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Body shop finds Model 3's gathering large amounts of dirt and sand due to improper drainag
- Thread starter PatP
- Start date
I only watched a little while but in that time frame he was just knocking off dirt from the bottom surface of the car. Nothing to do with intrusion
gilscales
Banned
The bolts on the composite shield were missing and it has hanging down. If the car was brought in like that, it makes sense that it was shoveling dirt and debris.
AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
I assume he did that (removed the three front bolts for the diffuser and the entire rear aero cover) to remove the dirt (apparently it's on every Model 3 he's looked at to one degree or another). It's pretty conceivable that this dirt build up would happen, and it was predicted here at TMC several months ago! Are we good or what? Even if we are a bunch of entitled whiners, at least we have some redeeming qualities, apparently.
I believe this can happen even if everything is installed correctly (no missing bolts). In fact, if you look at some of the tow hitch install videos you'll see that they find modest dirt in the rear diffuser. (But the hitch install I saw was in California so road grit would not be an issue for that vehicle.)
These are related posts. Some involve the front aero cover as well (not really the topic here, but loosely related and potentially dirt could build up there as well).
Ripped Undercarriage Composite from the rain?
Found out what’s causing undercarriage composite to break apart
Weird rain damage
P3D+ Issue: Front Undercarriage cover came loose (while driving)
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Has anyone come across an analysis on Model 3's overall rust protection? This Swedish site seems happy with the Model S, but sounds like it's largely due to the aluminum construction. With the Model 3's steel parts, it would be nice to get a similar analysis.
This particular drainage issue probably isn't a huge concern for rust specifically because the material under the cover apparently is aluminum, but it makes me wonder if there are other places where road salt or just moisture in general can build up, and if there's anything that could be done pre-emptively to protect the car.
This particular drainage issue probably isn't a huge concern for rust specifically because the material under the cover apparently is aluminum, but it makes me wonder if there are other places where road salt or just moisture in general can build up, and if there's anything that could be done pre-emptively to protect the car.
I recall another thread where the OP analyzed the water being trapped in the rear diffuser and determined the precise spot where a drain hole should be and made one. Can anyone point me to that thread? I might look into it making a drain hole if I can actually bring myself to drilling into a new car.
Glamisduner
Active Member
AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
See above linked threads. It is there! Here is the specific @Redrick00 post:
Found out what’s causing undercarriage composite to break apart
Here's a complete article on the subject. Hint, it's not normal.
https://electrek.co/2019/03/05/tesla-model-3-design-flaw-underbody/
https://electrek.co/2019/03/05/tesla-model-3-design-flaw-underbody/
voip-ninja
Give me some sugar baby
If it's anything like the terribly designed splash shields Tesla will quietly introduce a revised part and will only replace it on newer vehicles.
It would probably be a good thing for the community to come up with our own mitigation for this problem. Carefully drilling a few drainage holes would likely resolve this issue.
A lot of cultists around here scoff when people comment about Tesla's California engineering having a hard time meeting the reality of what driving is like in 1/2 of the country but it is true. A weekend ski trip up to Big Bear is exactly 0% like living with a car in cold winter weather for 4-6 months out of the year. We have sand and gravel on our roads. Other automakers have had to deal with this stuff for decades but Tesla 'knows better' and ignored basic common sense things they could have figured out by disassembling any competitor vehicle and asking questions about why some things were done the way they were.
It would probably be a good thing for the community to come up with our own mitigation for this problem. Carefully drilling a few drainage holes would likely resolve this issue.
A lot of cultists around here scoff when people comment about Tesla's California engineering having a hard time meeting the reality of what driving is like in 1/2 of the country but it is true. A weekend ski trip up to Big Bear is exactly 0% like living with a car in cold winter weather for 4-6 months out of the year. We have sand and gravel on our roads. Other automakers have had to deal with this stuff for decades but Tesla 'knows better' and ignored basic common sense things they could have figured out by disassembling any competitor vehicle and asking questions about why some things were done the way they were.
Uncle Paul
Well-Known Member
Imagine that Tesla is all over this. Will provide modifications to newer production, and offer after sale shields through service centers or Ranger service.
chronopc
Active Member
gilscales
Banned
I had a 2013 Passat TDI and they had a known vulnerability from a low oil pan ground clearance, aftermarket quickly stepped in with this
VW Evolution Osiris B7 NMS Passat TDI Diesel Aluminum Skid Plate Belly Pan 12-14 | eBay
i'm sure somebody will come up with something even if it isn't Tesla
Lon12
Member
I was disappointed after purchasing a used Honda from a Honda dealership and finding dirt stuck inside the bumper. Honda didn't care.
This is a picture of what fell out when I kicked the bumper a few times:
This is a picture of what fell out when I kicked the bumper a few times:
voip-ninja
Give me some sugar baby
Fair enough but how old was the Honda?
The Tesla in this case looks to be less than six months old. That is a hell of a lot of debris accumulation in such a short amount of time. If there is no built in mitigation system then eventually you could end up with many kilograms of debris and it could deform the bumper, cause noise issues, etc.
Lon12
Member
Two years old. My 2014 S collected dirt and rocks under the frunk as well. I like that the 3 frunk takes less time to remove than the S did. Much easier to keep clean. I never did take the lower rear panels off of the S to see what was collecting there.
