Advice Requested on Replacing Tesla after Accident

[UberEV1]

To the Extended Tesla Family . . .

A sad day, but another case of Tesla thoroughly protecting its driver. My classic sequoia green S85 was likely totaled this morning by a driver that didn't stop for a red light (I was turning left, and the other driver drove through the intersection against the red light, probably at 50mph, and hit the right rear quarter panel). My right rear wheel was 75 feet or so from where my car came to rest (you can see it in the photo), so it was definitely a lot of force transfer. No apparent injuries to myself, but the other driver was taken to the hospital out of appropriate caution, and is expected to be OK.

I would like to reach out to the Tesla community, especially here in California, for advice on going through the replacement process. My car was in incredibly pristine condition, despite being 5 years old, and even the police officer mentioned it. Now I face having to replace the car, Tesla of course, but not clear to me yet what to do. I would prefer to replace with a Model S, but also don't want to take on that first year depreciation all over again. Used Model S or Model 3 are both options as well (I have an active Model 3 reservation), but just not sure what to do or how to minimize the financial impact.

Any suggestions or guidance that could help me think through this, while I'm still a bit shaken, would be greatly appreciated. Want to try to minimize the logistics and economic burdens as much as possible. Tonight, I'll read through some of the other posts on this topic, but thoughts ahead of that are very welcome.

Thanks in advance!

P.S. Not sure bondo will fix that.
P.P.S. No, Autopilot was not involved!

 

[HankLloydRight]

Sorry for your loss.

If you want green, there's a nice green P85D Tesla has for sale currently:

Inventory Search | Tesla

With some nice upgrades for you -- Performance, Next Gen seats, Performance+ suspension, and AP[+1].


edit to add: A green P85D with the + suspension and next gen seats (front and rear) is a pretty rare specimen.

 

[jelloslug]

 

[alloverx]

Depends on financial/vehicle requirements. If in a hurry with no money and no long driving than lease a new LEAF, perhaps for 2 years then buy a cheaper Model3 after that? If you want more range than get the Bolt but obviously you pay more. If you need the Model-S space/supercharging then grab the cheapest MS you can find from Tesla that comes with some warranty.

 

[UberEV1]

Sorry for your loss.

If you want green, there's a nice green P85D Tesla has for sale currently:

Inventory Search | Tesla

With some nice upgrades for you -- Performance, Next Gen seats, Performance+ suspension, and AP[+1].


edit to add: A green P85D with the + suspension and next gen seats (front and rear) is a pretty rare specimen.

Thank you @HankLloydRight!

 

[PhilDavid]

Thank you @HankLloydRight!

That's a decent car but seems to lack the pano roof that you had...

If you can afford to wait, you should as CPO prices are adjusted down almost daily and I've seen both CPO P85Ds and 85Ds around the mid $50s and that's what you should aim for with pricing.

 

[pkodali]

Good to see how well the car protected you

 

[bmah]

Sorry to hear of your car's demise, but very glad you're alright. Take it easy the next few days (mentally and physically), and try not to make any quick decisions if you can avoid it. I don't have any specific advice about your next car, but I hope you find something to your liking soon.

Bruce.

 

[xyeahtony]

sorry to hear what happened. thankfully there are plenty of used model S on the market for reasonable prices (including mine) .

Check a lot of the online sites, including this forum and even cars.com, vroom.com...etc.

 

[Olds442]

make sure you are ok. it does look like the cabin was pretty unscathed.

is that your tire way across the intersection in front of the white suv? holy crap.

good luck in the search!

 

[UberEV1]

Working with AAA to establish market value of my beloved green Model S. They say they cannot use CPO cars as a viable comp unless there is a clickable link and all required details are present on the screen, including location zip code. Has anyone had luck convincing AAA to use CPO comps in the analysis and, if so, how did you succeed in convincing them? Thx!

 

[PhilDavid]

Working with AAA to establish market value of my beloved green Model S. They say they cannot use CPO cars as a viable comp unless there is a clickable link and all required details are present on the screen, including location zip code. Has anyone had luck convincing AAA to use CPO comps in the analysis and, if so, how did you succeed in convincing them? Thx!

You should visit a Tesla Store. They sometimes have access to a larger inventory of cars. Have them pull up a similarly configured car and they can also provide official confirmation on where the car is located.

If they insist on a "clickable link," upload the Tesla documents to Dropbox and send them the link (?!!!)

Also you might want to consult them to see if they can provide you with an "expert opinion" on the value of your car. One way or th eother, your insurance company will need to establish the value for your car and you may need to hire your own expert to challenge thatif needed.

Tesla Diminished Value Archives - Petty Details, LLC

 

[Litigate28]

Is AAA your insurance or the other driver's? The other driver was at fault, correct? What does your insurance policy say about replacement cost and determining that value?

Apologies for all the questions, it's the lawyer in me trying to see how you can maximize compensation in this situation.

 

[UberEV1]

Apologies for all the questions, it's the lawyer in me trying to see how you can maximize compensation in this situation.

Thank you @nybw51mr42! Yes, other driver was at fault. AAA is my insurance company and they are trying to make me whole now, then go after other party's insurance later. Policy covers fair market value of my car on the day it died in an amount determined by a third party appraiser ("CCC"), which does a comp-based market analysis using publicly available listings of similar cars for sale in the same State. I'm trying to convince them to include Tesla CPO vehicles as comps, so this is now in the works. I did succeed in convincing them to include some additional value for the LTE upgrade (from 3G) that I did one month before the collision and my almost brand new Michelin tires with only 3000 miles. At the end of the day, I will still be out of pocket on some expenses - unfortunately, it seems very difficult to really be made "whole" again even when it is the other party's fault. Nonetheless, really appreciate any additional clever ideas anyone has.

 

[Az_Rael]

Did you have any window tints or wraps or anything like that on the car? You can submit those receipts for compensation.

Also, those third party mega appraisal services are really, really bad at guessing Tesla options. Get a copy of the report and make sure they have everything correct for your car and the options on the comp cars. Mine listed my car as a bare bones 85 when I actually had a fairly loaded P85. The car even had the P badging visible after the accident and they didn’t even get that right.