Damaged Tesla while in Service

[YauKwan]

My car had a failure in the seat harness airbag which prompted me to bring the car in.

The car was damaged while in service, something to the affect of a runaway screw gun. They are sending me pictures. I am kind of pissed as there was no scratch or damage to the car in a year ownership. I was able to avoid door dings and scratches, potholes etc.

They said they are going to bring it to a body shop to be repaired. Im assuming there shouldnt be anything that shows up since it wont be on my insurance. But man, i feel i should be compensated for this one way or another.

Did anyone experience this before? We you offered any consolation? Anything i should look out for before i say ok to letting them take it to the body shop?

man im so mad.

 

[Glamisduner]

This stuff is more common than you might think. When I bought my first new vehicle (2005 Nissan Titan) they crashed into it with another car while they were moving it after it's first oil change. Nissan tried to tell me the bumper and side panel was already dented when they took it in! I told them to show me where on the vehicle inspection sheet that was marked and they agreed to fix it. The other guy was there picking up his car and was also pissed off too. I'd be grateful that tesla is being honest with you. It's annoying but these sorts of things happen.

When I went to pickup my car today they damaged the window trim closing the door on it while the panel was off I guess. I would never have known had they not mentioned it to me. As long as it's not on your dime and they fix it I don't think they really owe you anything, but maybe they will good will you some free service or something.

 

[insaneoctane]

You are only likely to get significant compensation if you ask. I don't like repainted cars because they never seem to have the quality and durability from the factory (you can argue about quality, but NOT durability!). It's fair to ask others here about what type of compensation they received for body work resulting from Tesla's negligence. Personally, I can't imagine they would ever be willing to offer me anything that would make me feel whole again since I'm so anti-repaint.....but, that's me. Good luck and very sorry to hear this happened!

 

[Glamisduner]

You are only likely to get significant compensation if you ask. I don't like repainted cars because they never seem to have the quality and durability from the factory (you can argue about quality, but NOT durability!). It's fair to ask others here about what type of compensation they received for body work resulting from Tesla's negligence. Personally, I can't imagine they would ever be willing to offer me anything that would make me feel whole again since I'm so anti-repaint.....but, that's me. Good luck and very sorry to hear this happened!

I had to have mine repainted after delivery due to paint chips and scratches... First car was even worse! I agree though, the repaint is never perfect. I know my bumper is now a slightly different shade. They told me they are all like that, but I could see overspary from the bump on the hood because the paint on the bumper was slightly darker.

However every car I have owned has needed to be partially repainted at some point or another. So far always from other people hitting it, usually while parked. So I guess it's just something I learn to live with.

 

[Kandiru]

Be happy your SC people are honest.

 

[PhilDavid]

Please give Tesla some slack for being honest.

These things do happen but the important thing is that they are being honest with you and will fix this. I bet it will be good as new and you would never know the difference unless they told you.

Perhaps ask for a free service and to make sure the repair is done properly. There are FAR WORSE things that can happen to your car so just let them take care of you. Now if they caused major damage it would be different but it does not sound like that to me.

I would just let this go and let them fix it for you...

 

[SMAlset]

This stuff is more common than you might think. When I bought my first new vehicle (2005 Nissan Titan) they crashed into it with another car while they were moving it after it's first oil change. Nissan tried to tell me the bumper and side panel was already dented when they took it in! I told them to show me where on the vehicle inspection sheet that was marked and they agreed to fix it. The other guy was there picking up his car and was also pissed off too. I'd be grateful that tesla is being honest with you. It's annoying but these sorts of things happen.

When I went to pickup my car today they damaged the window trim closing the door on it while the panel was off I guess. I would never have known had they not mentioned it to me. As long as it's not on your dime and they fix it I don't think they really owe you anything, but maybe they will good will you some free service or something.

I had a similar situation with our Toyota when in for a service problem. My passenger went to their side to get in and noticed big white scrape mark and dent on two doors. They insinuated it was brought in that way and we said no way. Said they would have marked it on form when brought in and they should check their security cameras. Turns out they found on their survellience cam that one of their staff swiped a white car while moving vehicles. They sort of apologized after that and sent car to body shop. They wanted to just give us some money and let us fix it on our own!

Be glad they are honest enough to admit the accident upfront before you picked the car up. I know it sucks to have happen especially when you have taken such good care of your car. And word to the wise, always walk around your car with the service guy when dropping off and when picking up. Thankfully I had a passenger with me as I’m not sure I would have walked around and seen the other side.

 

[SSedan]

What do you do for a living? Imagine handling a customer's property day on day out. Eventually an accident will happen. As others have said be glad they owned up to it and are being proactive on the repairs.

Far as paint match, plastic bumpers basically always vary slightly from metal.

 

[iwannam3]

I feel your pain. Took my Cooper S in for passenger seat airbag sensor recall. When I went to pick it up it was obvious that they did a "courtesy" wash with a 4,500 psi pressure washer & a 17 y/o kid. Cut through the clear coat and gouged the paint. They offered to pay for 1/2 of it because I "would have a newly painted roof". One that would not match the rest of the 13 year old paint. They didn't want to give me a loaner for the two weeks it would take. Manager wasn't on site so I ended up taking the car and took it to a local body shop. Mini sent me a check for the estimate and the bill was less than the estimate so I got a bit of cash out of it. Aggravating that BMW would not to the right thing automatically.

 

[SJC3]

That’s why I always take walk around pics of the car in the dealer/service parking lot (up close wheels). Pics have nice time stamps and location tags so it shuts down any denial from service managers if they balk. Had this help me out for curbed wheels and scratched trim recently.

 

[2012MS85]

I once took my $100k SUV limo in for its first replacement brake pads and the guy taking my payment JOKED that he was sorry about the deer damage. I said that wasn’t a funny joke He agreed, but then insisted he was serious...I’d need to file with MY insurance for the front end damage, including wrecking my custom chrome grill! Turns out the workers took my limo out for a joy ride “to test the new brakes”...and then hit and killed a deer 5 miles away!!! Needless to say, I insisted and their insurance company ultimately paid for my repairs, but the new custom grill was never a perfect match like the original build.

Bottom line - they laughed off a very serious situation and tried to take zero responsibility for something that was 100% their own doing and fault...and borderline criminal for taking my limo for a joyride that had no purpose in going 10 miles round trip. So please be glad Tesla is being honest and fixing the problem. Sorry it happened to you though. I know it sucks

 

[kev1n]

Be happy your SC people are honest.

honesty isnt the issue here, the problem is why cant they take care of customer cars?

my car has been damaged multiple times and they did the right thing by repairing/replacing the parts but this is so unnecessary. they should be able to do the job and return the car back in the same condition. i know i am not the other one either as it has happened to my friends as well

i shouldnt have to be afraid to bring my car in for service nor should the shop supervisor have to personally assist and monitor my car as its in their hands. its a joke really

 

[Dre78]

Sorry for the damage, @YauKwan . From the anecdotes about both Tesla and other service shops, there will be no satisfactory recompense. The fact is that the shop damaged your vehicle while in their possession. They admit to the fault but cannot turn back time and undo the damage as if it never happened.

What most people are trying to say is to give the worker who serviced your vehicle the benefit of the doubt. We'll probably never know if the mechanic was negligent. Maybe you ask to talk to the mechanic that serviced your vehicle to get a full story of what happened; and ask what actions the shop is taking to avoid mistakes like this in the future. At worst you'll get a canned response because although they are trained professionals, they are overworked, underpaid (and likely underappreciated) employees. At best, you'll get a response like this Mobile Ranger:

To be quite honest, model s/x touchscreens. The job isn't hard. Most of us can do it in an hour flat (or less). What's rough is sometimes when we pull your decor trim (carbon fiber/wood/etc) it can sometimes break or crack. I love cars. I love Tesla's. I hate having to leave your vehicle worse than when I arrived. Sure, I'll order you a new glove box trim piece or whatever I broke, but just the thought I broke it and don't have a replacement bums me out. We can't stock every single trim piece. The SC's have it easy. It broke? Cool, walk 15 feet to the parts guy and get another one. Those pieces break, and I understand sometimes it's out of my control. It will eat at me if it happens especially on a Friday afternoon. It will kill my weekend. I care that much, maybe too much? Whoa, this is deep lol.

Once I have all the pieces off then it's smooth sailing.

Another repair is a simple one too. Charge ports. Not doors, the charge ports. We have to update the software before you can start using it. If something happens and it's unsuccessful (like the headlight software post just now) I now have turned your vehicle into a huge paperweight. You didn't do anything wrong, neither did I. It has happened to me twice. Their 12v was weak, but not failing yet. Then I did their charge port. Now the 12v goes bad. I can't update if the 12v is bad. Again, I feel horrible, but it happens. Customer had to call a tow truck and there goes my night. There I am, staring off into the sunset thinking what could I have done differently. The only thing I can do is learn and be more prepared next time (I have extra 12v's on me now lol)

honesty isnt the issue here, the problem is why cant they take care of customer cars?

my car has been damaged multiple times and they did the right thing by repairing/replacing the parts but this is so unnecessary. they should be able to do the job and return the car back in the same condition. i know i am not the other one either as it has happened to my friends as well

i shouldnt have to be afraid to bring my car in for service nor should the shop supervisor have to personally assist and monitor my car as its in their hands. its a joke really

Mechanics are not trained to handle every single situation on every single vehicle they service. Servicing your vehicle is a dirty job. All you can do is hope you have a mechanic that's as passionate about the product as you, and wants to do their best. In turn, you have to understand that they're servicing a long line of corrections from the factory, incidents from wear-and-tear, and accidents that have damaged the vehicle. Rarely does a mechanic do the same work day-in, day-out; yours may be the first problem of that nature.

I talked to a mechanic during a ride along. I asked him about about the job. He said he came from Nissan, then Infiniti and most recently VW (but not Audi, not sure why he wanted to make that distinction). He loved his job at Tesla because it was cutting edge. He was learning both hardware and software. He liked the challenge and the opportunity, and loved Tesla.

 

[PhilDavid]

That’s why I always take walk around pics of the car in the dealer/service parking lot (up close wheels). Pics have nice time stamps and location tags so it shuts down any denial from service managers if they balk. Had this help me out for curbed wheels and scratched trim recently.

I feel so weird doing this but I do this whenever I hand over my car to anyone, including a valet. To make it easier, I just do a video walk around the car. My Android phone videos are automatically uploaded to Google Photos so there is a definite time stamp. They also are now on notice that I expect my car to be delivered back to me in the same condition.

And then I tip $5-10...

When they give the car back to me, I always do a walk around and check for damage.

 

[M3 Hype]

Definitely feel your pain. Here's my thread recounting minor damage caused by service center:

Service Center Headlight Replacement Damage

My repair appt is coming up soon. A few weeks ago, I got in a set of black wheels from EVwheels but don't want to put them on until after they fix the paint damage. After this experience, no way I'm taking the chance of them damaging the wheels somehow.

 

[kwest2]

Took my car in for a trunk liner leak fix, and they broke the front passenger window (which was tinted) and also caused the trunk to become misaligned. Their offer? they fixed the window in house causing a 2 day delay, and then told me to take my car back to my tint shop, and also take it to one of two approved body shops to get the trunk re-aligned (3+ week lead time for the appt). They're paying for both, except for my time, and offered no additional compensation.

 

[kev1n]

Sorry for the damage, @YauKwan . From the anecdotes about both Tesla and other service shops, there will be no satisfactory recompense. The fact is that the shop damaged your vehicle while in their possession. They admit to the fault but cannot turn back time and undo the damage as if it never happened.

What most people are trying to say is to give the worker who serviced your vehicle the benefit of the doubt. We'll probably never know if the mechanic was negligent. Maybe you ask to talk to the mechanic that serviced your vehicle to get a full story of what happened; and ask what actions the shop is taking to avoid mistakes like this in the future. At worst you'll get a canned response because although they are trained professionals, they are overworked, underpaid (and likely underappreciated) employees. At best, you'll get a response like this Mobile Ranger:



Mechanics are not trained to handle every single situation on every single vehicle they service. Servicing your vehicle is a dirty job. All you can do is hope you have a mechanic that's as passionate about the product as you, and wants to do their best. In turn, you have to understand that they're servicing a long line of corrections from the factory, incidents from wear-and-tear, and accidents that have damaged the vehicle. Rarely does a mechanic do the same work day-in, day-out; yours may be the first problem of that nature.

I talked to a mechanic during a ride along. I asked him about about the job. He said he came from Nissan, then Infiniti and most recently VW (but not Audi, not sure why he wanted to make that distinction). He loved his job at Tesla because it was cutting edge. He was learning both hardware and software. He liked the challenge and the opportunity, and loved Tesla.

whether it is passion for the job or not. it still doesnt make sense if i can take apart and know more about the car than the techs do. it got to the point where the supervisor was willing to let me replace the parts myself. the supervisor knew the techs sucked and it was an on-going issue. to give you a better idea. ive had them give me my car back with the door window switches unplugged, mirror adjustment unplugged, horn unplugged. my spoiler was replaced under warranty and they put it on lopsided when they have templates to make sure it goes on straight and the tech that did the job admitted he didnt use them, like wtf?

 

[Glamisduner]

whether it is passion for the job or not. it still doesnt make sense if i can take apart and know more about the car than the techs do. it got to the point where the supervisor was willing to let me replace the parts myself. the supervisor knew the techs sucked and it was an on-going issue. to give you a better idea. ive had them give me my car back with the door window switches unplugged, mirror adjustment unplugged, horn unplugged. my spoiler was replaced under warranty and they put it on lopsided when they have templates to make sure it goes on straight and the tech that did the job admitted he didnt use them, like wtf?

Ouch!

 

[Dre78]

whether it is passion for the job or not. it still doesnt make sense if i can take apart and know more about the car than the techs do. it got to the point where the supervisor was willing to let me replace the parts myself. the supervisor knew the techs sucked and it was an on-going issue. to give you a better idea. ive had them give me my car back with the door window switches unplugged, mirror adjustment unplugged, horn unplugged. my spoiler was replaced under warranty and they put it on lopsided when they have templates to make sure it goes on straight and the tech that did the job admitted he didnt use them, like wtf?

Yeah. That's unacceptable.

Talking with another Model 3 owner at Supercharger today, he made an interesting statement: Chicagoland is one of few Service Centers where Tesla mechanics/technicians perform the work/corrections to body work. In other US cities, body work (the work you've listed above) is done by outside contractors. If that's the case, then definitely Tesla should be faulted for contracting this work out to untrained workers; the contractors should be faulted for not training their staff. Hopefully, this situation changes on all fronts.

But I'm still at a loss for what can be done for OP. What are reasonable demands for compensation, if any at all?