Drafty Cabin - Report issues here please!

[Jeeps17]

But the car wash - Part of the issue with the car was that the car had soap in all 4 door frames (a huge soapy mess) and in the frunk area (but not in the frunk) when it went through a car wash. Soap is also in the handles when going through a car wash. I was told it was cold weather related (the soap froze after getting in), but I told them that it had happened the week before, as well. I go through the dryer, got out to check and, sure enough, it was there again. I've got photos if anyone would like me to upload them.

Do you guys also get this going through car washes?

Yes, I only use the touchless variety, and always have to wipe off suds in the door frames and edges in the frunk / trunk.

I have to admit I never thought about soap getting into the handles though... Rather hard to wipe that away

My triangular windows seem to be OK, but I certainly feel cold air coming through the speaker grill and window button cluster on my driver's side door in deep cold.

 

[Duckjybe]

I have not had problems with soap from car washes. I avoid washing in really cold temperatures (below about -8 C). I use the Petro Canada touchless.

 

[mcfadyena]

Car came back today. They said the soap in the car wash was normal.
The draft in the cabin and rear windows catching were resolved as described below.
I'll report back on if/how the draft feels tomorrow after my morning commute.

- - - Updated - - -

Forgot this...

 

[mcfadyena]

UPDATE - Drove my car this morning - 135 km on my daily morning commute. The draft is still present.
I'm just going to do the "fix" listed above and manually select outside air. Tesla did send me a note to "confirm that the draft has been fixed".
We will have to disagree on that point as the draft is still persistent and present.

Door Handles work fine as do the windows "Catching" - both have been fixed.

 

[Duckjybe]

UPDATE - Drove my car this morning - 135 km on my daily morning commute. The draft is still present.
I'm just going to do the "fix" listed above and manually select outside air. Tesla did send me a note to "confirm that the draft has been fixed".
We will have to disagree on that point as the draft is still persistent and present.

Door Handles work fine as do the windows "Catching" - both have been fixed.

Unfortunate about the draft still being present. I have been doing some more troubleshooting.

1. You have to shut off the climate completely in order to duplicate the problem consistently.
2. I pulled back the rubber seal just below the front triangle window and there is a cavity going into the mirror. I tried insulating this cavity but no fix.
3. The cold air is definitely coming from the back (as in towards the back of the car) bottom corner of my triangle window likely from within the door or the mirror. I am reluctant to pull off the interior door panels but I think that is what needs to be done next.
4. If the cold air is indeed coming in the door handles then that would explain how the heating of the cabin also blows out the door handles and clears the ice off. And explains the necessity for keeping the cabin pressurized with the fan on and outside air. The draftiness of the doors could possibly be by design?

 

[Doug_G]

The doors are "sealed" to some extent, for the purposes of triggering the air bag pressure switch on side impact. This is only intended to slow down the air enough to get a pressure switch on impact; air will migrate through the door to some degree.

 

[mcfadyena]

Unfortunate about the draft still being present. I have been doing some more troubleshooting.

1. You have to shut off the climate completely in order to duplicate the problem consistently.
2. I pulled back the rubber seal just below the front triangle window and there is a cavity going into the mirror. I tried insulating this cavity but no fix.
3. The cold air is definitely coming from the back (as in towards the back of the car) bottom corner of my triangle window likely from within the door or the mirror. I am reluctant to pull off the interior door panels but I think that is what needs to be done next.
4. If the cold air is indeed coming in the door handles then that would explain how the heating of the cabin also blows out the door handles and clears the ice off. And explains the necessity for keeping the cabin pressurized with the fan on and outside air. The draftiness of the doors could possibly be by design?

Drove my car home - to a very cold draft on my hand. It's definitely not corrected. I really can't believe that Tesla would argue the point with me, especially since the draft is so evident.

 

[jayman]

I'm with you and have the same problem. I also get serious fogging when it's really cold on the left side of the windshield for which I have to turn on the defrost. It's only that area and doesn't happen on the right side of the windshield when someone is riding in the passenger seat.

 

[mcfadyena]

I'm with you and have the same problem. I also get serious fogging when it's really cold on the left side of the windshield for which I have to turn on the defrost. It's only that area and doesn't happen on the right side of the windshield when someone is riding in the passenger seat.

Thanks, Jayman. I don't think Tesla is going to look at my car anymore, so I may be stuck with a problem that I'm not too pleased about. Hopefully they continue to watch this thread and realize that I'm not alone in driving with significant cold air coming in through the window!

The fogging persists as well :-(

 

[mknox]

Thanks, Jayman. I don't think Tesla is going to look at my car anymore, so I may be stuck with a problem that I'm not too pleased about. Hopefully they continue to watch this thread and realize that I'm not alone in driving with significant cold air coming in through the window!

The fogging persists as well :-(

Sorry to hear this. I am convinced (see above) that the air is getting into the door cavity via the exterior door handles. When it's very cold outside, in addition to the draft, the entire interior door panel is ice cold to the touch.

Again, for me, recirculate off and fan speed bumped up a bit cures both the draft (for the most part) and fogging.

 

[bsd]

When it's very cold outside, in addition to the draft, the entire interior door panel is ice cold to the touch.

And is the passenger door similarly cold? Is it somethingpa reticular about the driver's door?

I've felt a draft once when on the 401, but it was very windy outside.

 

[mcfadyena]

Updating here because I've already documented the other issues I've had with the Tesla so far (Sadly!)

I'm stranded in Kingston, a few hours from home. The wipers simply stopped working, and it's wet, snowy, and muddy out. This will be the 4th service issue in 5 weeks of ownership. Not a stellar start to owning a luxury car. Once they fix the wipers (tomorrow), I'll still be left to tear my own car apart to deal with the draft issue.

UGH.

 

[mknox]

And is the passenger door similarly cold? Is it somethingpa reticular about the driver's door?

I've felt a draft once when on the 401, but it was very windy outside.

Too far for me to reach, and 99.9% of the time I'm alone in the car. If I had to guess, I'd suspect the air infiltration is similar on all doors.

- - - Updated - - -

I'm stranded in Kingston, a few hours from home. The wipers simply stopped working, and it's wet, snowy, and muddy out.

Please keep us posted on the wiper issue, perhaps in the sticky Mechanical Issues thread. My wipers work fine, but I have noticed the motor seems to "strain" if they wipe a dry windshield. They go slow and may not park all the way down. I'll either squirt the washers to "lubricate" the glass and then they'll park completely or I'll just push them down the 1" or so when I hop out of the car.

 

[colinb]

Thanks, Jayman. I don't think Tesla is going to look at my car anymore, so I may be stuck with a problem that I'm not too pleased about. Hopefully they continue to watch this thread and realize that I'm not alone in driving with significant cold air coming in through the window!

The fogging persists as well :-(

We saw a front windshield fogging issue during our first winter but this was rectified with the front grille retrofit that production cars received and changes to the defrost controls in software updates. Outside of that no unreasonable drafts to report from what I recall, even at -20C in range mode with 20km of rated range left. With frame-less windows I expected to see challenges in the winter but don't recall any on our Sig. I can't check any ore though as we sold it ahead of a move to New Zealand.

The challenge will be reproducing the problem. It took a bit of deduction work to spot the minor issues we saw and once we were better able to describe what we were experiencing they were able to resolve the root cause, all of which ended up being known service bulletins by that point. It sounds like you are taking notes, keep doing that. Photos and video can also be useful tools to help explain what you are seeing.

While you might have had more luck had you purchased my S2108 keep in mind we are all early adopters, highs and lows included. The more detailed feedback we can give now will benefit future cars and product, especially for those engineering teams in the Californian winters. As with any company at this stage they are also coping with rapid growth on all fronts which will has growing pains. This is nothing different than any "startup" in tech that I've experienced going big quickly - heck, even Google was a challenge to get support from up to a year ago. Be patient and keep working with them - they will certainly not give up. We are trailblazers through our investments in a company and product that is going all in rather than tinkering by repurposing the gas car parts bin.

 

[mcfadyena]

Another Update.
Tech came out to replace windshield motor. They took the car back to Toronto and left me with another loaner. I had him hit the highway to feel the draft again for himself - it's there and they will head back to the drawing board to fix.

Will Update when I have more info!

 

[Duckjybe]

I did some more testing.

I confirmed that when you cover the outside drivers door handle with tape, the draft coming from the bottom of the triangle window is diminished significantly. I think all that needs doing is to take off the door panel and put some foam tape to fill the door panel gap in the area below the weather seal between the side window and the triangle window.

 

[Mayhemm]

I did some more testing.

I confirmed that when you cover the outside drivers door handle with tape, the draft coming from the bottom of the triangle window is diminished significantly. I think all that needs doing is to take off the door panel and put some foam tape to fill the door panel gap in the area below the weather seal between the side window and the triangle window.

Hopefully that will be this year's "defroster vent" upgrade. Small change, much improved winter experience.

 

[mcfadyena]

I did some more testing.

I confirmed that when you cover the outside drivers door handle with tape, the draft coming from the bottom of the triangle window is diminished significantly. I think all that needs doing is to take off the door panel and put some foam tape to fill the door panel gap in the area below the weather seal between the side window and the triangle window.

I have passed this on to the folks working on the car. Will report back soon.

 

[Duckjybe]

I think all that needs doing is to take off the door panel and put some foam tape to fill the door panel gap in the area below the weather seal between the side window and the triangle window.

Problem solved! It wasn't easy but after figuring out how to remove the door panels, I sealed up the drafts that were indeed coming from below the triangle windows where the side view mirrors are anchored. It took a lot of trial and error and driving around! I can post details and pictures if anybody needs them.

I was impressed with how well the doors are actually sealed except for this one spot. Engineering should perhaps look into this. I am not sure why there is air migrating in on the other side of the door skin and coming in where the mirrors are.

 

[zax123]

Problem solved! It wasn't easy but after figuring out how to remove the door panels, I sealed up the drafts that were indeed coming from below the triangle windows where the side view mirrors are anchored. It took a lot of trial and error and driving around! I can post details and pictures if anybody needs them.

I was impressed with how well the doors are actually sealed except for this one spot. Engineering should perhaps look into this. I am not sure why there is air migrating in an the other side of the door skin and coming in where the mirrors are.

Hi Duck,

I would definitely appreciate some pictures. My car is at the service center next week for a couple things, and I've mentioned the drafty triangle. I'd like to show them how to fix it so they can do it instead of my having to do so.

Thanks!

Rob