Have Roadster Prices Bottomed Out?

[Msjulie]

My 1.5 was a couple K less than the low end listed above, it had 77k miles when I got it and had some minor paint damage and a couple chips in the windshield which I think have been fixed and are not in driver's line of sight. A couple of the rims have some damage due to the stupid locking lug adapter being a little out of round; I hope to replace them with plain old lugs soon.

I think it was a fairly basic model (no extra visible carbon fiber) and a 'base' sound system though it is a 505 and I was able to add a backup camera to it with inexpensive aftermarket.

It also had a few unexpected things as well (upgraded rotors, sport seats) as well as a new/refurb PEM in June of 2016 and battery replacement in 2014. Seller also provided a spare front 2.0 bumper cover he never put on the car and a black hard top in decent condition (which I have hanging in my garage). Also a CAN to convert Tesla S/X chargers to the Roadster w/Tesla HPC mobile charger.

According to the selling outfit, the owner was a Tesla management employee in LA area which is why I think there were these specific selected add-ons. I don't have his name but he did send me (through them) the complete history of the car in PDF scanned receipts. He also provided 2 new uncut keys and a new module since he had lost a key; Tesla cut and programmed them and I have 3 working keys now. The module is sitting in the box in my garage.

I replaced the rear tires a month after I got it and did some cosmetic work and it's been trouble free and a lot of fun. New front tires in a couple months I figure..

In the end I think I got a pretty good deal but it took me a few months to track down the right car/deal for me. It's worth the trouble!

 

[Roadster 1232]

@Roadster I never heard her called "Goodwill" but it makes sense given the service invoice. I picked her up in June of last year from a local dealer in Norcal. I'm new to the forum and would love to learn more about the history of my roadster. The registration records show she started in LA but also spent some time in Palm Desert and Arizona before being brought up to the Bay Area. It seems really strange that she changed hands so often but I'm glad I ended up with her. I've been driving her as my primary and it's been awesome.

 

[Roadster]

@Roadster 1232 welcome to the board! BTW, the "Goodwill" moniker was in no way meant to be disparaging as it's the term used on the service sheet when work is done gratis. We're all just amazed that something as expensive as the 3.0 upgrade was included at no cost but, hey, that's the beauty of having had it performed under the factory warranty, presumably, since no 2.x spares perhaps were available. Regardless, you can take pride in knowing that you now own what can arguably be considered the platinum standard for the Roadster; a fully optioned 2.5 Sport with a 3.0 upgrade. I hope to have the opportunity someday to see her in person.

Did you get your "R80" emblem by chance?

 

[Roadster]

Posting some shots of #1232 because... I mean, just look at her! More importantly, @Roadster 1232, thank you for validating the hopes of all current and future Roadster owners that these cars are indeed still worth the $$$.

 

[Roadster 1232]

@Roadster thanks! Yes, I did get the new badge installed recently.

 

[gregd]

Love the license plate, and congrats on your purchase.

Welcome to the group!

 

[Roadster 1232]

Love the license plate, and congrats on your purchase.

Welcome to the group!

Thanks @gregd ! I'm looking forward to checking out the threads.

 

[jerry505]

A longtime car collector car/dealer told me that cars usually hit bottom, as a rule of thumb, about the start of their 11th year - meaning after 10 model years. At this age, they are either “going to stay there or start back up.”

If he is right prices are still dropping on the Tesla Roadster until 2019. Time will tell ifi they start to go up then.

Being an EV, Tesla's Roadster may not follow this ten year rule of thumb. Other cars took longer to go up, of course.The difference with the Roadster is when 2019 hits I think the people who can afford six-figure EV's will want a newer Roadster over a classic Roadster. One reason is the Lotus Elise heritage. A second big reason is the battery - won't supercharge. Another reason is the tires last about 5,000 miles. A fourth reason is the much better technology and higher performance. For these reasons and more, I think prices will continue to go down until 2019 - and beyond.

 

[Roadster 1232]

A longtime car collector car/dealer told me that cars usually hit bottom, as a rule of thumb, about the start of their 11th year - meaning after 10 model years. At this age, they are either “going to stay there or start back up.”

If he is right prices are still dropping on the Tesla Roadster until 2019. Time will tell ifi they start to go up then.

Being an EV, Tesla's Roadster may not follow this ten year rule of thumb. Other cars took longer to go up, of course.The difference with the Roadster is when 2019 hits I think the people who can afford six-figure EV's will want a newer Roadster over a classic Roadster. One reason is the Lotus Elise heritage. A second big reason is the battery - won't supercharge. Another reason is the tires last about 5,000 miles. A fourth reason is the much better technology and higher performance. For these reasons and more, I think prices will continue to go down until 2019 - and beyond.

I think the battery upgrade option impacts this rule of thumb in the roadster's case, as long as the wait to upgrade isn't too long. Not many high end EV roadster options out there and a new battery adds years to the life of the used vehicle.

 

[strider]

My $0.02 is that the Roadster's future will be tied to Tesla's success. If Tesla continues to become a large standalone car company then there will always be interest in their first car. If Tesla is bought and/or fades away I believe that will limit the upside.

I would also expect another drop when Model 3 comes out (which could line up w/ the above 2019 estimate). I think there are a group of Roadster owners for whom Model S/X is too large who will replace their Roadster with a Model 3. My wife and I may be one of them. We are still debating on what to do w/ our Roadster when our Model 3 comes. The PXXDL Model 3 will out perform the Roadster in any measure (and I can take my kids in it). Once that arrives I don't think we'll drive the Roadster much at all. So do we hold onto it for nostalgia and once or twice/month date nights while paying for tags, taxes, insurance, etc or sell it to someone who will drive it?

 

[Roadster]

So do we hold onto it for nostalgia...?

No. Two words and a video...

1. Open.
2. Top.
3.

 

[ecarfan]

I think there are a group of Roadster owners for whom Model S/X is too large who will replace their Roadster with a Model 3. My wife and I may be one of them. We are still debating on what to do w/ our Roadster when our Model 3 comes. The PXXDL Model 3 will out perform the Roadster in any measure

I don't have kids but have had similar thoughts. But I love the compact Roadster cabin and the look of the car. The 3 won't compare in those areas. Of course a Model 3 PXXDL will be quicker, though it's range likely won't be better than my Roadster 3.0. Of course the 3 with options will be packed with modern features that the Roadster doesn't have. But it won't be the same...

I have a 3 reservation but expect to transfer it to an X purchase (and trade in my S) because I plan to tow a camper trailer next year and at this point I don't think the 3 towing capability will provide a useful range even with the largest 3 battery option. When I made the 3 reservation I had not even through about getting a camper trailer but am now firmly set on doing so.

So at this point I plan to hang on to my Roadster for a long time. There is nothing like it, and there never will be anything like it in the sense of a long range EV sports car that is "bare bones" in terms of comfort and modern conveniences.

 

[strider]

No. Two words and a video...

1. Open.
2. Top.
3.

I'm with you on 1 and 2 but a Model S P100DL is already quicker than the Roadster and it weighs nearly twice as much. The Model 3 PXXDL will be even quicker than the Model S. So if acceleration thrills are what you're after the Roadster is old news (that's a very old video)

We'll see. I'm not a very sentimental person and with 2 little kids it just doesn't get driven much. But I think that could change as the kids get older and certainly when they start driving themselves. My Father in law is into car shows (has a bunch of Corvettes) so maybe that could be a way to keep it interesting too.

 

[jerry505]

I am still seeing Roadsters on the market for over a year, like a 2.5 Sport advertised by a dealer for $81,999.

 

[Roadster]

I am still seeing Roadsters on the market for over a year, like a 2.5 Sport advertised by a dealer for $81,999.

@jerry505, I believe you may be referring to #985 at Rockstar Motors, right? If so, it appears they're attempting to flip it since it was previously for sale at Motorgroup for $74,980. Rockstar originally had it listed for $86K so they definitely have room for negotation.

Revising the previous pricing guide to include Signature 100 factoring based on the two currently up for sale (#80 & #84) and also including the current known Highest and Lowest sales:

Pricing Guide
1.5 - $48,000 - $60,000 (+25% for Sig 100)
2.0 Base - $55,000 - $70,000
2.0 Sport - $60,000 - $75,000
2.5 Base - $60,000 - $70,000
2.5 Sport - $70,000 - $90,000

Highest Sale Price
Price: $119,500
VIN: #1232
Date: March 2016
Notes: Fully optioned 2.5 Sport with 4,976 miles + 3.0 ESS upgrade

Lowest Sale Price
Price: $30,000
VIN: #1236
Date: December 2016
Notes: 2.5 Base with 101,635 miles, 159 miles (ranged?) @100% SoC

 

[gregd]

Have there been enough sales to guess at the price bump for the 3.0 battery upgrade? I'm assuming one doesn't get the entire $29k benefit.

 

[Roadster]

If we take #1232's ending auction price and subtract the 3.0 retail cost, that puts us @ $90,500. Seems like the proposed valuations are pretty good even with an extremely limited sample size... at least for now on the very top end, highly optioned 2.5 examples

 

[DeedWest]

I believe a Roadster can and should receive a $29,000 bump in price if it's selling with an installed 3.0 upgrade.

3.0 currently appears to have a 12-16 month wait time after a deposit is placed. If and when that wait period decreases, then I'd imagine the premium will decrease as well.

 

[Roadster]

Came across this site today and wanted to share it with the group:

Tesla Roadster Market - CLASSIC.COM

Granted, all of the data is compiled from public info of completed auctions and readily available online with a little research but it's still nice to see someone has taken the time to capture all the recent sales from the past few years in one place. I'm not sure how indicative this is of real-world Roadster avg. values since it doesn't include private party so I'd be interested in knowing if there's anyone else tracking this info.

Back in Jan 2017...

Based on my data for the last year, I've come up with this.

1.5 - $48,000 - $60,000
2.0 Base - $55,000 - $70,000
2.0 Sport - $60,000 - $75,000
2.5 Base - $60,000 - $70,000
2.5 Sport - $70,000 - $90,000.

@DeedWest - you're the purveyor of all things Roadster and a previous prognosticator on this thread. How do the numbers look today?