How bad is the damage?

[nuface]

After having to pull up on a gravel road I noticed damage to my Model S's undercarriage. My car is a month old with ~1700 miles on it.

How bad is this damage? My car seems to be driving fine for now.

Would this be something that would be covered under warranty? My car is less than a month old.

 

[Gixx1300R]

Not that bad, the plastic skip plate can be plastic welded if you want to save a little money. I would suggest something like this

https://www.amazon.com/SLIPLO-Universal-Protection-Aftermarket-Anti-Scratch/dp/B09KZHFR99?th=1

 

[hodapper]

Warranty will not cover this. Looks like you encountered some big gravel as that front bumper looks like it took a big hit. I would try placing a claim with your insurance company.

 

[nuface]

Thanks for your replies guys.

What do you guys think about the damage to the undercarriage? Is that the aerocover that is punctured? How hard of a fix is that?
Also wondering if it is prudent for me to drive the car at this time.

 

[jmaddr]

Is that the aerocover that is punctured? How hard of a fix is that?
Also wondering if it is prudent for me to drive the car at this time.

It's just the aero cover. I would fix it as it's a simple job but I wouldn't say it's 100% necessary. You can certainly drive it but I would recommend keeping a watch on it to see if airflow causes any damage to grow. Maybe push and pull it around and see if that's likely or not. If it does grow, it's likely to partially fall down and you'll hear a scraping sound.

If you're willing to give it try, look for some Plastic Weld as @Gixx1300R recommended. Can find just about anywhere. You'll likely have to take it off to do the repair justice but it's a simple one. And that'll give you the opportunity to inspect what's just above it to see if there was any impact past the plastic cover. Probably an hour job for the first time.

And if that $9 fix doesn't work, you can always swap it out with a new one.

 

[vcor]

The panel is mostly to reduce air resistance. So you might lose 0.1 miles for every 500 miles traveled. Not much of an issue. I also doubt a replacement panel is all that expensive - maybe $100 for the part.

 

[nuface]

Not that bad, the plastic skip plate can be plastic welded if you want to save a little money. I would suggest something like this

https://www.amazon.com/SLIPLO-Universal-Protection-Aftermarket-Anti-Scratch/dp/B09KZHFR99?th=1

It's just the aero cover. I would fix it as it's a simple job but I wouldn't say it's 100% necessary. You can certainly drive it but I would recommend keeping a watch on it to see if airflow causes any damage to grow. Maybe push and pull it around and see if that's likely or not. If it does grow, it's likely to partially fall down and you'll hear a scraping sound.

If you're willing to give it try, look for some Plastic Weld as @Gixx1300R recommended. Can find just about anywhere. You'll likely have to take it off to do the repair justice but it's a simple one. And that'll give you the opportunity to inspect what's just above it to see if there was any impact past the plastic cover. Probably an hour job for the first time.

And if that $9 fix doesn't work, you can always swap it out with a new one.

Thank you so much for your responses! I am 100% not handy so I don't think I will be able to fix it myself but I am glad to hear that it is nothing major. I did put in a service request with Tesla via the app and they put me down for a mobile service appointment this week.

I am not too concerned about the small gash in the paint on the front bumper underside as its not really visible unless you bend down and really look for it so it does not take away from the car cosmetically. However the ruptured aero-cover does bother me as I do not want to have problems in the future, since this is a brand new car.

Do you guys think the ruptured aerocover is something the mobile service tech will be able to fix on the spot or will they have to take in my car?

 

[airborne spoon]

not a big deal just some plastic damage from you hitting a rock. The reason the plastic broke like that is there isn't anything under it in that spot so it gives way to things like rocks and crap. you can easily fix that with some JB weld plastic or as someone else suggested a plastic welding tool.

And why would you even question if this would be covered under the warranty? Warranties are for broken stuff caused by a manufacture defect or not lasting as long as they were intended to. You hitting a rock while driving doesn't even come close to meeting this criteria.

You could file an insurance claim there is 2 ways to do that. first its collision because you hit a stationary object which will raise your rates and if your deductible is more than the repair then you'll have to pay it all which would defeat the point of filing a claim.
the other option is to file a comprehensive claim and state the rock was moving and you tried to avoid it but were unable to do so. this will not effect your rates but if your one of those weirdos that doesn't have a $0 comp deductible then you'll have to pay out of pocket that deductible which since its only like $500 +/- will end up being on the hook for the entire cost anyway.

 

[Email]

Always verify parts before ordering, but I found this:

 

[nuface]

Thank you very much everyone for your replies!

Might seem like a silly question, but is it safe to take the car through a touchless car wash in this condition?

 

[Gixx1300R]

Thank you very much everyone for your replies!

Might seem like a silly question, but is it safe to take the car through a touchless car wash in this condition?

Many car washed use recycled water which is gritty. Hand wash if possible

 

[forso]

Seems Sliplo nowdays only carries smaller version. I can’t no longer get the same one I got last year (April 2021), last month I just opened and put it on my MYP but one piece loose & about to fell off; so I sticked it back with 3M VHB https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B093Q2BRSD/ hope it stays

 

[2101Guy]

Thank you very much everyone for your replies!

Might seem like a silly question, but is it safe to take the car through a touchless car wash in this condition?

Yes, its safe/wont cause any damage.
Many dont recommend touchless car washes as they rely on high pressure to clean. That high pressure can strip off waxes, polishes, etc.
A carwash with brushes uses less pressure, but the brushes often are dirty and cause the swirls (microscratches) in the clearcoat. So most recommend a quality handwash.

That said? probably 80% of people dont notice nor care about microswirls. Car afficionados, do, however.

 

[Muzzman1]

1564701-00-B Is the Valence part # and it's $285 and can be replaced with a 10mm socket.

Edit: Part # above is for refresh cars, which I believe OP has since I see the perforation for the pedestrian speaker.

 

[LT1Pat]

You can do a quick and dirty repair by drilling two holes on each side of the cracked section and using zip ties to stitch it.