So, the leather on my driver's side sill is detaching at the corner. Has anyone dealt with this? I am especially wondering if, when one removes the sill, if the leather is attached/glued all the way around or is it only tucked in? Any advice about this would be greatly appreciated! Here's how it looks:
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wiztecy
Active Member
My sill's integrity fractured (right where they always do) on the driver's side and I replaced them with Tesla's CF version. The wrap is tucked under about 1/2" or so and bonded with glue. If you take them off be very very careful, they're easy to crack/break especially if you do it wrong by forcing and not delicate while removing. Its like working with eggshells....
wiztecy
Active Member
...it might also be just stapled on or in combination with glue. It's been a few years since I've seen them off. I currently have my door panels off and those have the wrap run 1/2" on the inside with staples holding it down around the entire edge. I don't see any signs of glue such residue. I'd suspect the same setup for the sills since the panels are made of the same exact overly brittle material.
Hello
I also had this leather problem recently, but at a larger scale. The whole back part of the leather was getting loose and moving each time I got out of the car (sorrys no picture available). I removed the sill and found out the leather is glued. Fixed it cheaply with some new glue and put it back on place once the glue was dry. Not perfect, but good enough for me untill I find a better solution.
As Wiztecy said, be extra carefull when removing the sill. It's not difficult, but proceed slowly as it's easy to break.
Kind regards
I also had this leather problem recently, but at a larger scale. The whole back part of the leather was getting loose and moving each time I got out of the car (sorrys no picture available). I removed the sill and found out the leather is glued. Fixed it cheaply with some new glue and put it back on place once the glue was dry. Not perfect, but good enough for me untill I find a better solution.
As Wiztecy said, be extra carefull when removing the sill. It's not difficult, but proceed slowly as it's easy to break.
Kind regards
Thanks everyone for the advice. I started to remove the sill (from the back), and immediately realized that it's already cracked. I didn't continue any further, as I may be able to get a new sill from Tesla - it's listed as "chrome", but they think it's the black (fake) leather and silver one like I have. I'll know soon, and it will be covered under my extended warranty so I'll only pay the $100 deductible. What I'm wondering is: has anyone ever reinforced a sill to strengthen it before installing? If so, how did you do it? If what Tesla has isn't a match, I could maybe get this one off without yet more damage, and fix/reinforce it. Many thanks for your further thoughts!
wiztecy
Active Member
When you pull the sill off you'll see where and why its cracked. Its in the area where you always put your hand for support when getting in/out of the Roadster. Once the sill cover is pulled off match the crack to the sill cover to the sill area, you'll see where two sheets of aluminum plating are riveted and bonded together. Its that rivet and the drop or build up which is an uneven transition between the places that create a gap under the sill, keep putting pressure there over time and the fragile sill flexes more and more, becomes more brittle over time and cracks. If you search hard in the forum you'll see pics of this area. You need to build up this area a bit using a thin double sided foam tape, you can leave the tape / glue paper on for the top part since you don't want that to stick to the sill. Or find a single sided foam tape that's like that. I upgraded mine to carbon fiber after mine cracked, no need to build up or prep that area before installation since its a way stronger material.
Well, I got up my nerve and removed the sill - it wasn't cracked after all, the velcro was very weak and just felt like it. I have now used JB Weld epoxy and repaired it. Gotta say, they must have been on a tight budget when they put on that fake leather. Most of it was tucked under about a quarter inch or less, and they seem to have saved on glue, too. I added a bit of foam tape as well. I think it will be OK now. Thanks again for the advice, or would never have had a clue. We really do have a great community here!
wiztecy
Active Member
Nice to hear about your success. A glue I highly recommend for odds and ends is "Shoe Goo", it would work perfect here as long as you hold it in place while it sets and gets tacky.
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I just re-glued the existing covering. A lot of it was coming undone; I re-glued about a half dozen places besides the two corners that had already become fully detached. Time will tell whether this was enough.
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