How much to repair a dent, 0.8mm?

How much to repair a dent, 0.8mm?

Author
Discussion

tight fart

Original Poster:

3,193 posts

285 months

Tuesday 25th February
quotequote all
A friends Porsche Taycan EV has gone into the official Porsche dealer for a problem with the 12v system, they have called him to say they have discovered a small dent in the underside that has a depth of 3.8mm, (nothing to do with the 12v problem) and that the car is now unsafe as the tolerance for a dent in that location (presumably near the battery) is 3mm, therefore the battery needs replacing at a cost of £34,000.
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.

EmailAddress

14,155 posts

230 months

Tuesday 25th February
quotequote all
Seems reasonable.

Warranty or Insurance?

BertBert

20,107 posts

223 months

Tuesday 25th February
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Well I don't think that the warranty warrants against dents, so probably insurance.

Fast and Spurious

1,713 posts

100 months

Tuesday 25th February
quotequote all
WALOB

Slippydiff

15,308 posts

235 months

Tuesday 25th February
quotequote all
Fast and Spurious said:
WALOB
This ^
I guess the question has to be, is this a part of the bodyshell, or part of the battery casing itself.
If it's the latter, contact your insurer and tell them what's happened and ask them to send you a claim form ...
But if it's merely a part of the bodyshell, find the best paintless dent removal expert in your area and ask him to inspect the thickness of the material the dent is in, and if he thinks he's able, get him to pull the dent out .08mm using whatever method he sees fit.


HocusPocus

1,291 posts

113 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
tight fart said:
A friends Porsche Taycan EV has gone into the official Porsche dealer for a problem with the 12v system, they have called him to say they have discovered a small dent in the underside that has a depth of 3.8mm, (nothing to do with the 12v problem) and that the car is now unsafe as the tolerance for a dent in that location (presumably near the battery) is 3mm, therefore the battery needs replacing at a cost of £34,000.
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.
If that is the limit of engineered damage tolerance of a Porsche, then who would ever buy one?

Youforreal.

884 posts

16 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
HocusPocus said:
tight fart said:
A friends Porsche Taycan EV has gone into the official Porsche dealer for a problem with the 12v system, they have called him to say they have discovered a small dent in the underside that has a depth of 3.8mm, (nothing to do with the 12v problem) and that the car is now unsafe as the tolerance for a dent in that location (presumably near the battery) is 3mm, therefore the battery needs replacing at a cost of £34,000.
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.
If that is the limit of engineered damage tolerance of a Porsche, then who would ever buy one?
Not the sort of info chatted about during a purchase I’d guess.

HoHoHo

15,272 posts

262 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
This type of post and news has always been on my mind - I would suggest this amongst other stories are for potential owners a worry and that they may be in for either a huge insurance claim or having to pay the bill themselves should the battery be damaged.

Recently I went very slowly over a speed bump with the car raised and heard and felt a scrape, I then and tried to have a look but can’t see any damage - then again glancing under the car on my knees might not make a 3.8mm dent visible!

My car has just been dropped off for a service, will they check the underside? I hope so if they consider 3.8mm is deemed to be too severe for the car to be used.

The hidden costs of owning an EV!


stukno

27 posts

62 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.

Where does this idea come from?? It's not their property and they have absolutely no rights to be spouting such rubbish. They might advise against using the car but they have no final say.

garystoybox

825 posts

129 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
Not sticking up for Porsche but a small dent with this type of glass fibre cover is typically over a wider area and it takes a fair old whack to deform. My business partner hit a trailer hitch that fell off the vehicle in front at high speed. Big impact that left a 3mm dent but c18 inches wide. Dealership recommended removing protective cover and inspecting cells as diagnostic showed no battery issues. Did need a replacement cover, but think this was about £4K and covered by his insurance. Dealer even said if had been necessary they could have just replaced any damaged cells. Don’t quite know why this dealer would do anything differently? Also would be illegal to refuse to return car. I’d be getting a battery health print off and if all good take it somewhere different.

ChocolateFrog

30,633 posts

185 months

Wednesday 26th February
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I doubt this is true.

On what grounds can they refuse to give you your possessions back?

ChocolateFrog

30,633 posts

185 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
And if it is, good luck with the insurance company. A firends Outlanded PHEV wasn't covered when a rock kicked up and damaged the battery. She took it to the ombudsman too IIRC and they sided with the insurance Co.

Evanivitch

23,251 posts

134 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
ChocolateFrog said:
I doubt this is true.

On what grounds can they refuse to give you your possessions back?
Possibly safety. If they make the argument the battery container is compromised then it would become a hazardous good and would require a specialist carrier. So not quite the whole truth, but certainly an obstacle.

But seriously, it's an insurance issue. You had an accident, you just didn't know it...

tight fart

Original Poster:

3,193 posts

285 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
He has had it confirmed (verbally) from the insurance co that they will pay.
Not sure why some think I'd make this up (having been here for almost 24 years).
As to not letting him have the car back, I guess they believe the battery is damaged and hence a fire risk.

It hasn't been a happy car for him, firstly it wouldn't charge at home, although his previous EV did.
Secondly he lost the front n/s suspension in the 1st week of ownership (£7k) to a pothole that somehow the wheel and tyre survived without damage.


Slippydiff

15,308 posts

235 months

Wednesday 26th February
quotequote all
HocusPocus said:
tight fart said:
A friends Porsche Taycan EV has gone into the official Porsche dealer for a problem with the 12v system, they have called him to say they have discovered a small dent in the underside that has a depth of 3.8mm, (nothing to do with the 12v problem) and that the car is now unsafe as the tolerance for a dent in that location (presumably near the battery) is 3mm, therefore the battery needs replacing at a cost of £34,000.
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.
If that is the limit of engineered damage tolerance of a Porsche, then who would ever buy one?
One of the rear suspension crossmember attachment points on the Taycan shell is close to the battery carrier, and in some rear/side impacts, the mounting point shifts and in the process compromises the adjacent battery pack. As a result of which, all too frequently the car gets written off.

The joys of EV ownership ...

rodericb

7,585 posts

138 months

Friday 28th February
quotequote all
stukno said:
They have also said he cannot have the car returned without being repaired.

Where does this idea come from?? It's not their property and they have absolutely no rights to be spouting such rubbish. They might advise against using the car but they have no final say.
Porsche may be coming at it from the angle of the extremely negative coverage they'd get if not only one of their EV cars self-combusted, but that they'd let the owner drive off in it..... But a well-built company director might be able to dominate the stairs enough to have their car returned I would suppose.

Kawasicki

13,726 posts

247 months

Friday 28th February
quotequote all
HocusPocus said:
If that is the limit of engineered damage tolerance of a Porsche, then who would ever buy one?
What are other manufacturers like?

lornemalvo

2,776 posts

80 months

Friday 28th February
quotequote all
Slippydiff said:
Fast and Spurious said:
WALOB
This ^
I guess the question has to be, is this a part of the bodyshell, or part of the battery casing itself.
If it's the latter, contact your insurer and tell them what's happened and ask them to send you a claim form ...
But if it's merely a part of the bodyshell, find the best paintless dent removal expert in your area and ask him to inspect the thickness of the material the dent is in, and if he thinks he's able, get him to pull the dent out .08mm using whatever method he sees fit.
They say they won't return the car. Is that legal? They'd have trouble stopping me fetching my car, I'm afraid.

lornemalvo

2,776 posts

80 months

Friday 28th February
quotequote all
garystoybox said:
Not sticking up for Porsche but a small dent with this type of glass fibre cover is typically over a wider area and it takes a fair old whack to deform. My business partner hit a trailer hitch that fell off the vehicle in front at high speed. Big impact that left a 3mm dent but c18 inches wide. Dealership recommended removing protective cover and inspecting cells as diagnostic showed no battery issues. Did need a replacement cover, but think this was about £4K and covered by his insurance. Dealer even said if had been necessary they could have just replaced any damaged cells. Don’t quite know why this dealer would do anything differently? Also would be illegal to refuse to return car. I’d be getting a battery health print off and if all good take it somewhere different.
£4000 for a cover? We've all gone mad.

CDR

69 posts

221 months

Friday 28th February
quotequote all
Given the current market value of most Taycans, isn’t there a risk that a £38k repair will result in the car being written off?