Any used S's around in the low $30k's?

[Wes3]

I'm a late model 3 reserver, and don't know if I want to wait a year or more to be able to get one.
I've checked the usual sites (cars, autotrader, Edmunds, ebay, onlyusedtesla, even ventured into craigslist), but can't really find much.
Looks like if my budget was in the 40k's there would be a good selection, but I need to stay under 35k.
Anyone have an S or know of any that might work?

 

[agloutney]

I believe the odd S40 pops up from now and then. If you see one grab it as you can upgrade it to a 60. Not everyone knows Tesla lowered the upgrade price on the 40.

 

[davidc18]

I remember that tesla had some very high mileage MSs in the high 30s earlier this year

 

[Chaserr]

Tesla sold at least two S40 car sthis past summer in the $20k range. They're rare but they are also cheap and sell quickly.

 

[hmmm]

==> From a great contributor to these forums @ChadS. Pretty sure the car is in really really, really good shape.

Model S 85kWh, loaded, excellent condition, warranties - $36,900

 

[iluvmacs]

I believe the odd S40 pops up from now and then. If you see one grab it as you can upgrade it to a 60. Not everyone knows Tesla lowered the upgrade price on the 40.

Pretty sure I read recently on some thread here that they won't let you upgrade an S40 to S60 anymore.

 

[jbcarioca]

There are four S's below $40,000 on Trucar
Used Tesla for Sale | Search 141 Used Tesla Listings | TrueCar

You can find early models, cars with accident repairs and very heavily used cars below the $40,000 ;imitation.

With any of them you should have the nearest Tesla Service centre do an inspection to confirm that the remaining warranty will be valid. That will cost you a few hundred dollars but is worth much more.

 

[jjh1234]

Pretty sure I read recently on some thread here that they won't let you upgrade an S40 to S60 anymore.

Current owners of 40 kWh configuration

Page 3, Post #58

 

[iluvmacs]

Current owners of 40 kWh configuration

Page 3, Post #58

Very good news. Not sure what I was thinking of, and I can't easily find anything by searching...

 

[masamitsu]

https://teslainventory.com/

You can check here as well.

 

[GMan324]

Tesla Inventory Search

You can check here as well.

Make an account there and then search Inactive listings to see what are expected price ranges for your given car and options! There are great deals to be had, but the best deals sell in minutes, so have your CC ready, or better yet work with a Telsa CPO advisor. They have access to cars not listed on the website.

 

[Wes3]

Thanks for the info everyone. I found an S40 for $33500. I don't think that's enough range for me, but sounds like I might be able to upgrade to a 60.
Seems like the dealer doesn't know squat about Tesla, maybe I'll inquire some more.
If I call a Tesla store with the VIN, can they tell me about any options that were purchased, or anything else about the car?

 

[jjh1234]

Thanks for the info everyone. I found an S40 for $33500. I don't think that's enough range for me, but sounds like I might be able to upgrade to a 60.
Seems like the dealer doesn't know squat about Tesla, maybe I'll inquire some more.
If I call a Tesla store with the VIN, can they tell me about any options that were purchased, or anything else about the car?

I looked at a few used MS before ultimately buying new and in my experience Tesla HQ typically doesn't like to give out very much info on a car you don't own. They don't like to facilitate any dealings with 3rd party dealers. I had much more luck calling my local service center and giving them the last 6 of the vin and asking my questions after explaining the situation. Your mileage may vary greatly on this since it all depends on how helpful any given employee feels like being. Good luck. You definitely should be able to verify the 40 --> 60 upgrade pricing and availability at least. Apparently there is also a charge to enable supercharging as well and then you would be subject to pay as you go billing.

 

[whitex]

Apparently there is also a charge to enable supercharging as well and then you would be subject to pay as you go billing.

While I don't know what they are offering today, the $2,500 S60 supercharger enablement fee used to cover unlimited supercharging (I know, I bought one).

 

[dennisvab]

Thanks for the info everyone. I found an S40 for $33500. I don't think that's enough range for me, but sounds like I might be able to upgrade to a 60.
Seems like the dealer doesn't know squat about Tesla, maybe I'll inquire some more.
If I call a Tesla store with the VIN, can they tell me about any options that were purchased, or anything else about the car?

I have called Tesla service and they area able to tell you what options the car came with. I believe you can also email [email protected] with the VIN and they should be able to get you that info as well. (at least thats what the sales person told me).

 

[LoL Rick]

Looks like if my budget was in the 40k's there would be a good selection, but I need to stay under 35k.

Statements like this always make me nervous. The 2012-2014 Model S is a wonderful car and I love mine dearly, having just turned 80,000 miles yesterday. But you do not want to be in a position of stretching your budget to buy one. You may get lucky and run one 300K miles with no problems. On the other hand, if you own this car out of warranty, you really need to be prepared to spend up to $4,000 on a single repair at the drop of a hat. Here are a few recent examples:
DC DC Failure
Two door handle replacements will cost me over $1100 - is there a cheaper way?
Clunking sound is costing me a bundle to fix out of warranty
MCU fails for the second time

Yes, the car is amazing but please do not overextend yourself in the excitement of owning one.

 

[bakerboy]

You can use this site to decode a VIN:

VIN Decoder | TeslaTap

 

[HankLloydRight]

You can use this site to decode a VIN:

VIN Decoder | TeslaTap

The VIN decoders don't really tell you much you don't already know -- motor, model, year, restraint system, factory (Fremont). No options are revealed in a VIN decoder.

If the car ever showed up on the Tesla CPO website (I don't think I've ever seen an S40 show up before*)... you can try to use the option decoder on EV-CPO here: EV-CPO.com - Tesla New, Used, and CPO Inventory Listings

If you have the list of option codes, you can plug that in as well.

*Confirmed: No S40s ever showed up on Tesla's CPO site.

 

[miemrich]

by the way: [email protected] does NOT work anymore. Does anyone have a better email address to reach the service?

 

[Wes3]

Statements like this always make me nervous. The 2012-2014 Model S is a wonderful car and I love mine dearly, having just turned 80,000 miles yesterday. But you do not want to be in a position of stretching your budget to buy one. You may get lucky and run one 300K miles with no problems. On the other hand, if you own this car out of warranty, you really need to be prepared to spend up to $4,000 on a single repair at the drop of a hat. Here are a few recent examples:
DC DC Failure
Two door handle replacements will cost me over $1100 - is there a cheaper way?
Clunking sound is costing me a bundle to fix out of warranty
MCU fails for the second time

Yes, the car is amazing but please do not overextend yourself in the excitement of owning one.

I appreciate the concern/warning, but we aren't stretching our budget. We could order a new inventory if we wanted to, but settled on a 35k budget for our next car. If that gets me in an S sooner than later, great, otherwise I will happily take a blue Model 3 next year (with warranty, 0 miles, and maybe some of the kinks worked out)