60D now, or Model 3 later? Help!

[EV-lutioin]

Tough call. Personally, I like smaller cars so I would rather have a loaded Model 3 with lots of range than a bare-bones Model S. I know you said range doesn't matter to you, but from my experience there will be times when you'll wish you had more range... I think it happens to every Tesla owner from time to time. For example: For me to drive to Sacramento and back is just out of the range of my Model X and requires a 40-60 minute detour and 20-30 minutes of charging. With 30 miles more range it would be no problem.

 

[SMAlset]

If it were ME, I would go for the sure thing with the MS. Not only will you get a larger body vehicle with more miles probably per charge--and with the 60 you can charge up to 100% (and later unlock to the 75 battery with a software update if you find you need the range), but you get a what queen size hatchback area? with the rear seats down if you need to transport something, and you have a good amount of crumple zone for body protection from front and rear end collisions (which of course we never want to see but we know accidents happen).

If you don't plan on driving long distances much and figure you will charge every night at home, free super charging might not be important and a new car might be your best bet, giving you the opportunity to customize it a bit more maybe. Otherwise you get 400 hours of free supercharging on the new cars. Probably the same for the M3 but don't think that's been announced.

We just picked our MS up and just love it. It's a gorgeous car and hope we have it a long time. Hubby will probably pass it down to me somewhere down the road if he wants a larger capacity model. We did get the 75 but he's mentioned he wonders if he should have gotten the 90 and paid more. I suspect he'll be just fine with the 75 for what we do and I might be waiting a long time for that hand-me-down!

I forget what EM has estimated the number of M3s to be produced this year, but it could be a long wait for the M3 in reality even if you are near the front of the line. The MS also is more or less a tried and true car, although they do keep making changes. I BTW love the refreshed front end of the 2017 MS and feel we picked the right time to buy, but that's just me.

If you don't get EAP now on a MS, you can still add it later. We didn't bother with FSD figuring it's still aways off, but it's upgradable for that as well.

Happy shopping whatever direction you decide to go.

 

[DragonWatch]

Here's my two cents ~ Was early reservation for the M3, on 22Feb17 ordered MX 100D and canceled M3.

Why?
Downsizing from two cars to one; recently fully retired. MX 100D gets the mileage we wanted. SUV has cargo space desired and will haul trailer since we tend to be construction active even in retirement. Environmental activists chance to put it to the man and his congress. Have wanted a Tesla since 2012 ~ got on my radar. Investor since spring 2013. Should get tax incentive.
This afternoon.
We walk around our 500 acre lake (okay all 145 of us lot owners) ~ I digress Anyway as we were walking around this afternoon I spotted an MS; the lot and car owner were present so we chatted. They had to wait 2 years to get their MS and the wife stated it will take some time to get used to (none ICE vehicle). There was a bunch more; but bottom line they are very happy with it. Oh and her husband had a roadster for the two years prior to finally getting their MS.
Now.
For me this is going to be like opening the door of my computer and driving away I have been playing/using/repairing computers professionally since 1978.
You
I say go for it based on your requirements. The folks I just mentioned are apparently still happy with their older model and it probably is not much bigger than the 60 or it might not even be a D. FYI ~ I met and asked my wife to marry me one and a half weeks later. She moved the marriage date up from eight months to four months, so we tend to make decisions on a dime ~ just say'n ~ that was 43 years ago. Looking forward to our MX in the next couple of weeks.
Enjoy

Hey, does anyone know the battery cell configuration of the new MX 100D coming off the assembly line as we speak (19Mar17)?

 

[ByranS]

The store employees are wrong. They know less than a random forum member. The phase out calendar starts when Tesla hits 200,000 sales in the USA. Global sales are irrelevant. The rules are explained on the EPA website here. Scroll down and expand the "Phaseout" section.

Ask them how many cars Tesla sold in the USA in 2014 and 2015 and whether or not Tesla publishes USA sales numbers. They will tell you that Tesla does not publish this data and that the numbers are unknown. The answer is Tesla sold 16,689 cars in the USA in 2014 and 25,202 cars in 2015. These numbers were published by Tesla here in the table at the bottom of page 1. Many people have overlooked this data including people who follow Tesla closely because Tesla mentioned those in an unrelated context to compare their USA sales to BMW etc. I have processed all the data Tesla has published and other institutions have published. You can find these on THIS page.

As of today. Tesla's USA sales count is 118,667 units. They are expected to hit 200,000 sales in late December this year or early January in 2018. According to the rules, full credits will continue until the end of the following quarter they hit 200K. For example, if they hit 200K in Dec, that means full credits will continue until 31st March 2018 and then it will drop to $3750 for 2 more quarters. Therefore there is 100% chance that you will get at least $3750. I would say there is more than 50% chance, you will get the full credits. There are only 2 scenarios to consider.

Pessimistic Scenario (If Tesla hits 200K USA sales in Q4 2017)
$7,500 for deliveries until Mar 31, 2018
$3,750 for deliveries until Sep 30, 2018
$1,875 for deliveries until Mar 31, 2019

Optimistic Scenario (If Tesla hits 200K USA sales in Q1 2018)
$7,500 for deliveries until Jun 30, 2018
$3,750 for deliveries until Dec 31, 2018
$1,875 for deliveries until Jun 30, 2019

In the future, for the latest info on this issue, you can open THIS page and scroll all the way to the right. If you are a Model 3 reservation holder, check out the Model 3 Delivery Estimator. It integrates this information to the output based on your delivery estimate. It displays both the pessimistic and optimistic scenarios.

Wow. This is extremely helpful. Thanks for this

 

[OBX John]

I'd say if you can buy a Model S, buy a Model S. There is no telling what the future holds, what kind of problems the M3 might have, and every day you wait is a day spent not driving an amazing car. Life is short, eat dessert first!

 

[tonglaji]

I'd say if you can buy a Model S, buy a Model S. There is no telling what the future holds, what kind of problems the M3 might have, and every day you wait is a day spent not driving an amazing car. Life is short, eat dessert first!

Given Tesla's track record of delivery on time, nobody would be surprised to if they push out the deliver by several quarters or more.

In addition, the S is a very mature car compare to the 3. It would be beneficial to avoid the the uncertainty of quality or the certainty of bugs in the early production batches.

 

[caltechkid]

In all honesty, you don't need a sub-zero package, I would say it's a waste of money, you can always preheat your car over the phone. Heated seats come standard. In cold climate you probably don't need the sunroof either, I live in CA and car heats up pretty fast with pano-roof. I'd rather have something to shield me from the sun.

It's really a use case issue: if you absolutely need heated rear seats and/or a heated steering wheel then it's certainly not a waste of money and since you can't option those out separately, you're locked into the $1K. Pre-heating the cabin, while nice, is extraordinarily inefficient, esp. when you're not plugged in.

 

[caltechkid]

...small overlap crash protection improvements that Tesla made on January 23rd.......after the Jan 23 safety improvements.

Do you happen to have a link to this handy? I recall the IIHS issues but was not aware Tesla made a change going forward. Of course, I'm assuming it's body related and this non-upgradeable. Thanks!