My Model 3 Got Wrecked Today :(

[Nixx]

I've always wondered how a Model S would handle an accident like this with the child seats in the rear...

 

[neroden]

i very much doubt that he would get the taxbreak twice.

US federal tax credit? Yep, he can. As long as he has enough income to owe the full $15000 in taxes, which might be an issue. New car placed in service == tax break. I could get it 10 times if I bought 10 Model 3s. WA sales tax exemption, unfortunately, appears to be gone so the replacement car will have full sales tax owed, I suspect :-(

 

[Darscot]

The car seat on the roof, makes it a very haunting image.

 

[idarwin]

You mean like the thousands of gasoline cars that get totaled out in this country every month and almost never catch fire?

You are guilty of spreading FUD. Gasoline cars almost never catch fire following accidents. It happens, rarely, just like with electric cars.

Actual factual: These figures are a bit old, an not all of these are crashes - sometimes ICE cars burn on their own - but:

On average, 31 highway vehicle fires were reported per hour. These fires killed one person a day. Overall, highway vehicles fires were involved in 17% of reported U.S. fires, 12% of U.S. fire deaths, 8% of U.S. civilian fire injuries, and 9% of the direct property damage from reported fires.

From the US National Fire Prevention Association. NFPA report - Vehicle fire trends and patterns

 

[wipster]

We're really shaken up and really sore & some bruises, but otherwise we seem to be ok, thank goodness! It was a pretty intense accident, and the car held up well.

Wow, I'm so glad you and your family are ok. That was a hell of an accident, your M3 looks like something from a wreck in a NASCAR race. But I bring up that analogy because they have wrecks at close to 200 mph and the driver gets out of the car uninjured. That's kind of what Tesla has done with their vehicles and you're living proof.
I'm assuming it's totalled. Hope that the Seattle Times covers this... IMHO, this is bigger news than accidents that are caused by the driver not paying attention to what autopilot is telling them. Maybe they should put the warnings in the voice of Howard's mom.

Regardless, very glad all of you are ok!

 

[idarwin]

Sorry for your trauma and the loss of your car, but like everyone else here I'm glad everyone came out OK. Hope the illegal street racers get more than a slap on the wrist from the judge, since in many other cars there would have been fatalities. Street racing is not a hobby or a lark, it's a serious crime, and that message needs to be sent clearly.

 

[Autoxer7]

Going 100+ in that tunnel is crazy... It's a high speed bend but you can't see the end. I hope the police catch the M3/M4 and throw the book at both of them. It'd be sweet justice if Tesla's cameras were able to ID the BMW.

Glad you and your family are ok. Hopefully Tesla gives you priority on another 3. Good luck!

 

[anatari]

A possible witness, if you need one (this was posted around 6pm yesterday):

View attachment 304585

Sorry to hear, OP, and glad everybody is OK. As noted before, getting a full medical check is a good idea - my wife was in a similar accident in 1981, and while she felt OK right after the accident, she still has intermittent back pain from that.

Most insurance companies will make you an offer that is not enough to make you whole. They will drag out any appeals and keep saying "no", hoping you will give up and take it. It is especially difficult in this case as you either have to

1. Get a new car. You won't get the state sales tax waiver you got last time, since that ends in two days. As discussed above, you may or may not be able to take the federal tax credit, but the insurance company will assume you will. The worst part is...how long will this take? Tesla is slow to start with, and they just got done expediting shipments to WA for the sales tax waiver, so are no doubt directing shipments other places now. Definitely worth asking for Tesla to expedite, but how long is still an open question.

2. Buy a used car (at this point, anything on the market should be pretty similar to what you just lost). But pretty much everybody offering one for sale is asking more than they paid, and you will not get any incentives. The insurance company is going to be really resistant to paying a premium for a used one. Oh, and you had autopilot - if you buy one without autopilot enabled and have to pay $6k to enable it, make sure the insurance company is going to cover that.

Good luck.

@ChadS Where did you see that posting, is that from this forum? I'd like to get in contact with the witness. Thank you for posting that information here.

 

[ZeApelido]

I'm glad you guys are ok. They would have needed the jaws of life to pry me off those scumbags...

 

[bhzmark]

Munro says:
Tesla Model 3 Teardown: The Nitty Gritty Details - Motor Trend
"Luggage Well—This well is composed of numerous metal stampings that are time consuming to form and assemble. Munro recommends replacing this well with a simpler structural composite tub."

"Rear Door Opening—There is a curious mix of sine-wave tig welding along the roof rail, spot welds along the B-pillar and rocker, and self-piercing rivets along the (extra large) flange near the wheel opening. The rivets may be necessary to join steel and aluminum, but a simpler design overall would save cost."

I'm liking the metal stamped luggage well and rear door weld flanges as they are a little more now.

 

[Glamisduner]

Damn. We are glad you are ok! Some real stupidity from the racers. I can't even imagine how much worse this would have been if you were stopped for some reason. Let us know how everything works out if you can.

 

[Moderatefan]

@ChadS Where did you see that posting, is that from this forum? I'd like to get in contact with the witness. Thank you for posting that information here.

Looks like this is the guy
Log into Facebook | Facebook

Glad you're mostly ok. As others stated, injuries from an auto accident often don't manifest on the first day. Pain starts 1-2 days later, so don't tell to insurance you're fine, tell them I don't know yet.

 

[voip-ninja]

Sorry for your trauma and the loss of your car, but like everyone else here I'm glad everyone came out OK. Hope the illegal street racers get more than a slap on the wrist from the judge, since in many other cars there would have been fatalities. Street racing is not a hobby or a lark, it's a serious crime, and that message needs to be sent clearly.

I agree.. someone needs to throw the book at these idiots. I see this kind of thing all the time on Denver highways. A week or two ago a couple of young street racers ran down a mother and her toddler in the street in Florida. The mother died on impact and the young child died a few days later.

People who do these sorts of things should lose most if not all of their material possessions to make the families of the victims whole and they should spend a decade or three in a cold dark hole thinking about what they did.

 

[Moderatefan]

It'd be sweet justice if Tesla's cameras were able to ID the BMW.

@anatari, did you try to check if Tesla can assist you w/ identifying 2nd racer via rear camera footage? I don't see why the criminal case needs to be limited to just one of the racers... if they exceed speed limit to the point where it endangers other lives, they both should bear the consequences.

 

[JonathanD]

Wow holy crap. My 2 cents, hug those little ones and try to focus on being thankful that everyone is OK. Get checked out and don't get too anxious about the car or even the $ shortfall. Yes it may wind up costing you something but it's nothing compared to being OK. Don't let that get out of sight in the midst of all the insurance bullshit. Traumatic events like this can take a real toll on your psyche as well, and don't ignore that as part of the recovery process.

When possible, lean on your own insurance company to handle things on your behalf, that's what they are there for, and hopefully they make it as easy on you as possible. You may need to lawyer up. It's going to be a long process so try to prepare yourself for that and try not to think about it when you can.

Do you know if they arrested the other driver or issued him a citation? The guy in the Camaro is going to be facing some serious charges. He is going to have a very very bad day. I would be surprised if they couldn't track down the BMW driver as well. If it is some comfort you can at least know they will be paying a price for their reckless behavior.

 

[brkaus]

You can't assume the OP will get a tax credit at all... He may or may not have enough of a tax liability...and should have nothing to do with value of the car... Does the insurance take into account when an ICE vehicle is sold at cost or other incentives, like $1000 military, discount, or others etc etc...

Those type of things are indirectly in the "actual cash value" of the car. If there are lots of special offers available or it is very common for the car to be discounted, the price of the used cars are reduced.

 

[vinnie97]

Got wrecked is putting it lightly. According to certain media outlets, you are lucky to escape with your lives from what should have been a fiery inferno.

 

[tpatana]

@ChadS Where did you see that posting, is that from this forum? I'd like to get in contact with the witness. Thank you for posting that information here.

Yea it was first at the Seattle Cars & Coffee FB page, then copied also to Seattle Model3 group.

 

[animorph]

Distracted racing?

Be sure to get your insurance started on the claims process as well as the other guy's company. Your insurance has a little more motivation to keep you happy. They will collect from the other company for you, perhaps even the deducible. I waited for a totally low-ball settlement offer from the other insurance company before asking my own insurance to get involved. That just delayed things more. My insurance was great, within 1% of what I thought it would take to replace my car.

 

[wipster]

My wife was at a dead stop 3 years ago on the highway and rear-ended at 60 MPH. The car was only a year old, and insurance covered the total cost of the vehicle, we did not have any out of pocket expenses. Unfortunately, the guy was underinsured which slowed down the settlement. It took us 2 1/2 years to get a cash settlement from the accident. I was impressed how well the car held up considering she was hit 3 different times.

OMG, was your wife OK? The whiplash had to be terrible. Hope she recovered and is fine now.