Help from experienced model S owners

[Ehninger1212]

Hey everyone! This is my first official thread post. I am looking for advice from some knowledgeable model S owners about the best option for a used model S. I am bouncing between a 2013 Model S85 (~70,000miles), a 2013 model S60 (~62,000miles) and a 2014 S60 (~78,000miles). All three are around the same price range. Which one would you all suggest and why? I am mostly concerned with battery degradation and the MCU failure issue. Some other factors are, I live in an apartment with no home charging but my daily commute is ~20 mile round trip, plenty of chargers around. Also i do go on roadtrips 3-4 times a year, which i know has an established supercharger network.

Let me know what you all think!

 

[moefit]

It’s a no brainer, go with 85, mainly for the range. If you do road trips the time saved vs 60 will be worth it. And not to mention the 85 will have faster charging speeds. In your case that’s important because you don’t have home charging.

The range on the 85 is listed at 265 miles per full charge. And the 60 at 208 miles per full charge.
Tesla recommends you keep the battery max of 80 percent unless you’re doing road trip. So now the listed range is 212 miles for the 85 and 167 miles for the 60. But that’s for new cars with new batteries. Now you deduct 3% for battery degradation and we have 208 miles for the 85 and 162 miles for the 60.
And these rating are based on ideal driving conditions and driving in a relaxed state. Not pushing it, not going uphills and not in extreme heat or cold. All these factors will decrease range.

As far as mcu1, they all have the same risk but the 85 does have 8 year/unlimited miles Warranty on drive unit and battery and the 60 has 8 year/125k warranty.

The only thing that could push me towards the 2014 S60 is if it’s 10/14 build or later.
Then that’s the one. Buy it, the upgrades are worth.
It will have newer seat design 2nd gen, it will have the newer dash screen resolution and thinner bezel. And it will AP1 hardware. Yes autopilot. And other behind the scenes improvements.

The 1st gen seats are not great, actually pretty bad.

 

[OrbiterTI4]

How much would you save going for a 60 instead of an 85?

 

[Ehninger1212]

How much would you save going for a 60 instead of an 85?

they are within $1000 of eachother. they 2014 60 is more than the 2013 85

 

[Ehninger1212]

It’s a no brainer, go with 85, mainly for the range. If you do road trips the time saved vs 60 will be worth it. And not to mention the 85 will have faster charging speeds. In your case that’s important because you don’t have home charging.

The range on the 85 is listed at 265 miles per full charge. And the 60 at 208 miles per full charge.
Tesla recommends you keep the battery max of 80 percent unless you’re doing road trip. So now the listed range is 212 miles for the 85 and 167 miles for the 60. But that’s for new cars with new batteries. Now you deduct 3% for battery degradation and we have 208 miles for the 85 and 162 miles for the 60.
And these rating are based on ideal driving conditions and driving in a relaxed state. Not pushing it, not going uphills and not in extreme heat or cold. All these factors will decrease range.

As far as mcu1, they all have the same risk but the 85 does have 8 year/unlimited miles Warranty on drive unit and battery and the 60 has 8 year/125k warranty.

The only thing that could push me towards the 2014 S60 is if it’s 10/14 build or later.
Then that’s the one. Buy it, the upgrades are worth.
It will have newer seat design 2nd gen, it will have the newer dash screen resolution and thinner bezel. And it will AP1 hardware. Yes autopilot. And other behind the scenes improvements.

The 1st gen seats are not great, actually pretty bad.

How can i tell what the build date is? just look for autopilot cameras?

 

[carter_seattle]

And it will AP1 hardware. Yes autopilot.

For me, Autopilot is a killer feature that, once you experience it, you can't live without. Especially on a road trip.

I found this resource of Model S iterations over the years that you might find useful:

Model S - Options by Year - Tesla Motors Club Wiki

 

[Bridor]

Have you seen this one for $29K?

https://www.lasvegasautosports.com/details/used-2014-tesla-model-s/43067041

It does not have autopilot and has 119K miles - is this in the ball park?

Brent

 

[Ehninger1212]

For me, Autopilot is a killer feature that, once you experience it, you can't live without. Especially on a road trip.

I found this resource of Model S iterations over the years that you might find useful:

Model S - Options by Year - Tesla Motors Club Wiki

Thanks for the response! It seems most autopilot set up vehicles are just out of my reach. its come down to how much i will save on maintenance and fuel. My currently daily driver cost a lot in fuel alone and is getting to un-reliable to keep driving everyday.

 

[Ehninger1212]

Have you seen this one for $29K?

https://www.lasvegasautosports.com/details/used-2014-tesla-model-s/43067041

It does not have autopilot and has 119K miles - is this in the ball park?

Brent

i have! it is in the price range. However i am a little bit hesitant to get one with that many miles.

Edit: i guess the warranty is good for 1 1/2 more years though! Also.. looks like its 93k miles!

in the photos the state of charge is at 0%

 

[Sabre Man]

S85 for the range, especially since you can't charge at home.

 

[Bridor]

My 2014 Tesla Model S with no autopilot has 190K miles and still drives great. I upgraded the front bumper ($3,500) to look like the latest models and I paid $1,200 to have the center console installed by Tesla. It has the rear-facing seats so it is the perfect car. It is still a blast to drive even without autopilot. I still owe $29K on my loan... I plan on keeping it for life.

Brent

 

[moefit]

Nice car, love the updated grill.

 

[David.85D]

How can i tell what the build date is? just look for autopilot cameras?

The build date (month/year) is on the vin plate on the drivers door frame.

 

[SO16]

Just know that quite a few people have had their supercharging speeds reduced as well as their max range. And they are not too happy about it. Seems to affect the 85kw batteries for 2016 and older vehicles. Those are pretty old vehicles you are looking at.

Also it sounds like money may be a bit tight for a car like this. A Model S can have expensive repairs. (Ie door handles, MCU - if replacing). You might be better off going with a used model 3.

Honestly, if I couldn’t charge at home, I’d probably forego an EV. The convenience charging at home is unmatched. But going to charger stations every week would get old (unless you can do something else while there).

Also there is what’s known as “phantom drain” which will slowly reduce your charge even while sitting. So even though you have a short commute, it will still eat up a bit of mileage just sitting there. This can be mitigated by changing some settings and not pinging it with your app often. But it is a “thing”. I typically lose 2 miles per day but depends on temp. Also in the winter, expect a 20-30% loss.

It looks like I’m running them down but I just want you to know. These vehicles are awesome and I plan on sticking with Tesla for many years. But there are caveats, ie affordability and charging situation.

 

[Ehninger1212]

Just know that quite a few people have had their supercharging speeds reduced as well as their max range. And they are not too happy about it. Seems to affect the 85kw batteries for 2016 and older vehicles. Those are pretty old vehicles you are looking at.

Also it sounds like money may be a bit tight for a car like this. A Model S can have expensive repairs. (Ie door handles, MCU - if replacing). You might be better off going with a used model 3.

Honestly, if I couldn’t charge at home, I’d probably forego an EV. The convenience charging at home is unmatched. But going to charger stations every week would get old (unless you can do something else while there).

Also there is what’s known as “phantom drain” which will slowly reduce your charge even while sitting. So even though you have a short commute, it will still eat up a bit of mileage just sitting there. This can be mitigated by changing some settings and not pinging it with your app often. But it is a “thing”. I typically lose 2 miles per day but depends on temp. Also in the winter, expect a 20-30% loss.

It looks like I’m running them down but I just want you to know. These vehicles are awesome and I plan on sticking with Tesla for many years. But there are caveats, ie affordability and charging situation.

Yeah i am scouting some model 3's now, at the prices they are used i dont see much reason to not just jump for the standard range plus.

So for charging.. i wont be able to keep it topped off during the week. But every weekend i spend Saturday and Sundays at my shop, i would probably use my welder outlet to top off, im there for 6 to 8 hours anyways

I have had my heart set on a Tesla for years now, its gonna happen. Those cars just seemed like good deals to me. But the more i research the more i realize i might be better off getting as new as possible.

 

[krsgio]

honestly I think the model 3 is the best bang for your buck ev unless you just prefer the looks of the s/x. I purchased a 15 P85D less than 2 years ago because I love the look of the S way more and sometimes I regret not just getting a performance model 3 after they gimped supercharging speeds on the 85kwh batteries shortly after I got it and other things. You semi future proof yourself getting the 3 with the latest tech at least and its more efficient than the older models.

 

[Travis Denardo]

I've owned a 2013 Model S 85 for 4.5 years (purchased in early 2016). I've driven it over 70k miles in that time and it now has 107k miles. I purchased it CPO from Tesla in Chicago.

I can say that it's been the best car I've owned, hands down. It still has its own challenges with maintenance, but most of that was covered under the CPO warranty.

On Range: Any less range for me would be trouble. I drive over 100 miles a day for work, often, so having over 200 miles of "easy" range is useful. I also take several road trips a year over 250 miles one way. I know a friend that had a Model S 70 and it was sometimes hard to get between superchargers a few years ago before the big expansion. I also have a home charger, plus multiple superchargers within 15 miles of my house. When I travel to a destination, I can usually charge on a 115V outlet if I'm staying there for more than a couple of days, otherwise a high speed charge is needed I get about 3.5 miles of range per hour. There are usually some chargers around I can use, but some require a Chademo adapter (which I don't own).

On Size: I have a family of 4, but was a family of 3 when I bought the car. So we're young and have the large luggage items small children require. We now take the minivan on long trips with more than a weekend's stay due to luggage.

It's really up to you what you need for your car, but here are my thoughts:

An older model S pros:

• More range with 85kWh pack, I get ~240-244miles to a 100% charge now (107k miles)
  • Any model 3 will beat this, excluding the short range
• More space than a model 3 (hatchback is excellent)
• Sheer fun to drive, and can still overtake or beat off the line anything that's not a tesla in most cases
  • I still have the tesla smile when I punch the accelerator
• Still get software updates with new features (but much fewer than years past)

Cons vs. newer tesla cars:

• No Autopilot, TACC, lane keep (This my biggest miss in the newer cars, especially driving 2k miles a month)
  • If I had spent more to get AP1 in 2016, I would be less inclined to sell my current car for a newer one
• Uncomfortable seats; the model 3 seats and newer model s seats I've sat in are much more comfortable
• Seat belt height adjustment (no adjustment on my car, hits my neck and my wife's when we drive or sit in front at all)
  • That's also the same on all model S I believe
• MCU screen potential failure, mine has a bubble forming and will need replacing (out of warranty)
• Potential for costly repairs, but that is the same for all older luxury cars

It's all a tradeoff with your needs and budget. Make the best decision for you.

 

[whttiger25]

in the photos the state of charge is at 0%

Not a great sign! They need to plug the damn car in!

 

[ucmndd]

Which one would you all suggest and why? I am mostly concerned with battery degradation

Gonna be perfectly honest with you, if this is your main concern you don’t want an original 60 or 85 battery. Many of the original 60s have seen terrible degradation, and the 85s are currently mired in controversy over greatly reduced range and slowed supercharging speeds.

I know it’s not what you want to hear, but you don’t want those cars. Up your budget or look at a Model 3.

 

[Ehninger1212]

Alright, you guys pretty much convinced me. Gonna keep my eyes peeled for the best deal i can get on a model 3! Im very motivated to buy, my current vehicle is 16 years old with 170,000 miles. Im spending like crazy on gas and maintenance each month.. gonna only get worse from here.