Tesla is well-known for making design changes to vehicles whenever they need them, instead of waiting for the typical model-year switch when legacy automakers make changes to their vehicles.
Recent examples of this include the Model Y heat pump acoustic blanket, the Model Y door exit buttons, and changes to the Model Y taillights.
But one not-so recent change to the Model Y Liquid-Cooled Condenser (LCC) is getting people up in arms over the choice of materials used by Tesla.
A user on the TMC forums recently posted a photo of his LCC, showing what appears to be faux wood-trim used to secure it in place. Along with the photo, Brown1428 commented “Someone made a run to Home Depot to make Q2 numbers.”
Several other users chimed in following the original post, showing they also had the same wood trim pieces under the frunk of their Model Y. The VINs of the vehicles in question ranged from 19XXX to 26XXX.
When Drive Tesla had a hands-on with a 17XXX series Model Y, one of the first in Canada, the LCC featured the same brackets but were instead white plastic. It was also secured with the same green tape and plastic strap.
When Sandy Munro performed his tear-down of an early-build Model Y, it too had the same white brackets, green tape, and plastic strap.
When did Tesla make this change? One user pointed out the plastic belt and trim pieces do not appear in the official Tesla Model Y Part Catalogue, indicating the parts were put in place to correct some sort of issue found during early Model Y production.
The reason this story has made headlines is because of Tesla’s choice in materials for the fix. If noted industry veteran Sandy Munro’s Model Y had the same pieces, and they were insignificant enough to not even warrant a mention, then they should be ok Model Y owners, both from a practical and safety point of view.
As to why the automaker decided to use wood trim for the LCC on a limited number of Model Y’s, your guess is as good as mine. What it does show is a company being quick to react to a potential issue for customers.
Could Tesla have stuck with the white trim and avoided complaints from some customers? Probably. Would those customers have preferred their vehicles were built without the brackets in place, thereby raising the possibility of issues with their LCC? Probably not.
Let us know what you think about these wood trim pieces being used in the Model Y in the comments below.
