I need some help deciding on what to do in this situation

[J. Tes]

I got my MYP recently, then 3 days later I hit a deer, the car seemed just fine to drive, so I continued to do so while I wait for my insurance to give me an estimate for the shop, very little damage (idk how to post photos here yet, sorry)
So 5 days go by, and on the fifth day my windshield wipers stopped working and the slightly damaged headlight stopped working as well, then in the app it told my the 12v battery connection was lose, then disconnected, I decided I’ll go home and try to connect it myself, but I noticed the car was then telling me it may randomly shut down, and that it might not be able to start driving again after this drive ends, so about 5 min into my drive home, the car starts freaking out, red on the screen, telling me to pull over and the vehicle is shutting down and a few min after I pulled over, I heard a little thump or a clunk in what seemed like the trunk, maybe the battery? I told Tesla about that through text and they seemed confused as well, mind you the vehicle was sitting absolutely still and in park for over a minute, this happened before my drive as well, my gf was sitting in the car while I was at work and she heard it 2-3 times as well, and she was just sitting in the car listening to music, enjoying the car while waiting for me to get out of work, anyway once I heard it we got out, I called Tesla and they connected to my vehicle and told me they are getting a lot more warnings than they would get if it’s just the 12V, and they said “oh yeah, let’s get this towed to our service center” and I TOLD THEM it was damaged from a deer at that point, but they proceeded anyway, fast forward a few days and they tell me they can’t work on the vehicle because it’s damaged, and I have to bring it to an auto body shop first, and I’ll get charged if it’s not moved ASAP, over a month later (today actually) the vehicle is done and I’m going to get it, I mentioned to them that I couldn’t even drive it, and asked if it’s drivable, I see through the Tessie app they drove it multiple times throughout the month, and once up to 51 MPH, so I think it’s safe to say it drives, the question is, should I now finally take it to the Tesla service center? I just want my car back already, sucks to have it for 22 minutes on the drive to the Tesla center that made me tow it away to the body shop in the first place, sorry this was lengthy, but I appreciate anyone who reads this and offers some valuable input and opinions, thank you and happy (late) thanksgiving!

 

[Pianewman]

Convoluted story, but my question is: Your car NEVER WENT to a Tesla Service Center, only the body shop?

The car should NOT have been released to you w/o a thorough evaluation by a Tesla Service Center. Period. The car showed multiple warnings about various systems. Why did you, and the body shop, ignore them?

Hopefully all the warnings you received after the deer encounter are somehow related to the 12V battery connection becoming loose, then disconnected. That would cause multiple warnings that need to be respected.

Good luck. I hope the SC will figure it all out.

 

[J. Tes]

Convoluted story, but my question is: Your car NEVER WENT to a Tesla Service Center, only the body shop?

The car should NOT have been released to you w/o a thorough evaluation by a Tesla Service Center. Period. The car showed multiple warnings about various systems. Why did you, and the body shop, ignore them?

Hopefully all the warnings you received after the deer encounter are somehow related to the 12V battery connection becoming loose, then disconnected. That would cause multiple warnings that need to be respected.

Good luck. I hope the SC will figure it all out.

I apologize for my lack of good story telling, truthfully I’m not very good at it and I know this as well lol, but anyway I don’t believe I ignored any warnings, unless you’re referring to when it told me the car might randomly shut down, I was prepared for that moment, but my home was 10 min away and it was raining, so I tried to make it home, and it did indeed go to the Tesla service center for a day or 2, and they told me “we can’t look at it until it’s fixed by a body shop” so I was forced to send it to the shop, I asked the shop how it’s been driving and told them everything I told you guys, and they said “oh, I never knew about any of that” so what I believe happened is that Tesla wanted the vehicle fixed first, before they do a deep dive into the vehicle, but I have no idea, if the Tesla service center can’t look it over today while I’m there, I’ll ask for a loaner and pray they give it to me

 

[VT_EE]

I got my MYP recently, then 3 days later I hit a deer, the car seemed just fine to drive, so I continued to do so while I wait for my insurance to give me an estimate for the shop, very little damage (idk how to post photos here yet, sorry)
So 5 days go by, and on the fifth day my windshield wipers stopped working and the slightly damaged headlight stopped working as well, then in the app it told my the 12v battery connection was lose, then disconnected, I decided I’ll go home and try to connect it myself, but I noticed the car was then telling me it may randomly shut down, and that it might not be able to start driving again after this drive ends, so about 5 min into my drive home, the car starts freaking out, red on the screen, telling me to pull over and the vehicle is shutting down and a few min after I pulled over, I heard a little thump or a clunk in what seemed like the trunk, maybe the battery? I told Tesla about that through text and they seemed confused as well, mind you the vehicle was sitting absolutely still and in park for over a minute, this happened before my drive as well, my gf was sitting in the car while I was at work and she heard it 2-3 times as well, and she was just sitting in the car listening to music, enjoying the car while waiting for me to get out of work, anyway once I heard it we got out, I called Tesla and they connected to my vehicle and told me they are getting a lot more warnings than they would get if it’s just the 12V, and they said “oh yeah, let’s get this towed to our service center” and I TOLD THEM it was damaged from a deer at that point, but they proceeded anyway, fast forward a few days and they tell me they can’t work on the vehicle because it’s damaged, and I have to bring it to an auto body shop first, and I’ll get charged if it’s not moved ASAP, over a month later (today actually) the vehicle is done and I’m going to get it, I mentioned to them that I couldn’t even drive it, and asked if it’s drivable, I see through the Tessie app they drove it multiple times throughout the month, and once up to 51 MPH, so I think it’s safe to say it drives, the question is, should I now finally take it to the Tesla service center? I just want my car back already, sucks to have it for 22 minutes on the drive to the Tesla center that made me tow it away to the body shop in the first place, sorry this was lengthy, but I appreciate anyone who reads this and offers some valuable input and opinions, thank you and happy (late) thanksgiving!

There is no need to take it to a Tesla SC if a Tesla-Certified body shop fixed the car up. You are good to go unless you find something wrong.

 

[J. Tes]

There is no need to take it to a Tesla SC if a Tesla-Certified body shop fixed the car up. You are good to go unless you find something wrong.

I like the sound of that, I’ll still be cautious as well, thank you for your input! Any other input from anyone is is still greatly appreciated as well!

 

[howardnj]

I got my MYP recently, then 3 days later I hit a deer, the car seemed just fine to drive, so I continued to do so while I wait for my insurance to give me an estimate for the shop, very little damage (idk how to post photos here yet, sorry)
So 5 days go by, and on the fifth day my windshield wipers stopped working and the slightly damaged headlight stopped working as well, then in the app it told my the 12v battery connection was lose, then disconnected, I decided I’ll go home and try to connect it myself, but I noticed the car was then telling me it may randomly shut down, and that it might not be able to start driving again after this drive ends, so about 5 min into my drive home, the car starts freaking out, red on the screen, telling me to pull over and the vehicle is shutting down and a few min after I pulled over, I heard a little thump or a clunk in what seemed like the trunk, maybe the battery? I told Tesla about that through text and they seemed confused as well, mind you the vehicle was sitting absolutely still and in park for over a minute, this happened before my drive as well, my gf was sitting in the car while I was at work and she heard it 2-3 times as well, and she was just sitting in the car listening to music, enjoying the car while waiting for me to get out of work, anyway once I heard it we got out, I called Tesla and they connected to my vehicle and told me they are getting a lot more warnings than they would get if it’s just the 12V, and they said “oh yeah, let’s get this towed to our service center” and I TOLD THEM it was damaged from a deer at that point, but they proceeded anyway, fast forward a few days and they tell me they can’t work on the vehicle because it’s damaged, and I have to bring it to an auto body shop first, and I’ll get charged if it’s not moved ASAP, over a month later (today actually) the vehicle is done and I’m going to get it, I mentioned to them that I couldn’t even drive it, and asked if it’s drivable, I see through the Tessie app they drove it multiple times throughout the month, and once up to 51 MPH, so I think it’s safe to say it drives, the question is, should I now finally take it to the Tesla service center? I just want my car back already, sucks to have it for 22 minutes on the drive to the Tesla center that made me tow it away to the body shop in the first place, sorry this was lengthy, but I appreciate anyone who reads this and offers some valuable input and opinions, thank you and happy (late) thanksgiving!

Sorry to hear about your hitting a deer. You pay a lot of money for insurance so your insurance company should be providing assistance to you. I've had my Y for a couple of months and I have no intention of dropping my AAA membership that provides me up to 200 miles of free towing in an emergency if Tesla road service is not immediately available.
As for posting photos, save the photos in a picture folder on your computer. Then on this site click on "attach files" and go to your picture folder and click on the photos.
I would definitely have the vehicle checked out at a Tesla SC.
Good luck

 

[Pianewman]

J. Tes: It wasn't your writing, it was the history that was convoluted.

Your car is a computer that happens to look and act like a car. Your computer on wheels suffered a catastrophic event that was severe enough to damage your car. Your computer warned you that there were multiple issues, including a loose 12V, ultimately a disconnected 12V.

I'm stunned that anyone on this forum would tell you to just drive your car w/o a SC check. None of us know the severity of the collision, but we all know that your computer/car told you of multiple issues, that can only be evaluated/corrected by a Tesla Service Center, tech, NOT a Tesla certified body shop. I wouldn't assume that a Tesla Certified body shop has all the expertise of a Service Center.

For sure, someone will post if this opinion is correct.

Granted, some of the warnings may simply have been the disconnected 12V battery, but I wouldn't trust the car until it's checked out.

I hope it all works out for you. Jeez...3 days...deer...poor deer...poor Tesla...poorer YOU!!!!

 

[J. Tes]

Sorry to hear about your hitting a deer. You pay a lot of money for insurance so your insurance company should be providing assistance to you. I've had my Y for a couple of months and I have no intention of dropping my AAA membership that provides me up to 200 miles of free towing in an emergency if Tesla road service is not immediately available.
As for posting photos, save the photos in a picture folder on your computer. Then on this site click on "attach files" and go to your picture folder and click on the photos.
I would definitely have the vehicle checked out at a Tesla SC.
Good luck

I appreciate that, and thank you for the help with the photos!

J. Tes: It wasn't your writing, it was the history that was convoluted.

Your car is a computer that happens to look and act like a car. Your computer on wheels suffered a catastrophic event that was severe enough to damage your car. Your computer warned you that there were multiple issues, including a loose 12V, ultimately a disconnected 12V.

I'm stunned that anyone on this forum would tell you to just drive your car w/o a SC check. None of us know the severity of the collision, but we all know that your computer/car told you of multiple issues, that can only be evaluated/corrected by a Tesla Service Center, tech, NOT a Tesla certified body shop. I wouldn't assume that a Tesla Certified body shop has all the expertise of a Service Center.

For sure, someone will post if this opinion is correct.

Granted, some of the warnings may simply have been the disconnected 12V battery, but I wouldn't trust the car until it's checked out.

I hope it all works out for you. Jeez...3 days...deer...poor deer...poor Tesla...poorer YOU!!!!

yeah that’s honestly what I was thinking, I just drove it 22 min doing 65 to a Tesla service center, here now just looking at the show room, wondering if I should say something… but thank you so much for all that, and yeah 3 days ughhh so glad to have it back, for now at least

 

[Pianewman]

J. Tes: The good news is you're getting to know your Tesla, sadly the hard way! I hope what you learn at the SC, and what you learn here, will benefit you in the future.

 

[qdeathstar]

I apologize for my lack of good story telling, truthfully I’m not very good at it and I know this as well lol, but anyway I don’t believe I ignored any warnings, unless you’re referring to when it told me the car might randomly shut down, I was prepared for that moment, but my home was 10 min away and it was raining, so I tried to make it home, and it did indeed go to the Tesla service center for a day or 2, and they told me “we can’t look at it until it’s fixed by a body shop” so I was forced to send it to the shop, I asked the shop how it’s been driving and told them everything I told you guys, and they said “oh, I never knew about any of that” so what I believe happened is that Tesla wanted the vehicle fixed first, before they do a deep dive into the vehicle, but I have no idea, if the Tesla service center can’t look it over today while I’m there, I’ll ask for a loaner and pray they give it to me

The car might shut down, but also, it may spontaneously burst into flames in your garage. If the battery has been dangers that isn’t something to play around with. There is a lot of energy stored in the battery.

 

[VT_EE]

J. Tes: It wasn't your writing, it was the history that was convoluted.

Your car is a computer that happens to look and act like a car. Your computer on wheels suffered a catastrophic event that was severe enough to damage your car. Your computer warned you that there were multiple issues, including a loose 12V, ultimately a disconnected 12V.

I'm stunned that anyone on this forum would tell you to just drive your car w/o a SC check. None of us know the severity of the collision, but we all know that your computer/car told you of multiple issues, that can only be evaluated/corrected by a Tesla Service Center, tech, NOT a Tesla certified body shop. I wouldn't assume that a Tesla Certified body shop has all the expertise of a Service Center.

For sure, someone will post if this opinion is correct.

Granted, some of the warnings may simply have been the disconnected 12V battery, but I wouldn't trust the car until it's checked out.

I hope it all works out for you. Jeez...3 days...deer...poor deer...poor Tesla...poorer YOU!!!!

Umm, the Tesla-Certified body shops have many of the same diagnostic equipment as the SC does. When they need SC assistance, they reach out for assistance. There is absolutely no need to go to the SC unless the OP is still having issues after the body shop has performed their fixes. No reputable body shop is going to hand the vehicle back to the owner if the vehicle is still spewing error codes.

 

[Pianewman]

VT-EE: Thanks for the clarification. However, I'm not comfortable with the "...Tesla-Certified body shops have many of the same diagnostic equipment as the SC does."

We don't know the severity of the impact, the extent of the body shop repair, etc. etc. W/o knowing this, I still think a visit for an evaluation by the fully equipped Service Center is recommended.

 

[thesmokingman]

That was pretty reckless, you shouldn't have been driving it, now you got what looks to be cascading failures.

 

[Jim R]

The title of your post should say SOMETHING about the issue.

 

[J. Tes]

The car might shut down, but also, it may spontaneously burst into flames in your garage. If the battery has been dangers that isn’t something to play around with. There is a lot of energy stored in the battery.

Agreed, I have an UPADTE for anyone here that may be wondering what has happened, I drove to the Tesla SC and I specifically asked the sales people this question, as well as the service people I was directed to, “if I received my vehicle back from a Tesla certified body shop, is it safe to assume that EVERYTHING is fine and okay to drive?” They both told me yes, and the service people told me “that’s why their certified” and I told them everything that happened, and told them about sounds, and they weren’t even worried once they knew it came from the body shop, interesting but that made me happy I will admit, feel better at least.

 

[ucmndd]

VT-EE: Thanks for the clarification. However, I'm not comfortable with the "...Tesla-Certified body shops have many of the same diagnostic equipment as the SC does."

We don't know the severity of the impact, the extent of the body shop repair, etc. etc. W/o knowing this, I still think a visit for an evaluation by the fully equipped Service Center is recommended.

Tesla service centers do not evaluate or repair damages caused by collisions. Full stop. They Do Not Do It.

They tell you to go to a certified collision center, which has absolutely everything they need to properly repair the car.

Your advice here is wrong and going to result in nothing but frustration for the OP.

 

[J. Tes]

Tesla service centers do not evaluate or repair cars that have been in collisions. Full stop. They Do Not Do It.

They tell you to go to a certified collision center, which has absolutely everything they need to properly repair the car.

Your advice here is wrong and going to result in nothing but frustration for the OP.

I visited a SC and they told me it was completely fine/safe to assume that it’s 100% okay to drive if it came from a Tesla certified body shop

 

[Pianewman]

Thanks for the clarification, and the correction. Glad to know!

 

[Pianewman]

Agreed, I have an UPADTE for anyone here that may be wondering what has happened, I drove to the Tesla SC and I specifically asked the sales people this question, as well as the service people I was directed to, “if I received my vehicle back from a Tesla certified body shop, is it safe to assume that EVERYTHING is fine and okay to drive?” They both told me yes, and the service people told me “that’s why their certified” and I told them everything that happened, and told them about sounds, and they weren’t even worried once they knew it came from the body shop, interesting but that made me happy I will admit, feel better at least.

Did they answer your questions about the "sounds"? Just curious.

 

[KidsEyeDr]

The car might shut down, but also, it may spontaneously burst into flames in your garage. If the battery has been dangers that isn’t something to play around with. There is a lot of energy stored in the battery.

That’s REALLY unlikely, statistically, let alone with an animal collision. The media sensationalizes ultra rare events.