Car would not move then BANG

[tinm]

In anticipation of snow, yesterday I backed my 2013 S85 into the garage so it'd be easier to get out today.

When I got in car today, put car in Drive, and gently pressed accelerator, nothing happened. I verified I was in "D", and gently tried pressing the accelerator again. Nothing. So I pressed a tiny bit harder and BANG the car makes thus loud sound like it was stuck then got free. I have never seen the car do this ever. Got out, did visual inspection, all clear... stumped. Got back in, drove off normally.

What WAS that?

(FYI it was not that cold out...about 37F. Inside garage was about 50F.)

 

[ecarfan]

My guess: your brake rotors were wet when you put the car in Park in your garage after backing in. Overnight some corrosion occurred, sticking the brakes together.

My S (and my Roadster) has done what you describe. Others have also posted about it.

 

[woof]

Yep, i concur with @ecarfan. Wet rotors + overnight == stuck e-brake. Add power == bang. Happens to us quite often.

 

[vgrinshpun]

Ditto here, usually after driving in the rain or coming after car wash and parking overnight. Does happen to me periodically.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

My guess: your brake rotors were wet when you put the car in Park in your garage after backing in. Overnight some corrosion occurred, sticking the brakes together.

My S (and my Roadster) has done what you describe. Others have also posted about it.

I had this happen to me in college when I didn't drive my car daily. There was a torrential downpour and I drove though a large puddle back to my apartment. A week later, when I needed to drive my car again, nothing would release the brakes. At first, I just tried pressing the accelerator lightly but when that didn't work, I tried flooring it. Unfortunately, it was sufficiently rusted that I wasn't able to get the car to move. It had to be towed away on a dolly!

 

[AEdennis]

My guess: your brake rotors were wet when you put the car in Park in your garage after backing in. Overnight some corrosion occurred, sticking the brakes together.

My S (and my Roadster) has done what you describe. Others have also posted about it.

Yep, i concur with @ecarfan. Wet rotors + overnight == stuck e-brake. Add power == bang. Happens to us quite often.

Ditto here, usually after driving in the rain or coming after car wash and parking overnight. Does happen to me periodically.

Wow... having been in a drought for all these years (and still in a part of the state that still shows up as being in drought conditions) glad to read about your experiences in "wetter" parts of the country. Filed under, "hope to never hear that"...

 

[tinm]

Thanks all for the explanation. Sounds about right.

 

[JPP]

FWIW, after every rain or car wash, I do a few hard braking stops on my S to try to dry the pads and scrub the rotors. Obviously if I am parking overnight with a wet car, does not fix the stuck rotors/pads, but then as I am driving away I do a few hard stops to be sure the brakes will grab when needed.

 

[evp]

I've experienced this. Not necessarily corrosion though, I've interpreted it to be iced-over parking brake since it's only happened to me in below-freezing temperatures. This happened to me once as a teenager in an ICE - I drove halfway down the block on snow with one drive-wheel frozen and the other driving, until I hit a patch of pavement and the brake snapped loose. Never used the parking brake during the winter again.

 

[Barry]

I've experienced this. Not necessarily corrosion though, I've interpreted it to be iced-over parking brake since it's only happened to me in below-freezing temperatures.

I park below ground where it's 60-70 F, depending on the season. happens to me after returning from rain/snow. Definitely not ice, the following morning!

 

[scottm]

The park brake pads will also leave a visual impression on the rotor in the shape of the pad, where they rusted on for the night... when you park a rain soaked car the day before.

It takes a LOoong time to wear that impression off... because the brakes are not used hard and hardly at all for many drivers.

 

[scaesare]

I concur with all of the above... happens to me too.

There's a video out there somewhere of someone's who were stuck hard enough that it wouldn't brake loose and the wheel would just skid across his smooth garage floor.

I think that was a front wheel, so it may be the main brake pads that can freeze to the rotor surface as well...

 

[ucmndd]

This was timely as I washed my month-old MS on Saturday then rolled it into the garage and it sat there until this morning. Sure enough, wouldn't move from reverse without a little nudge from the accelerator and a nice POP from the brakes.

 

[mknox]

Mine does that every single time I park after driving in the wet. Far worse than any other car I've owned. Tesla says there is nothing they can do about it. I'm used to it now.

 

[mspohr]

Mine does that every single time I park after driving in the wet. Far worse than any other car I've owned. Tesla says there is nothing they can do about it. I'm used to it now.

I had this happen to me this morning. I washed the car yesterday and put it away in the garage. This morning, rotors stuck and released with a bang. Has happened before.
I think it happens to Teslas more because they have a second set of calipers on the rear rotors which are used as a parking brake. These pads don't get any use during operation of the car, only when it is parked and stationary so I think they don't get polished like the regular brake pads and tend to stick more.

 

[randvegeta]

It's been nothing but wet and cold since I got mine and it pretty much does it every morning as I set off. Nothing to worry about!

 

[scaesare]

Here's the video I was referring to earlier... while it does seem it's most often the rears, and likely the e-brake, the other rotors can stick as well:

I suspect that the regen lessens the amount of overall usage the main brakes get, and thus some scale can build up to trap moiture and/or lead to more temporary seizing...

 

[bons]

Mine does that every single time I park after driving in the wet. Far worse than any other car I've owned. Tesla says there is nothing they can do about it. I'm used to it now.

Good to know this is "normal"! Felt like something broke!