Help! My wife wants my Model 3.

[spehanich]

Picked up our M3 in June and my wife, who does not normally like new technology, fell in love with it. She has been driving a 2015 Subaru Outback - very nice car, well-made and safe -- but now she thinks it is too big. During the pandemic, with both of us working from home, we usually take the M3 and leave the Outback in the garage.

Been thinking of trading in the Outback for a BMW i3. The used price appears to be comparable and we really only need the second car for small trips around town. Our neighbor loved her i3 until it was totaled a couple of days after we came home with our M3. (No one was injured.) The neighbor liked the M3 so much she bought it to replace her i3 but she is still a big fan of her old car.

I can't afford another Tesla but I could afford a trade for an i3. What are the pros and cons? How can I charge two electric cars at the same time without installing new electric service? The i3 will be used for in town driving but I do not want to sacrifice safety.

Thoughts?

 

[OCR1]

Why go to all that trouble if you only need the second car for local driving? The Subaru is a nice car and can easily handle those trips. An i3 is going to be a headache. It started off with a ridiculously small range and the battery will only further degrade over time. You can get one with the range extender but now you are still using gasoline just like the Subaru so what are you really accomplishing here besides incurring a loss on the sale of the Subaru and another round of sales tax and fees on the purchase of the BMW?

 

[andrew1039]

Picked up our M3 in June and my wife, who does not normally like new technology, fell in love with it. She has been driving a 2015 Subaru Outback - very nice car, well-made and safe -- but now she thinks it is too big. During the pandemic, with both of us working from home, we usually take the M3 and leave the Outback in the garage.

Been thinking of trading in the Outback for a BMW i3. The used price appears to be comparable and we really only need the second car for small trips around town. Our neighbor loved her i3 until it was totaled a couple of days after we came home with our M3. (No one was injured.) The neighbor liked the M3 so much she bought it to replace her i3 but she is still a big fan of her old car.

I can't afford another Tesla but I could afford a trade for an i3. What are the pros and cons? How can I charge two electric cars at the same time without installing new electric service? The i3 will be used for in town driving but I do not want to sacrifice safety.

Thoughts?

honestly I wouldn’t get an i3 for several reasons
But one that you mentioned is safely
I’d stick with the Subaru or wait until you can afford to get something better than an I3
Personally I think the i3 was a poor attempt of bmw making an electric car

 

[The_Observer]

What about a Nissan Leaf or Chevy Bolt? They are also good options too.

Or, wait a couple years for the $25k Tesla, that's another.

 

[TheRFMan]

If you want to go electric for a 2nd vehicle, have you considered a Hyundai Ioniq Electric? The range is better than an i3, it has a lot of cool tech, and is a lot roomier than the i3 as well.

I didn't check US prices, but here in Canada, it's currently $40,000 CAD (~31,000 USD) before rebates.

 

[FFR6288]

Just my own opinion, but if she loves the Model 3, I suspect she will not really be satisfied with anything other than a Tesla. Keep the Suby?

 

[TheRFMan]

Just my own opinion, but if she loves the Model 3, I suspect she will not really be satisfied with anything other than a Tesla. Keep the Suby?

I has assumed that it was a foregone conclusion that the OP's wife was going to take the Model 3, and the OP was looking for something for himself rather than using the Subaru

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

I has assumed that it was a foregone conclusion that the OP's wife was going to take the Model 3, and the OP was looking for something for himself rather than using the Subaru

Or at least another EV that his wife would be happy to drive.

 

[El joe]

That’s too bad. I had thought about getting my wife an Outback as a second car as the extra space and utility would be a nice complement to the Model 3, especially as an around the town car, getting groceries, etc. I’d stay put if at all possible.

 

[polyphonic54]

Mini electric. It's incredible.

 

[Spacep0d]

Picked up our M3 in June and my wife, who does not normally like new technology, fell in love with it. She has been driving a 2015 Subaru Outback - very nice car, well-made and safe -- but now she thinks it is too big. During the pandemic, with both of us working from home, we usually take the M3 and leave the Outback in the garage.

Been thinking of trading in the Outback for a BMW i3. The used price appears to be comparable and we really only need the second car for small trips around town. Our neighbor loved her i3 until it was totaled a couple of days after we came home with our M3. (No one was injured.) The neighbor liked the M3 so much she bought it to replace her i3 but she is still a big fan of her old car.

I can't afford another Tesla but I could afford a trade for an i3. What are the pros and cons? How can I charge two electric cars at the same time without installing new electric service? The i3 will be used for in town driving but I do not want to sacrifice safety.

Thoughts?

Funny, my long-time girlfriend had the same idea. She bought a Tesla Model 3 LR AWD after experiencing my P3D- for a while.

If you don't need much range, the BMW i3 is a nice car, and one very unique thing about it is that it's SMALL. I love small cars, but there aren't many small BEVs with any decent range. I know there's a smart electric, FIAT 500e electric, Honda e (which we cannot get in the States), and the BMW i3, so I consider this a fun selling point. As mentioned in this thread, Tesla has their own 25k car coming at some point in the near future. Will this be a hot hatch of some sort? Remains to be seen, but it's gonna be great and I hope it's nice and small and with good range.

However, the i3 is fairly expensive. I think you *could* afford a Model 3 more than you realize, especially by the time you get through a few options with the i3. I priced out some trims on the i3 and it got expensive quickly, but I too have a soft spot for that car.

If you're open to a Model 3 refreshed SR+, I think you might be able to swing it with the Subaru trade-in, and your wife could drive that. The refreshed Model 3 has 263 miles of range, and its no-nonsense pricing (before rebates and electric savings over gas) is $37,990. Plus you'd get that beautiful M3 styling.

I'd also look a Tesla Wall Connector since you have a garage. This would be ideal for two Teslas. It's less ideal for a Tesla and an i3 but you could always just go with a generic L2 charger from another company such as Chargepoint or Clipper Creek once you have your charger installed. Then, either of you could use it without an issue as long as there's a J1772 connector—you with the adapter that came with your Tesla and she could plug in to the i3 without any adapter.

 

[thimel]

My wife and I share one charging station between our Tesla and LEAF. Before COVID, we charged each one every other night. Now, we charge less often. Depending on how many daily miles you drive, this charging setup could work for you.

While LEAF batteries have degraded rapidly (our 2011 is at 65% of original capacity), if one of you drives less than 40 miles per day, a used LEAF could be a good choice for you. They cost less than $8k.

 

[SMAlset]

With the changing of the guard and embracing climate change and promoting EVs once again there’s the possibility they might extend the federal incentives to all manufacturers for more years. Might be worth holding on to the suburu in that case and getting what you both want if the numbers work for you.

 

[Hot Cha]

Picked up our M3 in June and my wife, who does not normally like new technology, fell in love with it. She has been driving a 2015 Subaru Outback - very nice car, well-made and safe -- but now she thinks it is too big. During the pandemic, with both of us working from home, we usually take the M3 and leave the Outback in the garage.

Been thinking of trading in the Outback for a BMW i3. The used price appears to be comparable and we really only need the second car for small trips around town. Our neighbor loved her i3 until it was totaled a couple of days after we came home with our M3. (No one was injured.) The neighbor liked the M3 so much she bought it to replace her i3 but she is still a big fan of her old car.

I can't afford another Tesla but I could afford a trade for an i3. What are the pros and cons? How can I charge two electric cars at the same time without installing new electric service? The i3 will be used for in town driving but I do not want to sacrifice safety.

Thoughts?

Lucky guy. I wish my wife embraced EVs and Tesla as much as I did.
Since you don’t drive much during the pandemic, hold on to what you have for now. Once you know more about what the future state looks like, make your purchase then. Perhaps by then you can afford another Tesla.

Remember, the pandemic really won’t be over likely until 2022 even though vaccines will be hitting the scene in December.

 

[one2many]

Well my wife stole my model 3 and now I am on the bus to nowhere.
Walking everywhere is over rated and the strange folks on the bus.
They all look at me like I can not afford another Tesla. I just wander the
hood talking up the other Tesla owners, they have no wife issues.
Sometimes I feel like I am tied to whipping post, tied to the whipping post,
Oh well back to happy hour, and why is it only an hour.

 

[mmm999]

Picked up our M3 in June and my wife, who does not normally like new technology, fell in love with it. She has been driving a 2015 Subaru Outback - very nice car, well-made and safe -- but now she thinks it is too big. During the pandemic, with both of us working from home, we usually take the M3 and leave the Outback in the garage.

Been thinking of trading in the Outback for a BMW i3. The used price appears to be comparable and we really only need the second car for small trips around town. Our neighbor loved her i3 until it was totaled a couple of days after we came home with our M3. (No one was injured.) The neighbor liked the M3 so much she bought it to replace her i3 but she is still a big fan of her old car.

I can't afford another Tesla but I could afford a trade for an i3. What are the pros and cons? How can I charge two electric cars at the same time without installing new electric service? The i3 will be used for in town driving but I do not want to sacrifice safety.

Thoughts?

I have two M3’s now, one was a replacement for a BMW i3s

it was a great car, I loved the looks and it had plenty of poke.

Interior was very nice, but in the UK they got rid of the range extender, and my lease was coming to an end, and the range on pure electric wasn’t far enough for me. (120 miles).

Build quality was better than a Tesla. Much more efficient than a MX, however M3 is slightly more efficient.

It’s bigger than you think, though it doesn’t have as much load space as the M3 it can be easier to use as it’s a hatchback.

Teslas advantage and it’s major, is the charging network.

 

[itzKris]

Well my wife stole my model 3 and now I am on the bus to nowhere.
Walking everywhere is over rated and the strange folks on the bus.
They all look at me like I can not afford another Tesla. I just wander the
hood talking up the other Tesla owners, they have no wife issues.
Sometimes I feel like I am tied to whipping post, tied to the whipping post,
Oh well back to happy hour, and why is it only an hour.

haha, I felt like this the day I returned my P3 (due to damage), expecting delivery of an LR AWD in about 3 weeks!

 

[Gasaraki]

LEAF or a Bolt. They are getting big discounts because the dealers really want to move them. Or get a slightly used one for major discounts.

 

[derekmw]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Rav4 EV since he's in California. That's what I got my wife and she loves it. it has a LOT of room inside, has Tesla components (so the power is really good), and Toyota reliability. The rear seats fold flat and you can load so much in there. Even a dresser standing up.

 

[kpeng]

Sell it to her at a premium.