced Tesla changing the control arms.
Linda Langberg says she was surprised when Tesla, on its own initiative, changed the control arms as a preventative measure.
His Model S is from 2013.
– The parts were changed after the car had driven 100,000km, it was a bit surprising. I didn’t ask for it to be fixed either. But I know many argue with Tesla at length about this particular error when it first occurs, he tells VG.
BREAKING: The Tesla Model S shook everything up when it launched in 2013. The car was enormously popular. Here it is in a car test in 2020. The Model S received several sixes in VG’s car tests. Photo: Hanne Hattrem / VG
NAF: – Material fatigue
According to NAF, the failure is most common on Model S manufactured in 2018 and before, but can also occur in early Model X years.
– Fortunately, damage occurs more often at low speed and with a lot of steering wheel movements. Typically when parking in bays or when turning the car in a narrow yard and the like. This often happens when cars are 4-5 years old or have driven around 100,000 kilometers, says NAF’s Christensen.
The reason support arms break is what the NAF believes is physical fatigue of cargo around a ship.
– If you are considering purchasing a used Tesla, this should definitely be checked carefully. On many cars the control arms have already been replaced. Otherwise it’s something to take into account.
Evaluations carried out so far on the components by the Swedish Road Administration could indicate a sudden failure in an area with a thin material thickness.
The NAF believes the fault is so serious that a recall campaign should have been organized for the affected cars.
– The NAF has been urging Tesla on this issue for several years, without being listened to. They believe this poses no safety risks and that the cars were used incorrectly, says the NAF’s Benny Christensen.
Tesla did not respond to VG’s questions about what they think of NAF’s claims.
A Tesla Model
– Not registered
It is the Norwegian Public Roads Administration that checks that vehicles meet legal requirements and has the authority to ask a car manufacturer to consider a recall.
First, the Swedish Road Administration asks the manufacturer to personally report a potential deviation to the Safety Gate RapexSafety Gate Rapex reporting channel for technical faults on vehicles for Europe. In Norway, the National Road Administration is responsible for the vehicles and vehicle equipment in this system.
If the car manufacturer objects, the Swedish Road Administration can report the case itself. They can also inform the approval authority that has approved the car model for Europe.
– Tesla has reported other deviations in the Rapex system, which in our opinion are less serious issues. The message about deviations in the wheel suspension was not recorded or published, the Swedish Road Administration writes to Tesla.
Tesla responds to this:
– We believe there is no safety risk related to a broken or weakened rear lower control arm (support arm), which meets the conditions for reporting it to Rapex, Tesla responds.
If, after further investigation, the Swedish Road Administration concludes that a car model is considered dangerous, the decision is communicated to other EU and EEA countries.
I think there are fewer cases
According to Tesla’s response from December 2022, these are 14, not 18, reports of concern to the Norwegian Road Administration, following double registrations.
After reviewing its data, sorting through general reports of concern and unspecified incidents, Tesla says there are five real cases left. that they had the opportunity to emulate.
Four of the cases involve cars manufactured between 2014 and 2016, with mileage between 89,821 and 183,400 km. Tesla’s new car warranty is 5 years or 100,000 km, so most of these failures occurred after “extended wear” “extended wear”…most of these types of failure occurred after the vehicles have been subject to prolonged wear and tear.”, writes Tesla.
In cases where the part in question breaks, this generally happens only at low speed and with a large steering angle, most often when reversing into a parking lot, and the car is controllable, they write further.
Illustrative photo of winter driving in Dagali in 2016. Photo: Hanne Hattrem / VG
Why didn’t anything happen?
More than a year has now passed since the first meeting and the letter of concern.
– What is the reason why a year has passed without the SVV making a statement on the matter?
– This was an ongoing process and we had to obtain further information, including risk analyzes with follow-up. Part of the case processing work took some time, informs the press officer of the Norwegian Road Traffic and Vehicle Administration.
The Swedish Road Administration will be able to say something about the development of the case next week at the earliest.
Tesla’s response to potential future actions to resolve the issue is exempt from public disclosure.
Recalled to China
The Swedish Road Administration is aware that the S and X models were recalled in China in 2020.
These are approximately 30,000 cars produced at the Tesla plant in California from 2013 to 2017, which were exported to China.
Tesla refuse that on cars sold in China there is a defect, neither in the suspension of the rear wheels nor in the front ones, respond to the Norwegian Road Administration.
Tesla believes the main reason the models were recalled in China is the country’s unique driving patterns, where cars are exposed to higher loads much more frequently than in the rest of the world.
If the vehicle is exposed to one or more heavy loads (for example curbs or deep potholes), the suspension components can be damaged.
The recall has therefore not been extended to any other part of the world, Tesla underlines.
Information
This is how serious car breakdowns are handled
- Vehicle type approval is common in the EU/EEA. This means that a vehicle approved in the EU/EEA is also approved in Norway.
- State Highway Authority able to vehicles approved for Europe, but this is usually not done in Norway because we have no car manufacturers.
- If serious errors and deficiencies are later discovered, it is normally the factory that takes responsibility for correcting them on all cars involved.
- Recall and improvement actions are carried out regularly and the Norwegian Road Administration then provides information on car ownership.
- If the manufacturer is unwilling or unable to make such improvements, each individual country has the option to refuse registration of future examples of the same type of car for up to six months.
- In this case this must be reported to the approval authority and to the manufacturer. The intention is that the producer is influenced to take responsibility for improving conditions.
- Cars already registered may need to be called individually for inspection and it may be decided that the fault needs to be corrected.
- The Norwegian Public Roads Administration is one of several market surveillance authorities that operate the Safety gate supervision system (Rapex), which is a monitoring and reporting system for dangerous products within the EU and EEA .
- The aim is to prevent the sale of potentially dangerous products.
- If, after further investigation, the Swedish Road Administration concludes that a product should be considered dangerous and meets the conditions for notification in Rapex, it has the right and duty to follow up the matter with the importer and the manufacturer and take a final decision on the matter. whether this product needs to be notified.
- Reports of product deviations on all types of vehicles by both customers and car importers can be reported to: [email protected] and to thefarligeprodukter.no website, operated by the Directorate of Community Safety and Security emergency preparedness.
Source: Norwegian Road Administration
Show morePublished:
Published: 01.24.11 at 10.19pm
Updated: 01.24.11 at 10.31pm
2024-01-11 21:19:33
#Broken #Suspension #Arms #Tesla #Model #Recall #Request