Hello! Thanks for allowing me to introduce myself. I live in NY and am in the market for a used Tesla sub $30k. Just weighing all the different choices and options. I am leaning towards the Model Y, as I have a small family and we sometimes do road trips. However, open to other Teslas maybe even the Model S older models. I have looked at salvaged Tesla's but bummed I don't have any space to do the work myself. Anybody know people or shops doing this in Westchester/NYC area? Thanks again and I look forward to participating more!
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Hi, potential new Tesla owner
- Thread starter JimmyBob
- Start date
fholbert
Active Member
Best advice I got when looking at a M3: Get in and out of one 4 or 5 times and decide if it's big enough for you. If you're 6' or taller it's a really small car. Went to the MY and tried it on, wow what a difference. Bought the MY.
Two friends told me they bought a M3 for themself, both gave the car to their wife one upgraded to a MY, the other a MX.
I don't use the back seat, but I think there is more room in a 5 seat MY.
Given your budget I think you'd be better off with M3 or MY. Go and try both on for size at a Tesla showroom and check "kid space" in the back. I'm 6' 1" and have no trouble with M3 fit front or back, but YMMV. Getting an older MS/MX is probably not a good idea, and with salvage you can run into nasty problems with not being allowed on the supercharger network (Tesla are anxious about this for obvious safety reasons).
Thanks to the EV market going through a rough patch atm its a good time to pick up a used Tesla imho .. you will love it.
Definitely different strokes for different folks. I find the Model 3 to be fantastically comfortable (I'm 5'10") and such a joy to drive. I look for reasons to cruise.
I've driven a good number of long road trips in the Model 3. Once with 3 tall adult men, many times with 5 people in the car (usually kids / teens in the back seats). It's not sprawling space inside, but also doesn't feel overly cramped (like flying economy vs business class). No hump on the backseat floor like an ICE.
If you haven't already, I strongly recommend test driving all of your options. The Model 3 is a real blast to drive. Neither the Y or S measure up IMO (oh what a flame war I just started).
Good luck and congrats!
As your first Tesla, I’d totally recommend against it unless it is something you can risk taking a loss on. The number of shops that work with HV batteries are few, and reliable Tesla parts can usually only be sourced from Tesla; that’s if they want to sell to you. Another big point - a Tesla is a computer on wheels. The learning curve on a salvage Tesla is extremely steep, expensive, and not very forgiving.
search TMC and you’ll see plenty of laborious stories of working on salvage Tesla’s. It’s totally doable but it’s a commitment and not something for a casual DIYer.
Good luck!
