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Critique My Strategy: Blindly Buying the Base Model

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Great to hear!

The only downside I heard it has in that situation is when coming at full speed to traffic approaching ahead. It stops more abruptly than many would like to see.
Agreed. We see farther than it does. So I will often disable AP wit the stalk to get regen to take over when I want it. I reenable once I've slowed down enough, and I know AP will not want to accelerate anymore.
 
Agreed. We see farther than it does. So I will often disable AP wit the stalk to get regen to take over when I want it. I reenable once I've slowed down enough, and I know AP will not want to accelerate anymore.

Going to take some tinkering I am sure but during my 45 minute test drive I was catching on very fast and recognizing its weaknesses and also ensuring that I was vigilant regardless of whether I had confidence in the system or not.

I am just looking for it to solve world peace in my household for stop and go traffic. The rest is gravy!
 
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I am just looking for it to solve world peace in my household for stop and go traffic. The rest is gravy!

It will. I live in the DC area where horrible traffic is the norm, and for me, Autopilot makes the difference between a barely contained murderous rage and a relaxing if slow cruise, watching people and cars and enjoying music.

It's nice for highway cruising too, but stop-and-go traffic is by far the biggest gap in effort and irritation between manual driving and Autopilot.
 
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I've had my S60 for a couple of weeks and its fantastic. I was thinking about a loaded Chevy Bolt later this year but the lower price for the S60 got me to make the jump. I kept the options to a minimum but did get the next gen seats and autopilot. I did not get the premium package so I can confirm you don't get the motorized liftgate. But I don't mind using my arms :). The car is awesome no regrets!
 
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Living in the NE the real option I would consider is Dual Motor (4WD).

I'm perhaps in the minority but I'm not interested in AP. My non-air suspension is fine too.

Other than battery size the other options are to me in the "nice to have" category. For me the ultimate base car would be any "stripped" D model - and choose your battery size based on your driving needs.
 
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Tesla is a giant iphone on wheels. Even the most expensive ones today will be totally obsolete in 5 years. You will lose a lot less money if you need to sell it one day compared to the fully optioned ones. Also, less than 5% of all Model S are barebone. This means a lot less competition when you need to sell it. Tesla second hand buyers are very price sensitive. This will work in your favour one day.

(Belated) thanks for the super smart and helpful post, EV Holiday.
 
Tesla is a giant iphone on wheels. Even the most expensive ones today will be totally obsolete in 5 years. You will lose a lot less money if you need to sell it one day compared to the fully optioned ones. Also, less than 5% of all Model S are barebone. This means a lot less competition when you need to sell it. Tesla second hand buyers are very price sensitive. This will work in your favour one day.


Hmm. After further thought....

The problem with that thinking is that by the time I sell my S, the 3 should be available, meaning potential S buyers will be even more skewed toward luxury add-ons than presently. So once 3 is out, it may be tougher to sell a base S. The problem is compounded by the fact that I surely won't be the only cheapskate S owner poised to downgrade to a 3, so the base models (even if they're relatively few) should be disproportionally on sale at that point.
 
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Resale in general, is VERY tough with high priced cars and even tougher when they are EVs. The CPO P85s I've been offered were three years old and almost half price. Indeed, Teslas would be even worse, but unlike say a Camry, there aren't 40 billion of them out there (i.e. the "supply side" of the situation is somewhat low and practically controlled by Telsa in large part - 6 months ago half of all used Teslas for sale were CPO cars).

You really need to do a calculation worksheet to show yourself purchase price minus predicted resale. There was one floating around here, but I noted the depreciation assumption was wrong in that it assumed linear depreciation curve.

At the end of the day, it comes down to money and if you want to play with all the goodies, you should expect to pay. Virtually all cars are massively depreciating assets. The question you have to come to terms with is how much are you willing to "eat" to enjoy the car.

I will say that even the "worst" Model S is STILL a Model S. I mean heck, put leather in a white Model S 60 and the average person won't notice the difference between it a fully loaded P90DL! Indeed, cruising down the road they are going to feel more alike than different in terms of the drive.
 
Cab, yes, this thread has reassured me that my strategy of going for a base, stripped-down car would still scratch all important itches for me. I'm grateful for the help.

But one question: if Teslas depreciate so quickly, why are used ones so expensive? I took a quick look at CPO price lists, and the savings seemed too trivial to consider going that route (fewer features wouldn't pain me, but earlier versions might).
 
Cab, yes, this thread has reassured me that my strategy of going for a base, stripped-down car would still scratch all important itches for me. I'm grateful for the help.

But one question: if Teslas depreciate so quickly, why are used ones so expensive? I took a quick look at CPO price lists, and the savings seemed too trivial to consider going that route (fewer features wouldn't pain me, but earlier versions might).
I don't they they depreciate any more than other vehicles of this price range. People like to point out the total deprecation without removing the tax credits from it. Once you remove that the depreciation is quite normal.
 
The CPO list is no longer a good indication of value. In December there were 300 or so CPO cars out there. Today, what, maybe 30 - and most are 60s that aren't actually selling. As to cars that are out there on Autotrader I've been watching for months and many of the same cars are still sitting there. The lower priced cars are the ones that tend to move.
 
The CPO list is no longer a good indication of value. In December there were 300 or so CPO cars out there. Today, what, maybe 30 - and most are 60s that aren't actually selling. As to cars that are out there on Autotrader I've been watching for months and many of the same cars are still sitting there. The lower priced cars are the ones that tend to move.
The CPO site is not a good indication of cars that are available. Tesla does not regularly update the listing and most of the time there are many, many more cars actually available than what is listed.
 
I researched audio today (consensus: definitely opt for premium on X, but not on S), and kept seeing that term, Slacker. Can you explain?

I take corners with brio (I'm used to driving like a Tasmanian devil in my Miata), and I understand stock seats aren't very grippy, so this might actually be an upgrade I do. Plus, I thought Wshowell made some really good points about the features that are extra important upon resale. That's an important concern, as I'm probably not going to drive this till it drops. Once Model 3 clears its waiting list, I'm downgrading (hopefully with a year or two still left on my warranty, again, for resale value).



I keep hearing that the S rides like it's on a rail, due to low center of grav due to the batteries at the bottom of the chassis....yet I keep hearing the D has better traction. I'm having trouble reconciling. Is it "great" without the D, and "super-fantastic" with it? Or what am I missing?

Slacker is internet radio that comes standard. You tell it the song you want to hear and it plays.

If you buy the base model S and then downgrade to the model 3 it will likely be an even trade if you option the 3 the same as your S, and the 3 will drop in value faster than your used S.

When I first got my car I was making a left turn from a stop on a slippery road and accelerated a bit too fast. Back end started to spin out. Would not have happened with a D. Accelerating on wet pavement works better with AWD. It has been an issue maybe 3 times in 2 years. Objectively, not worth $5000.

You seem to be getting away from your initial premise. Once you decide you can spend a little here, a little there, it's a whole new ballgame.

My next car will likely be the 90D or whatever the equivalent is in a couple years with the color and seats I like. However, I recognize that what I buy is not a value proposition. The options are not an investment. They just make me feel better.
 
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Personally, I leased to be done with the depreciation risks. We have no idea what the next five years will bring, We can guess, but the competition itself will be something to watch for, in this brand new market of long-range EVs. If Mercedes or BMW knock it out of the park, what happens to Model S resale values?