Salvage model S for 18k -good deal or should I walk away?

[Thefloorislava]

Hello all! New to the forums and new to owning a tesla. I've read some of the salvage horror stories on here and wanted to get some advice....

I just won a bid on a high mileage 2016 model S 70 with autopilot

with a salvage title and am not sure if I should back out before I complete the sale.


I was able to obtain the original insurance repair estimate below, and it estimated $23k for repairs.

Some of the estimate seems unessessary and I dont need the car 100% perfect (like rear bumper looks perfect in the pics to me, maybe it was just a scratch?) and maybe I could find used parts.

What do you all think... is this car a good deal for 18k or should I back out of the sale?

Thank you all for your help!!

 

[Bridor]

You can get perfect used ones in the 20K to 30K range. You do not want to deal with the hassle of repairing a Tesla. My 2014 is finally fixed, but it continues to have issues (expensive) as the months go by.

Brent

 

[Huachipato]

I've only seen the pre-AP cars in that price range. I think the work looks like a lot of bolt ons. I know you can't tell from just looking at the pictures - but it really does seem like the frame is ok. Did they add all the extra parts in the trunk?

 

[Thefloorislava]

Ok, thank you! I'm so worried now.
Follow up question... do you think I could break even or profit if I bring it home, decide it's too much work, then relist on ebay?

You can get perfect used ones in the 20K to 30K range. You do not want to deal with the hassle of repairing a Tesla. My 2014 is finally fixed, but it continues to have issues (expensive) as the months go by.

Brent

 

[Thefloorislava]

Thank you! That sounds more reassuring, and I likewise am hoping the body parts could be easily replaced and nothing is seriously damaged. I think the headlights are coming with, but perhaps the bumper was trashed?

q

I've only seen the pre-AP cars in that price range. I think the work looks like a lot of bolt ons. I know you can't tell from just looking at the pictures - but it really does seem like the frame is ok. Did they add all the extra parts in the trunk?

 

[Evoforce]

My questions to you would be:

Are you able to do most of the work?

On the repairs that you aren't able to do, are you able to pay a premium?

Do you know that Supercharging will be disabled?

Are you willing to have your car rooted if necessary or possible?

You saw the cost of the estimate, now you are adding $18,000 more on purchase. It is a value diminished car because of a salvage title. Is it really worth it?

 

[JJBOSTON]

You’re not saving that much (compared to a used 2016 MS) - and you’re walking into a world of unknowns... unless you love the idea of a ”project” I’d walk

 

[Huachipato]

With the airbags not deploying - I would think the front end disassembly was mainly to see what the frame looked like. Standard procedure when trying to figure out the estimate.

This damage doesn't seem as bad as the one that Legit Street Cars fixed up:

He worked with Rich Rebuilds on that project. Of course - this all assumes you are willing to do your own work.

All the videos end with a trip to the supercharger to see if the car has been blacklisted - so far they all seem to work out alright - but that is a risk you won't fully know of until you get it back in a driving condition.

 

[gaswalla]

minimal cost savings, big hassle.
cool if you can do the work yourself or 'you know a guy' and get it done very cheap.
otherwise, you will regret the path ahead

 

[EVDRVN]

I have had a salvaged S. Unless you have the experience and resources to fix it do NOT buy it. Far too much to explain why you should not.

 

[Thefloorislava]

How hard is the learning curve for teslas in your experience? I've worked on plenty of gas vehicles in the past, especially older jeeps and newish bmws. And also have access to military auto hobby shop with lifts and mechanics to assist.

this would be first electric car I've ever owned

I have had a salvaged S. Unless you have the experience and resources to fix it do NOT buy it. Far too much to explain why you should not.

 

[EZBoy]

I have recently restored a similar salvage car with more damage, 2015 90d with around 80k miles, paid 18k for it as well. From what I see- the airbags not deployed, no fender/hood damage, there is a crack on carrier support passenger side, so it looks like there was a rather small accident to passenger corner and bumper/lights were taken out for estimate purposes. To tell you the truth it does not looks that bad at all! You would need to replace composite carrier, pass headlight ( I suspect driver side headlight is in the trunk), bumper with harness and sensors ( or you might be lucky and it’s in the trunk). You can buy those parts for around 800$ Used and would need about 15 hours of work, so not too bad.
Of course most important thing is car history - is this car being sold by insurance company? One owner with no prior accidents?
definitely there might be some unexpected repairs needed like pass side suspension parts, rim/tire, couple of plastic pieces if they are cracked, but I can not see entire parts list exceeding 2-3k.
So if you have desire and mechanically inclined, I say go for it! Pm me if you need repair manuals

 

[EVDRVN]

How hard is the learning curve for teslas in your experience? I've worked on plenty of gas vehicles in the past, especially older jeeps and newish bmws. And also have access to military auto hobby shop with lifts and mechanics to assist.

this would be first electric car I've ever owned

Unless you have dealer software you are not going to resolve system issues. The mechanical is not so rough but the systems are a no go for most people and shops.

 

[IslandHydro]

Run Forest Run..

 

[jelloslug]

From a repair standpoint, it's not much different than other aluminum cars. Getting part will be limited to used and/or salvage parts for the most part and if you need to do anything that requires interfacing with the computer systems, you will have to rely of some of the fledgling 3rd party Tesla repair companies.

 

[Bishop]

You can get perfect used ones in the 20K to 30K range. You do not want to deal with the hassle of repairing a Tesla. My 2014 is finally fixed, but it continues to have issues (expensive) as the months go by.

Brent

where? everyone i've seen in that range was a salvage title 100k+ miles and in one special case a 40kwh battery...

 

[Evoforce]

where? everyone i've seen in that range was a salvage title 100k+ miles and in one special case a 40kwh battery...

Watch the "for sale" threads on 2012 and 2013 Model S.

 

[Evoforce]

How hard is the learning curve for teslas in your experience? I've worked on plenty of gas vehicles in the past, especially older jeeps and newish bmws. And also have access to military auto hobby shop with lifts and mechanics to assist.

this would be first electric car I've ever owned

Like most things, it is about having and comprehending the manuals, the proper specialty repair equipment and how to use it, the availability of parts and knowledge of how to deconstruct as well as repair, and in this case, the ability to circumvent the manufacturer when they do not cooperate with your rebuild. It can be done, but with this manufacturer it is harder.

I think several of us responding to you have rebuilt Tesla's. If you are doing this to make money on this vehicle, forget about it! If you are doing this to have a car to drive and keep and are looking for a learning and time consuming adventure, have at it! It is hard to save any money doing this and you will likely spend more than the car is worth. Certainly your time will have to factor in as free...

So if it is a science project that you just have to do, it is going to cost you to be a part of our club......and I wish you good luck!

P.S. If you are a person who is easily frustrated or gives up easily...don't do it!

 

[Oldnoob]

What did you do? FYI for people that have not bought from copart. The copay fees on a $18k winning bid will be almost $3k plus sale tax.

 

[Thefloorislava]

It turned out good! Although lots unexpected parts were needed ( Warning for those in colorado - Stuttgart Auto Body in denver stripped it for under-hood parts before they returned it to copart BOOOO would not recommend them)

Final copart price -$18k
Parts $3k
Labor $3k

Autopilot - disabled
Supercharging -disabled

Got the autopilot and supercharging working again over the winter thanks to somebody very tech savvy, but tesla pushed an update recently and now no more supercharging although autopilot still working - ended up stranded for 6 hours trying to get home last weekend! Gotta figure it out again... Its awful that they almost render the cars useless by doing that.