PSA when washing door handles

[bottomsup]

So i gave my M3 the first great wash last night after neglecting it from new for over a month :-(

I hate water spots so i always dry the nooks and crannies well. I noticed water coming from behind the door handles so i pushed them out a bit to get the towel in there and dry so it wouldn't continue seeping and when I woke up this AM noticed this on my back door. See red circle

After searching around the street with little hope of finding whatever fell out of that hole i found that little rubber nub. it's tiny.

Put it back in and back to normal. Be careful when drying/washing under the handles

 

[735l4wh0r3]

Good PSA... Probabably would have never known that was there. A workaround would be to blow out the water with cimpressed air. Otherwise just be carfull as mentioned in OP

 

[SMAlset]

So is the part a little rubber bumper of sorts? At least it doesn't look expensive if it does come out. I saw a post of someone who said his door handle was recessed when all his other 3 doors handles were flush with the body of the car. Wonder if this was missing on his car.

 

[bottomsup]

So is the part a little rubber bumper of sorts? At least it doesn't look expensive if it does come out. I saw a post of someone who said his door handle was recessed when all his other 3 doors handles were flush with the body of the car. Wonder if this was missing on his car.

Yes little rubber bumper. It is about as big as my pinky nail.

 

[CaptainJ]

Well, where does that little piece of rubber go, exactly?

 

[bottomsup]

Under the end of the small part of the handle there’s a little tiny hole it goes in. you’ll see it if you push the fat part to make it swing out and look underneath

 

[jamnmon66]

A leaf blower is great for this. I use it to get the car about 3/4 dry and then wipe with a chamois. Quick and easy and it blows a lot of water out of the nooks and crannies like that. Mine is battery powered which makes it super convenient.

 

[SoCalGuy]

OP, what did you use to wash your 3?

 

[plasmo]

Appreciate the PSA. Would be great to get another photo without so much activity on the the reflections in the picture because it is a little difficult to see.

 

[bottomsup]

OP, what did you use to wash your 3?

traditional cotton towel to dry. stuck it behind the door with my finger to dry

 

[boos67mustang]

Same issue here!

 

[Gouldness]

Had this happen to me. Last time i dry inside the handles tho.

 

[tiggerlu]

Wow, never would have noticed. Thanks!

 

[rlb4]

Could it be a vent hole to heat the door handles? Maybe leaving it out in the winter will help prevent freezing handles?

 

[1.21GW]

Could it be a vent hole to heat the door handles? Maybe leaving it out in the winter will help prevent freezing handles?

No, it is simply the rubber door handle stoppper. Allows the handle to have a soft landing when you let go of it.

 

[astrodad]

Anybody know where to get another one of those rubber stoppers (without stealing it)?

 

[DocHolliday]

Anybody know where to get another one of those rubber stoppers (without stealing it)?

You should have access to the full parts catalog in your Tesla account. Take the part number to the SC and if they don't have it in stock they'll order it for you.

 

[gaswalla]

kudos to the OP for a damn good shine

 

[TrailerParkT]

Thank you for the PSA! I just started washing behind the handles because I saw they were dusty. I would have never known about this either.

 

[astrodad]

You should have access to the full parts catalog in your Tesla account. Take the part number to the SC and if they don't have it in stock they'll order it for you.

Really?! That's awesome. I may be dense, but can you (or someone) provide some guidance on how to find the parts catalog? I asked at a service center and they said they did not sell that part on it's own ... you could only get the entire door handle assembly. I hope that's not accurate.