Day after purchasing Taycan 4S Electrical system error and bricked car in the middle of the highway.

[Chris8536]

I'm comparing them because Tesla drivers are not returning their cars. I was being extra provocative since people in here are really being extra dramatic about this. It's gotten so far that multiple people cancelled their order. It is 100% right to spread awareness and push Porsche to solve this, but some people are going too far -in my opinion-.

"extra dramatic". This bug almost sent a vehicle with my family in it entirely off a cliff on highway 1. Please consider that a situation you may not have experienced is not just people begin 'extra dramatic.' I know we all love our cars, but this is not drama. This is a very real, growing safety issue with an NHTSA investigation.

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[Jhenson29]

"extra dramatic". This bug almost sent a vehicle with my family in it entirely off a cliff on highway 1. Please consider that a situation you may not have experienced is not just people begin 'extra dramatic.' I know we all love our cars, but this is not drama. This is a very real, growing safety issue with an NHTSA investigation.

Do steering and brakes still function when this occurs?

Also, how are people seeing updates on NHTSA status? I tried looking it up and couldn’t find anything.

Is it worthwhile to start a new thread for the purpose of tracking users, dates, cars, whether it reset, whether there was an error code, etc? It seems like the info is scattered all over right now.

 

[benver]

...
Also, how are people seeing updates on NHTSA status? I tried looking it up and couldn’t find anything.
...

Not sure if you already found this: https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2020/PORSCHE/TAYCAN%2520TURBO/4%2520DR/AWD#complaints and https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2020/PORSCHE/TAYCAN%2520TURBO/4%2520DR/AWD#investigations

You can search for another Taycan at the top of that page.

 

[Scandinavian]

"extra dramatic". This bug almost sent a vehicle with my family in it entirely off a cliff on highway 1. Please consider that a situation you may not have experienced is not just people begin 'extra dramatic.' I know we all love our cars, but this is not drama. This is a very real, growing safety issue with an NHTSA investigation.

Wow that sounds horrific. To have a malfunction so bad that you nearly are sent off a cliff. I have not followed all the posts here and have missed yours explaining what happened? Did your brakes fail as well then or what?

 

[PeterL]

Well, I canceled my 4S order. Everyone has their own tolerance, which I respect, but I personally cannot get comfortable with an issue that goes to the fundamental control and operation of the car. The car I ordered will arrive at the Baltimore port next week on the Bishu Highway carrier. If anyone is looking for a well-optioned ice grey 4S and is a weirdo like me that doesn't like the pano roof, one will be showing up at a Philly area dealership soon. I hope to revisit the Taycan once all this gets sorted.

 

[Vim Schrotnock]

I was contacted by an engineer at the NHTSA and he will be contacting my dealer. I tried to get some sense of the seriousness of this issue and what their policy is, but he didn't have much insight to offer. He said they had received 9 reports, but anticipated this number will grow significantly in the coming weeks. This has risen to the level of an investigation and they will do an investigation into the seriousness of the occurrence and the frequency. I asked how long this typically takes, and he said if it's millions of cars, it will be longer, but if it's thousands, then it should be resolved in 3-6 months.

He sent an email to me to get permission to speak to the dealer, and I'll report back on what the dealer has to say.

 

[kreshi]

Can people confirm if also steering, breaking and other essentials stop working / barely work when this happens?

 

[feye]

I obviously respect everyone decision about what they want, and no one should get a car they feel “unsafe” about. But I will go out on a limb and say this is being blown out of proportion.

Way "out of proportion"! No car in the world will give you a guarantee to never have a drive train failure.

 

[feye]

Can people confirm if also steering, breaking and other essentials stop working / barely work when this happens?

I think I read in another forum, that it only affects the power supply for the main electric motors. So steering and breaking works.

This exact scenario is happening all the time when a driver ran out of gas. Why this is such a big issue here is beyond me. Sounds to me that car is so good, that there is nothing else to talk about?

 

[chrisk]

Way "out of proportion"! No car in the world will give you a garantue to never have a drive train failure.

Data suggests otherwise. In last ~2 months (since the rollout of WMA5/6) there are 18 NHTSA complaint in the US for the power loss issue. To file a complaint you need a VIN, name, address and phone so these are all real cases.
Again, 18 reported complaints in the US alone in just 2 months. Anyone who thinks this problem is described out of proportion please find any other car that had so many power loss failures in such a small window of time and with such a small population of cars.

 

[Raek]

I find it really odd that the people that are “almost getting sent off of cliffs” aren’t answering a simple question in regards to steering and brakes.

What would they do in the case of a tire blow out or other mechanical issue?

 

[kreshi]

I find it really odd that the people that are “almost getting sent off of cliffs” aren’t answering a simple question in regards to steering and brakes.

What would they do in the case of a tire blow out or other mechanical issue?

This is what I mean. Talks about "flying off a cliff" while nobody reporting total loss of control. Loss of drive is, in my eyes, far from extreme danger. I used to drive an old VW Polo and that happened to me all the time. Even going up a steep hill while having cars behind me. Turning it off and on fixed it (turbo issue..).

Again, nobody is saying "it's nothing" and telling people how and when to feel safe or not. But there is a lot of fearmongering going on here right now...

 

[struther]

This is what I mean. Talks about "flying off a cliff" while nobody reporting total loss of control. Loss of drive is, in my eyes, far from extreme danger. I used to drive an old VW Polo and that happened to me all the time. Even going up a steep hill while having cars behind me. Turning it off and on fixed it (turbo issue..).

Again, nobody is saying "it's nothing" and telling people how and when to feel safe or not. But there is a lot of fearmongering going on here right now...

When I was in high school getting my driver’s license, I took extensive driving instructions. My instructor would periodically reach over and turn off the ignition (turn the key - no push button start back then!). This simulates a loss of power and we had to deal with the situation by pulling over safely. If my Taycan loses power, I feel ready to handle the situation.

 

[epirali]

When I was in high school getting my driver’s license, I took extensive driving instructions. My instructor would periodically reach over and turn off the ignition (turn the key - no push button start back then!). This simulates a loss of power and we had to deal with the situation by pulling over safely. If my Taycan loses power, I feel ready to handle the situation.

You DON'T WANT to know what it takes to get a drivers license here in the US. You really don't. There is no night driving, there is no rain/snow driving, and in fact I have seen someone jump the curb in the driving portion (one drive) and still pass.

Here cars go flying off the cliff WITHOUT any power loss! And in all seriousness it has become the norm in my area for people to be 2 feet off your tail at 80 mph. And over the past year I have performed AT LEAST three emergency maneuvers at high speed in very capable sports cars to avoid major crashes (one involved going up a 30 degree embankment at 50mph to avoid an oncoming car, and one swerving into oncoming traffic and flooring it at 60 mph to avoid a car that cross into the lane in an i8).

So honestly my car losing power on the highway is the LEAST of my daily driving concerns.

 

[YWGT3]

While drivetrain and power loss are nothing to scoff at and can be dangerous, Porsche isn't the only manufacturer that has experienced drivetrain failures. It happened to me with a brand new BMW 7 series. The power steering, electronics, and engine completely shut off while I was driving on the freeway. After sharing the experience with several friends, I learned that there were at least 7 more failures in California (two in the Bay Area and five in SoCal). Despite the number of failures, it took BMW NA quite some time to issue a recall, and even longer to remedy the situation for some of the failed vehicle owners that I was aware of. Mercedes isn't immune to drivetrain power loss either. It happened with my CL63 AMG, suffering from fuel-line and electronics failure, luckily it happened when I was pulling out of my driveway.

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