Model Y steep driveway

[Dreaming3orY]

Hello! I’m dreaming of a model Y, but just moved to a new house and the driveway is crazy steep- probably a 45 degree angle. It only gets flat at the very top, and it’s possible I won’t ever park up there because other cars in the family will be there before me.
My heart is set on a Tesla, but I’m so worried it will be damaged on day 1.

Could I get bigger tires to help give some clearance? Has anyone lifted the suspension?

Also, when it snows I’m also concerned that this driveway may be an issue in the model y. We’ll plow the drive, and salt but it’s always going to be a crazy 45 degree angle. Please tell me I don’t have to get a jeep or a Subaru

 

[Red Ryder 3]

Could you back it in?

 

[Rice&Curry]

Parking at a 45% grade is not recommended by Tesla as the parking brakes may not be designed for it. you can certainly use tire choke to secure the brake. Please read Tesla manual , i think they recommend no more than 18% for parking w/o tire chokes.

 

[Gurule92]

Hello! I’m dreaming of a model Y, but just moved to a new house and the driveway is crazy steep- probably a 45 degree angle. It only gets flat at the very top, and it’s possible I won’t ever park up there because other cars in the family will be there before me.
My heart is set on a Tesla, but I’m so worried it will be damaged on day 1.

Could I get bigger tires to help give some clearance? Has anyone lifted the suspension?

Also, when it snows I’m also concerned that this driveway may be an issue in the model y. We’ll plow the drive, and salt but it’s always going to be a crazy 45 degree angle. Please tell me I don’t have to get a jeep or a Subaru

Snow won't be a problem provided you have good tires. The awd on the Y is great.

Make sure you don't get a performance model and you might be okay. Worst case, get some 2x4s to set up at the bottom

 

[AlexHung]

This is all I can find about parking on slope in the manual.

 

[Dreaming3orY]

View attachment 711640
This is all I can find about parking on slope in the manual.

Oh wow, that’s not good news. I’d be parked on a slope all the time.

 

[Dreaming3orY]

Could you back it in?

Even if I could, I’m afraid it’s going to scrape the bottom in the way up.

 

[Gurule92]

Oh wow, that’s not good news. I’d be parked on a slope all the time.

Chain chain chains
(Sing-songy)

 

[thesmokingman]

San Fran is Tesla central and I'm pretty sure they have seriously steep slopes.

 

[E_R_N]

My inlaws have the steepest driveway imaginable. Steep enough that if I drive downhill on their road and turn up onto their driveway, the left rear wheel comes off the ground. Nothing scrapes though. The car does throw a warning on the screen saying it may not hold on the hill but whatever, it’s never taken off on me.

 

[avs007]

I have a long sloped driveway. (Not 45 degrees steep tho) The only time parking on snow/ice is an issue, is if you park after the driveway is covered in snow/ice... If you park before the snow/ice hits, the car will be fine. If you plow/deice/salt the driveway, that works too. I do that all the time.

Also, what does the base of the driveway look like? One of my friends does have a crazy steep driveway... When I go to her house, I have to pull into the driveway like I'm parallel parking on the sidewalk, then cut hard over. Pain in the ass, but it's mostly because their driveway has a dip in it by the street, which makes it that much more a pain... Plus they had a mailbox on the less steep side restricting your entry angle. Granted, this was fine for when I visit, but I wouldn't want to be doing this multiple times a day, lol... But in their case, they said they had the option to relocate the mailbox, to make ingress easier.

Here's the driveway in question:

 

[DarthPierce]

You do not have a 45 degree driveway. 45 degrees is also known as a 100% grade. It's something crazy offroaders aspire to do for very short distances, since the risk of rollover is so high.

The steepest recognized road in the world is still only 34.8% or about 20 degrees:

You cannot even walk on a 45 degree roof without roof-jacks, scaffolding, affixed ladders, etc.

 

[Johnny Vector]

Parking at a 45% grade is not recommended by Tesla as the parking brakes may not be designed for it. you can certainly use tire choke to secure the brake. Please read Tesla manual , i think they recommend no more than 18% for parking w/o tire chokes.

Note that a 45° angle is a 100% grade. A 45% grade would be 24°.

Also, I would be willing to bet $1000 that the original poster's driveway is not 45°. Unless there is no soil at all in your area, and the whole area is pure bedrock, it's not possible to have a 45° slope. Which is just as well, since the maximum approach angle of the Model Y is about 18°.

ETA: Also, what DarthPierce said!!

 

[thesmokingman]

Yeap and residential codes don't allow a steep grade, most max out around 15% and it's really more like 10% ish grade.

 

[jsight]

Oh wow, that’s not good news. I’d be parked on a slope all the time.

Doesn't basically every car have a warning like that?

 

[avs007]

Note that a 45° angle is a 100% grade. A 45% grade would be 24°.

Also, I would be willing to bet $1000 that the original poster's driveway is not 45°. Unless there is no soil at all in your area, and the whole area is pure bedrock, it's not possible to have a 45° slope. Which is just as well, since the maximum approach angle of the Model Y is about 18°.

ETA: Also, what DarthPierce said!!

I found the original Engineering Explained video with that G wagon posted earlier, that explained climbing 100% grades with that vehicle, which Mercedes claims it can... That video explained that most cars cannot physically climb a 100% grade becuase among other things, a lack of tractions... Essentially, your tires need to be able to provide > 1g of grip for you to be able to climb a 100% grade. An easy test for that, is to test your 60-0mph braking test... If your car cannot do that in less than 120ft, then the tires don't have enough grip. Plus it was also saying you need AWD/4WD becuase 2WD cannot cut it, becuase in this scenario the downforce of the non-drivewheels will be sufficient to overcome the traction of the drive wheels, becuase the drive wheels will need to provide enough grip to counter the g-force of the weight that isn't on the drive wheels.

So with that being said, it is very doubtful that any house would ever have a 100% grade driveway, because next to nothing would be able to climb it.

 

[MatildaModelY]

Eyeballing that, it looks like a maximum 25 degree grade

 

[Level 1]

I’m dreaming of a model Y, but just moved to a new house and the driveway is crazy steep- probably a 45 degree angle. It only gets flat at the very top

This doesn't solve the parking part, but you might be interested in this Model Y extreme diagonal AWD test video:

 

[chris2222]

Hello! I’m dreaming of a model Y, but just moved to a new house and the driveway is crazy steep- probably a 45 degree angle. It only gets flat at the very top, and it’s possible I won’t ever park up there because other cars in the family will be there before me.
My heart is set on a Tesla, but I’m so worried it will be damaged on day 1.

Could I get bigger tires to help give some clearance? Has anyone lifted the suspension?

Also, when it snows I’m also concerned that this driveway may be an issue in the model y. We’ll plow the drive, and salt but it’s always going to be a crazy 45 degree angle. Please tell me I don’t have to get a jeep or a Subaru

Post a pic of your driveway.

 

[Dreaming3orY]

My inlaws have the steepest driveway imaginable. Steep enough that if I drive downhill on their road and turn up onto their driveway, the left rear wheel comes off the ground. Nothing scrapes though. The car does throw a warning on the screen saying it may not hold on the hill but whatever, it’s never taken off on me.

I

I have a long sloped driveway. (Not 45 degrees steep tho) The only time parking on snow/ice is an issue, is if you park after the driveway is covered in snow/ice... If you park before the snow/ice hits, the car will be fine. If you plow/deice/salt the driveway, that works too. I do that all the time.

Also, what does the base of the driveway look like? One of my friends does have a crazy steep driveway... When I go to her house, I have to pull into the driveway like I'm parallel parking on the sidewalk, then cut hard over. Pain in the ass, but it's mostly because their driveway has a dip in it by the street, which makes it that much more a pain... Plus they had a mailbox on the less steep side restricting your entry angle. Granted, this was fine for when I visit, but I wouldn't want to be doing this multiple times a day, lol... But in their case, they said they had the option to relocate the mailbox, to make ingress easier.

Here's the driveway in question:
View attachment 712406