Holy crap, repairs are insanely expensive, beware!!

[TR5642]

You should take this up with Tesla directly. This MIGHT be a service engineer being too CYA

 

[Brass Guy]

It's a busted ball joint. Ball joint is not on their list. The control arm is likely undamaged, which means by their policy the steering box would not have to be replaced.
They probably don't replace ball joints however; it looks like they only replace the whole arm as an assembly. Taken to the extreme, it's like saying you need a new car because it's an assembly.

As a DIY person, I'm trying to follow repair threads like this but they get long really fast. Ball joint, and done.

 

[apacheguy]

Speak for yourself, my insurance stayed the same (technically it went down by $10 / 6 months)

Really? What provider do you have? I know for a fact that many owners have experienced rate hikes in insurance coverage for the Model S. I am far from the only one.

 

[Max*]

Really? What provider do you have? I know for a fact that many owners have experienced rate hikes in insurance coverage for the Model S. I am far from the only one.

I have Geico.

2 cars, 2 drivers, 100/300/100 coverage, $500 deductible comp/collision: $610/ 6 months. Non performance S (maybe the rate hikes are for the P models? just speculating)
Used to be $620. And was $660 when I just picked up the Tesla. So it's been in a steady decline.


And before someone jumps at me saying "well Geico sucks with Tesla", if you Google any big insurance company, you're bound to find horror stories.
Avoid Geico | Tesla
Beware Progressive Insurance | Tesla
Model S accident, insurance does not want to pay. | Tesla
etc.

 

[Az_Rael]

And before someone jumps at me saying "well Geico sucks with Tesla", if you Google any big insurance company, you're bound to find horror stories.
Avoid Geico | Tesla
Beware Progressive Insurance | Tesla
Model S accident, insurance does not want to pay. | Tesla
etc.

True, but I have personally been screwed over by Geico on a claim (many years ago pre-Tesla), so they are not an option for us for good first hand reasons. I just have to remember that every time I see how much cheaper they are than everyone else and I am tempted to try them again.

 

[Max*]

True, but I have personally been screwed over by Geico on a claim (many years ago pre-Tesla), so they are not an option for us for good first hand reasons. I just have to remember that every time I see how much cheaper they are than everyone else and I am tempted to try them again.

My only experience with Gieco was when I was with a different insurer, and a person who had Geico rear-ended me. Gieco took care of me really well, no complaints at all.

 

[Sir Guacamolaf]

The only insurance company I avoid like a disease is esurance. Lets be honest, all of them suck, including USAA, Liberty, Farmers, Geico. But esurance is the blackhole of suck.

 

[Cricket88]

My only experience with Gieco was when I was with a different insurer, and a person who had Geico rear-ended me. Gieco took care of me really well, no complaints at all.

youre also in North VA which could be alot different due to the amount of Teslas there vs California, or denser Tesla populous.

These were the quotes for the car here in Southern California for a 100/300/100 1k deductible (from 12/2016):

Costco: 1600
Mercury: 1750
State Farm: 2600
All State: 2860
AAA: 3000
Geico: 1300
Esurance: 1250

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

for the cost NO.... i could pick holes for hours but every make/model has its faults its just the little things that lets it down like the rear quarter carpet in the boot shockingly flimsy with nothing to hold it in place (once removed never fits right again) all interior lights are rubbish (a candle is brighter) i could list at least 20 things that could/should be better having said that...... i cant fault the the drive/handling for a car this big/heavy and the performance is great which is why i bought it..

So if someone was going to spend $70,000 on a new car, what would you recommend they buy?

 

[Lbkmxp100d]

I would have challenged the shop ... why not just repair the control arm?

I agree! There is no reason to need to replace anything else unless there was a design flaw but if that were the case I would suspect there would be a huge recall to replace the listed items in the bulletin the shop showed you. I would press harder and definitely speak to someone at Tesla who knows there stuff.

 

[Shock-On-T]

So if someone was going to spend $70,000 on a new car, what would you recommend they buy?

Just buy one of the many other long range, high performance electric cars, with autopilot and presenting handles and over-the-air software updates and a worldwide rapid charging infrastructure ... oh, wait ...

 

[wycolo]

I call BS on this being 'damage' to Forelink. Just because the ball joint stud snapped does not mean you have to follow the process covered by Tesla's pdf. Compare this forelink to the one on the other side and any damage will be readily apparent since these are forged aluminum parts. Only if this forelink itself proves to be damaged do you need to indulge this massive process. Looking at this photo I'm doubtful there is damage to that forelink.

That being the case it boils down to finding a replacement ball joint that is as robust as the OEM part. This forum should have a database for common parts. Use salvage parts if they were never stressed.

The first stop for the tow truck should be to your mechanic for accident triage. He can look at it while it is still on the rollback and give you good advice. Taking it to Tesla Motors should be viewed as a LAST resort.
--

 

[cman8]

I call BS. I had one of my wishbones break (I didnt hit anything though) and they fixed it no problem. Everything was fine except it looked like they had cast a bad part which eventually failed. I was lucky enough to notice it coming out of my driveway and not on the freeway, but regardless they took care of it. This is what mine looked like when I looked underneath to inspect. I would call out that body shop. Unless you have some more damage I dont see how snapping that bolt would mean anything else is busted.

 

[Swift]

Thanks for sharing the pics. Worries me how fragile these components appear to be. Glad that didn't happen at speed...

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

Thanks for sharing the pics. Worries me how fragile these components appear to be. Glad that didn't happen at speed...

Does Tesla make their own suspension parts?

 

[FlatSix911]

I agree that the Tesla repair for $13K was unnecessary and complete BS.
The shop should have replaced the control arm and checked other components to be within specification...attached below.

I agree! There is no reason to need to replace anything else unless there was a design flaw but if that were the case I would suspect there would be a huge recall to replace the listed items in the bulletin the shop showed you. I would press harder and definitely speak to someone at Tesla who knows there stuff.

I call BS on this being 'damage' to Forelink. Just because the ball joint stud snapped does not mean you have to follow the process covered by Tesla's pdf. Compare this forelink to the one on the other side and any damage will be readily apparent since these are forged aluminum parts. Only if this forelink itself proves to be damaged do you need to indulge this massive process. Looking at this photo I'm doubtful there is damage to that forelink.

That being the case it boils down to finding a replacement ball joint that is as robust as the OEM part. This forum should have a database for common parts. Use salvage parts if they were never stressed. The first stop for the tow truck should be to your mechanic for accident triage. He can look at it while it is still on the rollback and give you good advice. Taking it to Tesla Motors should be viewed as a LAST resort.--

I call BS. I had one of my wishbones break (I didnt hit anything though) and they fixed it no problem. Everything was fine except it looked like they had cast a bad part which eventually failed. I was lucky enough to notice it coming out of my driveway and not on the freeway, but regardless they took care of it. This is what mine looked like when I looked underneath to inspect. I would call out that body shop. Unless you have some more damage I dont see how snapping that bolt would mean anything else is busted.

Wheel Alignment

 

[ev-now]

i have a 2016 p85d and i have driven just about every car on the planet (i am a diagnostics technician so i get to drive 3-4 different ones every day) i think the qualifys me to asess the build quality of a car and trust me tesla are not even in the top 20 the only thing that makes them special is the technology of the propulsion system nothing else, even the noisy wiper motors sound like somthing from the 80s ...

Which Korean cars do you put above them then, I did not say it was a Top 20 or even Top 100.

 

[Jonas_man]

AWD, traction control and stability control will help you drive on ice, snow tires/studs/chains will help you stop on ice.

That's why it's so dangerous to see all these people on the road in their AWD cars with summer tires thinking they "got this" when there's snow or ice on the roads. Sure they can get going, but they sure as hell wont stop in time.

Why don't the USA make winter tyres mandatory in snowy places like the nordics do in europe (except for norway) ?
The winter tyres are so much safe that they must be mandatory. Studs or not is another question. but winter tyres are a must!

 

[SomeJoe7777]

Why don't the USA make winter tyres mandatory in snowy places like the nordics do in europe (except for norway) ? The winter tyres are so much safe that they must be mandatory. Studs or not is another question. but winter tyres are a must!

There is no nation-wide law in the US regarding winter tire regulations, but each state has their own requirements that must be followed. Many of those states require (under certain winter conditions) snow tires or chains, 4-wheel drive vehicle, minimum tread depths, or other requirements, and impose fines for vehicles that do not adhere to those laws.

 

[busaman]

Why don't the USA make winter tyres mandatory in snowy places like the nordics do in europe (except for norway) ?
The winter tyres are so much safe that they must be mandatory. Studs or not is another question. but winter tyres are a must!

Which Korean cars do you put above them then, I did not say it was a Top 20 or even Top 100.

well KIA are a good example everything fits perfectly and pretty much never break down everthing is functional and a 7 year UNLIMITED warranty to boot.