Class-Action Lawsuit Claims Tesla Ignored Suspension Defects

Alleging “breach of warranty and for unfair and deceptive acts and practices,” a class-action lawsuit is charging Tesla with ignoring suspension defects in Model S and Model X electric vehicles.

We previously covered Tesla’s tussle with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) after a litany of semi-autonomous vehicles apparently accelerated on their own, culminating in a Tesla Model X SUV equipped with the Autopilot “driver-assistance system” slamming into a concrete divider, killing the driver.

And it appears the Palo Alto EV juggernaut is back in hot water.

According to the lawsuit, the Model S and Model X “suffer from one or more latent defects in their suspension system that cause the front and rear suspension control arm assembly components to prematurely loosen, wear, crack, and/or break,” and instead of fixing it, Tesla actively concealed the information regarding suspension defect from its customers and regulators.

Tesla claims the damage was due to driver abuse (or “abnormal rust”), while the lawsuit claims the issue can manifest without warning, and when it does, “the rear or front control arms can separate from the steering knuckle and cause excessive negative camber in the suspension.”

In some cases, the wheel completely detached.

The incidents recounted in the lawsuit are stunning (and don’t seem to implicate the driver) – one of them mentions a “major rattling” in the front suspension, with Tesla claiming that they don’t have a permanent fix for it yet.

Be sure to read the entire lawsuit.