Is this damage justified for $4500?

[dlwlrma]

Unluckily I had a car accident with my 2022 model 3 and have been visiting several body shops recently. I didn't a full coverage insurance so I need to pay the repair myself. The damage includes fender, front lamps and front bumper. There is a minor deformation to the fender, front lamp cover and front bumper are damaged but the light works well. One of the body shops gave me an estimate of $4500 shown below. He told me Color blend of the hood and front door is required to guarantee color match. My questions are:

1. Do I need to replace the emblem? I think it's unnecessary since it's good and reusable?
2. Is it required to replace the repeater lamp? It works well now. The body shop guy said 2022 model 3 has Part has related component that cannot be reused/reinstalled;
3. To do color blend with front door, does it require to reinstall belt, mirror, handle and trim panel? Seems too many stuffs for me.
4. Is there any other parts that I can negotiate?

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!

 

[804son]

I'm surprised it's only $4,500, I had someone back into me in a parking lot, minor damage to the left rear bumper/quarter panel and it was $2,800. It didn't look near as bad as what you've got.

 

[dlwlrma]

I'm surprised it's only $4,500, I had someone back into me in a parking lot, minor damage to the left rear bumper/quarter panel and it was $2,800. It didn't look near as bad as what you've got.

The damage looks horrible but it's not that severe I think. If let alone the front bumper damage, the total damage is hard to see.

 

[Gauss Guzzler]

1. The emblem is attached with double-sided tape that cannot be reused. If you want to peel off all the old tape and reapply, you can save $28, but it's a lot of work.
2. The repeater lamp has a snap-on cover that you're not supposed to reuse, but that cover can stay on. People remove those repeaters all the time for PPF installation and it's a non-issue.
3. When they paint the bumper and fender in a slightly mismatching color, they will deliberately overspray some of that color onto your hood and door to blend the mismatch softly. They then clearcoat all the affected panels and this can't be done well with masking - they need to remove anything that touches the paint, like the side mirror and belt molding.
4. Consider a used headlight from eBay or one of the online Tesla junkyards.

 

[ATPMSD]

You can get more quotes! But if you lease the car you have no option, you must fully repair it.

 

[father_of_6]

I think it looks fine. I'd probably just leave it unrepaired. Probably could just buff it out if you pour some 'tussin on it.

 

[father_of_6]

Also, the title confused me a bit. I thought you were asking "If someone owes me $4500, was it justified that I did this amount of damage to their car?"

 

[UncertainTimes]

just morbidly curious why someone who buys/finances/leases a $50k car doesn’t have collision insurance.

 

[dlwlrma]

1. The emblem is attached with double-sided tape that cannot be reused. If you want to peel off all the old tape and reapply, you can save $28, but it's a lot of work.
2. The repeater lamp has a snap-on cover that you're not supposed to reuse, but that cover can stay on. People remove those repeaters all the time for PPF installation and it's a non-issue.
3. When they paint the bumper and fender in a slightly mismatching color, they will deliberately overspray some of that color onto your hood and door to blend the mismatch softly. They then clearcoat all the affected panels and this can't be done well with masking - they need to remove anything that touches the paint, like the side mirror and belt molding.
4. Consider a used headlight from eBay or one of the online Tesla junkyards.

Thanks for replying. For answer 2, do you mean I can reuse the repeater lamp and ask the body shop to remove this part?

 

[father_of_6]

Looking at a thread with almost the exact same title, I feel like this is just a FUD post. There's zero chance this would only cost $4500, and the idea that you don't have collision insurance is suspect.

 

[outdoors]

$5890 for a reference. Looks similar. Includes the PPF going back on.

Bumper, fender, and light. FSD Beta doesn't stop for .

 

[ATPMSD]

didn't a full coverage insurance

So this is adding salt to the wound, but you are paying “retail” for those repairs. When an insurance company is involved they pay a discounted rate. Another solid reason for having insurance is if they find anything else, it is covered. In your case you will get another Bill.

Offer them 25% less and see what happens.

 

[Soul Surfer]

Yikes! Well, that seems to be what comes with the ownership of a Tesla. I'm curious about the "full coverage part"? In "Duh-Nuh-Duh", we generally can't get away with that - especially on a new car. I'm sure the repair would far outweigh the cost of full coverage here.

I'm not trying to be an a-hole, honestly. It's just that one can never trust the other drivers. You didn't mention if this accident was a result of another driver or yourself.

 

[RayK]

$5890 for a reference. Looks similar. Includes the PPF going back on.

Bumper, fender, and light. FSD Beta doesn't stop for .

Replacing the tow hook cover has got to cost at least $500.

 

[ATPMSD]

seems to be what comes with the ownership of a Tesla

Not really a Tesla thing. Quality body work is often expensive since parts have to be removed, fixed or replaced, painted, and then remounted.

 

[richh]

Looking at a thread with almost the exact same title, I feel like this is just a FUD post. There's zero chance this would only cost $4500, and the idea that you don't have collision insurance is suspect.

I had a similar repair done and it was $8K.

 

[UncertainTimes]

Guess I’ll also add something constructive too. Had my bumper, one headlight replaced and front fender repainted/blended and the cost was $3400. But because I had insurance it was just my deductible. With so many sensors, cameras, expensive labor, and my god just the potential for battery damage why would you not carry full insurance.

 

[Gauss Guzzler]

Guys, car "insurance" is basically just a line of credit with a secret and unlimited interest rate. Whether the OP has a $5k deductible, $500 deductible, or no coverage at all for collision/uninsured doesn't really matter. The OP still has to pay the full cost of the repair, either today in cash, or for the rest of their lives in jacked up insurance rates.

 

[Evpowerdan]

$5890 for a reference. Looks similar. Includes the PPF going back on.

Bumper, fender, and light. FSD Beta doesn't stop for .
View attachment 826323

Dang, deers usually come out of nowhere without warning.

 

[Evpowerdan]

Unluckily I had a car accident with my 2022 model 3 and have been visiting several body shops recently. I didn't a full coverage insurance so I need to pay the repair myself. The damage includes fender, front lamps and front bumper. There is a minor deformation to the fender, front lamp cover and front bumper are damaged but the light works well. One of the body shops gave me an estimate of $4500 shown below. He told me Color blend of the hood and front door is required to guarantee color match. My questions are:

1. Do I need to replace the emblem? I think it's unnecessary since it's good and reusable?
2. Is it required to replace the repeater lamp? It works well now. The body shop guy said 2022 model 3 has Part has related component that cannot be reused/reinstalled;
3. To do color blend with front door, does it require to reinstall belt, mirror, handle and trim panel? Seems too many stuffs for me.
4. Is there any other parts that I can negotiate?

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!

View attachment 826302

Looks reasonable. To blend correctly, it’s best to remove the mirror and door trim, as you don’t want that to get over spray and easier to buff out after blending without those parts on. The repeater lamp and front emblem are standard, as most body shops like to start from new in case they break coming off, and have to increase your bill/estimate. Only $150ish more.