I am awaiting delivery of my used 2013 Model S from Tesla! Here are a few things I learned in the buying process:
Where to buy: If you buy used directly from Tesla, you get a 4 year/48k bumper to bumper warranty, and the prices seem competitive with other sellers. There are some available from used car dealers but it is astounding how little these dealers know about the car, so I decided to buy directly from Tesla.
How to choose: The Tesla website currently has VERY fast turn over of the lower priced cars - they get snatched up quickly, often in under 24 hours. However, it’s very difficult to snatch one up because there is no information about the used condition of the car other than mileage. The website gives you the build information and mileage, but NO other information. Many of them have damage and require body repairs not yet made, and it is like pulling teeth to get specific information on the car. Usually, I could not get ANY information on the car in less than 24 hours, and several were purchased while I was still waiting to hear back about the car. I have been in contact with my local Tesla salespeople, as well as contacting the people at the location of the individual Tesla (NY, CA, etc). No one seems to have much information on any of these cars, and it takes days to get the information. That makes pouncing on a good deal impossible (or stupid, since you can reserve it online with $1000 before you know anything about it - if you change your mind, you have 72 hours to change your deposit to a different car, or forfeit the deposit).
Website tip: the used car site is a search result based on model, location, color, etc., which is very slow to load. On my mac, going back to the search results from viewing a specific car took a LONG time. But holding down Shift-Command while clicking on a car opens it in a new tab without closing the search results, so going back is instantaneous.
Drive Units: I learned late in the game that about 2/3rds of early (2013) Teslas need their drive units replaced! OMG!! Google it! Usually this is done for an increasing noise level, but also many failures. Fortunately they are all now warrantied for 8 years from original delivery. When choosing a car, you may want to inquire about the drive unit. I chose one that has a blown drive unit, so that it will be receiving a new drive unit, which should be an improvement over the original. Some reports are that they have cut the failure rate in half? I wonder if that improvement applies to my “new” drive unit or not…?
Warranty: There are two warranties on these cars: the drive train warranty (battery, motor, whole drive unit) which is 8 years/unlimited mileage from the original date of delivery (regardless of owner turnover), and also a 4 year/48,000 mi warranty that is bumper to bumper from the date of used purchase. Pretty awesome!
Delivery date: the website lists the year of the car but not the delivery date. Since the drive warranty is based on the delivery date, not the year, you need to know that date. A car delivered in January has almost a year less warranty remaining than one delivered in December, even though they are the same model year. Make sure you ask your sales person the delivery date. One clue online is the P-number. Each car listed has an identification number that usually starts with a P, then 5 digits. A salesperson told me those are the last 5 of the VIN number, and represent the serial number, ie P10000 would be the ten-thousandth Model S made. This can give you an idea of which cars are older and newer on the website.
Charging/Dual chargers?: The standard home charger charges at about 25ish miles of range in an hour (mph), so about 10 hours at home to go from empty to full - no problem overnight. I expect to need to charge away from home where there are no superchargers. A minority of public chargers are J1772 and can charge about twice as fast as that, over 50 miles range per hour of charging, IF you have the Dual Charger option in your car (factory option, or they are available to be installed by Tesla for $2000). When I asked the salesperson about the dual charger I was told it wasn’t necessary. But I checked (plugshare.com) and found my usual driving route has two of these faster chargers. It will be alot nicer to stop for 30 minutes than for an hour if I need an extra 25 miles of range!! Bottom line: the dual charger is really important to me.
Tires in snow: don’t get stuck with 21” wheels and performance tires in the snow, or even just on cold pavement: people say they are super sketchy. The 21” rims can mount a snowtire, but there is no all-season tire available, and no studded snow tire available (says Tesla employee). I bought 19” after market rims (TST) and studded Hakka 8s (and TPMS sensors), but Tesla won’t install them, so on my delivery day I have to drive in unsafe winter conditions on the 21s, then spend my first day with my new tesla sitting at the tire shop! Okay, I’ll survive… but it will be worse than my 2 year old waiting for the closed ice cream shop to open! There may be a quivering lip involved!! Seriously, this is not just a customer service issue but a safety issue. Tesla should be able to install your snow tires prior to delivery but they won't.
Carbon: I live in Colorado which has some of the dirtiest electricity in the US, about 2/3rds from coal. One estimate put the carbon equivalent for a Colorado Tesla at only 45 mpg. I am therefore having solar installed at my home so that i will have a FUSION POWERED Tesla! Turns out most people think the 30% federal solar tax credit will really expire at the end of 2016. Maybe a lesser tax credit will replace it, but few people think it will continue at 30% after 2016, so get that solar put in asap!
I am so F-ing excited! Thank you Elon Musk and all the Tesla people who created this reality. It's awesome.
Where to buy: If you buy used directly from Tesla, you get a 4 year/48k bumper to bumper warranty, and the prices seem competitive with other sellers. There are some available from used car dealers but it is astounding how little these dealers know about the car, so I decided to buy directly from Tesla.
How to choose: The Tesla website currently has VERY fast turn over of the lower priced cars - they get snatched up quickly, often in under 24 hours. However, it’s very difficult to snatch one up because there is no information about the used condition of the car other than mileage. The website gives you the build information and mileage, but NO other information. Many of them have damage and require body repairs not yet made, and it is like pulling teeth to get specific information on the car. Usually, I could not get ANY information on the car in less than 24 hours, and several were purchased while I was still waiting to hear back about the car. I have been in contact with my local Tesla salespeople, as well as contacting the people at the location of the individual Tesla (NY, CA, etc). No one seems to have much information on any of these cars, and it takes days to get the information. That makes pouncing on a good deal impossible (or stupid, since you can reserve it online with $1000 before you know anything about it - if you change your mind, you have 72 hours to change your deposit to a different car, or forfeit the deposit).
Website tip: the used car site is a search result based on model, location, color, etc., which is very slow to load. On my mac, going back to the search results from viewing a specific car took a LONG time. But holding down Shift-Command while clicking on a car opens it in a new tab without closing the search results, so going back is instantaneous.
Drive Units: I learned late in the game that about 2/3rds of early (2013) Teslas need their drive units replaced! OMG!! Google it! Usually this is done for an increasing noise level, but also many failures. Fortunately they are all now warrantied for 8 years from original delivery. When choosing a car, you may want to inquire about the drive unit. I chose one that has a blown drive unit, so that it will be receiving a new drive unit, which should be an improvement over the original. Some reports are that they have cut the failure rate in half? I wonder if that improvement applies to my “new” drive unit or not…?
Warranty: There are two warranties on these cars: the drive train warranty (battery, motor, whole drive unit) which is 8 years/unlimited mileage from the original date of delivery (regardless of owner turnover), and also a 4 year/48,000 mi warranty that is bumper to bumper from the date of used purchase. Pretty awesome!
Delivery date: the website lists the year of the car but not the delivery date. Since the drive warranty is based on the delivery date, not the year, you need to know that date. A car delivered in January has almost a year less warranty remaining than one delivered in December, even though they are the same model year. Make sure you ask your sales person the delivery date. One clue online is the P-number. Each car listed has an identification number that usually starts with a P, then 5 digits. A salesperson told me those are the last 5 of the VIN number, and represent the serial number, ie P10000 would be the ten-thousandth Model S made. This can give you an idea of which cars are older and newer on the website.
Charging/Dual chargers?: The standard home charger charges at about 25ish miles of range in an hour (mph), so about 10 hours at home to go from empty to full - no problem overnight. I expect to need to charge away from home where there are no superchargers. A minority of public chargers are J1772 and can charge about twice as fast as that, over 50 miles range per hour of charging, IF you have the Dual Charger option in your car (factory option, or they are available to be installed by Tesla for $2000). When I asked the salesperson about the dual charger I was told it wasn’t necessary. But I checked (plugshare.com) and found my usual driving route has two of these faster chargers. It will be alot nicer to stop for 30 minutes than for an hour if I need an extra 25 miles of range!! Bottom line: the dual charger is really important to me.
Tires in snow: don’t get stuck with 21” wheels and performance tires in the snow, or even just on cold pavement: people say they are super sketchy. The 21” rims can mount a snowtire, but there is no all-season tire available, and no studded snow tire available (says Tesla employee). I bought 19” after market rims (TST) and studded Hakka 8s (and TPMS sensors), but Tesla won’t install them, so on my delivery day I have to drive in unsafe winter conditions on the 21s, then spend my first day with my new tesla sitting at the tire shop! Okay, I’ll survive… but it will be worse than my 2 year old waiting for the closed ice cream shop to open! There may be a quivering lip involved!! Seriously, this is not just a customer service issue but a safety issue. Tesla should be able to install your snow tires prior to delivery but they won't.
Carbon: I live in Colorado which has some of the dirtiest electricity in the US, about 2/3rds from coal. One estimate put the carbon equivalent for a Colorado Tesla at only 45 mpg. I am therefore having solar installed at my home so that i will have a FUSION POWERED Tesla! Turns out most people think the 30% federal solar tax credit will really expire at the end of 2016. Maybe a lesser tax credit will replace it, but few people think it will continue at 30% after 2016, so get that solar put in asap!
I am so F-ing excited! Thank you Elon Musk and all the Tesla people who created this reality. It's awesome.