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Considering a Model 3 in NJ

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In my case I want matte finish as a way to get custom color unavail from factory. That being said I think of it more from a resale value. You won't get the PPF's value but if ding-ed value depreciation is about the same as cost of (partial) PPF, the ppf-ed is an easier sell when used.

Ex: 40 000 buy price new. Partial PPF 3000$. Resale value in 3 years without PPF and dings 32000, without dings 35000. Same "loss", the later easier to sell. (made up numbers for sake of the example).

Autoflex is cheaper and equally good protection as PPF. This is what I'm getting (and you can get ANY color you want)
 
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Nice. This is what I was thinking as well. Use it and enjoy. The first few dings will be tough on the heart, but then it will be ok for me. Same as anything new I get like a watch, phone, shoes, etc.

Yup, that's my take on it! And now since we're in a thread all about NJ ...

@Matt35 @haroldo @sroy and @rjpjnk ... I would like to invite all of you (and of course anyone else in the NJ/PA/DE area!) to come join the Delaware Valley Tesla Owners' Club - www.dvto.club ... it's a great group of folks. We just began resuming in-person events and would love to meet all of you in person ... even if you don't have your car yet, you're certainly welcome to join and attend our meet-ups. I'd suggest joining soon, we have a bunch of virtual "Tesla ABC" workshops coming up in the next few weeks that would be super beneficial.

(Full disclosure: I'm the chapter lead for Northern NJ ... some of my peers lead our other chapters - central NJ, south NJ, DE, Delaware Valley-PA/NJ, etc... )
 
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In my case I want matte finish as a way to get custom color unavail from factory. That being said I think of it more from a resale value. You won't get the PPF's value but if ding-ed value depreciation is about the same as cost of (partial) PPF, the ppf-ed is an easier sell when used.

Ex: 40 000 buy price new. Partial PPF 3000$. Resale value in 3 years without PPF and dings 32000, without dings 35000. Same "loss", the later easier to sell. (made up numbers for sake of the example).

Autoflex is cheaper and equally good protection as PPF. This is what I'm getting (and you can get ANY color you want)

Absolutely - if you're doing it as a customization for appearance, I think it totally makes sense. If you're worried about resale, maybe. PPF won't prevent a ding or dent - some rock chips, certainly.

For me, it's a daily driver, I'm a huge fan of pearl white tricoat paint (My last 3 cars have all had that color ...) and my long-term plan is for my son to end up with my Model 3 when he starts driving in 5 years ... (I told him either he can buy it from me, or if he gets a full scholarship to college, I'll give him the car. Will be a good incentive for him to work his tail off in high school - he's already chosen a bunch of honors classes and a STEM track for high school.... atta boy.) So if it's chipped up and has some dents when he gets it, I see that firmly as "the college kid who still has one of the best cars on the planet..." :) Sure beats the '86 Grand Am I drove to college every day. That thing was mostly a rolling collection of parts in loose formation.
 
You guys get charged a lot in the US for PPF/Ceramic Coating.

Here in Canada I have a quote from a solid company with 10+ years experience doing it, for a full frontal PPF (front fenders, front bumper, headlights, entire front hood) PLUS the entire car done in ceramic coating with a 5 year warranty for $2400 CAN. For the Americans in this thread that is $1955 US.

If I just wanted the PPF on the front the stand alone cost for that was $1500 CAN ($1200US).
 
^ Sorry I don't follow haha. In Canada the prices are the same regardless of your income. Every business of course can charge what they want. Are you suggesting the prices for PPF in the US are based on income levels? Or just that some businesses in "rich" areas charge more because they can get away with it? Im sure competition plays a big role as well. If one area has multiple car detailing shops all competing, the prices will be more aggressive.
 
^ Sorry I don't follow haha. In Canada the prices are the same regardless of your income. Every business of course can charge what they want. Are you suggesting the prices for PPF in the US are based on income levels? Or just that some businesses in "rich" areas charge more because they can get away with it? Im sure competition plays a big role as well. If one area has multiple car detailing shops all competing, the prices will be more aggressive.
The second part. Services and property and taxes, etc are more expensive in the northeast in general. But it’s similar to other parts of the country and world for that matter. I just feel like there is so many willing customers here, that the businesses don’t have to compete too deeply on prices anymore. Canada is not easy either by any means. It all averages out often times. But some people around the world have been able to benefit by working remotely due to covid and moving to cheaper areas. Don’t want to get off topic any further…back to these fantastic cars!

to that point. Shop around for quotes on any work you might want to do. Also search the forums and you should be able to narrow your search based on what other people have gotten priced out and their satisfaction with the work.
 
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^ Sorry I don't follow haha. In Canada the prices are the same regardless of your income. Every business of course can charge what they want. Are you suggesting the prices for PPF in the US are based on income levels? Or just that some businesses in "rich" areas charge more because they can get away with it? Im sure competition plays a big role as well. If one area has multiple car detailing shops all competing, the prices will be more aggressive.
I mean if I live in an area where cost of living is 2x the average, labor cost is probably 2x and labor-related services like restaurants and PPF is more expensive. But living in such areas means you usually also draw a high salary meaning that PPF 1.5x the price as someplace else may be relatively cheaper.

As an example, the job I have would pay, maybe 125k CAD in To/Mtl but I get near 300k CAD in the NYC area making a 5K PPF "cheap"
 
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I mean if I live in an area where cost of living is 2x the average, labor cost is probably 2x and labor-related services like restaurants and PPF is more expensive. But living in such areas means you usually also draw a high salary meaning that PPF 1.5x the price as someplace else may be relatively cheaper.

As an example, the job I have would pay, maybe 125k CAD in To/Mtl but I get near 300k CAD in the NYC area making a 5K PPF "cheap"

Makes sense yes. I noticed the shops I called in high end rich areas of Toronto were more expensive by 20-30% compared to the more blue collar working class suburbs. Naturally I am just going to drive to the cheaper area to get the job done.
 
Makes sense yes. I noticed the shops I called in high end rich areas of Toronto were more expensive by 20-30% compared to the more blue collar working class suburbs. Naturally I am just going to drive to the cheaper area to get the job done.
Regardless of the cost of living argument, I've seen too many horror stories on people who cheaped out on ppf labor cost. Reputable shops come with an implicit guarantee of quality work and that usually comes at a price.
 
Regardless of the cost of living argument, I've seen too many horror stories on people who cheaped out on ppf labor cost. Reputable shops come with an implicit guarantee of quality work and that usually comes at a price.
In some cases yes, but the reviews on the place I am using are fantastic. Two people I know used them and the results were 10/10. The online reviews are also amazing. Why pay an extra 1k for the same thing? The only reason some of the shops in Greater Toronto charge more is because their rent is much higher and their cost of doing business is higher so that cost is transferred to the customer.

I get what you're saying though, in many cases you do get what you pay for. But there are exceptions for reasons noted above by other users like cost of rent, labour costs, competition, etc. Ultimately for me its all about the reviews and the lowest price I can get based on the best quality.
 
In some cases yes, but the reviews on the place I am using are fantastic. Two people I know used them and the results were 10/10. The online reviews are also amazing. Why pay an extra 1k for the same thing? The only reason some of the shops in Greater Toronto charge more is because their rent is much higher and their cost of doing business is higher so that cost is transferred to the customer.

I get what you're saying though, in many cases you do get what you pay for. But there are exceptions for reasons noted above by other users like cost of rent, labour costs, competition, etc. Ultimately for me its all about the reviews and the lowest price I can get based on the best quality.
Rising star. Those are rare. If smart, won't stay that cheap for long.
 
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I'm sure people in other areas would laugh at this, but $250,000 salary in this area is probably, somewhat comfortable middle class, but depending on the neighborhood, not enough to raise a family one one salary alone.

All the folks running due west from Manhattan aren't helping. I mean it's helped my property value a whole lot - probably appreciated 100k++ in the last year -- but the influx is causing real overcrowding issues in our schools and such ... we just aren't equipped for this massive influx. And that's going to cause another property tax spike... Last thing we need.

Glad my little guy goes to high school in September - I'm 4 short years from not being so concerned about it.
 
Burning question from the MY side: has anyone who has already ordered asked if they will get the 5k discount if they take delivery after July 1st? I was told by the Charge Up NJ rep the order AND delivery have to be after July 1st to get the point of sale discount but others have been told different things.