Martin's crashed Roadster?!? - Page 2

Kardax · 06-27-2008, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flabby

They have quite a few engineers who designed and built the first cars, why wouldn't they just do the repairs inhouse?

Building and repairing are completely different arts. Even if you bend a piece of metal back to its original form, its physical properties were altered by the action. It may not be as strong as it was before.

Worse, carbon fiber can't really be repaired. It can certainly be patched, but otherwise your only option is replacing the whole part.

Then there's a whole host of unknowns about what structural features were compromised by the impact. Really, any car that's ever been in an accident is never 100%, no matter how skilled the repair job was.

-Ryan

doug · 07-10-2008, 01:29 AM

This guy essentially lifted verbatim, without quotation marks, the parts from the Fortune article that had to do with Martin's crashed car. So I don't feel bad about quoting his post here in it's brief entirety. He did somehow manage to get a photo of the car, however.

Tesla Roadster Totalled on California's Highway 101*-*Street Import Online - Automotive News, Sports & Show Coverage

Quote:

Tesla Roadster Totalled on California's Highway 101
Written by Johnathan Bodily

It looks like Fortune magazine was given quite some juicy details on the crash of Martin Eberhard's Roadster. Right before he was slated to have it delivered to him it was totaled on California highway 101. Eberhard's gray beauty with orange racing stripes that he had devoted the past five years of his life to building, was summarily totaled after a technician who had been driving it on the 101 freeway relayed some bad news. The most advanced car on the planet had rear-ended a truck.

Instead of sweeping triumphantly into Eberhard's driveway, the Roadster was towed back to Tesla headquarters south of San Francisco where, under the exacting eye of the company's chairman and financial backer, Elon Musk, it would be rehabilitated.
Even with its carbon-fiber front end shattered, the car was something to behold. Fortune magazine has been kind enough to publish the entire article on the web, and we invite you to check it out. Fortune Magazine, the article is titled Tesla's wild ride

Btw, I thought "totaled" only had one "L".

Michael · 07-10-2008, 06:26 AM

Insurance companies sure aren't going to like the fact that having a fender bender is suffient to consider the vehicle 'totaled'. Well, maybe just a tad more than a fender bender, but darn.

Iz · 07-10-2008, 07:16 AM

Are there any photos of the actual damage?

I must say, that gray w/orange racing stripes is a beauty... and an EV to boot. Would be nice if Martin can enjoy the remainder of summer driving it.

doug · 07-10-2008, 07:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael

Insurance companies sure aren't going to like the fact that having a fender bender is suffient to consider the vehicle 'totaled'. Well, maybe just a tad more than a fender bender, but darn.

Actually the "totalled" part is this guy's exaggeration. It's the one word that isn't actually in the Fortune article, hence its constantly being misspelled. Sorry I didn't make that more clear.

From the original article:

Quote:

But for Eberhard, the ultimate indignity came in early June of this year. Just days before he was finally supposed to take possession of his Tesla Roadster, a gray beauty with orange racing stripes that he had devoted the past five years of his life to building, a technician who had been driving it on the 101 freeway relayed some bad news.

The most advanced car on the planet had rear-ended a truck.

Instead of sweeping triumphantly into Eberhard's driveway, the Roadster was towed back to Tesla headquarters south of San Francisco where, under the exacting eye of the company's chairman and financial backer, Elon Musk, it would be rehabilitated.

Even with its carbon-fiber front end shattered, the car was something to behold.

doug · 07-10-2008, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iz

Are there any photos of the actual damage?

I must say, that gray w/orange racing stripes is a beauty... and an EV to boot. Would be nice if Martin can enjoy the remainder of summer driving it.

I wasn't aware of any photos of the car at all. The one above is the first I've seen. The photo shows the car up on a lift. Given the pristine look of the front end, I'd say that pic was taken either during drivetrain installation or after repairs. Hopefully the latter.
Also, given the reflection of the open garage door you can see on the nose, I think that picture was taken in the rear garage of the Menlo Park shop. I don't think either the San Carlos or LA locations have the lifts oriented in a way to get that kind of refection.

Iz · 07-10-2008, 08:01 AM

It has an animated look. If taken after repairs Martin should have it very soon.

donauker · 07-10-2008, 08:39 AM

There was some good information in the owners forum regarding this topic. The best piece has this quote from the end.

Quote:

All the parts are in place and assembly is being completed as we speak. I think he will receive his car very soon.

Other items were "about 10 mph impact", "new bumper and fenders" and "sparing no expense to expedite the repairs and to ensure that they are done to the highest possible quality".

I certainly look forward to Tesla Motors getting this behind them and to Martin being able to enjoy his Roadster on a daily basis.

tonybelding · 07-10-2008, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael

Insurance companies sure aren't going to like the fact that having a fender bender is suffient to consider the vehicle 'totaled'. Well, maybe just a tad more than a fender bender, but darn.

The Lotus Elise is already notorious for its tendency to sustain very minor-appearing damage that turns out to be very costly to repair -- or even non-repairable.

However, it does have a pretty good safety record in terms of protecting the occupants.

doug · 07-11-2008, 11:50 AM

Looks like we're really becoming a news source lately:

Martin Eberhard's Tesla Roadster spotted - AutoblogGreen