Model Y bumper almost ripped off in pooled water

[MichaelMuni]

ROFL, it always makes me laugh when I see this. Don't drive in water that is that deep. Even the people in jeeps with snorkel system that allows going into deep water think they can fly into deep water and damage their cars. Water is like hitting concrete when going at speed. You also passed by a car that had already attempted to drive in and was stalled out and you should have known it would be deep water.

 

[Pianewman]

I drove really, really slow. The fisheye lens effect might make it look faster than it was.

That said, it wasn't very deep either, given that the water pooled only to the height of the sidewalk. Compare that to the video from China I posted as a reference.

Since we're all still here, hopefully with buckets of popcorn for sustenance, I'd like to offer:

The water spraying from your car indicates you did NOT "drove really, really slow." Forget the rooster tail, forget any discussion of video speed, etc. The spray from your car indicates speed.

 

[mstatkus]

At best some flashing could be done better to not create drag by the rear bumper but at that speed that was asking a lot of those clips.

To be fair this guy I saw on the highway was suffering from a similar issue just with wind.

 

[ohmman]

Moderator Note: 17 posts moved to snippiness. Personal attacks are forbidden here, and that includes calling people "fanboys" in an attempt to undermine arguments. It's unequivocally an ad hominem argument. Some posts that were moved were merely quoting others that had to be moved as part of the chain of sub-discussion so apologies in advance if you feel like your post shouldn't have been moved. You're always welcome to visit the link and copy and paste any non-offending material back here if desired.

 

[stopcrazypp]

For anyone trying to argue this should be covered under warranty, note the warranty explicitly excludes damage from floods or deep water:

This New Vehicle Limited Warranty does not cover any vehicle damage or malfunction directly or indirectly caused by, due to or resulting from normal wear or deterioration, abuse, misuse, negligence, accident, improper maintenance, operation, storage or transport, including, but not limited to, any of the following:
...
Fire, explosion, earthquake, windstorm, lightning, hail, flood, or deep water;

https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/downloads/tesla-new-vehicle-limited-warranty-en-us.pdf

Also it is just common sense that warranty would not cover damage trying to ford deep water. The previous TSB for Model 3 was necessary because rear bumpers fell off just driving through rain (not actual flood water).

As for why Teslas might possibly be more susceptible than other ICE cars (even though as others pointed out, ICE cars may stall in the first place before being able to make it through), Teslas have an aero shield that is designed to block air from getting into the underbody of the vehicle. These panels also serve to catch water. If you drive through flooded water too fast for it to drain out, that puts a lot of stress on the rear bumper. However, a lot of ICE cars nowadays have similar aero shields in order to try to squeeze out the max fuel efficiency.

 

[WasRight]

That was a lot of water and deep. I don't understand why would you fly through that deep water? The fist rule of deep/standing water driving is
1. don't go through it. go back.
2. if not possible, go in very slow, so that the water doesn't want to go over your hood
3. Tesla is not invincible in water.

Thanks. Appreciate the fatherly advice. But when you’re doing 60 on a highway and the lake appears in front of you you sometimes just don’t have a choice. Exact same thing happened to me last Sept in NYC. Water washing over my hood and up my windshield. Mangled both aero plates and the rear fascia. Bought aftermarket aluminum replacements for Aeros, but had to wait six weeks for a replacement fascia which isn’t available aftermarket. $1100 later, I would love to have Tesla look at better materials under the car & wheel wells.

 

[thesmokingman]

Do we need a Rufford Ford fails video link?

 

[TMYB-C1]

I just had the same thing happen to me, but luckily it was only the driver side part of the Rear Fascia Diffuser that was pulled loose and folded over.

I immediately heard something dragging, stopped in a monsoon to inspect it and decided to go charge to give myself time to figure out what to do which luckily was in a parking garage. With my wife and 2 toddlers in the car while 6 hours from home the stars aligned yet again and I had thrown duck(t) tape in the car for some unknown reason. I got under the car, took my shirt off to dry the area with and tapped everything in place.

After a week long sandy beach vacation and 1000 miles later the duct tape held strong. The repair cost $380 at my local service center to have the Rear Fascia Diffuser replaced... I'll never not have duck(t) tape in my car after this.

 

[Pianewman]

TMYB-C1: Do you recall how fast you were driving? How deep was the water?

 

[TMYB-C1]

TMYB-C1: Do you recall how fast you were driving? How deep was the water?

Too fast and too deep, I definitely take fault and am happy to have learnt my lesson through this relatively minor roadside emergency