Do they not replace it out of warranty or simply don't pay for it out of warranty? There is a huge difference between those two options. If it is the former, I would imagine it is just a matter of time before a lawsuit. If it is the latter, then isn't this functionally the same as a particular model of car having a bad transmission or similarly critical ICE component that regularly fails much earlier than expected?
Powertrain components are required by EPA to have a 10yr/100k miles warranty, I thought? So it's not exactly the same situation because fundamental parts of the powertrain are covered by a longer warranty.
That doesn't appear to be true [1]. It seems like a majority of powertrain warranties are in the 4-6 year and 50k-70k mile range. Tesla's 4 year and 50k warranty on this part would therefore be on the low end, but it matches the powertrain warranties for Audi, BMW, Volvo, Mercedes, and several other manufacturers.