How NOT to recover a Model 3 Mr AA

[bitmanEV]

This happend to our Model 3

Guy should have just used the tow hook, boast the 12v battery and used to tow mode and not damaged the tow hook cover including the bumper as he used a screwdriver and broke all the clips off

I wasn't there so couldn't stop him...

Running out of juice and getting AA to recover our Model 3 to drop her off at a Rapid Charger
12v battery was flat so the guy dragged her on his flatbed by the suspension instead using the tow hook
Arrived at the Rapid charger he then broke the tow hook cover to gain access to open the frunk to boast the 12v battery so doors could be unlocked and left the scene
When trying to charge the 12v died again made it impossible to rapid charge and a second call out from the AA to proper charge the 12v battery so rapid charging could be done

All in all useless support from the AA and a example how NOT to recover an EV

 

[M3noob]

This happend to our Model 3

Guy should have just used the tow hook, boast the 12v battery and used to tow mode and not damaged the tow hook cover including the bumper as he used a screwdriver and broke all the clips off

I wasn't there so couldn't stop him...



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If that'd happen to me, I'd be looking for an acquaintance with links to the Albanian mafia

 

[26ct2143]

wow, dragging it on with the wheels locked up.
If I was there, I'd tell them to go away and get some training. But with a few f f s in there...

 

[AndyS3]

Lesson, dont run out of electric, dont let the AA anywhere near a Tesla.

What cowboys

 

[Sixer]

Wow serious lack of training for the AA monkey. My car recently got flat bedded and the guy who turned up had full instructions on what to do with tow mode. He had no idea so I did it for him to speed up the process. But the important thing was the independent recovery guy was trained.

 

[Medved_77]

Looks like the AA man was hammering some skates under the rear wheels.

If those were in place then winching it onto the flatbed where the wheels aren't in motion shouldn't cause any damage.

Also a good idea to hook onto the front axle, the force is distributed (you can see two ties). If you winched the toe hook the car would be dragged off centre up the flatbed.

Sorry to go against the grain here but after witnessing many failed projects being recovered, I think his approach was sound and wouldn't have caused any damage to your vehicle (except the toe hook cover, that sucks).

 

[NewbieT]

It does show a lack of training in EVs for recovery services. If the AA can’t get it right I suspect many others can’t either. Would have thought they’d have a car database on the laptop for this sort of stuff. Glad I have a pdf of the manual on my phone.

 

[Florafauna]

My M3 was flat bedded last week after a call to Tesla Recovery. They craned it straight onto the bed. No dragging required. Phew. I put it into tow mode anyway. Not sure the guy actually knew much about Teslas but luckily he turned up with the right equipment.

Maybe Tesla recovery only use companies with the right stuff? Maybe I was lucky?
The recovery truck took 90 mins to arrive at 2am on Wednesday morning - East London. I thought that was ok...

 

[Godsense]

When Tesla had to recover mine it was done by an independent. Said they had training direct from Tesla which was reassuring.

I think its still worth knowing what should be done in the instance they aren't too sure.

 

[bitmanEV]

Looks like the AA man was hammering some skates under the rear wheels.

If those were in place then winching it onto the flatbed where the wheels aren't in motion shouldn't cause any damage.

Also a good idea to hook onto the front axle, the force is distributed (you can see two ties). If you winched the toe hook the car would be dragged off centre up the flatbed.

Sorry to go against the grain here but after witnessing many failed projects being recovered, I think his approach was sound and wouldn't have caused any damage to your vehicle (except the toe hook cover, that sucks).

indeed he did hammer some skates under the rear wheels

towing on suspension parts i still disagree

this whole exercise was unnecessary as the car was not in any danger to other traffic as being pushed into a lay-by by the police who actually knew how to put the car in neutral so they could push it

he needed to open the trunk anyway to juice up the 12v battery to allow the car to rapid charge. If he had done this in the first place then he could have charged the 12v battery when transporting her to the BP service station, used the tow hook and put the car into tow mode

but he it's alway easy to comment as long it not your own vehicle...

oh by the way I have worked at a body shop collecting and delivering customer vehicles but what do I know...

 

[kuruma]

except the toe hook cover, that sucks

when we went to pick up our car from Tesla, I asked the guy doing the handover if he could show me how to open the tow hook cover. He couldn't do it. He then got an engineer over who couldn't do it either. They then appeared flustered that we had taken up too much of our time slot and so we never found out how to do it.

It seems like it's hard and I've forgotten all about it until now. Anyone know the right technique to employ?

 

[init6]

when we went to pick up our car from Tesla, I asked the guy doing the handover if he could show me how to open the tow hook cover. He couldn't do it. He then got an engineer over who couldn't do it either. They then appeared flustered that we had taken up too much of our time slot and so we never found out how to do it.

It seems like it's hard and I've forgotten all about it until now. Anyone know the right technique to employ?

"Release the tow eye cover by pressing firmly on its top right perimeter until it pivots inward, then gently pulling the raised section toward you."

 

[dan223]

Yea I mean the main thing here is to not get to the point where you run out of juice in the first place. It's a poor show by the AA guy.

 

[Medved_77]

indeed he did hammer some skates under the rear wheels

towing on suspension parts i still disagree

this whole exercise was unnecessary as the car was not in any danger to other traffic as being pushed into a lay-by by the police who actually knew how to put the car in neutral so they could push it

he needed to open the trunk anyway to juice up the 12v battery to allow the car to rapid charge. If he had done this in the first place then he could have charged the 12v battery when transporting her to the BP service station, used the tow hook and put the car into tow mode

but he it's alway easy to comment as long it not your own vehicle...

oh by the way I have worked at a body shop collecting and delivering customer vehicles but what do I know...

My observations were meant to be a reassurance, as from what I could see from the video, the rear wheels did not rotate when it was being hoisted therefore there should hopefully be no damage to the rear motor which would have been the worst case scenario.

I sincerely hope you do not have to claim for a new rear motor nor any parts of the front suspension. I wouldn't want any other forum member to have to go through that pain and heartbreak. Typically when I reply to threads on this forum I try to offer help so I'm sorry it didn't come across that way on this occasion.

If I understand correctly, both the 12v battery and the main battery pack were depleted? If the AA guy could have topped up the 12v battery then it would have had a limited charge whereby you could of had sufficient time to use the screen to enter tow mode? Problem here is how much of the guys time it would take to charge to a reasonable level, given there was no power in the main pack to maintain the charge of the 12v. The manual does suggest using skates if the touchscreen is not available.

I think it'll be a while before breakdown services get familiar with these cars, I'm sure they've got a manual somewhere however if there's a way to safely achieve this with a non-electrical/software based approach then they'll likely always prefer this route.

With the suspension, do you know which part he attached the tow guides to? I think given the off centre location of the tow hook and the central location of the winch he would have struggled to keep the car aligned when winching it on to the flatbed.

Regardless, hope your car still drives as well as before and that you can sort the front tow hook cover out.

 

[kuruma]

"Release the tow eye cover by pressing firmly on its top right perimeter until it pivots inward, then gently pulling the raised section toward you."

Have you actually tried applying that quote from the manual? Last time I tried I couldn't do it. Maybe there's a knack I haven't got the hang of yet.

 

[TJ63]

Have you actually tried applying that quote from the manual? Last time I tried I couldn't do it. Maybe there's a knack I haven't got the hang of yet.

Use both thumbs and press hard. You may still need something to prize it out after doing this.

 

[Alistairuk]

Have you actually tried applying that quote from the manual? Last time I tried I couldn't do it. Maybe there's a knack I haven't got the hang of yet.

Yes, I thought I'd try to make sure I knew how to do it in case I ever had too, unfortunately, I broke one of the clips in doing so but luckily could glue it back together.

 

[kuruma]

yeesh... that's scared me off trying! Think I'll just wait until I absolutely have to!

 

[Sparkeur]

Have you actually tried applying that quote from the manual?

I did it when I was installing the motorised frunk. Using the right technique of persistant pressure on the top right of the cover, I was able to pull it out quite easily. It's a knack. Whether a breakdown patrol will have this knack is another question altogether...

 

[DoctaM3]

One of the most unprofessional tow jobs I have seen in a long time. Why not use the tow hook. It is so much easier than what he did. Was there any damage to the axel?