Rejecting my brand new model 3 Highland

[Dangerous Fish]

The only way to narrow a problem like this down quickly is to swap wheels with another car. That's going to prove whether it's a balance/seating issue with the wheels or something on the car itself.
If it's not the wheels and Tesla can't say what's causing it then I'd reject the car too.

 

[EVFan786]

The only way to narrow a problem like this down quickly is to swap wheels with another car. That's going to prove whether it's a balance/seating issue with the wheels or something on the car itself.
If it's not the wheels and Tesla can't say what's causing it then I'd reject the car too.

According to the German forum quite a few people tried wheel balancing/alignment and also swapped tyres in case the foam inside the tyres had become loose. There was also a case of a small amount of water found inside the tyres. No matter what was looked at nothing fixed the issue. Tesla have sent some engineers down and there is one member who was told to get a list of vin numbers from forum members so that they can try and work out why it’s happening to certain people. One member has also been told that his service centre have put an order for a drive unit and drive shafts and then was told to put the order on hold so looks like something is going on. I think the article in the Spanish website has helped pushed this forward.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

Will be interesting to see how it pans out. The problem with an issue like this is that there will be plenty of situations where the wheels just need rebalancing but it'll be blamed on the car itself, making it look like a much more widespread fault.

 

[EVFan786]

Will be interesting to see how it pans out. The problem with an issue like this is that there will be plenty of situations where the wheels just needwheels

rebalancing but it'll be blamed on the car itself, making it look like a much more widespread fault.

That’s the thing though everyone who has experienced this issue there first point of call was to rebalance the wheels but that did not make any difference.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

That’s the thing though everyone who has experienced this issue there first point of call was to rebalance the wheels but that did not make any difference.

Yes, I get that but vibrations can still be caused by the wheels/tyres themselves even if they are balanced, which is why the only certain way to eliminate them as the cause is to swap with a known good set.
Some other causes are uneven wear (unlikely with new tyres), tyre/wheel runout, wheel damage, wheel not mounted properly on the hub.

 

[EVFan786]

Yes, I get that but vibrations can still be caused by the wheels/tyres themselves even if they are balanced, which is why the only certain way to eliminate them as the cause is to swap with a known good set.
Some other causes are uneven wear (unlikely with new tyres), tyre/wheel runout, wheel damage, wheel not mounted properly on the hub.

Many European owners have actually tried the car with their winter wheels/tyres and vibrations are still there. Basically that thread has been going for a few months and I have gone through the whole thread and it’s pretty obvious that everything that can be tried has been but vibrations still there.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

Many European owners have actually tried the car with their winter wheels/tyres and vibrations are still there. Basically that thread has been going for a few months and I have gone through the whole thread and it’s pretty obvious that everything that can be tried has been but vibrations still there.

That's fine for those who have determined it's not the wheels and tyres. I'm just pointing out there will be cases where even after balancing it still can be the wheels/tyres.

 

[molibden]

I'm getting new tires, waiting for Tesla to set a date. I hope they try with new rims also to rule out wheels as a cause, if vibrations are still there.

 

[ohmman]

Moderator Note: Two duplicate threads were merged and posts are ordered by timestamp, so there may be some duplicate discussion upthread. To OP, cross-posting is prohibited here.

 

[EVFan786]

I'm getting new tires, waiting for Tesla to set a date. I hope they try with new rims also to rule out wheels as a cause, if vibrations are still there.

It's a Spanish article but most browsers have an automatic translation option. It basically talks about the problems that people around Europe are having with vibrations.

Cientos de Tesla Model 3 Highland con un misterioso problema de vibraciones: propietarios devolviéndolos

La compra de un coche siempre es un momento importante y la recepción del mismo…

www.autonocion.com

 

[fredjan]

It's a Spanish article but most browsers have an automatic translation option. It basically talks about the problems that people around Europe are having with vibrations.

Cientos de Tesla Model 3 Highland con un misterioso problema de vibraciones: propietarios devolviéndolos

La compra de un coche siempre es un momento importante y la recepción del mismo…

www.autonocion.com

So they've tried the noise canceling foam, changing the tires for tires from different manufacturers, and some people from Germany even changed the springs/shock absorbers, and *none* of those things fixed the issue? Damn

 

[Big_Al]

I've got the same issue, on my M3H LR, noticed it a day after receiving, booked in at Tesla service to have a look, which was over a week later after taking delivery.

Well today was the day it went in, they found the front left wheel was out by 5g and my front right was 10g. I left the garage and guess what, its still there, the vibration at 70mph, went straight back and they told me for the first 100 miles is to do sharper acceleration and braking, to break in the brakes. I believe this is a load of bull, but will have to try, before they look at it again. Its just an inconvenience as you have to wait almost 2 hours, before they even start the job.

From how the engineer spoke to me, it sounded like I was not the only person that's reported this.

 

[EVFan786]

I've got the same issue, on my M3H LR, noticed it a day after receiving, booked in at Tesla service to have a look, which was over a week later after taking delivery.

Well today was the day it went in, they found the front left wheel was out by 5g and my front right was 10g. I left the garage and guess what, its still there, the vibration at 70mph, went straight back and they told me for the first 100 miles is to do sharper acceleration and braking, to break in the brakes. I believe this is a load of bull, but will have to try, before they look at it again. Its just an inconvenience as you have to wait almost 2 hours, before they even start the job.

From how the engineer spoke to me, it sounded like I was not the only person that's reported this.

Thats exactly what happed to me mate. all my wheels needed rebalancing and problem was still there so used the 14 day exchange to reject my car and have ordered a new one hoping that car will not have it. There are several hundred around Europe with the same problem. I also test drove another highland LR and that had the same issue.

 

[Big_Al]

I wonder what the issue are, I had done a bit of googling around, and it seems to be quite common issue on the whole range, going back years. I'm not in a position to reject as it's a company car, but its been logged on their system, so as long as I don't get charged for any work, there's not much I can do.

My workplace is about 40 miles from home, so most of my journeys at 60mph, but there are a couple of duel carriage ways on route and when getting up to 70mph you do notice it. I couldn't be doing a constant 70mph your end up with white finger syndrome.

 

[holmgang]

Man, Europe still has a 14 day return policy? Jealous. Guess we abused it over here.

Just goes to show you who actually runs the Country, NOT the people...

You can get statutory 14 day return policy on consumer goods, too, if you're willing to pay more for the goods.
Do you want to pick an example of a product and compare prices Europe vs US?

 

[wouzer]

I also experienced vibrations. Initially, I thought they would diminish after a break-in period, but even after driving 3,000 kilometers, the issue persisted, driving me to the brink of frustration. The service center installed two new Hankook tires and rebalanced all the wheels. This has nearly resolved the problem, and I am now satisfied. The mechanic mentioned they suspect the tires are adversely affected when the cars are secured during shipping from China.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

I also experienced vibrations. Initially, I thought they would diminish after a break-in period, but even after driving 3,000 kilometers, the issue persisted, driving me to the brink of frustration. The service center installed two new Hankook tires and rebalanced all the wheels. This has nearly resolved the problem, and I am now satisfied. The mechanic mentioned they suspect the tires are adversely affected when the cars are secured during shipping from China.

If it is a form of 'flat spotting' or some other form of tyre damage that is certainly one way you'll get vibration even if the wheels are in balance. As I said earlier, swapping to a known good set would prove it.

 

[Tragically_Hip]

It’s good to here some people are getting this resolved. I’ve got an appointment next week to have mine looked at.

 

[Saadooness]

Hello All,

Purchased my new car on 1st march and I noticed a strange vibration coming from the steering wheel when I was doing 70mph. Booked into service and found out ALL the wheels were out of balance. I thought that at least the vibrations will now be sorted but to my horror the my were still there. Booked in again to Tesla service and had them check the inside of the tyres in case the foam had come loose and also I felt the steering was slightly to the left when on a straight road so maybe the cause is that the alignment is out. I was told it’s all checked out ok apart from one of the front wheels that needed to be rebalanced again. Once again the vibrations appeared at 70mph.

I decided to go and test drive a new highland with the same spec as mine Model 3 LR with the 19” alloys and that car felt much better than mine at 70mph so I spoke to the manager and started the process of rejecting the car as it’s within 14 days. Have to wait till April-May for the next slot (ultra red long range with 19” alloys)

For context I have owned a brand new model 3 LR with 19” alloys which I purchased brand new in march 2022 and sold that to buy tye new one and lost a lot of money but the new car was definitely worth it or so I thought. I mainly drive on the motorway and always use autopilot and I rest my right hand on the bottom of the steering wheel waiting to nudge it when I get the alert. In my previous car I NEVER felt the steering vibrate no matter what speed I was going so driving the new highland I knew straight away that something was not right.

Are there any members out there who have come across something similar or are there members out there with the same LR with the 19” alloys who could tell me if they have noticed anything unusual when driving in terms of vibrations through the steering or alignment issues or even if your car is running perfectly fine at 70 mph then pls let me know.

Many thanks !!!

I rejected my M3 LR highland for the exact reason. Luckily I visited a tire shop before the service center and they confirmed to me that my tires had flat spots. This is an issue that apparently occurs when tesla deflate the tires during transport and the weight of the vehicle damages the tires while the vessel remains stationary for a period of time (causing flat spots). Go back to the service center and request all 4 tires be replaced. I got mine replaced with very little hassle. No more vibrations at all at higher speeds and car even feels much smoother at lower speeds

 

[bengradish]

Hi TMC users,

I am one of the affected M3 2024 (manufacturing date 22/10/2023) owners out of Europe as well. My case seems to be new tough. Let me quickly outline it.

• End of December 2023: Received my M3 LR end of 2023 with orginal 18" rims/winter tires mounted. Original 19" Wheels / tires been stored right away at Tire shop. No to minimal vibrations with this configuration
• End of March 2024: Tire shop switched from 18" rims/winter tires to 19" rim/summer tires. All 4 tires got balanced before. Strong vibrations between 120 and 135km/h. Additionally a ticking noise coming from the front left area (tire?) audible from approx. 100km/h and increasing in candance when driving faster.