"So a Suburban takes 165 feet
"So a Suburban takes 165 feet to stop from 60 mph and a Tesla can do that in 108 feet,"
A Tesla can stop in 108 Feet IF the driver is not busy fiddling with the 17" display and IF the brakes are working properly.
There are dozens of complaints from customers complaining of brake problems.
First problem is that due to less frequent use of the brakes (because drivers are making use of the regenerative braking) a layer of rust/dust/grime can build up on the brakes which makes them less effective.
Second (and much more alarming) problem is that owners are reporting the brake pedal falls to the floor sometimes and that the Tesla service centres are telling them it is 'normal"...WHAT???
Examples;
Re: Bad brakes
« Reply # 33 on: Today at. 8:54 »
Quote from: Brede on Yesterday at. 8:04 p.m.
TODAY MY GRANDFATHER'S GIRLFRIEND WAS HIT FROM BEHIND BY A TESLA. THE TESLA DRIVER CLAIMED THAT HE HAD NO BRAKING POWER AND HAD NO CHANCE TO STOP.
As I wrote earlier in another thread: this is actually a very safety and MUST result in a recall of Tesla. It is completely unacceptable, regardless of car, with unreliable brakes. A Model S is a car for over 2 tons and will trigger major forces in a collision. This time it was a car that apparently, he who drove the Tesla is telling the truth, had failing brakes. Next time it could be a mother with baby in a pedestrian being hit. brakes DO work at any time. A mandatory requirement
Re: Bad brakes
« Reply # 31 on: Today at. 8:21 »
Tested mine now and the pedal sinks to the bottom. The brakes seem to work fine when it's dry, but wet / slush go there for a few seconds before there is any particular effect. Can to some extent be compensated by pressing harder, but if one is unprepared feel as if there basically does not have brakes. If you drive a few minutes before the next braking so that discs and pads are cold and wet again the same thing happens again. Should I be worried?
« Reply # 32 on: Today at. 8:41 »
Quote from: Muffinman on Today at. 8:21
Yes, undoubtedly. Sinking pedal to the bottom and you do not have braking on a car at over 2 tons so it does not matter what the reason is. The car is dangerous to use the manufacturer has corrected the problem permanently.
Dr. Bob Reinke | 26 MARS 2014
Have several times complained to the Chicago service center about this life threatening problem and been told that the brakes will always disable and overcome the the go-peddle. There are several problems with this false statement: I have tested the sequence on my P85 and found that if you are on the brake and enable the go peddle, the car goes. If you have enough brake peddle left, you can slow the car. The reason I say, "Enough brake peddle left," is because my brake peddle fades to the floor in about 5 to 20 seconds, depending on the previous brake use. The fading is worst in heavy stop and go traffic. The brake and go-peddle have a little over an inch side clearance in my Tesla and I can normally stop the car with my foot 7/8 on the brake peddle; however, that leaves enough of my size 10s hanging off the brake peddle, and over the go-peddle. Enough to depress the go-peddle when the leaking brakes bleed down to allow my shoe to engage the go-peddle. At that point, pressing harder on the floored brake peddle only depresses the go-peddle harder. With no further brake force, the Tesla rockets into whatever is in front of you.
when complaining about this problem at the Chicago service center, I was told that the Model S brakes don't bleed down. I found that the brakes in 6 of the 10 cars in for service all bled to the floor in less than 20 seconds. Then I was told that I was pressing too hard. How hard does Tesla think the driver is going to depress the brakes while it is charging into the rear of the car in front of him.
The unexpected acceleration is caused by several Tesla faults: The close proximity of the use diametrically opposed peddles---My 56 Oldsmobile had about 7 inches between. Perhaps they were smarter then? The brakes under NHTSA are supposed to override the throttle. Tesla brakes leak-down making them worthless, and let the shoe push the go-peddle. The Gong is ineffective because it sounds incessently over inconsequential alarms. Who is listening for a gong while your car is pushing the car ahead of you into the car in front of him. I now drive wothout shoes, so I can feel my foot on the break, or touching the go-peddle. The right fix would be to move the peddles, or perhaps make the return spring on the go beddle stiffer to telegraph to your shoe it is on it; however, if Tesla is too cheep to fix the peddles the cheaper fix is a keyboard stroke to properly softwear shut-down the go-peddle while the brake peddle is off the home proximiry switch.
I was told by the service tech that the brake always overrides the go peddle. Then he held the brake while he floored the go peddle, the rear of the Tesla humped up like a bull in heat and burned two black marks under the rear tires. Just like my Toyota did before the fix. Then he said that the brakes actually reduced the power of the drive motors. Obviously, it didn't reduce the power enough to prevent the Model S from taking off after the brake peddle bled to the floor in stopped traffic.
Perhaps the most relavant question should be can Elon afford to pay 4 billion dollar penalty (GM) for failing to respond to a clear safety problem? All the ridicule and smart remarks on this thread only iritate and resolve nothing of the problem. Apparently, those who are having the Uncontrolled Acceleration problem are the only who understand the danger.
Undoubtedly, there are the smart elete reading this who can never make a mistake, who will pick this entry apart, and solve nothing--but that prevents no deaths caused by an easily softwear mended malfunction. The fix costs is so little to save one life