Tesla Model S 75D ABS and ESP repair, part 2: putting it right
The Model S 75D with ABS and ESP faults and no regenerative braking is back, with its parts in. Here is the repair, including the hidden extra work behind the original front control arm bolts.
personBy Gabor, MegaEV calendar_today 2 min read
This is the second part of the Model S 75D story. The car first came to us with ABS and ESP faults, which had also disabled its regenerative braking. In part 1, we explained how we traced the faults to damage left by a previous repair, and what else the health check found.
With the root causes identified and the parts ordered, the car came back in once everything had arrived.
The work
- replaced two wheel bearings
- cleaned the hubs and removed the corrosion
- replaced the front lower control arms
- replaced all four anti-roll bar links
The wheel bearings were the key part of the repair. On this model, the magnetic ring that the ABS sensor reads is built into the wheel bearing, so replacing the bearings replaced the damaged rings too. Cleaning the hubs properly before fitting the new parts matters just as much: corrosion left behind can affect how the sensor sits and reads.
The hidden extra work: the original bolts
During the strip-down, it became clear that the front control arms had never been replaced before. That meant the original bolts were still fitted.
On a Model S, these bolts cannot be removed past the high-voltage battery. So the job needed additional work to remove the old bolts safely and fit new ones correctly, before the new control arms could go on.
This is the kind of detail that is easy to miss when quoting a job, and the kind that matters when the high-voltage battery is involved. It is something we plan for on any older Model S.
The result
After reassembly, a short test drive let the systems relearn and reset. All the ABS and ESP faults cleared correctly, and regenerative braking is fully restored.
The car is now working exactly as it should.
From diagnosis to repair
Taken together, the two parts of this story show why we diagnose before we replace. The previous repair had replaced four sensors without fixing the fault. A clear diagnosis meant the owner paid for the parts the car actually needed, and got a car that works properly again.
If your Tesla is showing ABS, ESP or braking warnings, send us a message and tell us what has already been done.
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