WD40 was my fix. I had this exact noise problem with my 4 year old Model 3. Drove it less than 35K miles, but it's past it's warranty. Tesla in Portland, OR wanted to charge me $497 upfront to fix this. Shocked that there's no such thing as a free estimate for them to look at it first and discuss with you after your warranty expires. I found this expense for my low-mileage car ridiculous, so I just sprayed WD40 in the areas described in this video. It's been months and the squeaking has completely stopped! I didn't expect my stop-gap to last this long, but I'm happy that I didn't have to spend anything.
@@tumenodnuud4101 yeah. I poked and injected lubricant into that rubber cover and it fixed the issue . I didn’t even have to take off the wheel. It still squeaked for a day, but after day two, it was all good.
Had same issue. Used silicone lubricant on all the rubber/silicone connections and went a bit overboard and took the rubber housing off the ball joint and added some grease in there before putting it back together. The little metal to by is a bit difficult to work with but if you take your time it is possible. No more noise. 🙇🏻♂️ you’re doing the Lord’s work.
That is what I did. I cleaned out all the horrible gunked up grease and replaced it with new. Taking the spring wire wrap off is the best option, I'm sure. It's a bit of a fiddle, but easy enough to get off and on again. Once the grease is replaced and the cover is back on, it is really easy to work the ball joint and get the new grease spread around. Squeak is gone!
Used a grease needle to inject fresh grease into the rubber housing on the ball joint, then used a lot of silicone lubricant on the control arm joints where they connect to the vehicle body (looked a bit rusty). Still squeaking the next day, but drove about 100 miles and all squeaking/creaking is now gone! I removed the tire to get a little more room for the spray can, but i don't think it was necessary.
Thank you very much for this video. Very helpful indeed. A couple of things I did different. First, you can jack the car at the rear and get it high enough to put the axle stand under the front jacking point. Once that is done, I didn't bother with a second jack stand. Then, while working the joint definitely helps, I removed the spring wire from the rubber boot and peeled back the boot. Then I cleaned out all the horrible gunked up grease and replaced it with new. Taking the spring wire wrap off is the best option, I'm sure. It's a bit of a fiddle, but easy enough to get off and on again. Once the grease is replaced and the cover is back on, it is really easy to work the ball joint and get the new grease spread around. Squeak is gone! Thanks again for a great video!
Thanks bud!! I owe you a cold beer. Saved me a couple of hundred bucks and at least half a day dealing with Tesla service. Very easy DIY fix. I recommend using a strap with a rachet to take the tension off of the pinch bolt in order to remove it and to bring it back together after getting the ball joint moving again. Many thanks!
Those wheels and calipers are incredibly clean for 2019, what a well cared for car 👍 Not sure how or why i missed this vid but good old youtube recommended it today
I bought an automotive syringe and injected grease straight through the rubber 'boot' without even taking off the wheel/tire. Had to drive it around for a few miles but the noise is gone.
Love these vids. It’s not that Tesla isn’t producing quality cars, it’s the parts that have slight wear out that need lubrication. You even pointed out the ball joints which is another common issue where they need to be greased. Very simple fixes. If you bring it to a SC ask for a fix and not a replacement part. Replacement part will only have the issue come back later and you’re back to the drawing board. EXCELLENT VIDEO.
Thank you. As you point out it's not a quality issue. Tesla have changed the upper control arms as they were prone to squeaking through lack of grease. The newer version is an improvement on the original ones. I had my MOT in late September and the squeaking returned immediately afterwards. This was due to being jacked up and the suspension travel extended. I could have repeated the same process I documented in this video. However, as I knew Tesla had updated the control arms and increased the amount of grease in the ball joint I opted for them to swap them free of charge under warranty.
@@johntisbury yes, I read on the different variations for those control arms. Just got my MYP two weeks ago and heading to the SC for creak/squish on all FOUR tires. At first I was pissed(excuse my French) because the car is brand new and I thought it was the suspension or control arms. Upon deep research MYP cars have this “issue” where they leave the manufacturer sticker inside the tire wheel well. I told SC to please remove the rims from the tires and check to see if said stickers are in there. Once removed it solves the creak/squish issue. The sticker apparently is made of a foil metalish material that makes sound at that point of revolution. Again not a quality issue just but rather a silly one.
@@MUFCXI I can appreciate that being rather annoying for what is a simple fix and obvious production problem. I'm sure Tesla will soon resolve that going forwards as they are quick to improve. The Model Y is certainly proving popular, the second best selling car in the UK in September and it's only going to go from strength to strength. Good choice.
Refreshing to see someone who's prepared to diagnose and fix without troubling the garage or the wallet. A ball joint splitter was one of my very first tools, purchased back when nearly everyone did their own maintenance. I don't remember having to buy any large torx sockets though!
I did have the ball joint splitter to hand too although didn't need it in the end. Torx sockets are strange things, there's quite a few around the Tesla.
By far the best tutorial for this work I’ve seen on TH-cam 👌🏻 I’ve tried to insert grease with a thin syringe but it was too weak so I’ll maybe try a grease gun instead. I was a bit worried about removing the t50 bolt … if it holds itself without any aid and if it is easy to reassemble again. Does it mess with wheel alignment too?
Tesla did revise the upper control arms to stop this happening but not sure when that happened. You could try the fix and see. If it resolves it then perhaps book it in for a warranty upgrade.
Get yourself a grease needle and pump the boot of the upper and lower ball joins with new grease. The noise is in the ball joints and it's because the grease was inadequate from the factory.
Mine picked up a similar issue a couple of months back had Tesla in Nottingham take a quick look at it while I was nearby, and they fixed it under warranty a couple of weeks later (it's 2020 model). Superb service.
Just wait till your out of warranty. Here's what they quoted me to fix the squeak: 1) FR UPR CTRL ARM ASSY, RH(1044326-00-J) 2) FR UPR CTRL ARM ASSY, LEFT HAND(1044321-00-J) 3) FRONT LOWER COMPLIANCE LINK ASSEMBLY, LEFT HAND(1044354-00-A) 4) FRONT LOWER COMPLIANCE LINK ASSEMBLY, RIGHT HAND(1044359-00-A) 5) LOWER LATERAL LINK - FRONT(1044341-00-D) 6) LOWER LATERAL LINK - FRONT(1044341-00-D) To the tune of 2k. Lucky I did some research.....
John - my 2020 M3 LR had this issue and Tesla MK replaced the front upper control arms on both sides - they judged them to be OK but wanted to avoid an , apparently inevitable, remission. Jolly good all done at no cost but here I am one month later waiting for a service appointment to get the job done again!!😪😪
Ah that’s not good. I did get mine replaced too by Tesla Northampton SC as the modified arms were an improvement over the mk 1 versions. They have been fine since, 29th sept 2022 was the date they were replaced
Thank you for the amazing video John, my 2019 Tesla M3 started the squeaky noise today. And I book the earlies appointment date (in 3 weeks). Is the car still safe to drive for 3 more weeks?
Did you loosen the two bolts by the bushings? You didn't mention it and they are loose. Not the bolt by the ball joint but the two bushings towards the middle of the car. They should be tight. Torque spec for the ball join bolt is 41.3 ft/lb and the bushing bolts are 36.9 ft/lbs.
Awesome, great to hear. My squeak did return after its MOT as they jack the car up and suspension drops to full travel, the squeak returned, so redid the procedure again.
Mine has developed a different problem, but with similar symptoms. 1. Put the car in drive/ reverse, foot brake off. 2. Steer left/right while stationary and observe creaking while steering. 3. Apply footbrake, and observe that creaking has gone away while steering. Same goes for park mode. It’s like the brake pads are rubbing against the discs, indicating that the hold mode isn’t quite strong enough. I’m wandering if that’s a software fixable thing, or whether the discs need cleaning. Only started noticing last week after update to 2022.16 software. 12800 miles on the clock…
That's interesting Anthony, as you say sounds similar yet different. The creep mode does not engage the brakes so can't be brake related. Must be suspension. It's mechanical over software by the sounds of it.
I do wonder how long the DIY fix will continue quieting the noise, compared to having the control arm replaced (with possibly improved lubrication of ball joint). Such a squeaking issue appears to be extremely common for Teslas.
@@johntisbury Thanks a lot for the explanation. Since it is very expensive to replace it I also wonder if it is still quiet. PS: the Tesla garage refused to do this fix saying it will start squeaking again after a weak. They wanted to replace the whole arm.
Mine literally started squeaking today.. same front drivers side.. wonder weather the heat has been final straw! My MP3 is due in service centre on 1 Aug for loom recall and a broken front seat so will add upper arm to their list! Thx
Timing and all that! They will probably replace the control arms rather than do this fix. The later arms have more grease in the ball joint I understand.
@@raythomas7392 not sure what you are asking here Ray. If it's cost to repair, it's free apart from your time if you do it yourself. If Tesla do it and it's under warranty then also free. Not sure on the cost if you have to pay as that will vary country to country and their approach to fixing it.
@@vincent-n6o you won’t need a new ball joint after only 14,000 miles that’s no mileage at all, unless you’ve done all those miles off-road. Just needs lube.
Upper Control Arm to Knuckle: 56 Nm which is from the Service Manual. However, this is 3rd hand from a Reddit thread. I therefore cannot verify this information. It can be found here too: tighttorque.com/cars/tesla/model-3
Yes good call. I'm lead to believe they simple replace the control arms as the early ones had a lack of grease in the ball joint. How true this is I don't know. My fix is simple, but may need to be done again later down the road.
Hi, my model 3 is now creating such irritating sound. Should I apply the lubricant to both the control arm as i am not sure which side the sounds are coming from?
Thinking about this it maybe the ball joint that needs manipulating to move the grease about. The lubricant won't do any harm, but the ball joint is probably the thing making the noise.
My Model 3 is a 2021 refresh - one of the first batches from Shanghai - and it has started creaking after 40,000 miles. Is it possible that it does not have the new front upper control arms?
Good question, unlikely but possible. The front upper control arms have gone through a number of iterations in design. No idea what the current part number is.
John, thank you for the video. It's very helpful. You had this issue at least a year ago according to YT. Just wondering, is the squeaking still gone? I'm asking this so I can be sure to apply the fix by myself or to order a new upper control arm.
The squeak had disappeared for about 6 months. However when the car went in for its annual MOT, the suspension is dropped to its full extension whilst on the ramp. Afterwards the squeak did return. The issue is lack of grease in the ball joint. The car was still under warranty so I got Tesla to replace the control arms with the newer modified version which has a better ball joint and grease pocket.
@@johntisbury Thank you for your answer. Unfortunately, I don't have Tesla service in the country I live so I guess have to consider to take it to the services specialized for Tesla vehicles and explain the issue and maybe show them this video.
@@trancevision83 ah that's unfortunate. It's not an uncommon problem for any car to be fair so any competent mechanic would be able to grease the ball joint or manipulate the grease that's already present in the joint back into the position around the moving parts.
My 2019 Model 3 with 30,000 miles on it developed this problem just a few days ago. I have about 3 weeks of warranty left. I just put in a service request. I am guessing they will only fix the side that is squeaking and not perform any preventative maintenance on the other sides.
Did you need to use force to put it back the ball joint? Did you need a second jack to force the pin in? Or everything can be done by hand? Asking because i only have 1 car jack to lift the vehicle and i will have no support for the axis or anything
I tried to follow this, but I could not get the T50 hex bolt out after removing the nut. I hit the uncovered nut end with a hammer a few times, and it still did not come out. Is the hole holding the bolt threaded? I don't want to damage the bolt because I'd need the car to drive to a store to purchase a replacement.
No it's not threaded from memory. I suspect corrosion has set in between the bolt and the knuckle. Pump some oil, WD-40 or similar in to see if that helps to loosen the bolt. If you hit the end of the bolt with a hammer make sure the nut is still on the end of the bolt to protect the threads of the bolt. You don't want to knacker up the threads by hitting it with a hammer.
@@johntisbury Thanks for the suggestion. I sprayed the bolt where I could, put the nut back on, replaced the tire, and lowered the car soon after I wrote my original comment. I scheduled to have my usual garage look at it to see what they say. If I don't like they're assessment, I try this again.
Hi Thanks for the video. However, I took the joint off from the upper arm and now can't put the front wheel back to the pivot joint due to the strong upwad force at the upper arm. Could you help me what do I need to do to put the piece back to the joint?
Nevermind. Didnt know the bolt is supposed to lock in the joint thorough its groove. After removing the bolt, with some craw bar, i was able to push the pivot joint in place.
I've had both fronts replaced under warranty and just had failures of both rear trailing arm bushes, which requires the subframe to be dropped in order to get the bolts out to replace them, which creates a potential alignment issue when re-mounting it I've done 145000 miles, so I'm way ahead of the curve than most people but its going to happen to everyone at some point (mine had been squeaking for 9 months before I found someone who could diagnose and then repair it)
Why no one talking about lower arms that making crazy noise. That is most common... I had similar issue in my model 3, so, tesla replaced upper arms and charged me for that, but noise still there. And then they said its from lower arms... i still don't know why they replaced upper arms...
This is interesting, my noise was definitely the ball joints in the upper control arms. Everyone I've talked to, who had the same issue, was the upper control arms. It sounds like it's not the same issue. You have a noise but it's not the upper control arms. Mis-diagnosed by Tesla. It could be the lowers or even the drive shafts as they can squeak on stop and start. Hope you get to the bottom of it.
Alright alright alright. So I am looking at 2 trips to an incredibly far away service station (52 hours of driving total) and my TM3 is creaking like this but worse. They replaced my control arms. Didn't work so now they want to check out my lateral links BUT perhaps they just need to do this in my driveway?! Is it possible Tesla doesn't have a clue what they are doing? Can I send you a video of my squeak?
Ah Laura I'm sorry to hear this. TBF if they have already replaced your control arms then it's highly unlikely to be the same thing that is squeaking as shown in this video. It will almost certainly be something else. Troubleshooting squeaks is not easy, you have to fault find and replace / grease / secure and then see if that fixes it. It's not a black or white process often requiring iteration before finding the actual component. Being so far away from a service centre is a real downer. I'm not a mechanic or Tesla expert so I doubt I could remotely interpret your squeak from a video. You could try the Tesla Forums, however, you will problem get 20 diagnosis for what is causing it.
It is on the early models and yes covered under warranty. Tesla later modified the ball joint in the upper control arm to fix this problem. These can be retrofitted under warranty.
My 2.5 year old Model 3 has developed this exact fault over the last 5 days (driver side too). Company car so can't do myself and wait time for a garage is 4 weeks - would this be safe to continue driving on until then?
That's frustrating to hear. Is the sound of the squeak exactly the same as mine on the video? It could be there is no grease in the ball joint which means even if you manipulated it with no grease it's not going to improve things. The other option is the squeak is coming from elsewhere.
@@johntisburyyea it’s the same annoying squeak and on the driver side only. That make sense, might need to replace it then. Do you recall how quick it went away after doing this? I drove all day for a while and different speeds and turns, so the grease should be moving around if it is that.
@@johntisbury ahhh ok, then yea, must be something deeper since I did do what you did Welp, it was worth a try before they charge me an arm and a leg Thanks for the replies
@@alexdias5122 you don’t need to be a mechanic to fix this Alex. Many commenters have simply sprayed the points in the video with WD40 or similar. Don’t even need to take the wheel off.
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WD40 was my fix. I had this exact noise problem with my 4 year old Model 3. Drove it less than 35K miles, but it's past it's warranty. Tesla in Portland, OR wanted to charge me $497 upfront to fix this. Shocked that there's no such thing as a free estimate for them to look at it first and discuss with you after your warranty expires. I found this expense for my low-mileage car ridiculous, so I just sprayed WD40 in the areas described in this video. It's been months and the squeaking has completely stopped! I didn't expect my stop-gap to last this long, but I'm happy that I didn't have to spend anything.
Good to hear
What warranty this is covered under?
This is way more easy . I’ll try this first
I sprayed wd40 around the joint also but it didnt do anything … i need to buy that needle and poke it?
@@tumenodnuud4101 yeah. I poked and injected lubricant into that rubber cover and it fixed the issue . I didn’t even have to take off the wheel. It still squeaked for a day, but after day two, it was all good.
Had same issue. Used silicone lubricant on all the rubber/silicone connections and went a bit overboard and took the rubber housing off the ball joint and added some grease in there before putting it back together. The little metal to by is a bit difficult to work with but if you take your time it is possible.
No more noise. 🙇🏻♂️ you’re doing the Lord’s work.
Great to hear. Top work.
This is the way. I had to do it twice when it came back after a month. Needed fresh grease.
That is what I did. I cleaned out all the horrible gunked up grease and replaced it with new. Taking the spring wire wrap off is the best option, I'm sure. It's a bit of a fiddle, but easy enough to get off and on again. Once the grease is replaced and the cover is back on, it is really easy to work the ball joint and get the new grease spread around. Squeak is gone!
Used a grease needle to inject fresh grease into the rubber housing on the ball joint, then used a lot of silicone lubricant on the control arm joints where they connect to the vehicle body (looked a bit rusty). Still squeaking the next day, but drove about 100 miles and all squeaking/creaking is now gone! I removed the tire to get a little more room for the spray can, but i don't think it was necessary.
Result!
I did the exact same thing and it stopped the very next day. Saved me from going to the shop to spend hundreds of dollars
My model 3 had the same problem but my squeaking was way louder. Tried this method and it worked like a charm. Thanks man
Glad it helped
Mine is so loud🥲
I was embarrassed by mine as I drove about
@@johntisbury yes exactly!!!😂 I’m like guys I swear it’s not my fault
I just got new ones to my 2021 model 3 and have to say that I can feel the difference, just like new now
Thank you very much for this video. Very helpful indeed. A couple of things I did different. First, you can jack the car at the rear and get it high enough to put the axle stand under the front jacking point. Once that is done, I didn't bother with a second jack stand. Then, while working the joint definitely helps, I removed the spring wire from the rubber boot and peeled back the boot. Then I cleaned out all the horrible gunked up grease and replaced it with new. Taking the spring wire wrap off is the best option, I'm sure. It's a bit of a fiddle, but easy enough to get off and on again. Once the grease is replaced and the cover is back on, it is really easy to work the ball joint and get the new grease spread around. Squeak is gone! Thanks again for a great video!
Good tips Richard, thank you for sharing.
My Model 3 started squeaking on bumps a few days ago. I saw this video, did the same steps and the squeaking stopped! Thank you!!
Pleased to hear this fix worked for you too.
Thanks bud!! I owe you a cold beer. Saved me a couple of hundred bucks and at least half a day dealing with Tesla service. Very easy DIY fix. I recommend using a strap with a rachet to take the tension off of the pinch bolt in order to remove it and to bring it back together after getting the ball joint moving again. Many thanks!
Great to hear. Glad you got it fixed.
Good point ... I was wondering about that aspect.
This could be the best straight to the point video I've seen and heard. Great work!
Thank you 🙏
Those wheels and calipers are incredibly clean for 2019, what a well cared for car 👍 Not sure how or why i missed this vid but good old youtube recommended it today
Well done TH-cam! I do keep the seen and unseen bits clean.
@@johntisbury good to get creaks sorted. Might try than lube on my knee😉
I bought an automotive syringe and injected grease straight through the rubber 'boot' without even taking off the wheel/tire. Had to drive it around for a few miles but the noise is gone.
Love these vids. It’s not that Tesla isn’t producing quality cars, it’s the parts that have slight wear out that need lubrication. You even pointed out the ball joints which is another common issue where they need to be greased. Very simple fixes. If you bring it to a SC ask for a fix and not a replacement part. Replacement part will only have the issue come back later and you’re back to the drawing board. EXCELLENT VIDEO.
Thank you. As you point out it's not a quality issue.
Tesla have changed the upper control arms as they were prone to squeaking through lack of grease. The newer version is an improvement on the original ones. I had my MOT in late September and the squeaking returned immediately afterwards. This was due to being jacked up and the suspension travel extended. I could have repeated the same process I documented in this video. However, as I knew Tesla had updated the control arms and increased the amount of grease in the ball joint I opted for them to swap them free of charge under warranty.
@@johntisbury yes, I read on the different variations for those control arms. Just got my MYP two weeks ago and heading to the SC for creak/squish on all FOUR tires. At first I was pissed(excuse my French) because the car is brand new and I thought it was the suspension or control arms. Upon deep research MYP cars have this “issue” where they leave the manufacturer sticker inside the tire wheel well. I told SC to please remove the rims from the tires and check to see if said stickers are in there. Once removed it solves the creak/squish issue. The sticker apparently is made of a foil metalish material that makes sound at that point of revolution. Again not a quality issue just but rather a silly one.
@@MUFCXI I can appreciate that being rather annoying for what is a simple fix and obvious production problem. I'm sure Tesla will soon resolve that going forwards as they are quick to improve.
The Model Y is certainly proving popular, the second best selling car in the UK in September and it's only going to go from strength to strength. Good choice.
Refreshing to see someone who's prepared to diagnose and fix without troubling the garage or the wallet. A ball joint splitter was one of my very first tools, purchased back when nearly everyone did their own maintenance. I don't remember having to buy any large torx sockets though!
I did have the ball joint splitter to hand too although didn't need it in the end. Torx sockets are strange things, there's quite a few around the Tesla.
He should have just contacted a Tesla garage and they would have replaced the upper control arms free of charge. It was a known issue.
@@eddieke4751 He did ultimately have them replaced free of charge ... but many people are now out of warranty for stuff like this.
My car started doing this crazy noise today. I was freaking out and I checked your video. Thank youuuu 🙏
Glad it helped!
This is exactly what happened to mine this morning!! Thank you so much for posting this video.
Hope you are able to sort it out - glad the video helped.
Your brake callipers are so clean! Anyone who says that EVs make more particulates are so wrong. :)
Aren't they! Almost 3 years old and never had the wheels off to clean the callipers. Pads are like new in terms of wear.
He clearly doesn't live beside a regularly salted road like me ... mine are a disgrace!
By far the best tutorial for this work I’ve seen on TH-cam 👌🏻
I’ve tried to insert grease with a thin syringe but it was too weak so I’ll maybe try a grease gun instead. I was a bit worried about removing the t50 bolt … if it holds itself without any aid and if it is easy to reassemble again. Does it mess with wheel alignment too?
It does not effect alignment once removed.
Just used this on my 2019 UK Model 3 and it’s sorted it. Thank you so much. I found your guide really easy to follow.
Good to hear it was useful
My 2019 model 3 has the same issue. Thanks for making the video. Glad it’s not just mine
It's a common fault on the early ones. Tesla changed the upper and lower control arm design to overcome this.
@@johntisbury I have a 2022 and it’s squeaking now hmm
Tesla did revise the upper control arms to stop this happening but not sure when that happened. You could try the fix and see. If it resolves it then perhaps book it in for a warranty upgrade.
Tesla y 2023 года 17000 км тоже начала скрипеть
Get yourself a grease needle and pump the boot of the upper and lower ball joins with new grease. The noise is in the ball joints and it's because the grease was inadequate from the factory.
You're a legend, saved me a trip to the service center, thank you
Good luck, it’s an easy fix.
Mine picked up a similar issue a couple of months back had Tesla in Nottingham take a quick look at it while I was nearby, and they fixed it under warranty a couple of weeks later (it's 2020 model). Superb service.
Good to hear, glad you got it fixed.
Stephen, mine just started doing it and mine is also a 2020. Hoping it won’t cost me anything.
Just wait till your out of warranty. Here's what they quoted me to fix the squeak:
1) FR UPR CTRL ARM ASSY, RH(1044326-00-J)
2) FR UPR CTRL ARM ASSY, LEFT HAND(1044321-00-J)
3) FRONT LOWER COMPLIANCE LINK ASSEMBLY, LEFT HAND(1044354-00-A)
4) FRONT LOWER COMPLIANCE LINK ASSEMBLY, RIGHT HAND(1044359-00-A)
5) LOWER LATERAL LINK - FRONT(1044341-00-D)
6) LOWER LATERAL LINK - FRONT(1044341-00-D)
To the tune of 2k.
Lucky I did some research.....
Thank you, I followed the procedure and no longer have the squeaky suspension.
Good to hear! 👌
The nut on the end of the pinch bolt is a 15mm, not 25mm as specified in the video.
Excellent job John at least I will no what to do if mine starts squeaking thanks all the best Glyn
It's good to now these things for sure, even if you never need to apply the information.
John - my 2020 M3 LR had this issue and Tesla MK replaced the front upper control arms on both sides - they judged them to be OK but wanted to avoid an , apparently inevitable, remission. Jolly good all done at no cost but here I am one month later waiting for a service appointment to get the job done again!!😪😪
Ah that’s not good. I did get mine replaced too by Tesla Northampton SC as the modified arms were an improvement over the mk 1 versions. They have been fine since, 29th sept 2022 was the date they were replaced
@@johntisbury Thanks John, I appreciate your reply and I must say, a really good video which is so clear and simple.
yep...thought someone installed some leaf springs on the front....getting new upper control arms this week....after 100,000km not too bad!
A good mileage!
Excellent, concise, clear - thank you
Thanks for watching, glad it met the brief.
Same problem, same driver side front. I'll definitely look into lubing up that joint.
Hope you get it fixed.
Great video. Had the same issue and tackling it this weekend.
Good luck, hope it goes well.
Thanks for this video. My son and I just did this work to his Model3.
Glad it helped
Thank you for the amazing video John, my 2019 Tesla M3 started the squeaky noise today. And I book the earlies appointment date (in 3 weeks). Is the car still safe to drive for 3 more weeks?
It should be okay, the noise may get worse. Tesla will replace the parts that are rubbing metal on metal.
@@johntisbury Thank you
I plan to do this to my car soon. Thank you
Glad it helped.
Great video! For the bolt you removed … when you reinstalled it, did you torque it, and if so, at what torque? Thanks !
Thanks for watching. TBF I tightened the bolt by feel based on its tightness to undo it. Not very scientific but worked okay.
Did you loosen the two bolts by the bushings? You didn't mention it and they are loose. Not the bolt by the ball joint but the two bushings towards the middle of the car. They should be tight. Torque spec for the ball join bolt is 41.3 ft/lb and the bushing bolts are 36.9 ft/lbs.
Thanks for this. 🙌
Easy fix, so glad you posted this! Thanks
Thanks for watching, glad it was useful
Great video, thanks for the clear instructions, very pleasant to watch
Thank you for watching, glad it was helpful
@@johntisbury Definitely, waiting for tools to arrive but after such a clear video, I feel very confident to do it myself ! thanks again
Thank you! did this, worked a treat.
Awesome, great to hear. My squeak did return after its MOT as they jack the car up and suspension drops to full travel, the squeak returned, so redid the procedure again.
Great video! Do you perhaps know the needed torque to tighten the bolt that needs to be taken out? Or am I fine, when I tighten it normally?
TBF I re-tightened it to a similar pressure as the original. I didn't torque it.
@@johntisbury Thanks!
Mine has developed a different problem, but with similar symptoms.
1. Put the car in drive/ reverse, foot brake off.
2. Steer left/right while stationary and observe creaking while steering.
3. Apply footbrake, and observe that creaking has gone away while steering. Same goes for park mode.
It’s like the brake pads are rubbing against the discs, indicating that the hold mode isn’t quite strong enough.
I’m wandering if that’s a software fixable thing, or whether the discs need cleaning. Only started noticing last week after update to 2022.16 software. 12800 miles on the clock…
That's interesting Anthony, as you say sounds similar yet different. The creep mode does not engage the brakes so can't be brake related. Must be suspension. It's mechanical over software by the sounds of it.
did you ever get this fixed? im having this issue.
This ain’t a DIY job like the video casually suggests lol
But thank you helped me feel better I’m not alone
@@thevoiceofus1 thanks for watching. I guess your level of car mechanics decides whether it’s DIY or not, for some it is, for others maybe not.
I do wonder how long the DIY fix will continue quieting the noise, compared to having the control arm replaced (with possibly improved lubrication of ball joint). Such a squeaking issue appears to be extremely common for Teslas.
Yeah time will tell.
@@johntisbury Thanks a lot for the explanation. Since it is very expensive to replace it I also wonder if it is still quiet.
PS: the Tesla garage refused to do this fix saying it will start squeaking again after a weak. They wanted to replace the whole arm.
It’s been fine since, no squeaking.
@@ShowMeSomeCodeisn't that free under warranty?
Thank you for your great video. Did squeaking come back a year later?
Mine literally started squeaking today.. same front drivers side.. wonder weather the heat has been final straw! My MP3 is due in service centre on 1 Aug for loom recall and a broken front seat so will add upper arm to their list! Thx
Timing and all that! They will probably replace the control arms rather than do this fix. The later arms have more grease in the ball joint I understand.
My exact sound
Literally started today
@@johntisbury how much is it
@@raythomas7392 not sure what you are asking here Ray. If it's cost to repair, it's free apart from your time if you do it yourself. If Tesla do it and it's under warranty then also free. Not sure on the cost if you have to pay as that will vary country to country and their approach to fixing it.
How would I know if I need a new ball joint or I just need to lube it? I have a 2018 with 14000 miles.
@@vincent-n6o you won’t need a new ball joint after only 14,000 miles that’s no mileage at all, unless you’ve done all those miles off-road. Just needs lube.
What is the torque on that T50 ball joint bolt? I want to make sure I get it back to the correct tightness and not overtight.
Upper Control Arm to Knuckle: 56 Nm which is from the Service Manual. However, this is 3rd hand from a Reddit thread. I therefore cannot verify this information. It can be found here too: tighttorque.com/cars/tesla/model-3
Great job John
Would be interesting to know if anyone else has paid Tesla for this work to be done and how much they charged
Yes good call. I'm lead to believe they simple replace the control arms as the early ones had a lack of grease in the ball joint. How true this is I don't know. My fix is simple, but may need to be done again later down the road.
@@johntisbury If it’s still under warranty then it’s worth getting it into Tesla to be replaced as necessary.
Mine has the exact same issue, going into Tesla garage on Monday to get replaced under warranty FOC.
$1000 😢. wish I’d seen this sooner
😏
Hi, my model 3 is now creating such irritating sound. Should I apply the lubricant to both the control arm as i am not sure which side the sounds are coming from?
It won’t do any harm.
Thinking about this it maybe the ball joint that needs manipulating to move the grease about. The lubricant won't do any harm, but the ball joint is probably the thing making the noise.
thanks for this John. Ours has just developed the same fault! also a 2019 M3 P! (27k miles). Would this be covered under warranty?
Yes it should be. Ours would have been.
My Model 3 is a 2021 refresh - one of the first batches from Shanghai - and it has started creaking after 40,000 miles. Is it possible that it does not have the new front upper control arms?
Good question, unlikely but possible. The front upper control arms have gone through a number of iterations in design. No idea what the current part number is.
glad i found this!
Hope it helps
Best video for diagnosing. Thankyou!
Thank you, glad it was useful
John, thank you for the video. It's very helpful. You had this issue at least a year ago according to YT. Just wondering, is the squeaking still gone? I'm asking this so I can be sure to apply the fix by myself or to order a new upper control arm.
The squeak had disappeared for about 6 months. However when the car went in for its annual MOT, the suspension is dropped to its full extension whilst on the ramp. Afterwards the squeak did return. The issue is lack of grease in the ball joint. The car was still under warranty so I got Tesla to replace the control arms with the newer modified version which has a better ball joint and grease pocket.
@@johntisbury Thank you for your answer. Unfortunately, I don't have Tesla service in the country I live so I guess have to consider to take it to the services specialized for Tesla vehicles and explain the issue and maybe show them this video.
@@trancevision83 ah that's unfortunate. It's not an uncommon problem for any car to be fair so any competent mechanic would be able to grease the ball joint or manipulate the grease that's already present in the joint back into the position around the moving parts.
@@johntisbury thank you again. I'm contact with the mechanics to solve this issue.
Super helpful, though the very loud intro put me off a bit. Thanks!
Sorry about the intro. I dropped the use of an intro sometime ago and now just get straight into the video.
What the torque moment for t50?
I didnt get if you put any lubricant on the joint, or just move it around
Just moved it around. Lubed up the control arm pivot points.
My 2019 Model 3 with 30,000 miles on it developed this problem just a few days ago. I have about 3 weeks of warranty left. I just put in a service request. I am guessing they will only fix the side that is squeaking and not perform any preventative maintenance on the other sides.
I would ask the question, they may replace both sides.
Till when is the warranty
Basic vehicle warranty is 4 years, battery is 8 years, drive unit is 8 years.
@@johntisbury Basic warranty is 4 years ...
@@MrAdopado thanks, corrected.
Mine just started doing this. Should this be covered under warranty if I take it in to get checked?
Yes its covered by warranty.
@@johntisbury thank you sir!
Thanks for the info. I have a novice question. Is there torque spec when you retightening the upper control arm?
There probably is a torque setting, however I don’t know it, I tightened to the same tightness feel as the original.
Did you need to use force to put it back the ball joint? Did you need a second jack to force the pin in? Or everything can be done by hand? Asking because i only have 1 car jack to lift the vehicle and i will have no support for the axis or anything
All done by hand, no second jack required
I tried to follow this, but I could not get the T50 hex bolt out after removing the nut. I hit the uncovered nut end with a hammer a few times, and it still did not come out. Is the hole holding the bolt threaded? I don't want to damage the bolt because I'd need the car to drive to a store to purchase a replacement.
No it's not threaded from memory. I suspect corrosion has set in between the bolt and the knuckle. Pump some oil, WD-40 or similar in to see if that helps to loosen the bolt.
If you hit the end of the bolt with a hammer make sure the nut is still on the end of the bolt to protect the threads of the bolt. You don't want to knacker up the threads by hitting it with a hammer.
@@johntisbury Thanks for the suggestion. I sprayed the bolt where I could, put the nut back on, replaced the tire, and lowered the car soon after I wrote my original comment. I scheduled to have my usual garage look at it to see what they say. If I don't like they're assessment, I try this again.
Hi Thanks for the video. However, I took the joint off from the upper arm and now can't put the front wheel back to the pivot joint due to the strong upwad force at the upper arm. Could you help me what do I need to do to put the piece back to the joint?
Nevermind. Didnt know the bolt is supposed to lock in the joint thorough its groove. After removing the bolt, with some craw bar, i was able to push the pivot joint in place.
Glad you are sorted
Did you have to replace the nut? I read somewhere Tesla recommended to replace new one. 🤔
I did not. It's probably good practise but as the nut was in good condition I decided to re-use it. Plus I didn't have a replacement anyway.
When taking out the nut from the ball joint did it drop or was it easy to put back in?
Easy to re-locate.
@@johntisbury sorry for stupid question but do one need to do some kind of wheel alignment after putting it back?
@AzizIzgin you should not need to as you’re not affecting the toe or camber adjustment
I've had both fronts replaced under warranty and just had failures of both rear trailing arm bushes, which requires the subframe to be dropped in order to get the bolts out to replace them, which creates a potential alignment issue when re-mounting it
I've done 145000 miles, so I'm way ahead of the curve than most people but its going to happen to everyone at some point (mine had been squeaking for 9 months before I found someone who could diagnose and then repair it)
That's an impressive mileage Nick, big kudos. Agree about happening to everyone at some point as they are wear and tear items.
180,000 km (about 110,000 miles). Had both front replaced with Tesla and the right twice second time under warranty
Thanks! This worked for me!
Pleasure, great to hear it did the trick.
Why no one talking about lower arms that making crazy noise. That is most common... I had similar issue in my model 3, so, tesla replaced upper arms and charged me for that, but noise still there. And then they said its from lower arms... i still don't know why they replaced upper arms...
This is interesting, my noise was definitely the ball joints in the upper control arms. Everyone I've talked to, who had the same issue, was the upper control arms. It sounds like it's not the same issue. You have a noise but it's not the upper control arms. Mis-diagnosed by Tesla. It could be the lowers or even the drive shafts as they can squeak on stop and start. Hope you get to the bottom of it.
What are the torque specs of bolt going through the ball joint?
ball join bolt is 41.3 lb/ft according to someone in the comments.
The second bump looked less in height than the first. Did this really work?
It’s the same bump, it’s our driveway. Yes it works, however the squeak can return over time as the issue is lack of grease.
For me, there is noise in the rear right knuckle. Do you know a similar fix for that?
Sorry I do not 😏
Alright alright alright. So I am looking at 2 trips to an incredibly far away service station (52 hours of driving total) and my TM3 is creaking like this but worse. They replaced my control arms. Didn't work so now they want to check out my lateral links BUT perhaps they just need to do this in my driveway?! Is it possible Tesla doesn't have a clue what they are doing? Can I send you a video of my squeak?
Ah Laura I'm sorry to hear this. TBF if they have already replaced your control arms then it's highly unlikely to be the same thing that is squeaking as shown in this video. It will almost certainly be something else. Troubleshooting squeaks is not easy, you have to fault find and replace / grease / secure and then see if that fixes it. It's not a black or white process often requiring iteration before finding the actual component. Being so far away from a service centre is a real downer. I'm not a mechanic or Tesla expert so I doubt I could remotely interpret your squeak from a video. You could try the Tesla Forums, however, you will problem get 20 diagnosis for what is causing it.
What’s the name of the grease u used for the ball joint? the same thing u sprayed on the joint right?
I didn’t use any grease, I simply manipulated the joint to re-distribute the grease. The spray was a silicone soray
us a Chassis grease, like lucas Red-N-Tacky works great, and is meant for these kind of joints.
Isn't this a common issue, covered under warranty for free?
It is on the early models and yes covered under warranty. Tesla later modified the ball joint in the upper control arm to fix this problem. These can be retrofitted under warranty.
What’s the Torque spec for the T50 Bolt, how tight should it be ?
Specs are in the comments from @Daniel Choi "ball join bolt is 41.3 ft/lb"
@@johntisbury actually lb/ft for torque (ft/lb is different)
@@MrAdopado Actually both of those are wrong. And I am not just talking about the units being antiquated.
My 2.5 year old Model 3 has developed this exact fault over the last 5 days (driver side too). Company car so can't do myself and wait time for a garage is 4 weeks - would this be safe to continue driving on until then?
Sorry for slow reply only just seen your comment. Yes will be okay, just a tad embarrassing
I had mine done under warranty.
Thanks Clive, I could have done mine under warranty too, however I was embarrassed driving it around with the squeaking - hence doing it myself.
@@johntisbury lol. I just turned up the radio for the few days it took to be looked at. 😂
This anyone try this and you still got the squeak? Mine did not improve at all and yes I triple checked on how to do it and how I did it
That's frustrating to hear. Is the sound of the squeak exactly the same as mine on the video? It could be there is no grease in the ball joint which means even if you manipulated it with no grease it's not going to improve things. The other option is the squeak is coming from elsewhere.
@@johntisburyyea it’s the same annoying squeak and on the driver side only. That make sense, might need to replace it then. Do you recall how quick it went away after doing this? I drove all day for a while and different speeds and turns, so the grease should be moving around if it is that.
@MizaProductions1 my noise went away as soon as I lowered the car off the jack and drove it.
@@johntisbury ahhh ok, then yea, must be something deeper since I did do what you did
Welp, it was worth a try before they charge me an arm and a leg
Thanks for the replies
Very well donE!
Thank you
On another video, a guy uses a grease needle, to put more grease into the boot.
It’s certainly an good idea just so long the integrity of the boot is maintained
Sounds like an old sideboard!
Lol yes it does!
Can anyone pls help me I bought a 70 plate m3 and got a same issue.. I’m in midlands.. pls give me a shout if someone can help me resolve this
Thanks
@@alexdias5122 you don’t need to be a mechanic to fix this Alex. Many commenters have simply sprayed the points in the video with WD40 or similar. Don’t even need to take the wheel off.
Anyone in the East Bay willing to to this for me? I rather pay someone than pay Tesla. My warranty is up 😢
You may get a better response on the Tesla Forums. Most of my audience is UK based.
Tesla charged me $955 to fix this noise. I should of watched this TH-cam video before I schedule with Tesla.
Ouch. I guess they switched to new version of the control arms.