The introduction of heat pumps into the design of the climate system of Tesla Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles made it possible to increase the efficiency of the traction battery charge without compromising the comfort of people in the cabin during the cold season. Canadian regulators, however, have launched an investigation following Tesla’s customer complaints regarding heat pump failures that might force the company to address the issue.
Image source: Electrek
According to information ElectrekThis is not the first time that Tesla electric vehicles have a problem with heat pumps, but the company has previously tried to solve it by updating the control software or replacing defective sensors. Some of the car owners were faced with the need to replace the compressor and valve system, in the absence of warranty coverage, such repairs would cost $ 4,000. In some cases, Tesla recommends that customers monitor the condition of the air ducts in the bonnet area, which are often blocked by ice in winter, making it difficult for air to circulate in the climate system and creating additional stress on the heat pump. In such a situation, the company recommends either preheating the electric car so that the ice at the entrance to the air duct melts, or manually remove such an obstacle.
Heat pumps from other manufacturers tend to perform poorly in air temperatures below minus 15 degrees Celsius, but Tesla prided itself on solving this problem by introducing a dual circuit. Nevertheless, in the north, in the USA and Canada, cases of heat pump failures at temperatures of regarding minus 30 degrees Celsius began to be recorded. The electric car retains the ability to move, but the heating does not work. Most Canadian regulators in this story confuses the fact that when the heat pump is not working, the windshield will quickly froze over, limiting visibility and endangering road safety.
Canadian authorities have already received regarding 16 complaints from customers, and now Tesla may be faced with the need to recall all heat pumped electric vehicles in operation in the country. Machines of previous years of production were not equipped with heat pumps, so this problem does not concern them. In 2020, Elon Musk expressed his admiration for the design excellence of the Model Y crossover heat pump, calling it “One of the finest engineering creations he has seen.”.
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