Brand new Model Y sold with poorly repaired rear body panel frame

[fusch]

Hello,

I bought my 2021 Model Y Long Range brand new in March 2021. I was recently rear-ended and took the vehicle to my body shop to assess the damage, during which my body shop asked me if the rear end of the car had every been worked on before. I said not to my knowledge. They said something clearly has happened to my vehicle since it left the factory. Apparently Tesla or some body shop they hired has replaced the entire rear body panel frame with a bolt-on piece. They didn't bother to paint it blue and did a very poor job of installation. To add insult to injury, Tesla will not sell the very same part that is on my car, saying it must be replaced with a welded-in part for safety reasons. This will cost a whole lot more money to replace now. And only a Tesla-certified collision center can do that kind of work.

Apparently Tesla does this kind of shoddy repair pre-delivery all the time and never discloses anything to the buyer. My body shop says they hammer the door hinges with sledgehammers to get the doors to align. I've tried contacting my salesperson and Tesla corporate to find out what happened to my car and to demand they pay for the part replacement since they sold me the car like this and now are making me pay to fix it right. I've gotten no help or response on every avenue I've tried.

This will most likely be my first and last Tesla that I buy. I love the car and the tech, but this is unacceptable behavior. If anyone has experienced anything like this or knows of someone that can help, please reach out.

Pictures are attached.

 

[thesmokingman]

Your post is ridiculous. You make accusations based on your rando body shop who know jack. FYI the panel is black, it's not painted bodycolor. And how the **** would the body shop know anything, telling lies like how they think Tesla cheated you. Sledgehammer the door hinges, and you believed that? Seriously man...

 

[qdeathstar]

Take it to the Tesla certified and shop and have them fix it. I don’t see what the big deal is. You were rear ended so insurance should cover it.

 

[Pianewman]

IF...and that's a BIG IF...what you've been told about your car being sold to you with undisclosed shoddy repair work is true, THEN Tesla is in a heap of trouble.

Do what qdeathstar recommends...go to a Tesla certified body shop.

 

[Watts_Up]

@fusch I looked at your pics but I could not see exactly what could be wrong with your car.
Can you take some pictures without the bumper cover? This is the only way to see if any parts have been replaced.

When some cover panels get removed, the frame can be seen. The frame is only painted with a primer.
This is what is called 'the body in white' which is how the car frame looks like before getted painted.

Only visible areas get painted, so there is nothing wrong by having some painted and unpainted.

 

[DiyEvRepair]

Your car looks just like it is supposed to look. That part is supposed to be black/unpainted. It bolts on. Tesla will not sell the part because it is restricted - tesla will not sell them to non-certified body shops. This part can be purchased on eBay or from junk yards.

Also since the guys at that shop are clueless and make baseless accusations, go find another shop.

 

[italian bread]

Your post is ridiculous. You make accusations based on your rando body shop who know jack. FYI the panel is black, it's not painted bodycolor. And how the **** would the body shop know anything, telling lies like how they think Tesla cheated you. Sledgehammer the door hinges, and you believed that? Seriously man...

There’s no reason why the body shop would lie. There’s nothing in it for them. If they were lying or mistaken, the OP will know the truth when he takes it to another shop for a second opinion.

If true, I’d demand a buy back and use the money to get a different brand EV. “My good opinion, once lost, is lost forever.”

Good luck, OP. Keep us posted.

 

[DiyEvRepair]

They are not lying, they are just very biased against Teslas for some reason. And made an assumption that if a part is restricted then it must be a weld-on part.

 

[Pianewman]

I hope the moderator removes this thread, unless the OP can provide proof of his claim against Tesla.

The thread title is totally absurd, and libelous (what a ridiculous word!!!!)

 

[TomB985]

Man…I step away from TMC for a year and I see this.

Not a very nice way to welcome a new member, guys. I’d guess that the body shop isn’t aware of how the Model Y comes from the factory and is telling the OP this based on experience with other vehicles. Calling the OP ridiculous or thinking you know the body shop’s motive seems counterproductive to me.

The thread title is totally absurd, and libelous (what a ridiculous word!!!!)

If you understood very basic defamation law, you’d know that libel requires a person assert something that they know to be false. Unless the OP knows that his car is fine and completely made the thing up to cause trouble, there is no libel.

And libel requires damages. Who here isn’t buying a Tesla because they read the OP’s post without gathering more information?

Otherwise, I think the recommendations about getting another opinion are valuable. It seems like the body shop that the OP went to doesn’t know what he’s doing. Regardless of the truth of his assertions, I wouldn’t want a shop like this working on my car.

 

[Pianewman]

..."libelous"...a bit of hyperbole, for sure.

It's hard to be nice to someone, even a newbie, (he DID say: ..."Apparently Tesla does this kind of shoddy repair pre-delivery all the time and never discloses anything to the buyer"), considering the tone of his post, and the inflammatory title.

 

[thesmokingman]

^^This. OP did not come asking for help, asking if that was possible. OP is stating his facts... this is not a help thread but a damning thread and ends it with threat of never owning another tesla. Who asked for this?

 

[ThomasD]

If true ask the Certified Boy Shop to take pictures of the areas. Lots of pictures. All I see is some over spray on unpainted parts. You will need pictures of the previous repair work. If repair was under a certain amount Tesla doesn't have to disclose that car was repaired

 

[fusch]

The body shop I went to is a reputable body shop. They have worked on my other vehicles and do excellent work. They have 64 reviews on Yelp, all 5-star. Are they super familiar with Teslas? Perhaps not to the extent that other body shops are, but they have worked on them before. They said they found bondo and Home Depot parts on another Tesla repaired by Tesla. Are they lying? I can't say for sure, but based on what I'm seeing on my car, I don't have any reason to believe they are lying. I'm not a body repair expert. The owner of the shop showed me what he considers to be major issues. It does look as if repairs were made to this piece post factory. Is this acceptable to Tesla standards? Perhaps. My understanding is the part is restricted for sale to all body shops, not just non-certified body shops. Why restrict the sale of a bolt-on piece that my car already has, but allow the sale of a much harder to install weld-on piece?

I have scheduled an estimate at a local Tesla-certified body shop for a second opinion. They have excellent reviews and my current body shop also recommends them. I will provide details and photos, if possible, after the visit.

And I did ask for help: "If anyone has experienced anything like this or knows of someone that can help, please reach out."

 

[fusch]

Also, I have already been to the Tesla Collision San Jose (1460 Mabury Road, San Jose, CA 95133). They are not accepting structural work right now.

 

[jjrandorin]

The body shop I went to is a reputable body shop. They have worked on my other vehicles and do excellent work. They have 64 reviews on Yelp, all 5-star. Are they super familiar with Teslas? Perhaps not to the extent that other body shops are, but they have worked on them before. They said they found bondo and Home Depot parts on another Tesla repaired by Tesla. Are they lying? I can't say for sure, but based on what I'm seeing on my car, I don't have any reason to believe they are lying. I'm not a body repair expert. The owner of the shop showed me what he considers to be major issues. It does look as if repairs were made to this piece post factory. Is this acceptable to Tesla standards? Perhaps. My understanding is the part is restricted for sale to all body shops, not just non-certified body shops. Why restrict the sale of a bolt-on piece that my car already has, but allow the sale of a much harder to install weld-on piece?

I have scheduled an estimate at a local Tesla-certified body shop for a second opinion. They have excellent reviews and my current body shop also recommends them. I will provide details and photos, if possible, after the visit.

And I did ask for help: "If anyone has experienced anything like this or knows of someone that can help, please reach out."

The Opening post in this thread doesnt read anything at all like a request for help. You did say at the end "if anyone experienced XXXXX " but the rest of the post doesnt read like you wanted any sort of help.

Your opening post is basically:

1. I was rear ended.
2. I took the car to a non tesla certified body shop
3. The non tesla tesla certified body shop told me some stuff about the car
4. I decided to make a post accusing tesla of stuff this non certified body shop told me about the car, and present it as fact.

The only thing it appears you requested help with was trying to get tesla to pay for what this body shop told you about the car. You didnt even ask "does this sound right to anyone else?"

/shrug.

 

[DiyEvRepair]

Guys lets cut off the drama and focus on the issue.

Regarding the part - tesla resticts sale of all weld on parts and some bolt in parts. Certified body shops cam buy them, non-certified shops can not. This part is a restricted part.

 

[Yelobird]

The body shop I went to is a reputable body shop. They have worked on my other vehicles and do excellent work. They have 64 reviews on Yelp, all 5-star. Are they super familiar with Teslas? Perhaps not to the extent that other body shops are, but they have worked on them before. They said they found bondo and Home Depot parts on another Tesla repaired by Tesla. Are they lying? I can't say for sure, but based on what I'm seeing on my car, I don't have any reason to believe they are lying. I'm not a body repair expert. The owner of the shop showed me what he considers to be major issues. It does look as if repairs were made to this piece post factory. Is this acceptable to Tesla standards? Perhaps. My understanding is the part is restricted for sale to all body shops, not just non-certified body shops. Why restrict the sale of a bolt-on piece that my car already has, but allow the sale of a much harder to install weld-on piece?

I have scheduled an estimate at a local Tesla-certified body shop for a second opinion. They have excellent reviews and my current body shop also recommends them. I will provide details and photos, if possible, after the visit.

And I did ask for help: "If anyone has experienced anything like this or knows of someone that can help, please reach out."

Just an opinion. Just because he “serviced” you before and has some random yelp reviews does not make them reputable. It they were “reputable“ they would likely be certified to work on these newer EV cars. My guess is they see an opportunity to give you the “Tesla Tax” by storytelling.

 

[Bruce2020]

There’s no reason why the body shop would lie. There’s nothing in it for them. If they were lying or mistaken, the OP will know the truth when he takes it to another shop for a second opinion.

If true, I’d demand a buy back and use the money to get a different brand EV. “My good opinion, once lost, is lost forever.”

Good luck, OP. Keep us posted.

No reason to lie? The OP clearly stated that it will cost more to repair due to the stated issue. I will only deal with the certified body shop. There is a reason some shops are certified and some are not, even from the same franchise body shops.

 

[jsight]

My body shop says they hammer the door hinges with sledgehammers to get the doors to align.

This part raises a big red flag for the body shop, IMO. They know that Tesla does this with certainty, because they do it too. Its a common practice.

Why are they acting like it's wrong? I'm not doubting they are reputable, but I'd get a second opinion from a certified shop as they aren't being 100% straight with you.