Beside myself with saddness!!!

[rxdoc00]

Arrived with my daughter at the Costco parking lot, and as I waited for the traffic to clear in front of me (car getting out of spot and another car going in) I hear a crunch and the car jumps forward about 5 feet (all captured on my Blackvue 650). The driver of the offending vehicle (Audi Q7) exited his car and immediately began apologizing. No one was hurt, however, as a grown man, I wanted to cry in pain with the thought of what I was about to see.Left rear quarter crunched right at the curve to the rear, bumper scraped pretty go. Sensors seem to be fine. Can is functional with no apparent issues.

Has anyone else had to deal with with a significant surgical procedure on their Tesla? What can I expect? I began looking for a certified Tesla repair shop and located on not far from my house. Filed a report with my insurance company (the other driver has the same insurance provider), and I hope to hear back from them on Monday.

Let me know your thoughts on what to expect.

Thanks for listening/reading. I need another drink now!

 

[Struja]

I feel your pain my friend. So unfortunate but good that nobody was hurt.

 

[ishareit]

Ouch! Glad that no one was injured though.

 

[Jason S]

Thhaaaat should buff right out. (j/k - too soon?)

Maybe the body shop will let you keep driving it until the parts come in? After buffing it shouldn't look too bad.

 

[sataponw]

Based on my experience, they will replace all those parts (ie. the bumpers). Since it is drivable, I would make sure that the shop gets all the parts before you bring the car in so you don't have to wait for too long.

 

[JHWJR]

Regarding the repair itself...
Sataponw correctly foreshadows that it can be a long time to get parts. Not much you can do about that most likely.

Regarding the cost of the repair...
I know that the driver's insurer is also your insurer. Let's pretend for now that it is not.

You tell them of the accident and give them a reasonable chance to inspect your car. They can come to you.

Then you get it repaired and hand them the bill.

They are to pay it or reimburse you.

You are not required to allow them to participate in the actual repair. Because they will try to substitute after market parts (less of a fear with a Tesla so far, but still). Alternatively, they may try to tell the shop that the shop doesn't need to to this and doesn't need to fix that, to save themselves money. And shops expect to deal with the insurer, but that screws things up. If an item was damaged by the accident, you are entitled to have it repaired. And you are entitled to make the decisions on what you will let go, not the carrier of the guy who hit you.

If you turn it into your own carrier, there will be limits on your rights with respect to a rental car and your own carrier won't pay your deductible. I recommend dealing with the insurer of the guy who hit you.

Insurers who are both may pretend that they don't understand that. Don't get sucked into that.

 

[futurem3owner]

That hurts! Hope you're able to get it fixed quickly. At least the certified repair shop isn't too far since I also live not too far from Philly. Based on your username, are you a physician as well?

 

[Super_Popular]

That is going to take forever to repair. Don't drop your car off at the shop until they have the parts and are ready to start working on it.

 

[johnster007]

When my S was about 3 months old I took her on a road trip. At a stop sign 1000 miles from home a large cargo van backed into my rear door and right rear quarter panel. Its amazing how much worse damage looks on such a beautiful car. Long story short, I insisted on a high-end rental, it took three long weeks and when I picked it up it was perfect. It was a bad day and a little inconvenient but it hasn't changed my enjoyment of Beyoncé whatsoever.

 

[bob_p]

We had two people - a week apart rear end us - while we were stopped waiting at a light (think it was in 2014).

The body shop recommended by Tesla here charges a premium for Tesla cars - and it took quite a while for Tesla to provide the replacement parts (primarily the rear bumper).

Had to drive an ICE for a couple of months, waiting for the parts.

Biggest challenge by the body shop was trying to match Tesla's silver paint - they got pretty close.

 

[DC Autocraft]

Sorry to see this happen and also glad that the car kept everyone safe (Q7's are big!).

Based on the limited perspective of the original photo, the quarter panel most likely needs to be replaced. It is a good idea to ask the shop you choose to let you keep driving it if they don't have access to parts immediately, but also keep in mind that no one knows exactly what's damaged without disassembling the impacted area. With that said, an experienced Tesla shop should have a good idea of what parts will be required.

 

[JHWJR]

OK. I wan't going to mention this, because I don't want to set an unreasonable level of expectation. But about a week after I bought the car -- 6 days actually -- someone backed into my front facia. Left a bumper imprint on the front of my car. Then, about a week later, I was washing the car, and stupidly used the scour side of a sponge pad on a stubborn bug on my hood. Left real scratches. :-(

I took the car in to have a couple things done that remained to be done the day I got the car. While it was in, Tesla completely restored my front bumper no charge and tried to buff out the scratches on my hood (noticeable improvement but still there.)

These had NOTHING to do with the reasons I brought the car back to them. But I think they deserve a mention. Thanks, guys.

 

[jelloslug]

As bad as it looks, a competent PDR tech can get all of that damage out without replacing the quarter panel. It will still need to be touched up as it appears that the paint is compromised but it will cut weeks off of the repair.

 

[steve841]

an Audi no less...

With sensors and backup cameras commonplace ... I'll never understand how this happens anymore.

Reinforces the "Park as far away as possible" theory I live by.

Good luck.

 

[AAARSINIC]

That looks disgustingly similar to what happened to my car on Monday. Only it was a semi truck that rear ended me at a bout 15 mph. Unfortunately the driver is trying to claim that I merged onto the freeway into him, which is not true in the slightest. Insurance is now saying that its a word against word issue, and I haven't even begun my repair shop search yet. Not looking forward to this process at all.

 

[jelloslug]

That looks disgustingly similar to what happened to my car on Monday. Only it was a semi truck that rear ended me at a bout 15 mph. Unfortunately the driver is trying to claim that I merged onto the freeway into him, which is not true in the slightest. Insurance is now saying that its a word against word issue, and I haven't even begun my repair shop search yet. Not looking forward to this process at all.

This is why you have a dash cam.

 

[AAARSINIC]

This is why you have a dash cam.

Yeah.....I'm reading the install posts as we speak.

 

[wangjue]

my Tesla has been in the shop waiting for parts for 2 month already.

 

[Qbenjamin]

This is why you have a dash cam.

You beat me to the punch, very easy install...

 

[JMG]

Wow, the similarities are striking. I too, was in Costco parking lot and hit on the exact same corner. Here is my thread about it.

Long story short, you're looking at a new rear quarter panel, new bumper, new triangle window, all new chrome pieces around the windows and emblems on the back, repaint and blend the rear driver's side door. Probably around $11-12k.

Make sure you go after diminished value.