Tesla Model Y L Owners in China Report Rear Suspension Sag — Here's the Finger Test to Check Yours

The Tesla Model Y L — the six-seat, long-wheelbase version of the crossover built in Shanghai — has been one of the most hyped Model Y trims out there, second only to the Performance. But a group of owners in China say their cars have developed an odd problem: the rear end appears to be sagging.

According to a report from Car News China, owners who took delivery of the Model Y L are describing what they call "collapsing" of the rear wheels. The gap between the tire and the wheel arch has narrowed on some builds to the point that, as one owner put it, "not even a single finger" fits in the space.

What owners are reporting

The complaints don't line up neatly with mileage, which is part of what makes this one strange. The Model Y L has been on sale in China since August 2025, and the reported cases vary widely:

• One owner noticed the sag at just 9,000 kilometers (about 5,600 miles), and said it showed up when the car was fully loaded.
• Another reported the issue at 30,000 kilometers (roughly 18,640 miles), with the wheel gap shrinking to about two fingers — noticeable, but less dramatic than the first case.
• Owners generally say the tire-to-arch gap shrinks after accumulating mileage or after carrying a full load of passengers and cargo.

The bigger concern isn't cosmetic. Several owners report abnormal wear along the inside edge of the rear tires — a classic symptom of a camber change caused by ride height dropping. EVs already put extra stress on tires thanks to battery weight and instant torque, so a suspension geometry change on top of that can chew through rubber fast.

The "finger test" owners are using

Since there's no official diagnostic here, owners have landed on a low-tech self-check that anyone can do in a parking lot.

There should be about four fingers of space between the top of the tire and the wheel well. Anything meaningfully less than that starts to get dicey.

It's rough, but it works as a first pass. Park on level ground, stack your fingers horizontally in the gap at the top of each rear tire, and compare left to right — and compare the rear to the front. A side-to-side difference is just as telling as an overall drop.

Where things stand with Tesla

As of now, Tesla has not issued a recall and has not publicly acknowledged the issue. Owners have been taking their cars to Tesla service centers, but there's no announced fix or service bulletin covering it. This is also, so far, a China-market story — the Model Y L is built at Gigafactory Shanghai and the complaints are coming from owners there.

What this means for Model Y owners anywhere

Even if you're nowhere near this specific issue, it's a good reminder that rear suspension and tire health are worth keeping an eye on — especially on a three-row EV that regularly hauls people and gear. A few habits that pay off:

• Do a visual walkaround monthly. The finger test takes ten seconds and catches ride-height changes before your tires pay for them.
• Run your hand across the inside tire shoulder. Inner-edge wear is invisible from a normal standing angle, which is exactly why it goes unnoticed until the tire is done. A quick feel for feathering or a wear step tells you a lot.
• Keep a tread depth gauge and a tire inflator in the trunk. Underinflation accelerates shoulder wear and masks suspension symptoms. A portable inflator with a built-in gauge is one of the cheapest pieces of insurance an EV owner can carry.
• Watch your load. Six-seat configurations invite full loads, and full loads are exactly when owners in China say the sag becomes obvious. Distribute weight and don't habitually run at max payload if you can help it.
• Document it. If you do spot a change, take dated photos of the wheel gap and tire wear. That record is what turns "it feels lower" into a service conversation.

None of this is a substitute for a proper alignment check and a shop putting the car on a lift. But catching a geometry change early is the difference between a warranty conversation and a set of prematurely scrapped tires — and on a heavy long-wheelbase EV, that's not a cheap set.

We'll update this story if Tesla issues a service bulletin or recall.