Tesla Diagnostics for the North West

Almost certainly not. The most common cause by a distance is the 12V battery, which every Tesla has alongside the high-voltage pack and which does the same job it does in any car — waking the electronics up.

When it fails the car looks catastrophically broken: no app response, no door handles, no charging, while the main pack sits there full and healthy. It is a straightforward, inexpensive replacement and it is ordinary garage work. Ring 01744 808586 before you arrange recovery to anywhere expensive. See EV diagnostics.

Because on a Tesla the brakes corrode rather than wear. Regenerative braking does most of the slowing, so the friction brakes are rarely used hard enough to get hot and clean themselves up.

The result is plenty of pad material left and discs that are pitted, lipped or seizing at the caliper, on a car that has covered very few miles. It is a common MOT failure on low-mileage EVs and it surprises owners every time. Have them inspected properly rather than judged on pad thickness. See MOT testing.

Noticeably, yes. They are heavy, the torque arrives instantly, and both of those things are hard on tyres. A set will not last as long as on a comparable petrol car and that is normal rather than a fault.

What makes a real difference is alignment. On a heavy car, geometry that is slightly out will scrub the inside edges off a set considerably faster than most owners expect, and by the time you can see it the tyre is finished. Having it checked properly is the cheapest thing on this page. Ring 01744 808586. See EV diagnostics.

No, for the work we actually do. Under UK and EU block exemption rules, routine servicing and repair at an independent does not invalidate a manufacturer warranty as long as correct specification parts and fluids are used and the work is recorded.

What it does not do is give us access to the high-voltage system or Tesla software, and we would not pretend otherwise. Tyres, brakes, suspension, alignment, 12V and MOT can all be done here without affecting anything. Pack and software matters stay with Tesla. See EV diagnostics.

Usually not. Cold weather reduces the range of every electric car, because battery chemistry is less efficient cold and because heating the cabin draws real power. A noticeable winter drop is physics rather than a fault.

What would be worth investigating is a sudden drop that is not seasonal, or one that appeared after other symptoms. We will tell you honestly if we think there is nothing wrong rather than charge you to look. If you are unsure, ring 01744 808586 and describe what changed and when. See EV diagnostics.

That is exactly the right question and it is worth establishing before anyone buys anything. It can be the vehicle side, the cable, or the charge point itself, and the three have very different costs.

Testing across those in a logical order is what avoids replacing a perfectly good charger or booking a service centre appointment you did not need. If it turns out to be the high-voltage side of the car, we will tell you and point you at Tesla. See EV charging fault diagnostics.

Yes. An MOT on an electric car covers the same ground as any other: brakes, tyres, suspension, steering, lights, visibility and structure. There is no emissions test, which is the main difference.

The one that catches EV owners out is brakes. Because regenerative braking does most of the work, discs corrode on low-mileage cars and that is a failure. It is worth having them looked at before a test rather than at one. We have a DVSA-approved test bay on site, so a fail becomes a repair rather than another booking. See MOT testing.

That is ordinary mechanical work and it is ours. Suspension bushes, drop links and top mounts wear on these as they do on any car, and on the earlier Model 3 in particular it is a familiar complaint.

It is worth dealing with rather than living with, partly because worn suspension components are an MOT failure and partly because they affect alignment, which then costs you tyres. None of it involves the high-voltage system. Ring 01744 808586 and describe when you hear it. See MOT testing.

The diagnosis is a fixed, known amount and we will tell you what it is when you ring. What we will not do is charge you to discover that a job belongs with Tesla — if we can tell from your description that it is a pack or software matter, we will say so on the phone and that costs nothing.

For the work that is ours, you get a price before anything is ordered or fitted. For larger bills, Payment Assist spreads the cost over instalments on a soft search. See pay monthly car repairs.

Less than on a petrol car, but not none, and the items that remain are the ones people skip. Brake fluid still absorbs moisture and needs changing on time. Cabin filters still block. Coolant still needs attention on these cars.

Tyres, alignment and suspension all need more attention than on a lighter car, not less. What disappears is oil, filters, spark plugs, cambelts and emissions work. So the bill is smaller, but the idea that an EV needs nothing at all is how cars end up failing MOTs. See MOT testing.

Less time than owners expect, and it is one of the few genuinely predictable Tesla items. Several years is typical, and the earlier lead-acid ones tend to go sooner than the later lithium units.

The useful part is that it usually warns you first. Random electrical oddities, warnings that appear and clear, or the car being slow to wake are all worth taking seriously rather than dismissing. Dealing with it before it strands you is considerably less trouble than dealing with it afterwards. Ring 01744 808586 or see EV diagnostics.

Yes, and a fair share of what we do is exactly that. High-mileage private hire cars go through tyres and brakes far faster than private ones, and the appeal of an independent is that the car is back on the road quickly.

That is really the whole point for a working vehicle: routine items done without a waiting list, at a sensible price, with the MOT on the same site. Anything that genuinely needs Tesla still needs Tesla, and we will tell you straight away when that is the case. Ring 01744 808586. See EV diagnostics.

On a Tesla that pattern points at the 12V side more often than anything else. When 12V voltage sags, modules across the car lose confidence briefly and each reports what it sees, then everything returns to normal when voltage recovers.

It looks like several unrelated faults and is usually one. Testing the 12V and the charging behaviour is quick and rules out a surprising share of complaints. If the screen is reporting something specific about the high-voltage pack, that is a different matter and belongs with Tesla. See EV diagnostics.

For the routine items, no. Tyres, brake components, suspension parts, filters and 12V batteries are all readily available and there are matching-quality options as well as manufacturer ones.

Where it gets harder is anything specific to the high-voltage system or bodywork panels, which are genuinely more constrained. We will be straight with you about lead times before you commit rather than leaving your car in bits waiting. See what drives repair costs.

It is genuinely worth doing, and it is one of the few pieces of EV-specific advice we would actually give. Using the friction brakes firmly now and again, safely and when the road allows, helps keep the discs clean and slows corrosion.

That does not mean fighting the regenerative braking or wearing the pads out on purpose. It means not going months barely touching the pedal, which is what produces pitted discs on a car with almost no mileage. It costs nothing and it saves a common MOT failure. See MOT testing.

That is common, and it is usually the difference between a quick toe adjustment and a proper four-wheel alignment. On a heavy car with the geometry these run, a cheap job frequently does not address what is actually out.

It matters more than on a lighter car because the cost of getting it wrong is a set of expensive tyres scrubbed out early. If the car pulls, the wheel is off centre, or you can see uneven wear, it is worth having done properly rather than repeated cheaply. Ring 01744 808586. See what drives repair costs.

Yes. The same split applies across the board: the mechanical and 12V side is ordinary garage work, and the high-voltage pack belongs with a manufacturer-authorised specialist.

In practice the faults are similar too. Brake corrosion from regenerative braking, faster tyre wear from weight and torque, and 12V problems presenting as everything-is-broken affect electric cars generally rather than Tesla specifically. Tell us what you have and what it is doing. See EV diagnostics.

On condition and history rather than mileage, same as anything else, but with two checks worth making that are specific to these. Look at the brakes properly, because a low-mileage car may have corroded discs. And check the tyres across the full width, not just the outer edge.

The 12V battery age is worth asking about too, since it is a known consumable rather than a surprise. We are happy to look over a car you are considering and give you a factual view. Ring 01744 808586. See EV diagnostics.

What the screen says, word for word, and what the car is physically doing. Tesla report faults in fairly plain language and that is genuinely helpful — it usually tells us immediately whether the job is ours or theirs.

A dead car that will not wake points at 12V. A knock over bumps points at suspension. Anything naming the high-voltage pack points at Tesla. Three different answers, and you can get the right one in a phone call rather than a wasted journey. Ring 01744 808586 or see EV diagnostics.