Sensitive electronics: Teslas are no longer allowed in the car wash

Created: 02/24/2022, 15:56

By: Patrick Freiwah

Driving to a car wash is obviously a big challenge for certain cars. © Jürgen Ritter/Imago

Apparently, anyone driving a Tesla into the car wash faces a rude awakening.

After several problems, operators ban entry with models of this brand.

Oldenburg/Munich – Is it too dangerous to drive a Tesla electric car* into the car wash?

According to the experience of an operator of car washes, this question can be answered with "yes" for certain models.

In the district of Oldenburg, the small petrol station network Raiffeisen Hatten-Huntlosen eG has decided to deny models from the American provider access to their own cleaning facilities.

In the past it has been shown too often that this can lead to problems.

E-cars from other manufacturers are not affected by the measure,

.

Tesla models cause problems in car washes - sensors are to blame

What motivates the company to take such action?

The charging connection and trunk lid components in particular are said to have caused frequent problems with Tesla models*.

The built-in sensors went crazy - and the corresponding cover opened during the washing process.

This led to water ingress.

According to the operator, there had been several such incidents, although the Tesla owners assured that they had previously locked their car.

The decision was also taken to prevent possible claims for damages.

However, the problem found would only affect the larger luxury electric cars Tesla Model S and Model X - the manufacturer's older model series.

On the other hand, a car wash mode was installed a few months ago via a software update on the newer Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.

So it seems that the US manufacturer is aware of the issue.

Tesla Model S: Too sensitive for German car washes?

© Tesla Motors/SP-X

Tesla itself points out that with electric cars, visiting car washes with contact with brushes or cloths is not recommended.

Accordingly, the manuals for the e-cars say: “If you wash the vehicle in an automatic car wash, only use a non-contact car wash.

(...).

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Tesla: E-cars cause problems - damage not covered by warranty

The problem for the affected Tesla owners - and potentially also for the car wash operator: "Other types of car washes can cause damage that is not covered by the guarantee," the US giant lets users of its cars know.

Meanwhile, company boss Elon Musk* faces a new problem in the USA.

The reason: A number of monkeys died in animal experiments as part of brain research for “Neuralink”:

Tesla made huge profits last year - despite the chip crisis.

Now it turns out that the e-pioneer simply did not install a central car part.