So apparently over the weekend I put a nice gouge about a 1/4 inch wide in the soft rubbery plastic material in my drivers side door panel, about an inch right above the cup holder. I'm so bummed! I have no idea how it happened or how to fix it, without having to replace the entire door panel. This sort of thing has never happened with any other vehicle I've owned. Sure wish Tesla didn't use such a soft material, because this wouldn't have happened if it was harder. Now every time I get into my car I see this gouge and cringe. It's bad enough my windshield has nicks and body paint nicks, my car is only a year old and doesn't even have 10k miles on it.
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Gouged My Drivers Side Door Panel
- Thread starter Resist
- Start date
Daniel in SD
(supervised)
Wow, that seems very reasonable for a Tesla door panel!
There are also vinyl repair specialists who most often work for dealerships. They repair scuffs like yours all the time...also tears and rips. They work magic on vinyl. You might ask a few local dealership used car managers for referrals.
There are also vinyl repair specialists who most often work for dealerships. They repair scuffs like yours all the time...also tears and rips. They work magic on vinyl. You might ask a few local dealership used car managers for referrals.
Last edited:
RedModel3
Member
It should be easy enough to order your own part and replace it yourself. Somewhere around here is a link to a parts catalogue. I've been waiting on replacing my side mirror (mirror adjusts, but housing doesn't fold) until the Great Parts Shortage settles down. Plenty of videos out there, and the ones showing the mirror replacement show that you have to remove the door panel.
There is a “cup holder” in the door panel? Or do you mean the cubby or pocket in the interior door panel, below the arm rest?
TydalForce
Member
[QUOTE="RedModel3, post: 4391718, member: 43437"Somewhere around here is a link to a parts catalogue. [/QUOTE]
https://epc.tesla.com
https://epc.tesla.com
The body shop that repairs my Model 3 after being hit, was supposed to be "Tesla Certified" specialists too, yet they did a terrible job. Even Tesla Service Center warranty work has been less than perfect. So I have a hard time trusting someone else working on my car. I really wish Tesla had not used soft interior door materials.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience with Tesla service.
However, that wasn't my point, and I apologize for not being more clear in my post.
There are vinyl repair subcontractors who work for dealerships...primarily repairing used cars the dealerships intend to sell. These guys have mobile repair businesses, so they will go to the job (your house for example). Often, the best way to identify a good repairman is to ask used car managers who they often use. If they recommend someone, you can be pretty certain their work is excellent as the dealership doesn't want a bad experience coming back on them.
You can also sometimes get referrals from other subcontractors who do mobile work for dealerships: wheel repair specialists, paintless dent repair specialists, bumper repair specialists. Sometimes these technicians know of other highly regarded repairmen in complementary specialities...like vinyl repair.
You might also ask boating dealerships, if you're in an area where boats are common.
Finally, you can try a web search for vinyl/leather repair, but the results might not be as satisfactory as a personal referral.
Hope that helps.
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Bill Foster
I'm going home!
Love how you instantly try to blame Tesla for your incompetence.
Take it to a leather vinyl repair, and they can fix it.
Take it to a leather vinyl repair, and they can fix it.
I wasn't blaming Tesla, sorry if I came off that way. I've just never had this happen with any other vehicle I've owned, mainly because those vehicles didn't use soft touch interior door panels.
toad - I'm hesitant to use a Tesla Service Center recommendation to get this issue repaired because they were the one that suggested the body shop I use after my car was hit. I don't know how this shop got Tesla Certified, dirty hand prints on my cars roof trim, scratched panels, misaligned trim, paint defects and failing to connect electrical components.
I’m gonna reply to your statement to “toad”, ‘cause it’s an off repeated auto-incorrect result.
I will simply say that I clearly explained in
my previous post that I did NOT recommend asking Tesla Service for vinyl repair recommendations.
I’m not sure the reason for the communication disconnect, but I’ve offered all I can and I’m no longer replying to this thread.
Sorry about the "toad" thing, freaking auto correct! I know you didn't suggest using Tesla Service, I believe I said "their recommendation" of where to get it repaired. As I said, I don't trust their recommendations anymore after they suggested I use the body shop they use.
So now I have around 5 nicks near my drivers side cup holder and I honestly don't know how they got there. At first I though maybe it was my foot somehow, but now I wonder if it's the bottles I put in there. I don't ever recall snagging them on the soft touch material. Tesla should have never used this on the inner doors!
Attachments
I never hear of a wrap on the interior soft touch door panel. Do you have a link or picture of it?
https://www.amazon.com/LUCKEASY-202...650908343&sprefix=tesla+door+,aps,135&sr=8-12
I'm sure there are others, but this is what a search on Amazon shows.
Interesting, thanks for that! But those are for the newer Tesla's where that area is not the soft touch door panel. It's a harder plastic, so it wouldn't work on my car. I don't think anyone makes anything that will stick to the soft touch panels.
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