Best Year/Model to Buy Used Model S

[EV-CPO]

Curious why you say stretch the budget on a nose-cone p85d. I feel like I’ve seen plenty of these 2013-14 for at or under $30k, am I missing something though?

There are no 2013 P85Ds. There are a few very-late P85Ds from December, 2014 (I have one), but most were made in 2015-2016.

The lowest priced one currently available from Tesla right now is $38k, but it has high mileage (77k). The highest priced one is $50k (28k miles).

edit to add: In 2020, Tesla sold 112 P85Ds. The average price was $44,974.

 

[Ostrichsak]

Curious why you say stretch the budget on a nose-cone p85d. I feel like I’ve seen plenty of these 2013-14 for at or under $30k, am I missing something though?

Scams. Lots and lots of scams.

That's not helping the used car market when people use Teslas so frequently for their scams. Then people think they "know" the used Tesla market and base their shopping on those scams and wonder why they can't even find a car to buy. The old adage "if it's too good to be true it probably is" applies here.

 

[Ostrichsak]

There are no 2013 P85Ds. There are a few very-late P85Ds from December, 2014 (I have one), but most were made in 2015-2016.

I've had a couple. Great cars. I just added a refresh P90DL to my fleet so looks like it's time to update ye olde signature line again.

 

[GTBrandon]

There are no 2013 P85Ds. There are a few very-late P85Ds from December, 2014 (I have one), but most were made in 2015-2016.

The lowest priced one currently available from Tesla right now is $38k, but it has high mileage (77k). The highest priced one is $50k (28k miles).

edit to add: In 2020, Tesla sold 112 P85Ds. The average price was $44,974.

Ah I guess I was looking at P85 single motors for that price and year range, my bad

 

[Sunshine State]

That's true but it also has no bearing on this conversation as he stated he ordered in 11/2016 and took delivery 2/2017 and one can assume he didn't trade it into Tesla and then buy it back again at a premium. This is confusing enough w/o injecting unrelated info and is partially why some many are confused by what FUSC actually is and how it works.

That’s not true at all, the information that I posted is very relevant to the thread. I’m not sure if you even read this thread because the OP is asking "Best Year/Model to Buy Used Model S"
You said that "FUSC ended 1/2017 and transfers from owner to owner in perpetuity. There is no limit to how many times it can transfer" That is very misleading because FSC will not transfer if Tesla takes the car in trade and resells it because currently they disable the Free Supercharging. Tesla is without question the biggest single reseller of used Tesla cars so the chance a used Tesla will pass through their books is very high. It isn’t confusing to me at all and that is why I posted that to correct your misleading statement so someone doesn’t just assume what you said was always the case because clearly it is not. There are many older Tesla cars that came with Free Supercharging that no longer have it so don’t always just assume and interject misleading information.

 

[Ostrichsak]

That’s not true at all, the information that I posted is very relevant to the thread. I’m not sure if you even read this thread because the OP is asking "Best Year/Model to Buy Used Model S"
You said that "FUSC ended 1/2017 and transfers from owner to owner in perpetuity. There is no limit to how many times it can transfer" That is very misleading because FSC will not transfer if Tesla takes the car in trade and resells it because currently they disable the Free Supercharging. Tesla is without question the biggest single reseller of used Tesla cars so the chance a used Tesla will pass through their books is very high. It isn’t confusing to me at all and that is why I posted that to correct your misleading statement so someone doesn’t just assume what you said was always the case because clearly it is not. There are many older Tesla cars that came with Free Supercharging that no longer have it so don’t always just assume and interject misleading information.

My statement makes zero "assumptions" to be accurate exactly how I worded it. It's you who are making assumptions and adding/removing words I didn't say to make it inaccurate.

Curious how Tesla would "take the car in trade" to make that word wall you just typed valid if it was sold from "owner to owner" to owner to owner into eternity exactly as I stated. Go ahead and give the details... I'll wait.

Also, try to keep in mind that I was quoting someone who specifically said they bought the car new so.... strike two!

Reading is fundamental.

 

[Sunshine State]

My statement makes zero "assumptions" to be accurate exactly how I worded it. It's you who are making assumptions and adding/removing words I didn't say to make it inaccurate.

Curious how Tesla would "take the car in trade" to make that word wall you just typed valid if it was sold from "owner to owner" to owner to owner into eternity exactly as I stated. Go ahead and give the details... I'll wait.

Also, try to keep in mind that I was quoting someone who specifically said they bought the car new so.... strike two!

Reading is fundamental.

I think you need to go back to school if you feel "This is confusing enough" you make too many assumptions. I stand by everything I said. You’re out...

 

[Ostrichsak]

I think you need to go back to school if you feel "This is confusing enough" you make too many assumptions. I stand by everything I said. You’re out...

Not even you knows what you're talking about now. Just quit while you're behind.

 

[Greg63]

Any Tesla is going to be more reliable and have a lower cost of ownership over time than any European luxury vehicle. There is simply a lot less that can go wrong. I would never go near one of those vehicles with anything close to 100k miles on it but I purchased my MS with 150k on it without any hesitation. My 2013 MS 85 (sold 8/2014 so still has warranty) is in great condition and is the best drive I've had. I drove my wife's Lexus today and it was terrible in comparison. Her Lexus is a fantastic vehicle but it's nothing like the ride of the MS. I would like AP but I can live without it. FSD, who knows how long it'll be before cars are truly self driving and if you're coming from those cars you probably prefer to drive instead of having the car do the driving.

Does my battery charge slower at a SC? I'll trade a few minutes for the money I saved plus how much SC would you really do? My battery is about 11% lower than it was rated at new. My motor has been changed. If the battery craps out after my warranty there are places that refurbish them for a lot less than a new one but hopefully by that time Tesla will have a higher capacity replacement at a much lower price.

Anyone that can't afford to purchase the latest top of the line Tesla will have to make compromises. My compromises have given me maybe 80% or more of a newer MS at a very low price. After new tires, TPMS upgrade and the MCU2 upgrade I'll still be coming in under $19k. My point, don't let people scare you away from buying a pre AP MS. It's still going to be better than what you're coming from. BTW, I'd much rather have an older MS than a newer M3!!!

 

[Blazzt]

Yes, I agree with ^. I’m new to this community. Just bought my red 2014 model s 85 a few days ago . Price was 32k for 30k miles . So far I love it!!! I always find an excuse to go out just to drive it . Haha . Supercharging does takes approx 40 min for me . But tbh I don’t mind it. Little by little I’m getting used to it.

 

[Greg63]

There was a lot of doom and gloom predictions about the Prius when it first came out. How expensive it was going to be to own and how there would be a lot of problems with it. Remember how "experts" warned about battery replacement costs? Well time has shown that the Prius is one of the most reliable cars on the road with one of the lowest costs of ownership. Battery replacement is now cheap. I know someone that has 728,000 miles on their Prius with not a lot of cost.

I think that time will show that a Tesla will have a very low cost of ownership over the long haul. Older cheap Teslas are a bargain!

 

[Plasmid_Boy]

There was a lot of doom and gloom predictions about the Prius when it first came out. How expensive it was going to be to own and how there would be a lot of problems with it. Remember how "experts" warned about battery replacement costs? Well time has shown that the Prius is one of the most reliable cars on the road with one of the lowest costs of ownership. Battery replacement is now cheap. I know someone that has 728,000 miles on their Prius with not a lot of cost.

I think that time will show that a Tesla will have a very low cost of ownership over the long haul. Older cheap Teslas are a bargain!

I too think that the nose cone Model S are a bargain. I have two and been tempting to buy more.

 

[Sunshine State]

Not even you knows what you're talking about now. Just quit while you're behind.

You are a confused funny guy, I’ll be the bigger man and sign off

 

[ahhlun]

You are a confused funny guy, I’ll be the bigger man and sign off

Yes ignore him, he is trolling all over this forum.

 

[jpk195]

There are no 2013 P85Ds. There are a few very-late P85Ds from December, 2014 (I have one), but most were made in 2015-2016.

I’ve been looking at 75/75D (and on your site!), and I’m slowly coming around to not needing or wanting FSD, so AP1/nosecone seems like a good value. Any thoughts on 85D/P85D vs 90? I know there was a batch of downgrades in range on the 85 - are these baked in, or are the still happening? Anyone have a experience buying an 85 from Tesla and navigating this?

 

[2101Guy]

I’ve been looking at 75/75D (and on your site!), and I’m slowly coming around to not needing or wanting FSD, so AP1/nosecone seems like a good value. Any thoughts on 85D/P85D vs 90? I know there was a batch of downgrades in range on the 85 - are these baked in, or are the still happening? Anyone have a experience buying an 85 from Tesla and navigating this?

you will hear a lot of warnings about the 90 packs. Be advised, there are 3 versions. (You can search to find out how to tell version via label on the pack. Label is visible by looking at front right corner of pack behind passenger side wheel). Version 3 is fine. Not sure about version 2. Version 1 had some sort of issue.

 

[EV-CPO]

. Any thoughts on 85D/P85D vs 90? I know there was a batch of downgrades in range on the 85 - are these baked in, or are the still happening?

As mentioned above, be sure to verify the 90kWh battery version.

Research "batterygate" and "chargegate" for the 85kWh batteries.

I had a P85D that didn't suffer from either. I've since replaced the 85Kwh battery with a 100kWh battery, so I can no longer tell if it would have suffered from the "gates." Also, I don't follow them very closely.

 

[jpk195]

As mentioned above, be sure to verify the 90kWh battery version.

Thanks @EV-CPO. I just pulled the trigger yesterday on a 2016.5 (post-refresh) 90D. Loaded, silver/grey, AP1, with Turbines for 41k. Planning to check the battery version and rated miles at pickup.

Seems unlikely it’s V1 and reasonable likelihood it’s V3. Think I’m okay as long as it’s not V1, based on what I’ve read.

 

[EV-CPO]

Congrats! Good luck with the car.

 

[IronDan]

What's the consensus on getting MCU1 vs 2. I see you can now get it upgraded from 1 to 2 for $1,500 from Tesla? What is so bad atbout the 1, and also is this new NHSTA recall going to upgrade my 1 to a 2 for free anyways?

I think if you want Netflix, and other games and streaming media, you'd want to get the MCU upgrade, but I'm sure you can hold off on that since we also have our phones and will probably only use it when you're using the supercharger. I believe they'll only replace the chip(8gb to 64gb) and not upgrade you to MCU 2. I'm in the same boat as far as reliability. I just purchased a 2014 Model S P85 wi 35k before tt&l.

What's the consensus on getting MCU1 vs 2. I see you can now get it upgraded from 1 to 2 for $1,500 from Tesla? What is so bad atbout the 1, and also is this new NHSTA recall going to upgrade my 1 to a 2 for free anyways?

If you want Netflix and other streaming media and games that are found on the newer Teslas, then you'd want to do the upgrade from MCU 1 to 2. You can probably hold off on it since we have our phones anyways. I read that they won't upgrade your MCU for free because of the recall, but will replace the chip(8gb to 64gb). At least you don't have to worry about paying to repair the MCU now, which is a plus. I'm in the same boat. I ordered a used 2014 Model S P85 with 48k miles @ 38k with tt&l(Carvana). I'm most likely going to drive 30k miles by the next 5-6 years since that's what I drove for my previous car. I still have maybe around 1yr and 11 months left of the battery and drive warranty left. I'm also hoping no other issues surprise me. People have purchased used Model S's with no issues, but still, I'm still cautious. Any thoughts?