This Tesla Model 3 was a total loss, but Geico sold it to the new owner for $15,000, and rebuilt it.
April 30, 2023 at 3:50 p.m. ET
This Tesla Model 3 owner didn’t get his car the traditional way. That means you didn’t buy it new from Tesla, and it wasn’t in Tesla’s online new or pre-owned inventory or for sale by an individual owner on the pre-owned market. Instead, Geico was selling it after declaring it a total loss.
Tesla owner Winston found the Model 3 at a wrecking yard and bought it from Geico at a best-bid auction for just $15,000. His plan was to rebuild the car himself at home in his garage. Even if it cost him as much as the total car itself, he would still be saving money. Winston, who is only 18 years old, wanted to build his family the cheapest Model 3 in the US.
Even though Tesla continues to lower its prices, a new Model 3 still costs at least $40,000, and that gets you the rear-wheel-drive, single-motor “base” model with an EPA-estimated 272 miles of range.
Winston’s 2018 Tesla Model 3 Long Range had been in an accident and was deemed a total loss, but he had no idea what really happened. After taking the time to completely rebuild the EV, he plugged in a USB drive to retrieve the data stored in the Model 3’s onboard computer.
Because Tesla vehicles have standard dash cameras and the camera-based Sentry Mode security system, they record footage from multiple cameras, which can be viewed later. Thanks to technology, Winston discovered some surprises to share.
As you’ll see in the saved footage, the former owner of the Model 3 was driving it when a car appeared on the right, causing a T-collision. Although there was a lot of visible damage and Geico tell total, Winston says it wasn’t that bad. He had to fix the obvious body damage and replace the airbags.
Winston spent about $9,000 on parts and $1,000 on taxes, so the total cost of the Model 3 was just $25,000, plus about three months of his time and hard work. There were major problems that were not expected, such as having to replace the entire dashboard with the new airbag. Winston learned a lot and has been a fan of YouTube channels like Rich reconstructions for years He hopes to work for Tesla service and has already applied.
Like most Wham Baam Teslacam videos, the video at the top of the page features 19 more TeslaCam stories. Footage ranges from crashes and near misses to hit-and-run collisions and Tesla Sentry mode events. Check it out and then go to the comment section and leave us your feedback.
