PSA about why you should NOT use auto lift trunk struts

The three pictures say it all. After five months, one of the struts came apart when I opened the trunk, went sideways under force and cracked my rear glass in my M3. The 2nd struct when I pulled it out, has a crack running through the plastic head but had not broken yet.. it was on it's way though. The vendor, s3xymodels, won't reply to my email. I know they buy the struts from the same place that everyone else does but not responding sucks.

These the the typical "auto lift" struts which the helper springs to pop the trunk up a few inches when you open it. I see them for sale everywhere. I will not be using them again.. I would strongly advise you if you have them, to take them off and look at the plastic caps very closely or just to chuck them and not take the risk. That back glass is going to be expensive :/. I'm going to try a windshield repair kit to "patch" it for now and see if I can't kick the can down the road a few months. since it will be an out of pocket expense.

 

[oreobbq]

(moderator note)

Moved my off topic post as well a responses to it to quarantine so the discussion can focus on the specific product the OP is talking about, solutions and suggestions for that, etc.

A moderator who moderates himself is next level.

Thanks for the heads up OP. I've seen aftermarket struts on other vehicles bend the hood etc. I'd get a powered trunk in a heartbeat though it's too nice not to have.

 

[Wattsisname]

Thanks, it is a great car and you will love it. just do not have high expectations on the quality from the aftermarket sector.

I have a pile of boxed after market stuff awaiting the car I hope I won't be too disappointed.
Actually, the Modern Spare Wheel is in a bag not a box..

 

[Wattsisname]

A moderator who moderates himself is next level.

And then some. Pity it was necessary though.

 

[oortega0514]

I bought a Model Y from a third party dealer and it had the aftermarket automatic frunk opener.....after 6 month of owning the car....the frunk popped open and bent the hinges and cracked my windshield. Now i've waited a month a half to finally get the glass repaired. Now i need to ask Tesla to also install the OEM struts.

 

[stopcrazypp]

I bought a Model Y from a third party dealer and it had the aftermarket automatic frunk opener.....after 6 month of owning the car....the frunk popped open and bent the hinges and cracked my windshield. Now i've waited a month a half to finally get the glass repaired. Now i need to ask Tesla to also install the OEM struts.

Ouch, I was thinking of doing a power frunk also (mostly for the close function, don't really care about open), but hearing how the failures can actually damage other things (which would cost a lot more than those struts just failing by themselves), I'm going to skip the idea.

 

[SteelClouds]

Yep.. it will take 3 weeks to get my new rear glass :/.

 

[ODWms]

I wonder how frequent an issue this is? I have had both the front and rear trunks’ struts swapped out with the stronger struts over 3 years, and haven’t had a minute of issue with them. For the cheap (maybe $50 total?) price, it is such a convenience. I will definitely inspect both setups to make sure there aren’t any cracks in those little housings.

 

[SteelClouds]

Never crossed my mind to have to check the struts for cracks.. more so since they were less than 6 months old :/. IF I had to guess.. I think the issue is the "supply and demand" thing. ie.. they couldnt get the right plastic for the tips so they used what they could get and hoped for the best.

 

[VegasMYP]

Ouch, I was thinking of doing a power frunk also (mostly for the close function, don't really care about open), but hearing how the failures can actually damage other things (which would cost a lot more than those struts just failing by themselves), I'm going to skip the idea.

Yeah, I am going to skip this mod upgrade as well for now and will just be very careful when closing the frunk

 

[harleydude05]

Was this the original strut that cam in your car or was it an upgrade you added. What year is your vehicle?

 

[SteelClouds]

Was this the original strut that cam in your car or was it an upgrade you added. What year is your vehicle?

This was the normal aftermarket strut with the pop up springs.. ie.. when you open the trunk, it pops up a few inches. They have sold thousands of these struts and this is the first failure I have heard of.. lucky me :/ This was on my 2019 M3.. I went back to my OEM struts which I had kept. These replacements lasted less than 5 months with daily use ( kids and their backpacks with school)

 

[26kvgenie]

I had it happen in June to MYP. Wife just left Costco and stopped at light, then started driving and it opened. Cause $6000 in damages. Still fighting with both Tesla and Hansshow. Used for two months no issues. Now too scared to use frunk even stock. I removed it before taking it in to get fixed. Amazon refunded me for frunk that’s just sitting in box in garage.

 

[26kvgenie]

Be careful

 

[SteelClouds]

So new windshield, new frunk lid, new hinges and paint? I got off lucky with just a broken rear glass

 

[26kvgenie]

Scratched drivers fender too. Had windshield tinted and ceramic paint. But luckily my wife didn’t cause a accident or worse.

 

[Wattsisname]

Scratched drivers fender too. Had windshield tinted and ceramic paint. But luckily my wife didn’t cause a accident or worse.

Awful! There have surely been enough disasters for :
A. No further fitting of this kit and possible removal where it has been fitted.
B. A small but perfectly formed Class Action against the suppliers of this not fit for purpose kit.

The frunk lid is "Elderly Person Liftable Light". Until auto lift becomes a Tesla OEM option I will try to manage the strain

 

[stopcrazypp]

I had it happen in June to MYP. Wife just left Costco and stopped at light, then started driving and it opened. Cause $6000 in damages. Still fighting with both Tesla and Hansshow. Used for two months no issues. Now too scared to use frunk even stock. I removed it before taking it in to get fixed. Amazon refunded me for frunk that’s just sitting in box in garage.

The stock frunk doesn't auto raise so practically can't cause the same damage especially on local roads (never heard of this happening with stock frunk on Model 3, I did find a case for Model S while on the highway, but Tesla paid for all the repairs). Also even when popped, there is a second latch that reactivates after a while to keep it from flying open using stock struts (which autolift obviously defeats this safety mechanism).

The manor problem with the frunk kit is the struts put a lot of extra stress on the components, and as per this thread either the plastic or the mold they use may have defects, so under such stress it may crack. So even if you use a "dumb" autolift kit (without power) it can still do some serious damage.

As for getting paid for the damage, I think most likely your insurance will end up being the one paying. Most aftermarket parts makers will not take any responsibility for damage beyond refunding you the cost of the product. For Tesla, if you can point to evidence of a glitch in the OEM parts/software of the car that caused it to open, perhaps you can claim them as having partial liability, but they can easily point to the fact that the hood would likely not have flown open if not for the autolift struts. It also seems likely the activation was caused by the kit, given it changes how the harness works.

 

[nate704]

Was your lift kit just like it was shown in the Amazon picture? Same struts with boots and main modules, etc? I ordered mine directly from Hansshow in July and every component looks different than the one pictures on Amazon.

 

[26kvgenie]

Here’s pictures of mine

 

[nate704]

I got mine directly from Hansshow website and the kit came from China. Upon researching, the kit I received had Hansshow name on the parts, but were identical to the EV Offer kit.
Now, I just searched it and Hansshow and TESPLUS have my kit for sale showing exact same parts.