coolant leak in rear drive unit (12k miles on odometer) and Tesla says someone touched it so the warranty NOT applicable

[sparklehunt]

Pictures: shows leaking hose. Also notice absence of impact damage.

History: car was traded into Mercedes and Person A bought it. I bought it from Person A.

Tesla says: Service advisor says his Tech person is sure someone non Tesla “touched the car” or was working on the car. Their “proof” is that if the hose was in the correct position, it would not develop a leak.

My doubts: I do know the history is abnormal, but If a car is under bumper to bumper warranty, why would anyone elect to NOT have Tesla work on it? It seems unlikely.

What do I do?

 

[thesmokingman]

I did NOT approve anything. The appearance of the estimate and the message saying it is ready for pickup happened all this morning while I was asleep.

Ok, are you suggesting they just up and did it with no authority from you? I mean, like you did want them to fix it right? Where are you gonna go with this? What outcome then?

 

[sparklehunt]

Ok, are you suggesting they just up and did it with no authority from you? I mean, like you did want them to fix it right? Where are you gonna go with this? What outcome then?

I'm not suggesting. I am stating facts. I have not approved the estimate (see the screenshot).

 

[thesmokingman]

I'm not suggesting. I am stating facts. I have not approved the estimate (see the screenshot).

lmao, so what then? You gonna double down and demand they undo it???

 

[komrade]

lmao, so what then? You gonna double down and demand they undo it???

Why would they start working on the car without obtaining authorization from the owner? Consumer protection exist for this exact reason.

 

[thesmokingman]

Why would they start working on the car without obtaining authorization from the owner? Consumer protection exist for this exact reason.

I assume there was a misunderstanding somewhere as OP talked with them a couple of times. Hell even the OP framed this in a certain way, way over blown.

 

[sparklehunt]

lmao, so what then? You gonna double down and demand they undo it???

Your replies are becoming low value. First with name-calling, and now logical fallacies (do you know which one you used here?)

I assume there was a misunderstanding somewhere as OP talked with them a couple of times. Hell even the OP framed this in a certain way, way over blown.

I'm sensing a pattern where you do not grasp facts. Please show me where I was 'way over blown'.

Btw this is not an attack, I simply don't hesitate to call things out when I see it.

Oh FYI the only misunderstanding is yours. I asked them to send me an estimate, have the manager call me, and send me photo proof of the 'outside influence'. There is no room to interpret 'go ahead and fix it' in those three requests.

 

[Seminole]

That's a pretty good outcome. Your previous posts implied a huge negative outcome, like suggesting you lost your warranty on the cooling system and potentially battery. What it looks like is the tech said this hose shouldn't be here, therefore it was moved by another party. I can fix it but it's not covered by warranty, moving the hose return to stock. That is much different than the idea that the tech said we are voiding your warranty. You do not want to go down the road of challenging Tesla and accusing them of missing the hose during assembly like some have suggested. It's be a possibility if there were many examples of this of which there are none. Thus, the bill is not a bad price for them to fix it and bring it back into the warranty fold. I'd confirm this last part just to be sure.

Right, just roll over for papa Elon, because Tesla has never made a single mistake at all when manufacturing a car:

Thousands of Tesla cars recalled for loose brake bolt

Nearly 6,000 cars could have the defect.

mashable.com

Tesla Model 3 Recalled Because Trunk Can Cause Backup Camera to Fail

In 2017–2020 Model 3 cars, the backup camera's wiring harness might become damaged after repeated opening and closing of the trunk over time.

www.caranddriver.com

Tesla Model S recalled for risk of hood flying open

A misaligned secondary hood latch in the Tesla Model S could cause the hood to pop open while driving.

www.thecarconnection.com

 

[thesmokingman]

Right, just roll over for papa Elon, because Tesla has never made a single mistake at all when manufacturing a car:

Thousands of Tesla cars recalled for loose brake bolt

Nearly 6,000 cars could have the defect.

mashable.com

Tesla Model 3 Recalled Because Trunk Can Cause Backup Camera to Fail

In 2017–2020 Model 3 cars, the backup camera's wiring harness might become damaged after repeated opening and closing of the trunk over time.

www.caranddriver.com

Tesla Model S recalled for risk of hood flying open

A misaligned secondary hood latch in the Tesla Model S could cause the hood to pop open while driving.

www.thecarconnection.com

Which of those are for coolant hoses assembled in the wrong way?

 

[DanDi58]

Yikes, this is crazy. Somewhere there is an interpretation by Tesla Service that you told them to go ahead, but it sure sounds like you didn't. I guess you could call their bluff and and call them up and play dumb about it, 'Considering I didn't authorize any repair to be made'....

 

[sparklehunt]

You might want to try to keep escalating if you keep getting denied. I would also carefully read the warranty documents and see how disputes are resolved. If there is an arbitration clause you can try to take that route.

My understanding is that arbitration costs you nothing, and even if you lose, you're just where you are today -- on the hook for the repairs. They might decide to just do the repairs rather than fight it, because arbitration is expensive for them.

Arbitrators are required to follow the law and you can point out the relevant laws. Get written statements from previous owners asserting that no third party work has been done on the car. If all they have to go on is that the hose is out of place, they'll likely lose.

Thank you for the real advice. Sorry for the delayed response, your post got buried by other lower-quality posts.

I did find the arbitration clause, it seems I still have some rights in this situation!

Just an excerpt

 

[qdeathstar]

Right, just roll over for papa Elon, because Tesla has never made a single mistake at all when manufacturing a car:

Thousands of Tesla cars recalled for loose brake bolt

Nearly 6,000 cars could have the defect.

mashable.com

Tesla Model 3 Recalled Because Trunk Can Cause Backup Camera to Fail

In 2017–2020 Model 3 cars, the backup camera's wiring harness might become damaged after repeated opening and closing of the trunk over time.

www.caranddriver.com

Tesla Model S recalled for risk of hood flying open

A misaligned secondary hood latch in the Tesla Model S could cause the hood to pop open while driving.

www.thecarconnection.com

Your post makes my point. The question isn’t if Tesla makes mistakes. Of course they do, everyone does. The question is if they make mistakes and fix them for everyone except for OP. Your recall links indicate that Tesla is willing to replace things under warrantee…

 

[kelpcar]

Thank you for the real advice. Sorry for the delayed response, your post got buried by other lower-quality posts.

I did find the arbitration clause, it seems I still have some rights in this situation!

Just an excerpt

It would still be best to ensure you don't sacrifice any options when/if you pay to collect your car today. The fact that you didn't ok the work order is a big deal. 660 isn't $6000, but it's still quite a lot for what should be a warranty repair. Were it $200, maybe you'd say F it and move on. I think you want to pay under protest, also get confirmation that the car is now considers in good stead for future warranty needs, then pursue whatever appeal route is needed.

Laughing a bit (sorry) at the breakdown of $6 for the part and 600+ for the labor. So any thought that this was about the SC having to eat an entire battery replacement isn't the case. They installed a clip. The labor cost wasn't 600 either.

 

[nate704]

It would still be best to ensure you don't sacrifice any options when/if you pay to collect your car today. The fact that you didn't ok the work order is a big deal. 660 isn't $6000, but it's still quite a lot for what should be a warranty repair. Were it $200, maybe you'd say F it and move on. I think you want to pay under protest, also get confirmation that the car is now considers in good stead for future warranty needs, then pursue whatever appeal route is needed.

Laughing a bit (sorry) at the breakdown of $6 for the part and 600+ for the labor. So any thought that this was about the SC having to eat an entire battery replacement isn't the case. They installed a clip. The labor cost wasn't 600 either.

I think the job will be easy and simple DIY with simple 4 jack stands and simple tools.

 

[Fourdoor]

What, if anything, can be done to protect and minimize the possibility of damage to the fragile, exposed parts of the battery cooling system?

For the rear drive unit, this is the first problem I have heard of, from the description I think this is a hose connection on the drive unit, not on the battery... so if the nipple is damaged they may want to replace the drive unit. The battery hose nipple is a red herring in this conversation.

You can get a thin front and rear skid plate set from RPM Tesla that has acoustic damping foam applied (better than plasic, but I don't have confidence in it because it is so thin), or a thick front skid plate from Mountain Pass Performance (MPP doesn't make a rear plate... yet). Since I never heard of rear hose damage (looks like it is high up, out of the line of fire), I just went with the front plate from MPP, and I will be applying my own acoustic damping material before I install it.

Keith

 

[Physicslawyer]

Have you physically gone down there and talked to management? Be friendly, firm, and polite.

 

[KArnold]

My understanding is that arbitration costs you nothing, and even if you lose, you're just where you are today -- on the hook for the repairs. They might decide to just do the repairs rather than fight it, because arbitration is expensive for them.

Arbitrators are required to follow the law and you can point out the relevant laws. Get written statements from previous owners asserting that no third party work has been done on the car. If all they have to go on is that the hose is out of place, they'll likely lose.

I did find the arbitration clause, it seems I still have some rights in this situation!

I'm not sure about the "repairs with no estimate" part, but the above is my thinking. I did this for the yellow-border on the screen a couple of years back. Early on Tesla was refusing to fix these via warranty. In that case, I spent a couple of hours documenting things and requested an in-person review. Met with the NCDS arbitrator at a local hotel and the Tesla lawyer on the phone for about 30 minutes. Fortunately, I won while others on the same situation did not. Plus Tesla then reversed themselves anyway and offered a one-time UV light treatment.

See post #1 -- Yellow screen? Force Tesla to Replace it!

You've got nothing to lose by filing an NCDS claim. It's binding on Tesla but not you.

 

[iamnid]

I think we've all spent more than $600 of our time reading this thread. Pay the money, have it repaired and then sue them in small claims to get your $600 back. Get a declaration from the previous owner that he didn't make any modifications to the hose etc. There's no reason to expend any more effort on this.

 

[sparklehunt]

I think we've all spent more than $600 of our time reading this thread. Pay the money, have it repaired and then sue them in small claims to get your $600 back. Get a declaration from the previous owner that he didn't make any modifications to the hose etc. There's no reason to expend any more effort on this.

Can't tell if you're trolling or not... you decided to spend time to read a thread. Then you spent more time writing a post just to tell people how you wasted your time. Nobody is forcing you to read or to post...

But I will take you genuinely and ask what do you do for a living to make $600 in a couple of minutes?

 

[sparklehunt]

UPDATE: the manager said it is not warranty because the "outside influence" could have been from rodents or going over a hard bump. I asked for proof, and he said he needs to talk to his Technician.

@KArnold seems you actually have experience, if I do an NCDS, how long does it take?

 

[nate704]

If it was door to outside influence, it becomes an insurance claim.