2015 Tesla Model S: loss of power steering

Filed Jul 4, 2025 · Steering · VA

Electric power steering stopped working unexpectedly and making it very difficult to steer and drive safely.

Filed Aug 11, 2023 · Steering · WY

the steering is hard to steer. I had to replace the i-shaft. It is dangerous to drive when it happens to you, I live in Wyoming and something needs to be done to stop these from going out, this is the second one I have had done since 11/11/21. I-SHAFT STEERING LINK - NON ISOLATOR - LOWER(1030622-00-A)

Filed May 24, 2022 · Steering · MA

This appears to be a common problem as seen in the forums. But suddenly my steering locks at intervals when turning. Feels like the power steering went out and is very jerky. Requires a lot of force to turn the wheel. Sticks and then is loose. Apparently cause by a steering column or Lower U-joint when exposed to salt roads in northern snow climates. Also it appears Tesla has replaced this part with a covering preventing this from rusting and filling up with dirt and grime. My car does not have this feature. Hopefully the car does not lose steering completely or fail before my next appointment on June 9th. I called roadside assistance and they said to try a reset. That didn’t work.

Filed Aug 9, 2020 · Suspension · 7,690 miles · NH

Tesla model s had been sitting in my driveway for 2 years, sue to a medical condition I had. At near the end of 2 years I walked down to examine the car, noticed the car had settled down onto the tires. I had it charging continuously, but apparently the charging operation had faulted, and the car was dead. I charged the 12v computer battery, then charged the 400 volt traction battery. I turned it on but could not move far because there was some interference between tires and inside the fenders, when I would hit a bump. I waited for the air suspension to be pumped up, and drove the car to head for a tesla supercharger station. The trip there felt squirrely and assumed it was my studded snow tires. At the supercharger the steering got very difficult, and when I left I haqd to drive carefully to feel comfortable to my home. I researched online, found the electrified garage in seabrook, nh and set up a service appointment. They discovered I needed replacement rear air shocks and a new steering box. They explained that because the shocks were not moving for 2 years, they developed a corrosion between dissimilar metals (steel and aluminum) on the shocks. That resulted in corrosion on the steel, and corrosion on the aluminum, allowing large o-rings to expand and leak air. The repair shop said they only see that with teslas that sit unused for a time. I emailed tesla notifying them, but they never responded, perhaps because by then I was 14 months beyond my warranty. I will put in a different complaint for the failed steering box. Mileage at incident was 7,690. The corrosion and rust could have been defeated with appropriate engineering, such as a plastic shield between steel and aluminum.

Filed Aug 9, 2020 · Steering · 7,695 miles · NH

Steering on the interstate highway was somewhat unfamiliar to me, it stayed in one lane but would wander more than I recalled. I assumed it was the studded snowtires (hakkepellita) and pulled over to check tire pressures. I carefully drove on to the supercharger, noticed as I bacaked into the supercharger position the steering was difficult, as if the power steering was compromised. Drove home carefully, found the electrified garage which specialized in tesla repairs, in seabrook, nh. The tesla was flat-bed transported to them. They reported that during the many weeks they had it, that the steering box had to be replaced. I contacted tesla customer service of the problem, and they did not respond. As a result, I cancelled a new 2020 model s during the summer of 2020, and bought a new lexus instead. I was too uncomfortable with the engineering of the tesla, and that the steering box should not fail in 7,690 miles since new. I found a service message that discussed a potential problem with the 5 power steering mounting bolts. They came to my home to replace them. I looked up the 38 page service bulletin and found several warnings in it about not taking more than one bolt out at a time. Since they had come to my home to replace the bolts, I theorized perhaps the technician did not follow the bulletin content exactly. Bulletin warned that if you remove more than 1 bolt at a time you must replace the steering box. See bulletin sb-18-32-002 r1 (and revision 2 and rev. 3) . Mine is submodel p85d (awd) and please note first version of the bulletin and revision 2, and 3rd revision are different. They reference service manual procedure 32010102 to replace the steering box on page 4 of sb 18-32-(001) see also: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/power-steering-falling-apart.100951/ where the steering box/ps failures are discussed by tesla owners.

Filed Jul 22, 2020 · Electrical, Suspension · 54,650 miles · GA

Mcu dead at 54,650 miles. Main control screen will not turn on. Has effected the following but not limited to. ' no aeb (advanced emergency braking) ' no controlling suspension height ' no manual control of headlight lights ' no blinker sounds ' turn signals inoperable ' steering mode defaults to some setting (e.g. If I have it set to sport, during reboot of mcu is changes to standard or comfort, not sure but I can feel the steering wheel take less effort to turn than my normal sport mode) ' no HVAC (heat, cool, vent) ' no defrosters ' no seat heaters ' no steering wheel heaters ' no radio/streaming ' no app connectivity to control the car ' no ability to see the car charge status from app ' trip a/b ' profiles ' user settings ' homelink ' bluetooth pairings ' no rear view camera ' no parking sensors

Filed Jan 15, 2018 · Steering · 30,000 miles · CA

There is a thread running on tesla motors club forum in which at least 5 different owners report that their steering box has completely fallen apart. Https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/power-steering-falling-apart.100951/page-3 the latest complaint from an owner provides detailed pictures that show snapped bolts and damage to the steering box making it unsafe to drive. This particular owner lives in canada and has tried unsuccessfully to file a complaint with the canadian authorities. Here is a link to more photographs posted by that owner. Http://www.teslazoom.com/power_steering.htm - message: power steering reduced function when turning the steering wheel it made an awful grinding noise and no power assist available. All they could do for me is to patch me in to service to make an appointment for the next day. I decided to take a look for myself and removed the frunk tub. Voila!, the electric steering motor had separated from the steering rack. All 3 aluminum bolts holding this motor to the steering rack had sheared off. Here is one that I found. There was massive corrosion due to road salt getting into it web research shows at least five other instances of the same failure on a pre facelift car. Post face lift cars have a redesigned steering motor with coated steel bolts holding it. ** many owners are under the impression that electric cars are almost maintenance free and they can save money by skipping routine maintenance. The owners on the power steering failure thread state that they were unaware of the problem until the steering failed completely. The number of wrecked teslas showing up in salvage car auctions is extremely high in proportion to the number of teslas sold. It is time for these cars to undergo a mandatory safety inspection by a qualified non-tesla authority. Please take urgent action. Snip**