Buying CPO Tesla 85D vs 90

[Alvin]

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum and first time posting. Please let me know if my post is inappropriate or in the wrong forum. I'm planning to buy a CPO Tesla S. My choice is between 85D and 90 Model S 2015. Would you please help me to determine the best between these two? Regarding the battery range, I read some thread saying that model 90 and 90D battery has higher degrading rate compared to 85D. So does that mean both model 90 and 85D may have the same battery range? Regarding 4wheel drive, I live in California, so I don't really need that. But what about handling? is there a huge different between two? Performance, I don't really worry much, since all Tesla cars are powerful. Please help me to pick between 85D vs 90.

I saw these two CPO:

85D, 29K mile, power liftgate, 2015, 19" wheel, sunroof - 43.5K

90, 23k mile, power liftgate, 2015, 19" wheel, sunroof, upgraded sound, smart air suspension. - 45.5K

Thank you in advance for your advices.

 

[seclinton]

Go with the 90, the sound is better and air suspension to me is a must

 

[kaidou]

to me, this is a no-brainer. go for 90.

 

[Sprandt23]

Hi Alvin, welcome to the forum!
I have an 85D and love it, gives me plenty of power and performance, but I do live in the Midwest where the all wheel drive can be useful in the winter. You are correct that some of the early 90 batteries had some degradation issues, but there were several versions so you may want to see if you can find out which one this has.

There is a big contingency here that is of the opinion for going with the largest battery you can - but others who think the 85 battery was one of the best. @bmah can probably share some thoughts on the 85D as well, and perhaps comparisons, I know he loves his as well!

Good luck with your decision - I'm sure either way you will love your Tesla!

 

[bmah]

Hi Alvin, welcome to the forum!
I have an 85D and love it, gives me plenty of power and performance, but I do live in the Midwest where the all wheel drive can be useful in the winter. You are correct that some of the early 90 batteries had some degradation issues, but there were several versions so you may want to see if you can find out which one this has.

There is a big contingency here that is of the opinion for going with the largest battery you can - but others who think the 85 battery was one of the best. @bmah can probably share some thoughts on the 85D as well, and perhaps comparisons, I know he loves his as well!

Good luck with your decision - I'm sure either way you will love your Tesla!

Welcome @Alvin to TMC!

My spidey-sense was tingling all day. I'm a big fan of the 85D but I bought mine because at the time it was the longest-ranged Tesla you could get at the time.

Brain dump follows:

Personally I'd be a little leery of the 90 packs because they did tend to degrade somewhat more quickly than others. So if you could get more information on the pack on the car you're looking at, that might be helpful (like how many rated miles at a full charge). (It might not be possible get that information, however.) @Sprandt23 is correct in that the newer versions of the 90 packs were somewhat better but I'm not sure how that matches up with the build date of the 90 you are looking at (the 90 packs first came out in the second half of 2015). Note that the dual-motor Teslas of the time were rated for longer range than the rear-wheel Teslas.

The SAS might be important to you (I need to crank mine up to "High" to get in and out of my driveway to avoid scraping the bottom). The 90, having only a rear drive unit, will have a somewhat larger frunk than the 85D, so you'd get more storage.

Both cars have AP1 hardware, but you didn't say whether it was advertised as an activated feature. In theory, cars with Autopilot hardware can have it activated after purchase, although several people have reported difficulties doing this recently (specifically for AP1). I believe there will probably not be any more development of AP1 features, but it's still a game-changing capability for long-distance freeway driving.

Not sure if I can give any meaningful comments on handling. I can say my 85D feels extremely planted, more than a P85 (which is obviously not the same as a 90). The 85D will have better acceleration, and while you might never drag-race your car, it can help on short freeway onramps. You might have more even tire wear on the 85D than the 90 due to the AWD.

To me neither one is obviously better than the other, given the information in your original post. All other things being equal I think you'll probably end up happy with either one.

Good luck!

Bruce.

 

[aerodyne]

I would vote for the 85D. Slightly better efficiency, as the dual motors sleep one unit under normal driving. IMO, this partially offsets the slightly greater rated range. Plus, you won't be stranded if a drive unit dies.

I averaging 308 wh/mi for last 8k miles

I do not see why you cannot ask your delivery advisor to fully charge each car and report the rated range, prior to accepting it.

All said, probably buy the car that appears best, and be prepared to reject and get the other car within 7 days....

Good luck!

 

[Alvin]

Thank you so much for your comments and advices. Buying CPO from Tesla is a totally different experience. Can not see the car, no test drive, no additional information other than the pictures requested from the web and the car fax. The 85D already sold , now I only left with one choice, the 90. I know either one is still an awesome car for me. Now, I either pick this 90 or wait for another available 85D. AWD vs better sound/suspension. Will the car with smart air suspension drive smoother or the air suspension is only for clearance?

 

[bmah]

Will the car with smart air suspension drive smoother or the air suspension is only for clearance?

Air suspension is supposedly smoother, but some people have described it as "mushy" compared to coils. All of the Model S I have driven had air suspension, so I don't have any first-hand knowledge for comparison.

Bruce.

 

[Jkaufm32]

I have the air suspension on my 85D and love it. I normally drive 2 door sports cars and my Model S doesn't feel mushy at all.

 

[Lasttoy]

Please , please be aware u r not allowed to see, touch or drive a CPO till u have paid for it.
Please read every post about buying a CPO.
I tried for months to buy one, it was 100 miles south of me, the sales person refused to tell where it was. OR let me drive it.
I gave up and bought from private person.
Buyer beware.

 

[aerodyne]

Pictures are available upon request. Plus if you don't like it when you go to pick it up, you can reject it.

 

[aerodyne]

Thank you so much for your comments and advices. Buying CPO from Tesla is a totally different experience. Can not see the car, no test drive, no additional information other than the pictures requested from the web and the car fax. The 85D already sold , now I only left with one choice, the 90. I know either one is still an awesome car for me. Now, I either pick this 90 or wait for another available 85D. AWD vs better sound/suspension. Will the car with smart air suspension drive smoother or the air suspension is only for clearance?

There will be other cars. Are you using EV-CPO site to look at the country wide inventory?

Pick out two cars. If the first is not to your likeing, you have 7 days to pick another. Be nice and honest about what you want to your DA. Do more research on this site and bring the checklist.

 

[aerodyne]

Agree with Bruce about Air suspension. 2015 is not high risk for problems, but that is what the Warranty is for.

 

[aerodyne]

There are over ten, loaded 85D on the EV-CPO Hunter site.

 

[scottycs]

Go with the D..much better traction.

For coil vs air, I have both, the coils feel more sporty and handle better. The air suspension is mushy feeling.

 

[roman415]

The sound and the suspension didn't seem like a big deal to me. I have never noticed the difference between the speakers in the crapmobile I drove as a teenager versus the Bose or other brand name sound systems, so I doubt I'll really notice the "high-fidelity" sound. The thing everybody says about the SAS is that it's great for going up steep driveways, which is great, except that I never do go up steep driveways, and I cannot even recall seeing a steep driveway. But the repair costs for an SAS are bad/

For me, the extra power of the 85D (a second or more faster is nothing to sneeze at) while saving a couple grand makes this a no-brainer in favor of the 85D.

 

[dannycamps]

I just recently took delivery of a Model S 85D a week ago. Like you, I was debating going with the 85D or the 90D. Ultimately came down to two options for me:

2015 85D with 17k miles
2015 90D with 33k miles

Both cars had the same options/packages (I was looking for specific options) but the 85D had the center console add-on and the 19" cyclone wheels where the 90D had the yacht floor and the base wheels. Pricing was about the same for them.

I ultimately went with the 85D because it had less miles, upgraded wheels, and the console. I figured with the battery degradation of the 90D (based on what I read here and around the web), they would both be pretty close on a full charge (~265 for the 85D, ~275 for the 90D).

I am more than pleased with my purchase.

 

[Alvin]

Thank you everyone. I decided to buy the 90. The final price is now $44,100. Still waiting on the delivery appointment. They said the car will be shipped to Costa Mesa (from Los Angeles) approximately 4/23 or 4/24. I would pick it up there but they won't allow. And they said the inspection should be pretty quick, I can pick up the car same day or next day. Still no set date yet. Like expected, the Sale Adviser gives me very little details about what to expect. I plan to send an email asking for details. I hope someone from this forum with experiences can help me out here. What do I need to ask/check for on the delivery day? I saw a couple of posts saying that ask for

• 4 years warranty documentation
• battery degradation report?? will they do this?
• Original delivery PDF
• Completion of 4 years maintenance?? Will they do this?
• The 70 points inspection reports?? will this available??
• Anything else should I ask/check? Please advise

Regarding the payments, I only put down 30% and finance the rest through BoA. I know I have to bring the cashier check for my down payment, what about the money from BoA, I saw someone said we need to ask the bank to print the check?? but my adviser did not mention anything about that. Any advise?

I'm planning to put together the questions I will ask my sale adviser. Any comments/ advise from you are greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Alvin

 

[aerodyne]

I will try to answer some of your questions:

The warranty should be in your files when you make the deposit, along with sales agreement, etc. Pretty std stuff

if by orig delivery PDF, you mean the Mulrony window sticker, this can be had if you ask early and nicely, Same approach will get you the maintentance history, but they will remove prior owner info.

I doubt they will do any 4 yr maintenance, or give you the 70 point report, if there is such I thing, I have searched hard and never found it.

You can ask them to charge the car to a given percent, say 90, and check the rated miles. It could be 5-10% lower than new for the 90 batt.

You definitely should search this forum for the CPO pre-buy check list, and take your time and don't get rushed. Hopefully, the car will be to your liking, and no major discrepancies that cant be fixed. Make sure you get a written agreement on repairs if any are needed.
'
Also, you have the the VIN, search up the options on EV CPO site, and also for damage on Car fax or equal

Think positive. The orig owner, an early adopter, prolly really cared about the car AND wanted to get the most money when turned it in. This probably is the case with most of the Tesla "CPO" cars, problem cars with obvious issues are sent to auction I have heard.

 

[Ole Capt]

Don’t be butt hurt if they miss the ETA. Mine was 4/17 now 4/24. I made my deposit two weeks ago and my car is still on the original lot. Good luck.