Anyone recently upgrade from 14/15 to 17 Model S?

[BrianSF]

I'd like to get some objective opinion from owners who have upgraded from ~2015 generation to the latest model S cars.

Did you see a huge improvement in function and quality of the vehicle to justify the upgrade? What were some of the noticeable improvements (or setbacks ie. AP2) that you encountered?

I think there are many of us stuck in the buy a 2014/2015 CPO for ~$20-$40k less or pay full price for the latest and stomach the depreciation dilemma. Would be helpful to understand how big of a leap you get in 3 years.

 

[BrettS]

For what it’s worth, I went through this same decision about 7 months ago and after quite a bit of thinking and going back and forth I wound up purchasing a 2015 model S from a private party. For me, the big difference was AP1 vs AP2 and FSD ability. Other than the AP hardware, there are really very few functional differences between the older and newer cars... the facelift front and bioweapon air filter would have been nice to have, but they weren’t a serious conisderation for me.

In the end what I decided is that there is definitely a lot of promise for AP2 and FSD and when (and if) that happens I definitely want to be there. But at the same time, FSD is probably many years off (if it ever happens) and AP2 is just now reaching parity with AP1. I suspect over the next few years that AP2 and/or FSD will start to get new features that my AP1 doesn’t have, so my thoughts are that once AP2 gets a feature that I can’t live without, then I’ll probably sell my AP1 car and upgrade to a 2 or 3 year old AP2 car. But for now, there was nothing for me that justified the significant price difference. So far I’ve had my car for more than half a year and I have no regrets about not going with a newer one.

The other thing to keep in mind is that Tesla does update the car software periodically and they are still updating the older cars along with the newer cars. The best example right now is the ‘camping mode’ update where you can tell the car to leave the HVAC system running after you exit the car. This is a feature that people have been wanting for years and my 2015 car got that update at the same time as the cars that just left the factory. Obviously there will be some autopilot and FSD type updates that only AP2 cars get as they have different hardware than the AP1 cars, but whenever possible Tesla has been updating and adding features to old cars and new cars at the same time.

 

[Chasedrgc1223]

I'd like to get some objective opinion from owners who have upgraded from ~2015 generation to the latest model S cars.

Did you see a huge improvement in function and quality of the vehicle to justify the upgrade? What were some of the noticeable improvements (or setbacks ie. AP2) that you encountered?

I think there are many of us stuck in the buy a 2014/2015 CPO for ~$20-$40k less or pay full price for the latest and stomach the depreciation dilemma. Would be helpful to understand how big of a leap you get in 3 years.

Had a March 4th, 2015 85D that I put 95k miles on. Traded it in September 21st, 2017 for a new S100D. The new DU00 drive units in the dual motor cars are fantastic, and the acceleration of the uncorked 100D's (they come uncorked now), is well into 3.5 seconds 0-60. Lower whine, smoother acceleration, and a much harder pull throughout all speeds are what I came to find in the 100D. The whole interior is also quieter, I had the premium upgrades package on both, but the newer one is much much better quality all the way around. I will say though, I had to replace 2 door handles on the 85D about 30k miles in, but just last week my passenger side handle does not retract without physically pushing it in, so I will need to take it into the service center. AP2 is not on parity with AP1, anyone who says otherwise is lying. It has gotten much better with the last few updates and is better with seeing over hills, but overall performance is not confidence inspiring... it bounces around on lanes that were rock solid on AP1. It also cannot show all cars across the lanes like AP1, which greatly reduces confidence since you can't see what the car is seeing. I would say the upgrade was very much worth it; the upgraded range is fantastic with the 100D, but I also believe the build quality, new features (bio weapon defense mode, rear cupholders, 2 rear integrated USB ports), and next generation reliability warrant an upgrade.
With rumors of an interior upgrade imminent, some may suggest holding off until the full redesign, however I would take this with a grain of salt as Tesla may focus all resources solely on Model 3 production and not deal with a big redesign.

 

[smac]

I would say the biggest jump up in build quality / NVH improvements came in with the face lift. So if you are happy going the CPO route, an early face lift with AP1 would probably be my pick.

 

[jason.a]

I upgraded from an early 2015 S60 with AP1 to a late 2017 75D with AP2.5 a few weeks ago. I second Chasedrgc1223's comments about improved quality all around, all of the creaks and rattles that I heard in the old car are completely absent. I've also had a good experience with AP2... It isn't on par with AP1 but it's now close enough that I don't miss the old Autopilot.

The biggest single improvement (in my opinion) is the seats, my previous car was comfortable but the standard leather seats weren't great for long drives. The seats in the 75D are more bolstered and noticeably more comfortable.

A few other things to consider... The newer cars are generally faster, AP2 is going to continue to improve, the facelift models look nicer (IMHO) and you only get tax credits on new purchases but not on CPOs.

 

[Destiny1701]

Had a March 4th, 2015 85D that I put 95k miles on. Traded it in September 21st, 2017 for a new S100D. The new DU00 drive units in the dual motor cars are fantastic, and the acceleration of the uncorked 100D's (they come uncorked now), is well into 3.5 seconds 0-60. Lower whine, smoother acceleration, and a much harder pull throughout all speeds are what I came to find in the 100D.

Is this proven? Has there been any evidence from Tesla or owners that the 100D is now well into the mid 3 second range? So far all inventory and new builds still say 4.2 seconds. Please let us know where this was substantiated!

 

[alwaysru]

I came from a 2013 P85 w/o AP to a 2017 90D w/ AP2.

Main Gains:
More comfortable seats - much more bolstering.
Glass roof is much quieter and cooler to look out of than the pano I had before.
AP2 w/ EAP - though honestly, not fully useful yet other than on a solidly lined freeway.
Door handles feel better when opening the doors. They have that slight "pull" that my old car didn't have.
Console in the front vs. bare floor
Rear cupholders!!!!
Rear USB!!

Same:
Performance - - though I haven't done official "tests" yet, I can't feel a "butt" difference.

Worse:
Frunk is ~1/2 the size