There are Tesla vehicles that are completely destroyed in the U.S. and these Teslas are being rebuilt for use or sale in Ukraine.
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Totaled Tesla Vehicles Rebuilt in Ukraine
Apparently, Ukraine is taking totaled Tesla vehicles from the U.S. and rebuilding them, and that there are expert EV mechanics there that are able to bring them back to life.
According to WIRED, there was a Vancouver car mechanic, Max, who had a Tesla Model Y performance nicknamed "Betty White". Tesla allows you to give a nickname to your car, and this was his nickname for his car.
Unfortunately for Max, he got into a bad accident with his Model Y on the freeway and ended up sustaining a severe injury to his shoulder and a few other places. His Model Y leaked coolant into the battery chamber and when he looked at it, being a mechanic, he knew that his Model Y, "Betty White", was done for.
Not only that, Max didn't think a repair shop would put a mechanic at risk due to the kind of damage his Model Y received. A damaged EV battery can become dangerous with risks of shock, fire, and toxic fumes. Max's insurer agreed with him and his car, "Betty White" was sent to a salvage yard.
In addition to this, there are some very important things to note about Tesla vehicles:
- A Tesla in normal condition has a much less chance of catching on fire than any gas car.
- Tesla vehicles are also among the safest vehicles on the roads today.
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"Betty White" in Ukraine
Months went by and Max did something interesting. He kept the Tesla app on his phone, probably thinking he didn't need to uninstall it. He then opened the app and found that his car, "Betty White", had an extra 200 km on the car and was far away.
Far away in Ukraine, in fact, in a town called Uman. This town is midway between Kyiv and the front of Russia's army.
Max also saw that his car was in service mode, which likely means that the car was receiving repairs. Max thought this was a bug in the Tesla app and that something must be wrong with it.
Apparently, WIRED found Max's car, "Betty White" on an auction website and the car looked amazing with tinted windows and a rearview mirror wrapped in black.
The seller, Mikhailo, of the Model Y performance said the car suffered a small blow and had been repaired with original Tesla parts. A small blow was an understatement. Max's car was completely destroyed.
Max's car, "Betty White", was being sold for $55,000, which is about on par with the Model Y performance in the U.S.
Tesla Resurrection
Apparently something like this happening with a totaled Tesla vehicle isn't unusual. Totaled cars in the U.S. find their way to European repair shops, who are willing to take on the sometimes dangerous task of rebuilding the car.
Ukraine is apparently a top 3 destination for totaled vehicles, behind Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates. The workers of Ukraine are known for being expert EV engineers and for being able to repair them.
There is apparently a business owned by Ivan Malakhovsky in Ukraine who works on Tesla vehicles, like the totaled "Betty White" and takes in about 100 Tesla vehicles a month to be fixed.
About 1/5 of these vehicles come from overseas. Ivan says that it's no problem to fix these vehicles, whether EV or an EV battery.
Ivan and his team will take damaged batteries and take them apart to smaller components and power smaller vehicles like an electric scooter or drone for Ukraine's war effort.
Ukraine has a public charging network of about 11,000 chargers and growing due to rising gas prices. Ivan says that rich people drive gas cars and poor people drive EVs, which is the opposite of the U.S.
However, this is changing rapidly, and I believe one day that the price of Tesla vehicles will be absurdly cheap.
Ukraine now has an EV fleet of about 64,312, according to data shown on WIRED, and this is increasing. This is mostly from imports from overseas. There are additional stories of EVs in Ukraine beyond Ivan and his repair shop.
My Thoughts On This
I am truly blown away by the ingenuity of the people of Ukraine. They are doing whatever they have to in a very difficult situation.
If my Tesla Model 3 RWD were heavily damaged, I wouldn't know what to do and would have to take it to a Tesla service center. If they couldn't do anything, then it would go to a salvage yard and possibly to Ukraine.
I think Ukraine doesn't write anything off and does whatever it takes to get something working due to the situation at hand. Here in the U.S., there just isn't the incentive to resurrect a totaled vehicle.
Stay tuned for more Tesla news like this. I found this article about Tesla vehicles getting resurrected in Ukraine very enlightening and interesting, and hope you did too.
In Other Tesla News: Tesla Show Rooms Are Getting Packed: The World Isn't Ready For The Cybertruck
What do you think about these Tesla vehicles being rebuilt in Ukraine? Is this something that will keep happening?
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Hi! I'm Jeremy Noel Johnson, and I am a Tesla investor and supporter and own a 2022 Model 3 RWD EV and I don't have range anxiety :). I enjoy bringing you breaking Tesla news as well as anything about Tesla or other EV companies I can find, like Aptera. I'm also very interested in AI, Tesla Energy and the Tesla Bot! You can follow me on X.COM or LinkedIn to stay in touch and follow my Tesla and EV news coverage.
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