Got my Model 3 order invite, decided to wait

[joe carlson]

Hi all,

Wanted to post this for a couple reasons. First, to let people know where the orders are. I'm a first day online order in Denver. Got my order invite 2 weeks ago. I'm sure that will go into someone's spreadsheet.

Second, I wanted to explain why I'm waiting, as hard as it is. Primarily it's the battery. I won't take road trips in this car, it will spend most of its life in traffic going to and from work (about 35 miles round trip). The longest trip we would every take in this car would be about 200 miles between charges. Because of that I really don't want to spend $9k on the bigger battery. I'd rather put that money into other upgrades that I will use.

Have a nice day,
joe

 

[mekberg]

Have you considered the loss of the $7,500 tax credit into your decision to wait? Assuming of course you can fully take advantage.

 

[joe carlson]

Have you considered the loss of the $7,500 tax credit into your decision to wait? Assuming of course you can fully take advantage.

I did. Based on their original delivery estimates the tax credits would taper off mid-summer sometime. It will likely be later than that now. If that changes and they're actually able to accelerate I can always go back and order with the big battery.

 

[mekberg]

With Standard Battery being pushed back to 2019 you'll probably qualify for a $3,750 credit at that point in time.

 

[joe carlson]

With Standard Battery being pushed back to 2019 you'll probably qualify for a $3,750 credit at that point in time.

On my order page it said AWD Q2, standard battery Q3, but I take that with a grain of salt like all Tesla dates. My 2nd reason for waiting was dual motor/AWD since I need to drive this car year round in CO and that honestly may end up being the the trigger for me since they swapped that and standard battery in the firing order.

 

[mwoody999]

@Joe, my advice to you is not to wait for SRB. There is no way you are going to get the $7500 if you wait for SRB. Not even $3750. $1875? maybe. Low temps in CO (nov-apr) is going to take off 25% or more from the range which means your 310 mile rated battery would only get you about 250miles or less. Tesla does not recommend charging above 80% and you don't want it to go below 20% which means you charge 60% of 250 miles everytime or charge every 150 miles. Like you, I'm a day 1 online reservation holder, invited 4/18 and configured a red/18/pup/aero on 4/20. No VIN yet.

 

[Moderatefan]

On my order page it said AWD Q2

Musk previously said complexities won't be added until they reach 5k/week, which is planned for end of June, at which point you can only count on Jul-Aug delivery in the best case, not Q2.
These estimates will slide.

 

[drawfour]

The longest trip we would every take in this car would be about 200 miles between charges

The SR is 220 miles. You're in Colorado. There's not much room for play in there - if you hit unexpected head winds, low temps, etc, that could reduce your available range by a large amount. As long as your 200 mile trip has other charging available along the way, I suppose it'll be OK. Thank you for deferring. Makes me jump one more spot up.

 

[amitmishra4]

Does anyone know what happens if you decide to hold your place vs. not do anything when you receive the invite? I have two reservations and I configured one for the LR and want to wait for the SR for the other, should i leave it at the configure screen and when the Short range comes out, will I just be able to configure it? Or should I mark the 'Hold my place' and wait? Furthermore, if I do go ahead and hold my place and change my mind in a week, can I come back and order another LR model next week? I appreciate any guidance. Thanks.

 

[Dogwhistle]

Hi all,

Wanted to post this for a couple reasons. First, to let people know where the orders are. I'm a first day online order in Denver. Got my order invite 2 weeks ago. I'm sure that will go into someone's spreadsheet.

Second, I wanted to explain why I'm waiting, as hard as it is. Primarily it's the battery. I won't take road trips in this car, it will spend most of its life in traffic going to and from work (about 35 miles round trip). The longest trip we would every take in this car would be about 200 miles between charges. Because of that I really don't want to spend $9k on the bigger battery. I'd rather put that money into other upgrades that I will use.

Have a nice day,
joe

If you have trips to make that actually have 200 mile legs between charges, you will never make it on the standard battery unless in absolutely ideal conditions. Even then the pucker-factor will be high as you coast in on electro-fumes.

 

[Blu Angel]

I did. Based on their original delivery estimates the tax credits would taper off mid-summer sometime. It will likely be later than that now. If that changes and they're actually able to accelerate I can always go back and order with the big battery.

jc, that is not entirely correct.

Once Tesla produces its 200,000 US sold vehicle (assume post July 1st),
then Tesla has 2 full quarters of TM3 production where US buyers are eligible for the full $7,500 EV rebate
That brings you to January 1st, 2019

Subsequently, next 2 quarters purchasers will receive $3750
and finally next 2 quarters will receive final $1,875

So, you have more time to reflect.....

BTW, here's an article from cleantechnica which clearly explains the US federal EV phase-out
Huge Flaw In US EV Tax Credit Will Hurt GM & Tesla Beginning In 2020 | CleanTechnica

 

[seattlite2004]

If you have trips to make that actually have 200 mile legs between charges, you will never make it on the standard battery unless in absolutely ideal conditions. Even then the pucker-factor will be high as you coast in on electro-fumes.

Isn't that the point of the Superchargers?

 

[Monkey]

I’m in the Denver area and a Model X owner. Reserved a 3 within the first 30 seconds of orders opening up online... Got my invite to configure months ago. I told the configurator survey thing they had back then that I wanted to wait for dual motor. Since then, have received a couple emails encouraging me to configure and order as well as a phone call around the end of February, asking if I was ready to configure. Told them I’m waiting for dual motor and white seats. And if the federal tax credit goes away before I can get those things, I may just wait a bit longer since we’ve had some other expenses come up. Guy on the phone thanked me for the input and said they were not trying to pressure people, but rather trying to get a feel for what people wanted and what they were thinking when it comes to configuring. Here in CO and a few other areas, the dual motor/ AWD is a huge consideration.

I probably won’t buy the premium options and I’m unsure about the larger battery as this will not be a primary car or a road trip vehicle and may be used more by the kids over the foreseeable future. OTOH, as we’ve found with our X P90D, there’s no such thing as “too much battery.” If I had to pick between ordering with the large battery now or waiting until later without the tax credit, I would get the larger battery now. It looks like the full $7500 credit will expire this year in Q3... Hope it works out and I can order as I could take advantage of all the tax credits for this year. Next year, looks like I probably wouldn’t be able to utilize all of the credits, even if they’re still available.

 

[Quickstart88]

Hi all,

Wanted to post this for a couple reasons. First, to let people know where the orders are. I'm a first day online order in Denver. Got my order invite 2 weeks ago. I'm sure that will go into someone's spreadsheet.

Second, I wanted to explain why I'm waiting, as hard as it is. Primarily it's the battery. I won't take road trips in this car, it will spend most of its life in traffic going to and from work (about 35 miles round trip). The longest trip we would every take in this car would be about 200 miles between charges. Because of that I really don't want to spend $9k on the bigger battery. I'd rather put that money into other upgrades that I will use.

Have a nice day,
joe

Hey Joe -

I am with you on this one. I too got my invite about 1 week ago. I work form home 95% of the time. I am not in a desperate need of a car, just replacing my 1999 Toyota 4 runners. I gave this all of thoughts. I am in CA and cold weather impacting battery is not a problem. At 220 miles on SRB, more than enough for me. Losing half of that incentive hurts but economically, it just make sense to go what standard battery. I plan to do premium upgrade. EAP (debating). For the amount of driving I do, EAP is not economical.

Other thoughts go SRB vs LRB

Cons
Losing out 3,750 aka 1/2 the full incentive
Losing the potential CA state incentive of 2.5K. Funds are depleting.

Pros
Car insurance as I've checked will be 1.5K to 2K per year more on EV over ICE.
Wait a little longer to get all the kink ironed out.

What is everyone else thoughts given my situation.
Give me a thumbs up if my decision is right and thumbs down if that is a bad choice.

Remember: I was so excited when I got the invite. After factoring all the cost - it just hit you and your decision making just harder. It's a constant back and forth once it really hit your wallet.

 

[drawfour]

Losing out 3,750 aka 1/2 the full incentive
Losing the potential CA state incentive of 2.5K. Funds are depleting.

3.75k + 2.5k = 6.25k potentially lost by waiting for SR. So effectively, it's like you paid less than 3k for LR if you get it with the incentives and if you would lose the incentives by going SR. So I guess that's the question. If the extra ~90 miles is not worth $3k, then you have your answer.

 

[TexasEV]

You have mountains, cold, wind, rain, and snow in Colorado. If you plan on making a 200 mile trip without charging you’re making a big mistake. If you can’t afford the long range Model 3 then don’t buy the car.

 

[pcpro]

Insurance that much more? You mean in your situation only? Mine will only go up about $100/year.

 

[Quickstart88]

3.75k + 2.5k = 6.25k potentially lost by waiting for SR. So effectively, it's like you paid less than 3k for LR if you get it with the incentives and if you would lose the incentives by going SR. So I guess that's the question. If the extra ~90 miles is not worth $3k, then you have your answer.

You convinced me. I just configured my ride. I opt'ed out on EAP. Only option was color for me.

 

[drawfour]

You convinced me. I just configured my ride. I opt'ed out on EAP. Only option was color for me.

Enjoy!

 

[Dogwhistle]

Isn't that the point of the Superchargers?

I assumed when he said 200 miles between charges, that he was referring to actual availability of charge points.