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Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

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Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#21

Post by vel0city »

hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #13
semi-extrinsic wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With EVs this problem is getting a lot worse. In latest-gen EVs the battery pack is a stressed member of the frame. Any type of collision that distorts the frame will also imply a deformation of the battery module, which means instant write-off. So if you think about it - if you first decide you need to go down the "structural battery" route to save cost and weight, you've already lost repairability if the frame is b…

Can you point to any references/examples of this? Not a challenge, but as an EV owner I didn't know this and I'm interested to learn more.

He's probably referencing Tesla's structural battery packs. Essentially the pack makes up the bottom part of the frame of the car.

https://electrek.co/2021/01/19/tesla-structural-battery-pack...

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#22

Post by RickHull »

GenerocUsername wrote: post #11
tifik wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That the car is written off doesnt mean it gets scrapped though. It usually gets auctioned, and if its fixable, some mechanic can buy it for peanuts and put it back on the market.

So why the write off nonsense. Just send it to a repair shop directly and if it cannot be repaired, then initiate a write off. Sounds like extra steps for the profit of middle men

The original owner of the car has some ability to refuse the repair job. It may be impossible to (economically) bring the car back to its previous state. The insurance company prefers not to take the risk. They write a clean check and recover some cost by selling the salvage, which will likely be repaired and sold.

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#24

Post by vel0city »

GenerocUsername wrote: post #11
tifik wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That the car is written off doesnt mean it gets scrapped though. It usually gets auctioned, and if its fixable, some mechanic can buy it for peanuts and put it back on the market.

So why the write off nonsense. Just send it to a repair shop directly and if it cannot be repaired, then initiate a write off. Sounds like extra steps for the profit of middle men

Writing it off is just the insurance company buying it from you for your insured amount because they owe you the value of the car and it'll be cheaper to just buy it from you than repair it. Normally you can then buy it back for what they expect to get at auction and do the repairs yourself with a salvage title.

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#25

Post by [deleted] »

vel0city wrote: post #21
hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you point to any references/examples of this? Not a challenge, but as an EV owner I didn't know this and I'm interested to learn more.

He's probably referencing Tesla's structural battery packs. Essentially the pack makes up the bottom part of the frame of the car. https://electrek.co/2021/01/19/tesla-structural-battery-pack...

[deleted]

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#26

Post by dantheman »

metadat wrote: post #23

It's interesting how the casting process produces a lighter, weaker, and impossible to repair or chassis. Why can't the blocks be modular and replaceable?

What incentive does anyone ever to have pass on savings efficiencies? The answer is competition / competing goods.

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#27

Post by binarymax »

SoftTalker wrote: post #3

Cast metals are rather brittle, normally? Good for complex shapes that may be further refined by machining, and in compression loads, but not in shear or tension. I would think they would shatter in a collision rather than bend like steel.

They must anneal them

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#28

Post by jgalt212 »

SoftTalker wrote: post #3

Cast metals are rather brittle, normally? Good for complex shapes that may be further refined by machining, and in compression loads, but not in shear or tension. I would think they would shatter in a collision rather than bend like steel.

Indeed, when I heard about the gigapress, I was like that is pretty neat, but when I read it was just casting, and not forging, I was like oh, it's not the *best* solution.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forging

Re: Toyota Will Adopt Tesla-Style Cast Bodies That Might Be Impossible to Fix

#30

Post by ChumpGPT »

Does anyone think 99% of the car buyers market cares about cast bodies? Just look at all the folks who bought Tesla's, they don't have a problem buying a car that costs more to insure, waiting for months to get repaired, at the same time happy with poor finishes, paying extra for every possible detail, and never being able to fix them on their own.

Most folks in the car market chase fashion and could care less about quality, dependability (Ford, GM, Chrysler still exist) and longevity. They just make their $600 a month payment and roll over the remainder every 3 years into a new vehicle.

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