Help!! New member and I don't know if this is a good idea!

[Mromano]

Hi everyone!
If I may ask for the help of the Tesla think tank (and please be kind- this is my first post and I promise I'll poke around and learn more- I'm a dork pilot who loves technical stuff! and time is sorta of the essence) I was wondering if this is a good idea to buy:
2015 P90D (it's underlined which I don't really know or understand what that means)
122k miles
Black on Black
Turbine wheels
AP1
Premium sound
Roughly 29.5k

The questions I have like all newbie, non-EV, ICE type of guy:
How can I tell if this is a good car?
Is there any way to have some insights into the battery and how long it'll last?
Being a high-performance car, what can I look for as far as the motor goes and the general state of the condition it's in?
What other mechanical items should I look out for? HVAC? Braking system? Power steering?
How much more "ohh laward this thing is fast" is the underlined cars vs the P cars?
I live in the PHX area; is there anyone around who can fix these batteries?
Generally speaking how durable are these cars? Can an average guy or mechanic fix most things that are not HV battery related?
I've read all the consumer reports about how "bad" these model S cars are; ok real talk; how bad are they?
Is this car a generally bad egg to buy? What makes a "good buy" in the older model S series?

I thank and appreciate any responses the think tank can give. I truly hope this is like the small GA airplane community- lots of knowledge is stored up in the memory banks and that often flows freely to newbies who ask decent questions (not that I'm an old sage pilot; but if anyone has questions about 1966 Cessna 210's I'm your guy!)

Thank you kindly,
matt

 

[EVRider-FL]

Don’t know what your requirements are, but you could spend a little more and get a brand new Model 3 (which would qualify for a $7500 tax credit).

 

[Mromano]

Don’t know what your requirements are, but you could spend a little more and get a brand new Model 3 (which would qualify for a $7500 tax credit).

This is true.. I should check this out I suppose. I just the the idea of the power of the S..

 

[kingkong5]

The warranty on the battery runs out after 8 years, so this car will be out of battery warranty already or soon. When it fails it will cost about $20,000 to replace, and your car won't work without it. While AP1 is good for keeping your car in its lane and not running into the car in front of you, it won't be able to do the more fancy autopilot functions now and in the future.

The D is for Dual motors so the car has a motor in the front and back. Some earlier models only had one rear motor and didn't have the D designation. The underline is the same as the P which means that it's the performance version of the Model S which is programmed to accelerate faster and has a more powerful electric drive motor.

I agree with EVRider-FL and think that you might want to consider the Model 3 with its newer technology, faster infotainment system, and the federal tax rebate available. Good luck with whichever you decide.

 

[tldickerson]

The line under the P90D means it has the ludicrous upgrade. That was a $10,000 option when the car was new. The price sounds good and there are EV repair places you can go to for repairs. There is also a place where you can buy a extended warranty but I'm not sure about the requirements. Read more here at this site and you will get lots of good information.

 

[Mromano]

Don’t know what your requirements are, but you could spend a little more and get a brand new Model 3 (which would qualify for a $7500 tax credit).

I actually looked at the requirements and I don't qualify with our AGI.... bummer..

 

[byeLT4]

Good info so far. I still feel like a noob although I've had my Tesla since 2020 and have been researching them well before that. With that being said, my main priority was to find one with warranty, especially battery/ drive unit warranty.

Have you seen the car? Is it in good shape? It really surprises me but my car has 88k miles on it and some of the loaners I've had have half the miles but are ROUGH. You can usually tell when a car has been taken care of.

Pros-
That price is great. I'm tempted to ask if it's been in a previous accident but I would assume you (or the owner) would have mentioned that. The underline does indeed stand for Ludicrous, which is as fast as they get for that year.

Cons-
I hear the 90 batteries are the most... finicky? I don't want to use a word to scare you, but you can do some digging here and find the early versions have had some issues. Is it on the original battery? That would be a big hit out of warranty. A big hit...

It would be hard to pass up, but I don't think I would buy it. But like I said, to me, warranty was the most important item on my checklist. My purchase was a bit out of my means but I could stretch it, I couldn't however stretch a 15k+ repair bill.

 

[Npate2]

Good info so far. I still feel like a noob although I've had my Tesla since 2020 and have been researching them well before that. With that being said, my main priority was to find one with warranty, especially battery/ drive unit warranty.

Have you seen the car? Is it in good shape? It really surprises me but my car has 88k miles on it and some of the loaners I've had have half the miles but are ROUGH. You can usually tell when a car has been taken care of.

Pros-
That price is great. I'm tempted to ask if it's been in a previous accident but I would assume you (or the owner) would have mentioned that. The underline does indeed stand for Ludicrous, which is as fast as they get for that year.

Cons-
I hear the 90 batteries are the most... finicky? I don't want to use a word to scare you, but you can do some digging here and find the early versions have had some issues. Is it on the original battery? That would be a big hit out of warranty. A big hit...

It would be hard to pass up, but I don't think I would buy it. But like I said, to me, warranty was the most important item on my checklist. My purchase was a bit out of my means but I could stretch it, I couldn't however stretch a 15k+ repair bill.

It does seem like a good price for a P90DL. I too would say warranty would be a big checklist item for me which is why I would hesitate on it. You are correct with the 90 battery packs, but it does depend on what version it is. The V3 battery pack supposedly has the same chemistry as the newer 100D battery packs. If the car is on its original HV battery though, it’s likely to be a rev 2 or a 1 which do have many issues. It is all hit or miss though. One other thing to note is, being a P90DL, this car has the large motors, which had design flaws where coolant tends to leak into the motor and can cause them to fail. All things to do research on, but I think to my knowledge everything I said is accurate.

For 30k though seems like a nice car, but if there is no rush to get a car, I would wait because more deals like this will come by later in the year I think.

 

[Mromano]

You make some fantastic points... I do live in PHX and I believe there is an independent shop that services Tesla's HV batter (Gruber Motor's? I have to do a little more digging into this). But you make excellent points. I have't seen the car as it's out in KY and I live in AZ, but I would of course check it out before purchasing it. Can you expand a little on the 90's battery?

And the plot of course thickens, in KY there is a P85D with 131k that's 27.9k...
Is the battery in the 85's a little bit more robust? Drive unit problems?

And I could go with a new model 3, but I reallllllly like the S..

 

[Mromano]

It does seem like a good price for a P90DL. I too would say warranty would be a big checklist item for me which is why I would hesitate on it. You are correct with the 90 battery packs, but it does depend on what version it is. The V3 battery pack supposedly has the same chemistry as the newer 100D battery packs. If the car is on its original HV battery though, it’s likely to be a rev 2 or a 1 which do have many issues. It is all hit or miss though. One other thing to note is, being a P90DL, this car has the large motors, which had design flaws where coolant tends to leak into the motor and can cause them to fail. All things to do research on, but I think to my knowledge everything I said is accurate.

For 30k though seems like a nice car, but if there is no rush to get a car, I would wait because more deals like this will come by later in the year I think.

Hi! Thanks for the heads up; how can you tell what battery it currently has? And is there any way to prevent the leaks from happening? I'll dig up some more info on it, but can you shed a little light on these problems? Do the P85D's have the same issues?

 

[brkaus]

The S and 3 are very different cars. Both have pros and cons. We have one of each

 

[Ciaopec]

You make some fantastic points... I do live in PHX and I believe there is an independent shop that services Tesla's HV batter (Gruber Motor's? I have to do a little more digging into this). But you make excellent points. I have't seen the car as it's out in KY and I live in AZ, but I would of course check it out before purchasing it. Can you expand a little on the 90's battery?

I have a mid 2016 90D. My battery, with 155,000 miles, is just fine. Like opinions, you'll find someone else that has had problems or heard of problems. My frame of reference was that 2016 and the 90kWh battery was great. The P90DL you reference must have been built early 2016 I believe because it as a 90kWh instead of an 85kWh battery.

 

[Npate2]

Hi! Thanks for the heads up; how can you tell what battery it currently has? And is there any way to prevent the leaks from happening? I'll dig up some more info on it, but can you shed a little light on these problems? Do the P85D's have the same issues?

The version 3 of the battery should be 1088790-00-A and this can be found under the car. You can ask the owner to look for it and let you know which version it has (you can google how to find and which version the numbers correspond to). I do not think you can prevent the leaks from happening but if the car is still under warranty it could have been replaced already. Typically new motors cost I think around 6-8k and batteries fall around 20-25k (I know I am giving a big range but have seen different pricing depending on where it’s done and the SC). I think all large motor cars have this issue but that’s something you would have to confirm. When I was looking for a model S I was looking at the newer years since I wanted the new HW and MCU2 standard in the car. Some things you should consider if you want to keep the car for awhile (MCU2 I think is big).

Also are you set on getting a performance model? Because you can probably find some good deals on non performance models around that price that are newer and still relatively fast compared to usual ICE cars.

 

[Npate2]

One other thing I have read but not confirmed is that some owners say higher mileage cars can be better purchasing second hand of this vintage. There was something said on lower mileage cars tend to not show problems until warranty is up, but higher mileage cars those problems have already been presented and repaired. So that is one good (to some people) thing I would say with the particular car you are looking at. Also when you start creeping towards 150k miles, some suspension work is usually required for these cars. Not saying it will be required but just something else to keep on top of.

 

[Mromano]

The version 3 of the battery should be 1088790-00-A and this can be found under the car. You can ask the owner to look for it and let you know which version it has (you can google how to find and which version the numbers correspond to). I do not think you can prevent the leaks from happening but if the car is still under warranty it could have been replaced already. Typically new motors cost I think around 6-8k and batteries fall around 20-25k (I know I am giving a big range but have seen different pricing depending on where it’s done and the SC). I think all large motor cars have this issue but that’s something you would have to confirm. When I was looking for a model S I was looking at the newer years since I wanted the new HW and MCU2 standard in the car. Some things you should consider if you want to keep the car for awhile (MCU2 I think is big).

Also are you set on getting a performance model? Because you can probably find some good deals on non performance models around that price that are newer and still relatively fast compared to usual ICE cars.

Ahh very good! It's a dealership so I don't mind paying for them to lift the car and take a peak! Thanks for the pointers!

 

[Mromano]

I have a mid 2016 90D. My battery, with 155,000 miles, is just fine. Like opinions, you'll find someone else that has had problems or heard of problems. My frame of reference was that 2016 and the 90kWh battery was great. The P90DL you reference must have been built early 2016 I believe because it as a 90kWh instead of an 85kWh battery.

Ahh cool! Have you had any problems with it? Any major issues come up? And how much charge does your battery still hold?

 

[Mromano]

The S and 3 are very different cars. Both have pros and cons. We have one of each

In a quick summery; which do you prefer? I guess I should share my use case. Life has changed a little, and I currently have to drive to work 3 to 4 times a week which is 80% highway for about 15 miles one way. I know this is overkill for either car, but mannnnnn the push of that P85D I test drove is... sweet. We have an Audi Q7 as a road trip/tow pig car (we have a 21 foot single axle trailer and the Q7 is a BEAST pulling it. So this would be 100% an in town sort of purchase.

 

[brkaus]

In a quick summery; which do you prefer? I guess I should share my use case. Life has changed a little, and I currently have to drive to work 3 to 4 times a week which is 80% highway for about 15 miles one way. I know this is overkill for either car, but mannnnnn the push of that P85D I test drove is... sweet. We have an Audi Q7 as a road trip/tow pig car (we have a 21 foot single axle trailer and the Q7 is a BEAST pulling it. So this would be 100% an in town sort of purchase.

My wife loves the 3 and will only reluctantly drive the S. She does not like the size on the road or parking. The 3 definitely feels more zippy or perhaps more nimble.

I drive both, but generally prefer the S. The mostly grown up kids also prefer the S when on trips. More room in back. Not that they mind the 3. The S can also haul a huuuuge pile of stuff.

neither of ours are performance models. The S is faster in acceleration between our two.

 

[Ciaopec]

Ahh cool! Have you had any problems with it? Any major issues come up? And how much charge does your battery still hold?

299 miles new; 275 now.

 

[XCare EV]

The line under the P90D means it has the ludicrous upgrade. That was a $10,000 option when the car was new. The price sounds good and there are EV repair places you can go to for repairs. There is also a place where you can buy a extended warranty but I'm not sure about the requirements. Read more here at this site and you will get lots of good information.

XCare can help. Check us out at www.xcelerateauto.com/xcare Cheers, Brent @ XCare