The eagerly awaited day has come
Yesterday at 8 AM I got a call from the carrier, my Tesla was on the way and should show up by 11. I must admit to being nervous. Everyone I spoke with about auto transport had stories of trouble; missed dates are common as are damaged vehicles which they claim were damaged when picked up. The shipper assigned to me had a BBB “F” rating and I noticed them being dishonest with me the first time I called them. Let me be very clear so no one gets the wrong idea, Tesla had nothing to do with this, it was organized by a broker that works with the insurance auctions. Thanks to warnings from others I paid my deposit at the time of order placement but withheld the bulk of the payment as COD. This seems to motivate them to actually deliver the car. In the end my Tesla showed up only a week late and aside from the missing key and lots of dirt from a cross country trip in the winter it seemed no worse for wear since it left the auction in New York. The battery pack, that most critical part, had a few new scratches but they were very minor and no worse than the ones caused during the initial accident. It seems they had been sliding the car on and off carriers with the parking brake on, clearly they had not studied how to turn the brake off (admittedly a challenging feat) . A call to the auction yard verified they had record of the key being picked up by the shipper with the car, contrary to the claims of the shipper and in the end we agreed that I would withhold the cost of a replacement key from the COD amount until they could produce the key. I suspect that I’ll never hear from them again. Most fortunately I had a second key that I had bought from the previous owner and so I was able to jump the 12V and unlock the parking brake to help it off the last truck. Many thanks to Arthur for arriving just in time to help me push the Tesla around and get it on the lift.
Damage Assessment
I’ve spent much of the last two days assessing damage from the accident. I’ve worked with a number of wrecked cars over the years, but this is my first aluminum one and I am very impressed with how it responded to the impact. I’ve worked with steel cars and aluminum parts before, but somehow it never really sunk in how well aluminum absorbs energy until I reviewed this wreck in detail. Of course aluminum by itself would do little without the impressive engineering that clearly went into the Model S design. The down side of the aluminum is that more of the front suspension is damaged than I had hoped and the old steel tricks of pulling it back in place and welding it up will not be appropriate. That’s a small price to pay for the well-being of the occupant. The subframe and upper frame have both been damaged. The electric power steering rack is broken off its mounts. I have a copy of the original parts cost estimate for the repair. Including body panels (which I won’t be needing) and not including a battery the total is about $29K. This does not include some other parts I’ve found damaged. Parts like the $3000 steering rack do give me pause. I’ll either need to find a creative way to fix it, find someone parting out a Tesla (I haven’t found anyone yet) or save up for new parts. It seems I get to work on my issues with “luxury car sticker shock”. 🙂
Next Step
My next step is to get the system happy enough that I can activate the HV (high voltage) system, check and charge the main battery and see that the drive motor engages. Pulling panels and inspecting parts is providing a fun education, I’m on the steep part of the learning curve for now. I’ve found that someone completely removed the “First responder loop” that normally would just be cut. This wire has one wire loop to disconnect the SRS and another that shuts off the HV battery system. It’s not surprising the car won’t drive or charge without it. The first responder loop consists of 2 wires with each shorting 2 pins on a 4 pin connector. With my service center being a 3 hour round trip away I was trying to figure out the wiring so I could jump it until I get a new cable. With no service manual or wiring diagram available to the public (at least that’s seems to be the case for now) it’s certainly a challenge. I’ve traced one of the 4 terminals, but am still pulling panels to try to trace the others so I can be sure of the functions. In the meantime, while I’m trying to find replacement parts for something less than full retail price I’ll work on fixing subsystems and hopefully whittle away at the 10 to 12 error messages usually on the screen. There’s everything from “windshield washer low” to “Needs service contact Tesla”. Mostly they have to do with much fluid being lost in the wreck . Speaking of errors, that never ending triple beep that plays anytime I’m in the car is getting a bit old. In the old days you’d just reach up under the dash and pull what was vibrating, but we live in a new world. I’ve also found that it’s hard to do anything inside without turning the car on. Once I tried to manually open the door with the key far way and the darn alarm went off, dual horns bouncing off the shop walls. I’m no fan of alarms and hope I can disable this one someday. I can power the car down on the center screen and as soon as I get out it turns back on. It seems the only way to get quiet time while I’m inside is to disconnect the 12v battery. No doubt about it, this car is very modern! Reviewing the forums I find there are many operational tricks I have yet to learn, maybe making it stay shut down and quiet is one of those.
Planning
Remember that musing I had about dropping down to 18″ wheels in my last post? As with so many things early in the planning process, it was pure fantasy. One look at the steering knuckle, still connected to the loose wheel, shows that there is no way a smaller wheel is going to clear on the front, no matter what the brake caliper clearance is. I’ve put up a WTB post for a used wheel and tire (or two) on the TeslaMotorsClub Forum. On the plus side, the sunroof works very well and looks like it certainly could fit the Vanagon roof, helping with an aerodynamic transition to the pop top height. It’s a beauty! Here is a short time lapse of the arrival and a few pictures of the car and the damage.
A quick update: Tesla has the first responder loop in stock and a fellow Model S owner happens to be coming this way tomorrow and it willing to bring it, that was fortuitous. Also, I’m relieved to have found the setting to turn off the alarm, the Tesla interface is so nice!
Otmar, I’m a reporter and I’d love to interview you for a story. I write a column for Outside magazine online that would be a great home for a short piece. How can I get in touch with you?
MC, I’ve sent you an email. I also have a contact form on CafeElectric.com, be sure to select Otmar.
http://cafeelectric.com/shop/index.php?main_page=contact_us
The power steering rack appears to be the same unit GM is using in many of their vehicles. It looks identical to the one found in the Chevy Volt and 2013+ Malibu.
Hi Josh,
Thanks for the tip! I’ll have to find a way to check it out. There are few online photos and the ones I see have the mounting ears on the bottom instead of the top, but I’ll keep looking. If you have any pictures of them I’d love to see them.
Thanks,
Otmar,
You might get some interested parties for some of the parts… Namely that +2 seat in the back might be of interest to folks, I assume you’re not using it
Tesla strengthens the rear bumper, if a Model S is built to accommodate the jump seats. I don’t think it is an option that can be easily retrofit, which means there might be little demand for the part, yet.
Somewhere I think I read that the later models all come with the reinforcement. But at this time I’m planning to use them if they fit in the side of the stretched portion with the Tesla rear seat.
You say “The electric power steering rack is broken off its mounts.” Did the rack itself break, or just where it mounts? I hope the latter, but from your sad face, I’m guessing not.
I suppose you get to learn to weld aluminum! 🙂
(PS Did I ever tell you about the horrible welds we saw on the demo body at the (now moved) Menlo Park Tesla store? We were giggling ungraciously! 🙂 It was obviously a pre-production mockup — not a body ever meant to go into a real car. And probably no one else ever noticed. It was funny only because it was in such stark contrast to an otherwise marvel of engineering!!!!!)
It’s the rack casting that broke. A friend knows some expert aluminum welders so I may have some help with it. I’ve done a little aluminum welding, but I don’t trust my work on a safety critical component.