Return-A-Wreck? Daimler Reportedly Took Apart Rented Tesla Model X

German newspaper reports Mercedes-Benz’s parent company returned battered electric car after seven weeks of tests.

byKate Gibson|
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Mercedes-Benz’s parent company reportedly didn't bother purchasing a Tesla Model X in order for its researchers to test and dismantle one. According to Germany's Der Spiegel, Daimler opted to rent one instead.

The newspaper's account says Daimler rented a Tesla Model X at a small company in Bavaria for seven weeks over the summer through a car-rental company Sixt. 

While being rented, the car seemingly was taken apart and then screwed back together. It was also tested under extreme conditions that included heat and a vibrating track. 

The Model X belonged to a Bavarian couple who reportedly own three Teslas they rent out—usually to events such as a wedding party—for extra income.

Not long after handing over the keys to the Model X, one of its owners got his first clue that something was amiss when he received a notification on his phone that the car was being charged near Barcelona, much further than would be allowed under the rental agreement.

The newspaper said the pair did not know who had rented out their Model X until it came back to them heavily damaged, along with a note in the glove department informing its reader "you parked incorrectly" from the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center in Sindelfingen, Germany, near the company’s Stuttgart corporate headquarters.

Sixt told Der Spiegel that it covered damages to the Model X, which reportedly exceeded $18,000, but the couple contends all of their losses have not been covered, the newspaper said.

Tesla did not return emailed requests for comment.

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