Thanks, Phil, for your response. Mind if I question a bit further ?
"going at high speed" - what speed do you consider that to be. I'll
typically go about 20 on the bad parts, slowing down if I see something
bad. On good parts, 30-40 depending on my confidence to see a stretch of
potholes. Bad parts means the potholes are not possible to straddle and
they might have hard edges (not slopey ramps). Or I might see a high
center with pointy rocks poking out.
bumper, front facia - this is rarely a problem since it is close to the
wheels. The most likely strike point is in the mid section between the
front and back wheels, which is the bottom of the battery box. If I
strike the box, is it somewhat forgiving. That is, what will get crushed
inside if a small dent is scraped in the box ? (I do have a shallow dent
in the honda gas tank, but it's "forgiving." )
battery coolant lines - I read on a forum that the leading edge of the
box is not protected and also has coolant lines attaching. Apparently,
it is possible to strike the leading edge, crushing the corner and
possible tearing lines. Do you think it would be possible to add a
protective plate ?
warranty - I don't think any manufacturer covers damage *caused* by
going off paved roads. But my biggest concerns are getting stranded and
then having to pay an enormous repair charge. That's why the homework
now :)
Peri
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------ Original Message ------
From: "(-Phil-)" <[email protected]>
To: "Peri Hartman" <[email protected]>; "Electric Vehicle Discussion
List" <[email protected]>
Sent: 28-Feb-21 7:18:40 PM
Subject: Re: [EVDL] air dam
All the critical stuff underneath a Model Y is well protected. You'd
have to hit something sharp and hard going at high speed to take
damage. For 6 years on and off I've been working on salvage Teslas,
and personally owned over 20 different examples. Even when the car
goes off-road at high speed, and rips the wheel/suspension off one or
more corners, there rarely is critical damage to the battery or
motor(s). This includes all the processing in the auction lot, where
they move cars around with giant forklifts. Even those don't do
anything but scrape up the bottom and damage front/rear trim.
The most sensitive part to damage is the front bumper cover/fascia. If
your obstacle makes it under that, then you are likely OK.
A normal ICE vehicle is way more likely to take damage, as the bottom
isn't smooth, and there is lots of stuff hanging down, such as exhaust
systems, fuel tanks, etc. The bottom of any Tesla is almost perfectly
smooth.
As long as you are going slow, the worst you are going to likely have
is cosmetic scrapes. (The bottom of the battery is all aluminum, so it
will not rust once you scrape the paint)
If you can take a Honda with 6.5" of clearance on it, I'd say you can
take a Tesla.
Of course, be warned that Tesla does not cover warranty issues caused
by going off-road.
On Sun, Feb 28, 2021 at 6:37 PM Peri Hartman via EV <[email protected]>
wrote:
Does anyone have advice on using an air dam to reduce drag ? Read on,
I'll get there.
I'm reconsidering buying a tesla Y. It's a crazy amount of money and I
may get cold feet. But I have to replace my ancient honda or keep
fixing
it (which is costing average $2k / year). And, I want to replace it
with
something that is adequate for going on the cascade mountain forest
service roads, as well as modest road trips.
I could buy the Bolt, which seems to be an excellent car. But I don't
think I can using it in the mountains. That's a must, since I'm there
perhaps 20 times a year.
My biggest concern with the tesla is damaging the battery or other
critical underside stuff. On my honda, I've had numerous ground
strikes
but no serious damage. It has 6.5" clearance. I found a company that
makes 1.5" suspension spacers that fit in the model 3 and the Y, which
would give my 8". I think that's enough that I can visually judge and
slow down, so as not to have a severe strike. (It's harder than you
think, if the sun is casting tree shadows across the road - almost
impossible to see any deviations.)
If I raise the chassis, I'll get more drag. Thus, the question of
installing some kind of skirt. Does anyone have advice on this ? Would
it make a difference ?
(P.S. I'll keep the honda odyssey regardless but drive it only for
hauling large stuff. Maintenance should be minimal.)
Peri
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