Best place/ site to buy a used Tesla

[MikeR55]

On the lookout for a 2019 RWD LR - I know- rare and hard to find. Where, other than this site is the best place to buy? I'm in the LA area so hopefully it's not TOO hard to find. Otherwise I am going to buy a new AWD LR if I can't find.

But would love recommendations of the best legit way to buy.

 

[jjrandorin]

On the lookout for a 2019 RWD LR - I know- rare and hard to find. Where, other than this site is the best place to buy? I'm in the LA area so hopefully it's not TOO hard to find. Otherwise I am going to buy a new AWD LR if I can't find.

But would love recommendations of the best legit way to buy.

What you are looking for, in effect, is a car that someone has had for only a few months and then decided to sell for some reason. Any vehicle that meets your specs that you find, I suggest you have it inspected to see if its been in any sort of accident etc. Not many people spend a lot of money on a car and then "change their mind" and want to get rid of it without there being a clear reason for it.

Sometimes they hate it, but normally the "simplest answer is the correct one" and the simplest reason for getting rid of a car shortly after buying it some sort of problem with the car... accident or other issue. You would likely be better off targetting 2018s.

 

[1375mlm]

If you’ve already tried @EV-CPO , then I would give Cargurus a shot

Better than Autotrader/Carfax/Carmax/Carvana since Cargurus actually pays attention to the batter sizes and # of motors

Most places don’t even know what size battery their car is, or whether it’s RWD/AWD. And getting FSD info from a dealership on a used car is a joke! They don’t know what to look for.

 

[MikeR55]

What you are looking for, in effect, is a car that someone has had for only a few months and then decided to sell for some reason. Any vehicle that meets your specs that you find, I suggest you have it inspected to see if its been in any sort of accident etc. Not many people spend a lot of money on a car and then "change their mind" and want to get rid of it without there being a clear reason for it.

Sometimes they hate it, but normally the "simplest answer is the correct one" and the simplest reason for getting rid of a car shortly after buying it some sort of problem with the car... accident or other issue. You would likely be better off targetting 2018s.

I have seen some that turned them in for the performance version. Tesla web site up til a few weeks ago had quite a few used LR RWD but now all gone.

Anything about a 2018 that was fixed in 2019? I know at first Tesla had some issues like panels not lining up etc.

 

[jjrandorin]

I have seen some that turned them in for the performance version. Tesla web site up til a few weeks ago had quite a few used LR RWD but now all gone.

Anything about a 2018 that was fixed in 2019? I know at first Tesla had some issues like panels not lining up etc.

2018s would have hardware 2.5 (autopilot computer), while 2019s made after april of 2019 have a chance of having hardware version 3 already installed. If the car has the "full self driving" option, it will be able to be upgraded for free to hardware 3.0 at some point.

Other than that, I dont think there is much difference in things panel gaps / build quality etc. Its generally decent, but always good to check a specific vehicle because there is some variance in things like panel gaps etc from vehicle to vehicle.

Other than tesla's website and things like cars.com, i am not sure where else to recommend. I would personally not recommend the "tesla for sale" forum here personally, because its filled with people who are either trying to sell their car for what they paid for it (so overpriced), and "price warrior" types who patrol that forum but dont own a tesla and jump in almost every for sale thread crapping on the price of the vehicle. Its pretty toxic actually so I would stay away from there, or at the very least just browse.

 

[MikeR55]

So 2018 either has "full self driving" which is the best you can get or has "Auto pilot" And than that's the $6k upgrade to make it full? Gets a little confusing on those older models.

 

[MichaelP90DL]

On the lookout for a 2019 RWD LR - I know- rare and hard to find. Where, other than this site is the best place to buy? I'm in the LA area so hopefully it's not TOO hard to find. Otherwise I am going to buy a new AWD LR if I can't find.

But would love recommendations of the best legit way to buy.

Check out the website for Ideal Motors in Costa Mesa, CA. I bought Tessie there. It's a used Tesla shop. Good people, family biz, I dealt with Eli. I can recommend them (I gave a positive Yelp review). I live out in the desert but when I'm in their neighborhood I sometimes drop by and bring a pizza. A recent development, according to their ads, they now offer leasing of their used inventory.

 

[MikeR55]

Check out the website for Ideal Motors in Costa Mesa, CA. I bought Tessie there. It's a used Tesla shop. Good people, family biz, I dealt with Eli. I can recommend them (I gave a positive Yelp review). I live out in the desert but when I'm in their neighborhood I sometimes drop by and bring a pizza. A recent development, according to their ads, they now offer leasing of their used inventory.

THANKS! I'll go look!

 

[wingnutsglory]

What you are looking for, in effect, is a car that someone has had for only a few months and then decided to sell for some reason. Any vehicle that meets your specs that you find, I suggest you have it inspected to see if its been in any sort of accident etc. Not many people spend a lot of money on a car and then "change their mind" and want to get rid of it without there being a clear reason for it.

Sometimes they hate it, but normally the "simplest answer is the correct one" and the simplest reason for getting rid of a car shortly after buying it some sort of problem with the car... accident or other issue. You would likely be better off targetting 2018s.

Many in these forums have bought CPO yet I don’t recall many reporting issues. Do you know of any?

 

[1375mlm]

There is 2 differences I’ve heard of between 17 & 18...
At some point in 2018, can’t remember when, I believe there was a change in seats to be made more comfortable, and the headlights were adjusted to pass the IIHS test.

 

[jjrandorin]

So 2018 either has "full self driving" which is the best you can get or has "Auto pilot" And than that's the $6k upgrade to make it full? Gets a little confusing on those older models.

Hmm.. actually its:

2018 might have "EHANCED autopilot" or "Full self driving". Enhanced autopilot includes every feature that is currently available on 2019s in the "autopilot" and "full self driving" packages. Difference being, those with enhanced autopilot (which has been discontinued) will not get the new hardware 3.0 installed without upgrading, and wont get any "new" features (like red light recognition etc that are supposed to be coming out).

on a 2019 its a bit more complicated because Tesla got rid of EHNANCED autopilot, and replaced it with a reduced feature "autopilot". They moved some features in enhanced autopilot to full self driving. On both, if they have full self driving, they included all the navigation features.


@wingnutsglory

I had a long reply typed up but re reading it, it was taking the OPs post off track. I will just say that everyones risk tolerance is different, and a lot of people think that CPO means "not in an accident", which it doesnt for most brands.

 

[MikeR55]

Wow thanks, now I'm really confused on the auto pilot thing- ha. I'll look into it more

 

[wingnutsglory]

Hmm.. actually its:


@wingnutsglory

I had a long reply typed up but re reading it, it was taking the OPs post off track. I will just say that everyones risk tolerance is different, and a lot of people think that CPO means "not in an accident", which it doesnt for most brands.

I'd love to hear the input if you saved it for some reason. Feel free to PM. Alternately, I could start a thread on "CPO Risks" or something like that.

I'm trying not to let my desire for a LR RWD cloud my judgement. Logically, I would agree that there's an increased chance of getting a car with some issues. I'm not putting much faith into the "CPO" part of it or that Tesla is really going over it with a fine-toothed comb such that it's like-new again. However, many of the models are very low mileage, and if there are issues, I would hope they're either apparent during an inspection or that the existing warranty would cover them. Further, it doesn't seem that folks who have mentioned buying them through Tesla are returning with any horror stories. Does it give me pause? Yes, but how else would one get a LR RWD at this point? By the time I was finally ready to buy, Tesla had removed the option altogether.

I did consider whether it was appropriate to PM the thoughts above, but it does seem somewhat relevant to the post since the info might sway one towards or away from CPO as an option for used...

 

[jjrandorin]

I'd love to hear the input if you saved it for some reason. Feel free to PM. Alternately, I could start a thread on "CPO Risks" or something like that.

I'm trying not to let my desire for a LR RWD cloud my judgement. Logically, I would agree that there's an increased chance of getting a car with some issues. I'm not putting much faith into the "CPO" part of it or that Tesla is really going over it with a fine-toothed comb such that it's like-new again. However, many of the models are very low mileage, and if there are issues, I would hope they're either apparent during an inspection or that the existing warranty would cover them. Further, it doesn't seem that folks who have mentioned buying them through Tesla are returning with any horror stories. Does it give me pause? Yes, but how else would one get a LR RWD at this point? By the time I was finally ready to buy, Tesla had removed the option altogether.

I did consider whether it was appropriate to PM the thoughts above, but it does seem somewhat relevant to the post since the info might sway one towards or away from CPO as an option for used...

Hi, since my opinions are just that, simply my opinions and not on topic for this OPs thread, I sent them to you via PM.

OP, good luck in your hunt, I hope you find the car you are looking for

 

[MikeR55]

Hi, since my opinions are just that, simply my opinions and not on topic for this OPs thread, I sent them to you via PM.

OP, good luck in your hunt, I hope you find the car you are looking for

I'd love hear your thoughts- as soon as I figure out what CPO is...

 

[RayK]

I'd love hear your thoughts- as soon as I figure out what CPO is...

Certified pre-owned. Slightly better than "used" as the manufacturer (generally) performs a multi-point inspection and stands behind the vehicle by (usually) issuing a warranty with it.

 

[Watts_Up]

On the lookout for a 2019 RWD LR - I know- rare and hard to find.
Where, other than this site is the best place to buy?
I'm in the LA area so hopefully it's not TOO hard to find.
Otherwise I am going to buy a new AWD LR if I can't find.

But would love recommendations of the best legit way to buy.

What the point? Someone get the Tax credit and then sale the car?

Get new and received the Federal Tax credit.
And get the Dual Motor. It was a $4,000 option, not really a big saving
Or get the SR+ if you really want RWD.

I wonder if you didn't mean 2018 RWD LR because I wonder if there was any build in 2019.

I know, there was a lot of recent threats about a P3D- (Performance with 18" wheels) available only from ordering it a a store.
So I wonder if it would be possible to get a RWD LR from a store order but I doubt.

However If you really want to drive a RWD LR, you could order a Model Y.
I suspect that Tesla will start to sale the RWD first, but you may have to wait for another 6 months or so.

 

[MikeR55]

What the point? Someone get the Tax credit and then sale the car?

Get new and received the Federal Tax credit.
And get the Dual Motor. It was a $4,000 option, not really a big saving
Or get the SR+ if you really want RWD.

I wonder if you didn't mean 2018 RWD LR because I wonder if there was any build in 2019.

I know, there was a lot of recent threats about a P3D- (Performance with 18" wheels) available only from ordering it a a store.
So I wonder if it would be possible to get a RWD LR from a store order but I doubt.

However If you really want to drive a RWD LR, you could order a Model Y.
I suspect that Tesla will start to sale the RWD first, but you may have to wait for another 6 months or so.

Model Y is at least a year away.
SR+ doesn't have long range, no connectivity, no fog lights, not as good of a radio.

 

[Bulbski]

I sold one on Only Used Tesla | A Place Exclusively Dedicated To Buying And Selling Used Teslas it went easy and sold fast.