After nearly six weeks, we finally got our Model 3 ("Hygge") back from the shop. What an ordeal that was. To recap, Diana was lucky enough to run over a crow bar in just such a way that it embedded itself into the back left tire, tore up the inside of the wheel well and bumper as it turned, and caused what was ultimately over $15k in damage.
The fix required replacing all kinds of stamped body parts connected to the frame, which is a bummer because the exterior of the car was fine. When I first saw it, I figured they'd replace the stuff lining the wheel well, snap the bumper back on, get a new tire and be done with it. It definitely was not that simple.
So we finally experienced what happens differently when it's a Tesla. While not the nightmarish situation one would have five or six years ago, it was still slow and annoying. It started even with the towing, because some trucks won't tow a Tesla. Many tire shops won't replace tires on a Tesla. And body work is limited to shops that have gone the distance to understand how to work with aluminum bits and high voltage wires. It's a serious pain in the ass. Despite the Model 3 now being one of the most popular cars in America, getting body parts is still slow.
Non-collisions may or may not affect your insurance, since it's nobody's fault (except the moron who either left the crow bar or let it fall off of their truck). But we just renewed at a rate that was 20% higher than it was six months ago, for the same cars that are less new, because Florida. Insurance is a shit show here. Homeowners is even worse. I can't wait to see how much that goes up. Neighbors are reporting 50% increases in just one year.
On the plus side, the minor panel alignment issues on Hygge are gone since they had to take much of the car apart. It wasn't so much the doors as much as it was the trunk, which is perfect now.
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