A warning message on the dashboard of a 2015 Model S 85D states: “Battery fuse requires replacement soon, schedule service”.

In early May, I got the message on my dash that my car was due for a battery fuse replacement. Doing some research, this was because a High Voltage Pyro fuse had a rated lifespan that was getting close to its end.

From what I read there were two ways this would go:

1. The battery fuse would be in an easily accessible location and require just the cost of the part plus ~0.5 hours of labor
2. The fuse would be on top of the battery, requiring the battery to be dropped which would need many more hours of labor

The difference in price from some users suggested the lower end being about $200, and the higher end costing well into the $1,100 range.

In a few posts I read there were some claims that I can now confidently say are not correct:

1. Supercharging is disabled once this warning appears
2. The fuse location was not moved until 2018 models
3. The range and power of the vehicle would drop steadily until the car is serviced

Due to several scheduling factors and the car reassuring me that it was “OK to drive”, I delayed this service until July.

Around this time I got lucky that the new Encinitas Showroom and Service Center opened up.

Wait times at the Carlsbad service center had approached 3 weeks and I was not in a place where I could be without my car for up to a few days.

Since it opened that Monday, service appointments were almost completely available so I booked a lunchtime slot to get the car in.

They responded quickly, and I could book an appointment for the next day. It was not canceled or moved as most of my last appointments at Carlsbad had been.

The initial cost was estimated at $175 for the fuse, and $135 for labor (0.54 labor hours), totaling $310 before taxes.

The lounge was much appreciated, with a water fountain, coffee machine, and decent snacks available.

I dropped my car off at exactly noon when it was scheduled, and the initial estimated completion time was 1:15 pm.

I waited in the new lounge, got lunch at a nearby restaurant, and returned around 1:20 PM. The car’s estimated completion time was still 1:15 pm.

Service took a little over an hour more, and then my car was ready and the final bill was still the same $310.

I have attached a part of the invoice below:

The invoice listing the costs of the battery fuse replacement.