Tesla more expensive to repair than a real car?

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I've had trucks totalled out by the insurance co because of appraisers quoting damage costs that are nowhere near what it ends up actually costing us to fix. Last one (older truck) appraiser said $18,000 to fix (we had it valued at 14k). We had it fixed...properly...for $6000. We were given all the paperwork of how the insurance co came up with the costs and salvage value..I now know why we pay so much for insurance. They farm every part of the process out and every part of it was done VERY poorly. My opinion is they total FAR too many vehicles based on poor info and outside appraisers covering their butts. This looks like a case of this.
 
It's sold at a boutique mall location. Where is the parts department? And service? Good luck. Wait for the tow truck. Try to buy a part for the car. Good luck, again. Insurance companies are raising the premiums as they gain experience with the cost of repairs that are to a large degree controlled by Tesla.
 
That is one of the worst places for crash damage on any car. There is no simple fixing it with a bolt on like the front fenders or a little welding. The door jamb area is like a frame rail that is involved in holding the rear suspension together. Guy in the video is super annoying.
 
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My 97 Suburban was salvaged in 2013 because the front grille is cracked and the front fender was dented. Probably they said they had to repaint the whole vehicle to match or something. When the vehicle has a blue book value of a couple grand at most I get it. The industry is messed up though, why salvage older cars like that.
 
Of course its harder. look at what ford had to go through to get dealers and body shops to able to repair aluminum - its significant Now make the whole car out of and see how tough it gets. UD
 
Body repair is likely another "Take it to Tesla or die" proposition. Elon Musk never wants to see a Tesla serviced or repaired anywhere but Tesla, especially where collision work is concerned. I wouldn't buy a regular ICE vehicle from a company like that. Tesla is constantly finding ways to circumvent Mass. Right to repair laws. Take it to Don Musk, or get your legs broken.
 
From what I've read, there's a back log of parts available for structural repairs on Teslas. Even though there are "approved" shops for them. As cool as I think they are, they certainly remind me of Apple or Samsung for service. The insurance industry for a while was totalling out Prii, they figure a Prius ain't nothing special - and body shops didn't get their bodymen trained on how to handle them. There was a glut of Prius parts on Copart and LKQ for that reason. The only fluids a Tesla or any electric car has is coolant, brake fluid and maybe drivetrain lubricant.
 
Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
Body repair is likely another "Take it to Tesla or die" proposition. Elon Musk never wants to see a Tesla serviced or repaired anywhere but Tesla, especially where collision work is concerned. I wouldn't buy a regular ICE vehicle from a company like that. Tesla is constantly finding ways to circumvent Mass. Right to repair laws. Take it to Don Musk, or get your legs broken.
To be a little fair to them... I'd like to make sure whoever is repairing it is trained/certified to do body repairs on that type of vehicle. They need to make sure there is no damage to the batteries or anything that could cause fires. But I see what you're saying. Regular auto dealers are a little mafia like as well haha. "Can't setup a new dealer within X miles of my dealer". "we own this town".
 
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Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
It's sold at a boutique mall location. Where is the parts department? And service? Good luck. Wait for the tow truck.
I personally like how Tesla is disrupting car sales - sure, it sucks losing good jobs at the service departments of dealerships but Sonic/Hendrick/AutoNation/Fletcher Jones/etc aren't angels. Toyota is taking some notice via LexusPlus - one negotiated price and one point of contact for the whole process. No haggling, and certainly no talking to a sales manager.
 
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Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
Body repair is likely another "Take it to Tesla or die" proposition. Elon Musk never wants to see a Tesla serviced or repaired anywhere but Tesla, especially where collision work is concerned. I wouldn't buy a regular ICE vehicle from a company like that. Tesla is constantly finding ways to circumvent Mass. Right to repair laws. Take it to Don Musk, or get your legs broken.
Not quite - you are either trained and certified to work on it or not. Kind of like F150 repairs at the moment. Not circumvent the masses - control their own distribution network and supply chain. The masses do not buy his products. I have no problem dealing directly with the manufacturers and prefer it it many case. The good ole boy dealer network never did anything for me I didn't over pay them for to begin with. When doing what the masses do you have to do what they lobbied and control - go through a third party to buy and service your product. UD
 
Granted, but Tesla already has a major track record of making sure people have no way to go outside of the Tesla corral to seek repairs or maintenance. I'd find it very hard to believe that their concerns here extend any further than using qualifications to keep the monopoly in check. The result speaks volumes as well. A 4 year old car with low miles, high residual value, and minor damage totalled as a result? You can't tell me there isn't something wrong with this picture.
 
Originally Posted By: HemiHawk
Regular auto dealers are a little mafia like as well haha. "Can't setup a new dealer within X miles of my dealer". "we own this town".
Yep - In the Bay Area, AutoNation/Hendrick/Sonic dominate the Honda market, at one point in time good ol' Rick Hendrick owned two dealerships within 15 miles of each other until he got into hot water(they still own those two dealerships, one of them is under a shell company). Sonic owns an Lexus, Acura and yes a Honda dealership within feet of each other at the same auto mall. One of the local Honda dealers had their building sold for luxury condos and they couldn't relocate to the south or north side of town - the mentioned dealerships pressured corporate to keep then in that 1 mile part of Berkeley, the local NIMBYs shut down their move to a vacant Any Mountain store which would have made Honda happy and Hendrick/PSC quiet.
 
Originally Posted By: UncleDave
Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
Body repair is likely another "Take it to Tesla or die" proposition. Elon Musk never wants to see a Tesla serviced or repaired anywhere but Tesla, especially where collision work is concerned. I wouldn't buy a regular ICE vehicle from a company like that. Tesla is constantly finding ways to circumvent Mass. Right to repair laws. Take it to Don Musk, or get your legs broken.
Not quite - you are either trained and certified to work on it or not. Kind of like F150 repairs at the moment. Not circumvent the masses - control their own distribution network and supply chain. The masses do not buy his products. I have no problem dealing directly with the manufacturers and prefer it it many case. The good ole boy dealer network never did anything for me I didn't over pay them for to begin with. When doing what the masses do you have to do what they lobbied and control - go through a third party to buy and service your product. UD
There's not even an argument that Tesla has been doing that at the repair level. Mass had to force them to open their manuals to the public, and have been fighting it every step of the way. How is this an issue if one simply "is qualified or is not"? Other manufacturers, including Ford are making due. Why is this an issue with Tesla alone?
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
For the same money for a Tesla.... you can buy a real car like a BMW or Benz.
BMW and Mercedes also have requirements body shops have to meet as well and they vehemently oppose Right to Repair. I see quite a few late model BMWs getting body work done in Tijuana instead in the US, it's cheaper south of the border but also not done to standard. Toyota has been friendly to the aftermarket, Honda is to a degree. The Germans manage to keep the aftermarket out by pricing their diagnostics out of reach for most shops. It's a good thing actually, it's a barrier to keep the hack jobs at bay.
 
Nope - Any all aluminum car has the same issue regardless of the name tag when it comes to repairs. The insurance company isnt going to write a check to joses pawn and bodywork to fix a wrecked high end car it just inst so. He doesnt do anything other high end marques don't require in terms of certifications and training in order to receive or qualify for work. Many marques require specific car authorizations so you need multiple certs and specific equipment. Nothing here to see..... UD
 
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