Hawaii Tesla Owners

[dsmith2189]

I am so sad tonight...:crying:
as I pulled out of the parking spot I had backed into. I heard a telltale "scrape" sound. I was being so careful when I gently backed in with no problem. the car easily made it over the parking curb stop. what could it be.
I jumped out of the car and looked at the curb. It was being held down by a familiar piece of rebar inserted in the hole that was made for it. A closer look showed that the rebar was sticking up about 1/4" above the curb.
But I had plenty of height at the rear bumper what could it have been.
a quick glance under the car showed a bent piece of chrome that sits below and in the center of the bumper. it sticks down on either end. on one side it was bent down and the "chrome" had torn at the fastener that held the rest of that side in place.:scared:

has anyone else had to replace this strip? is it an easy DIY project or does the SC have to do it? how much is it going to set me back?:crying:

it is so ugly, I feel like I'm driving a red car... everyone is staring at me.(in a bad way)

 

[drtko147]

I am so sad tonight...:crying:
as I pulled out of the parking spot I had backed into. I heard a telltale "scrape" sound. I was being so careful when I gently backed in with no problem. the car easily made it over the parking curb stop. what could it be.
I jumped out of the car and looked at the curb. It was being held down by a familiar piece of rebar inserted in the hole that was made for it. A closer look showed that the rebar was sticking up about 1/4" above the curb.
But I had plenty of height at the rear bumper what could it have been.
a quick glance under the car showed a bent piece of chrome that sits below and in the center of the bumper. it sticks down on either end. on one side it was bent down and the "chrome" had torn at the fastener that held the rest of that side in place.:scared:

has anyone else had to replace this strip? is it an easy DIY project or does the SC have to do it? how much is it going to set me back?:crying:

it is so ugly, I feel like I'm driving a red car... everyone is staring at me.(in a bad way)

I feel your pain, brother!

 

[Akikiki]

I am so sad tonight...:crying:
as I pulled out of the parking spot I had backed into. I heard a telltale "scrape" sound. I was being so careful when I gently backed in with no problem. the car easily made it over the parking curb stop. what could it be.
I jumped out of the car and looked at the curb. It was being held down by a familiar piece of rebar inserted in the hole that was made for it. A closer look showed that the rebar was sticking up about 1/4" above the curb.
But I had plenty of height at the rear bumper what could it have been.
a quick glance under the car showed a bent piece of chrome that sits below and in the center of the bumper. it sticks down on either end. on one side it was bent down and the "chrome" had torn at the fastener that held the rest of that side in place.:scared:

has anyone else had to replace this strip? is it an easy DIY project or does the SC have to do it? how much is it going to set me back?:crying:

it is so ugly, I feel like I'm driving a red car... everyone is staring at me.(in a bad way)

So sorry to hear that this happened. I too feel your pain. Remember our first meet down at the park? Remember the grey MS and the lady that had it?
She had this problem twice she told me. The chrome defuser was about $350 she said. She could not do work herself, so I don't know if its DIY. She had them do it the first time. She had not had it replaced the second time when we were down at the park. So, I saw what it looked like.

 

[StephenM]

I am so sad tonight...:crying:
as I pulled out of the parking spot I had backed into. I heard a telltale "scrape" sound. I was being so careful when I gently backed in with no problem. the car easily made it over the parking curb stop. what could it be.
I jumped out of the car and looked at the curb. It was being held down by a familiar piece of rebar inserted in the hole that was made for it. A closer look showed that the rebar was sticking up about 1/4" above the curb.
But I had plenty of height at the rear bumper what could it have been.
a quick glance under the car showed a bent piece of chrome that sits below and in the center of the bumper. it sticks down on either end. on one side it was bent down and the "chrome" had torn at the fastener that held the rest of that side in place.:scared:

has anyone else had to replace this strip? is it an easy DIY project or does the SC have to do it? how much is it going to set me back?:crying:

it is so ugly, I feel like I'm driving a red car... everyone is staring at me.(in a bad way)

Sorry to hear about that. I've had this chrome piece replaced twice already. It's actually quite easy to snag, as I was just going up the ramp leading up to Ala Moana Hotel and wasn't going particularly fast. Next time was going up the ramp leading to The Republik. Needless to say, I set my suspension to high before going up any ramps now. It cost $350 to replace but that's including the labor cost. I don't remember the cost of the part by itself, but I think it was about $175. I'm pretty sure you could do this by yourself. There's just some 8mm bolts holding the under fairing in. Might want to get some advice from Luke before proceeding though. Pro-tip, until you can get it fixed, you can take a hacksaw and just cut off any of the piece that may be hanging down (and embarrassing you). Mine was hanging so bad that it was almost dragging on the ground. It's just chrome covered plastic and easy to cut away. You're not going to be able to reuse this anyway. In fact, after cutting it off no one will notice anything wrong with the car because that piece is so low to the ground. I had a quarter of it cut off and no one knew.

 

[Akikiki]

Sorry to hear about that. I've had this chrome piece replaced twice already. It's actually quite easy to snag, as I was just going up the ramp leading up to Ala Moana Hotel and wasn't going particularly fast. Next time was going up the ramp leading to The Republik. Needless to say, I set my suspension to high before going up any ramps now. It cost $350 to replace but that's including the labor cost. I don't remember the cost of the part by itself, but I think it was about $175. I'm pretty sure you could do this by yourself. There's just some 8mm bolts holding the under fairing in. Might want to get some advice from Luke before proceeding though. Pro-tip, until you can get it fixed, you can take a hacksaw and just cut off any of the piece that may be hanging down (and embarrassing you). Mine was hanging so bad that it was almost dragging on the ground. It's just chrome covered plastic and easy to cut away. You're not going to be able to reuse this anyway. In fact, after cutting it off no one will notice anything wrong with the car because that piece is so low to the ground. I had a quarter of it cut off and no one knew.

Shame Shame, WE KNOW !!

 

[WeazL]

Bummer, dsmith! From what I recall, you can replace it yourself. Stephen is right--just cut off the hanging portion and it's not even noticeable anymore. A titanium plate would go nice there... :wink:

 

[drtko147]

An interesting thing happened to me this morning. I live in Waialae Nui Ridge so it is a pretty steep drive up and down the hill. It is about 2 miles to bottom of the hill. Well, I had charged my MS to 135 miles. There was a slower ICE driver going down the hill so I didn't need to use my accelerator as much. I ended up with 145 miles when I got to the bottom of my hill. I usually only get 3-4 miles added on when I reach the bottom of the hill. Hmm.

 

[Akikiki]

An interesting thing happened to me this morning. I live in Waialae Nui Ridge so it is a pretty steep drive up and down the hill. It is about 2 miles to bottom of the hill. Well, I had charged my MS to 135 miles. There was a slower ICE driver going down the hill so I didn't need to use my accelerator as much. I ended up with 145 miles when I got to the bottom of my hill. I usually only get 3-4 miles added on when I reach the bottom of the hill. Hmm.

wow. I don't know what to say to that.

Missed you yesterday. Fun outing. Nice drive - 'bout 50 miles with four Teslas and 4 BM. Nice folks.

 

[drtko147]

wow. I don't know what to say to that.

Missed you yesterday. Fun outing. Nice drive - 'bout 50 miles with four Teslas and 4 BM. Nice folks.

I guess going down my hill slower would be the answer and not use the accelerator at all.

 

[dsmith2189]

An interesting thing happened to me this morning. I live in Waialae Nui Ridge so it is a pretty steep drive up and down the hill. It is about 2 miles to bottom of the hill. Well, I had charged my MS to 135 miles. There was a slower ICE driver going down the hill so I didn't need to use my accelerator as much. I ended up with 145 miles when I got to the bottom of my hill. I usually only get 3-4 miles added on when I reach the bottom of the hill. Hmm.

wow. I don't know what to say to that.

Missed you yesterday. Fun outing. Nice drive - 'bout 50 miles with four Teslas and 4 BM. Nice folks.

Note: two white, one rotisserie red, one silver and one blue (that did not drive with the rest) = five cars..

one thing I have tried is to set my regen on low when going down the hill so I can keep my momentum up and not have to use the accelerator. especially on steep hills that max out the regen for a short period of time, then you have to accelerate to keep up with traffic.

Had a great time at the Polo matches on Sunday. I almost got picked to do a photo shoot in the future with models from the mainland and my car, well that's the way I'm going to remember it.:tongue: At least I tried. But, now that my car is not "photo worthy" after an "incident":crying: when I was parking to charge after our circle island trip.

the good news is the Service center has a new blue 85 loaner that only had 30 miles on it. I get to feel like Nanimac for a few days riding around in a black/blue car. it was certainly different pulling into my parking space with parking sensors and folding mirrors, It's a good thing I got tips from Akikiki on Sunday that I can use today. I may just give the SC a call in the morning to see if I have the right wiring harness to install the folding mirrors at the cheaper rate or if I would have to replace the wiring harness to do it.

 

[Paul S]

Don't let Waipahu scare you! You can always ride the rail back to Ala Moana Center while you wait! Quite a few Teslas out in Ewa and Kapolei these days - lots of brand new million dollar homes also. Hawaii Kai is so 1970's!

 

[nanimac]

Don't let Waipahu scare you! You can always ride the rail back to Ala Moana Center while you wait! Quite a few Teslas out in Ewa and Kapolei these days - lots of brand new million dollar homes also. Hawaii Kai is so 1970's!

That's great that there's a bunch of Teslas out there I've only seen a white one in Kapolei and of course Papafox's blue one is out there too.

BTW. Welcome to the Hawaii forum!

 

[StephenM]

Don't let Waipahu scare you! You can always ride the rail back to Ala Moana Center while you wait! Quite a few Teslas out in Ewa and Kapolei these days - lots of brand new million dollar homes also. Hawaii Kai is so 1970's!

Hey! I resemble that remark! :tongue:
Especially because my house in Hawaii Kai was actually built in 1970...
Welcome to the forums!

 

[Akikiki]

Don't let Waipahu scare you! You can always ride the rail back to Ala Moana Center while you wait! Quite a few Teslas out in Ewa and Kapolei these days - lots of brand new million dollar homes also. Hawaii Kai is so 1970's!

@ Paul S, Aloha - welcome to the Hawaii section. Please look under Groups > Hawaii Owners and the for a Contact Info thread and tell us about yourself and you spaceship. Once you have made at least 5 posts you can change your signature to include the description of your car. Jump in and agree on a bunch of existing posts to race your count up to 5.
Nice having you talking to us.

 

[dsmith2189]

now that my car is not "photo worthy" after an "incident":crying: when I was parking to charge after our circle island trip.

the good news is the Service center has a new blue 85 loaner that only had 30 miles on it. I get to feel like Nanimac for a few days riding around in a black/blue car. it was certainly different pulling into my parking space with parking sensors and folding mirrors, It's a good thing I got tips from Akikiki on Sunday that I can use today. I may just give the SC a call in the morning to see if I have the right wiring harness to install the folding mirrors at the cheaper rate or if I would have to replace the wiring harness to do it.

I spoke with Akikkii on the phone last night and he thought I was talking about the chrome strip under my rear bumper. NOPE. I was speaking about a front end blemish about the size of a basketball on the front right corner. you see there was this wall. I yelled at it to move but it just stayed there and lunged at me with a menacing SCRAPE.
and I thought the chunk that was in my rear passenger tire sidewall that I showed everyone at the polo match was setting off my TPMS sensor. NOPE. it was my other 3 month old tire that was the problem. an itsy, bitysy, tiny nail that I can bend with my fingers was stuck in the tread and letting all the air out.
Monday at work it was totally empty. I limped down to the stadium on my flat tire and filled it with air. two HPD solo bikes were there and helped me find the nail. after I gave them a full tour of the car I noticed it was still loosing air. I topped it off again and headed to the SC in rush hour traffic. as I approached pearl highland shopping center my TPMS was screaming again. it went from "your tire pressure is low" to "your tire pressure is Very low,Pease pull over safely" while I sat in the same place for the next five minutes waiting for the traffic to move I decided to go for it and hope that I had enough air for the final push to the SC. fortunately as I was getting on H1 (after the split) there were 2 FSP trucks parked on the side. I begged them to please give me a shot of compressed air to make it to the SC. (I guess they don't get many Teslas because they didn't have a clue and kept asking me what it was while they were updating their logs.) With a full load of air in my tire, I shot off to the SC and checked in to get my blue 85 loaner.:biggrin:
once they started going over the car today, things took an even bleaker outlook. my front tires that I declined to update during my annual service three months ago (I only got the 2 rear ones) are wearing out and it is being recommended that they be replaced.
the tire with the nail is covered by my road hazard warranty:smile: but the one with the divot in the sidewall isn't covered because it hasn't actually failed yet.:frown:
Option 1: replace the single rear Continental with a Michelin (the continentals have been discontinued) giving me 1 Michelin and 3 continentals with differing amounts of wear.
Option 2: replace the single rear Continental with a Michelin and replace the front with Michelin also. giving me 3 Michelin and 1 Continental with a chunk taken out of the sidewall.
Option 3: replace all 4 tires with Michelin and give the 3 month old tire to the SC for an emergency spare if anyone else needs a single tire.
any Option, not cheap$$$$

Oh, if only that were the end of it. the rear chrome strip that caught on the parking stopper needs more than just the chrome strip replaced. the mounting rails were also damaged when the rebar caught the chrome piece.
in an earlier thread it was reported that someone else had to replace the chrome piece and it was about $150 for the part and $200 for labor. when you add the damaged mounting rails you need to add about $1K more.:cursing:

Now to find a body shop for a little face lift. Mmmmmm or I can give them $6K for a new bumper with parking sensors.....

 

[RodF]

Ouch! What an ordeal! :scared::scared::scared:

 

[Akikiki]

My Wife is Missing--

My Wife is Missing--
A husband went to the police station to report his missing wife:
Husband - I’ve lost my wife, she went shopping yesterday and has still not come home.
Sergeant - What is her height ?
Husband - I really never noticed.
Sergeant - Build?
Husband - Not slim, not really fat.
Sergeant - Color of eyes?
Husband - Never noticed.
Sergeant - Color of hair?
Husband - Changes according to season.
Sergeant - What was she wearing?
Husband - Dress/suit/ I don’t remember exactly.
Sergeant - Did she go in a car?
Husband - yes.
Sergeant - What kind of car was it?
Husband -Pearl White Tesla Model S rear wheel drive electric vehicle with liquid-cooled powertrain which includes the battery, motor, drive inverter, and gear box, 60 kWh microprocessor controlled, lithium-ion battery, three phase, four pole AC induction motor with copper rotor, drive inverter with variable frequency drive and regenerative braking system and single speed fixed gear with 9.73:1 reduction ratio and has a very thin scratch on the front left door.…
at this point the husband started crying.
Sergeant - won't worry sir.......We will find your car.

Reposted here from TM. Could not wait for you to find it over there.
:smile:

 

[Auzie]

My Wife is Missing--
A husband went to the police station to report his missing wife:
Husband - I’ve lost my wife, she went shopping yesterday and has still not come home.
Sergeant - What is her height ?
Husband - I really never noticed.
Sergeant - Build?
Husband - Not slim, not really fat.
Sergeant - Color of eyes?
Husband - Never noticed.
Sergeant - Color of hair?
Husband - Changes according to season.
Sergeant - What was she wearing?
Husband - Dress/suit/ I don’t remember exactly.
Sergeant - Did she go in a car?
Husband - yes.
Sergeant -What kind of car was it?
Husband -Pearl White Tesla Model S rear wheel drive electric vehicle with liquid-cooled powertrain which includes the battery, motor, drive inverter, and gear box, 60 kWh microprocessor controlled, lithium-ion battery, three phase, four pole AC induction motor with copper rotor, drive inverter with variable frequency drive and regenerative braking system and single speed fixed gear with 9.73:1 reduction ratio and has a very thin scratch on the front left door.…
at this point the husband started crying.
Sergeant - won't worry sir.......We will find your car.

Reposted here from TM. Could not wait for you to find it over there.
I make no apologies. I am not married. :smile:

I am not surprised:biggrin:

 

[spleen]

My Wife is Missing--
A husband went to the police station to report his missing wife:
Husband - I’ve lost my wife, she went shopping yesterday and has still not come home.
Sergeant - What is her height ?
Husband - I really never noticed.
Sergeant - Build?
Husband - Not slim, not really fat.
Sergeant - Color of eyes?
Husband - Never noticed.
Sergeant - Color of hair?
Husband - Changes according to season.
Sergeant - What was she wearing?
Husband - Dress/suit/ I don’t remember exactly.
Sergeant - Did she go in a car?
Husband - yes.
Sergeant -What kind of car was it?
Husband -Pearl White Tesla Model S rear wheel drive electric vehicle with liquid-cooled powertrain which includes the battery, motor, drive inverter, and gear box, 60 kWh microprocessor controlled, lithium-ion battery, three phase, four pole AC induction motor with copper rotor, drive inverter with variable frequency drive and regenerative braking system and single speed fixed gear with 9.73:1 reduction ratio and has a very thin scratch on the front left door.…
at this point the husband started crying.
Sergeant - won't worry sir.......We will find your car.

Reposted here from TM. Could not wait for you to find it over there.
I make no apologies. I am not married. :smile:

Hahaha!!

 

[Paul S]

Mahalo

@ Paul S, Aloha - welcome to the Hawaii section. Please look under Groups > Hawaii Owners and the for a Contact Info thread and tell us about yourself and you spaceship. Once you have made at least 5 posts you can change your signature to include the description of your car. Jump in and agree on a bunch of existing posts to race your count up to 5.
Nice having you talking to us.

Mahalo Akikiki
we are scheduled to get our S in August 2014. Just got the VIN number!:biggrin:
Aloha
Paul