How many miles are realistic to expect?

[Don85D]

Longterm ownership justification of a Tesla made it happen for us. We expect the car to last 30 years and even if battery range decays it won't matter much when we are over 100 years old. Most of all we justified the car because we can run it on sunshine which saves us $3000 in fuel costs each year. The government rebate for EV purchase paid for the solar array and the panels should last 30 years too.

Our 85D is the only EV that can replace our ICE vehicles for range and comfort and to be honest we made this purchase so that our grandkids can have affordable EVs in their future.

Everyone will have their own story for buying a Model S and that's the draw of such an innovative product. It fits so many needs and justifications.

 

[GJ79]

Longterm ownership justification of a Tesla made it happen for us. We expect the car to last 30 years and even if battery range decays it won't matter much when we are over 100 years old. Most of all we justified the car because we can run it on sunshine which saves us $3000 in fuel costs each year. The government rebate for EV purchase paid for the solar array and the panels should last 30 years too.

Our 85D is the only EV that can replace our ICE vehicles for range and comfort and to be honest we made this purchase so that our grandkids can have affordable EVs in their future.

Everyone will have their own story for buying a Model S and that's the draw of such an innovative product. It fits so many needs and justifications.

So are you expecting the car to be a fully functional car that actually drives in 30 years from now or do you mean by "it lasting" for 30 years that the aluminum shell will not have decayed by then ?

 

[Max*]

So are you expecting the car to be a fully functional car that actually drives in 30 years from now or do you mean by "it lasting" for 30 years that the aluminum shell will not have decayed by then ?

You could make any car last 30 years. It just matters on how much money you expect to put into it.

4 new MCUs, 47 new door handles, 13 sunroof seals, 139 drive units, 3 batteries, etc.

 

[Snerruc]

A BMW service manager told me that he personally would not own any expensive car beyond 8 years including BMW7 . they are so complex that the are basically impossible to keep repaired. He wasn't talking about engines or drivetrains. Rather all the other stuff piled on cars nowadays. driven reasonably mechanicals will go far more than 200,000 miles. just service them. I have a Sable that is old enough to vote plus that has never had a repair to the engine or drivetrain. you know their reputation.

 

[Az_Rael]

Yup, I get it, I am doing it too! Pretty much every thread I have made has been in a way to justify my $108,000 order that I cancelled but may re-order. I want to order one in the worst way because I love the car, I love the convenience of not having gas, the safety features, no oil changes, but it takes a lot of justification to pull the trigger on such a large order when your not "rich". I know people say hey if you can afford a $108,000 car your fine, but its not true. This purchase would be almost triple what my previous high purchase on a car would be, and in no way have I come into any money in that time. I know I have taken a lot of flack for it, but this is why I was so bent out of shape out of losing the FUSC in another thread. It was one of my justifications that is no longer.

Look at buying a CPO or a heavily discounted inventory car. I could afford a new Model S, but there was no way I could justify buying a car that was sooooo much more expensive than any I had ever bought before. I decided to forego getting the latest and greatest (a difficult thing to time anyway with Tesla innovating so rapidly) and bought a CPO for a price I was much more at peace with.

The car is still the most amazing car I have ever driven even if it doesn't have all the new tech. Bonus: CPOs and some inventory cars still have FUSC for lots less money.

 

[Clomer]

My observation as an interested observer (mostly through this forum) is that while the potential is there for EV's in general to need less maintenance than ICE's, they aren't yet there. This is probably due to the fact that ICE's have essentially a century head start developing that reliability.

I foresee the day when the only maintenance items an EV will need are replacing tires and washer fluid, with perhaps a main battery replacement every 10 years. We're not there yet, not by a long shot.

 

[shady]

I just paid $3,000 for a new DC-DC converter. I have 85k on the clock and the car is almost 4 years old.
Sunnyvale Service told me that I should expect this sort of repair as I have high mileage!!!

The service center have a different view on what High mileage is than Elon

 

[Max*]

DC-DC converter

That't not part of the drivetrain warranty?

 

[shady]

That't not part of the drivetrain warranty?

You'd think - but no it isn't

 

[AVRnj]

Look at buying a CPO or a heavily discounted inventory car. I could afford a new Model S, but there was no way I could justify buying a car that was sooooo much more expensive than any I had ever bought before. I decided to forego getting the latest and greatest (a difficult thing to time anyway with Tesla innovating so rapidly) and bought a CPO for a price I was much more at peace with.

The car is still the most amazing car I have ever driven even if it doesn't have all the new tech. Bonus: CPOs and some inventory cars still have FUSC for lots less money.

I think this is very good advice, and I have been thinking along these lines as well. The only thing stopping me is HW2 and EAP. I may just wait until some of the rich guys decide to trade in their HW2 and EAP's and grab one of those, but the problem is when you account for the $7500 rebate, and higher rates, you don't save as much.

 

[Az_Rael]

I think this is very good advice, and I have been thinking along these lines as well. The only thing stopping me is HW2 and EAP. I may just wait until some of the rich guys decide to trade in their HW2 and EAP's and grab one of those, but the problem is when you account for the $7500 rebate, and higher rates, you don't save as much.

Well, once the 90D is discontinued there will probably be lots of AP2 inventory cars with nice discounts that are still eligible for the tax credit (inventory cars are considered new).

 

[Max*]

I think this is very good advice, and I have been thinking along these lines as well. The only thing stopping me is HW2 and EAP. I may just wait until some of the rich guys decide to trade in their HW2 and EAP's and grab one of those, but the problem is when you account for the $7500 rebate, and higher rates, you don't save as much.

Don't let the blinders fool you

Considering an $80k car, with a 60 month loan, the difference between new rates and used rates is ~$1k over the life of the loan. So yes, it's something, but it's marginal compared to the cost of the car. (it's ~$1,325 for a $100k car)

 

[Jashev]

I test drove the Model S in 2012 when it first came out. Loved the car, but couldn't justify the price. As I did for years with my BMW's and MB's, I decided to wait a few years until they started to come off lease. Bought my CPO MS 85 last month for $55k less than new with 22k miles. Allowed me to avoid the pain that early adopters go through, not take the depreciation hit and with the warranty, I am comfortable that I can keep the car for 4 years, then do it all over again. By then, I would think all the AP bugs will be worked out and I'll be old enough to need the AP ;-).

 

[Don85D]

So are you expecting the car to be a fully functional car that actually drives in 30 years from now or do you mean by "it lasting" for 30 years that the aluminum shell will not have decayed by then ?

Yes, I expect the car to be running and providing good service at 30 years old. I have vehicles that are near that age where rust is the only serious flaw in the design and I have classics in my collection that are aging well.

Check with me in 2045 for an update and by then I will have accumulated $90,000 in fuel savings.

I remain confident that this car will last.

 

[AVRnj]

Don't let the blinders fool you

Considering an $80k car, with a 60 month loan, the difference between new rates and used rates is ~$1k over the life of the loan. So yes, it's something, but it's marginal compared to the cost of the car. (it's ~$1,325 for a $100k car)

Fair, but when you look at 7500 rebate, 1k referral and 1k interest, your st 9500. Add that to a CPO and they look less attractive, the CPOs sell very high.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

I think this is very good advice, and I have been thinking along these lines as well. The only thing stopping me is HW2 and EAP. I may just wait until some of the rich guys decide to trade in their HW2 and EAP's and grab one of those, but the problem is when you account for the $7500 rebate, and higher rates, you don't save as much.

The very thing that burned you could actually come back to help you.

I predict that we will see some heavily discounted 90D's as a result of the 100D. That means you'll get the discount plus the $7500 rebate along with AP2.

Just give it till the quarter end and start checking for deals on inventory cars.

As to long term reliably who knows. It's hard to use older cars as a gauge because they improved so much since then. In the automotive industry by large the initial year or two of a particular model has the worst number of problems, and then later on they have fewer and fewer. The Model S hasn't really had a full refresh. Instead it's had minor cosmetic refreshes like the front end, or other enhancements.

 

[avesraggiana]

Look at buying a CPO or a heavily discounted inventory car. I could afford a new Model S, but there was no way I could justify buying a car that was sooooo much more expensive than any I had ever bought before. I decided to forego getting the latest and greatest (a difficult thing to time anyway with Tesla innovating so rapidly) and bought a CPO for a price I was much more at peace with.

The car is still the most amazing car I have ever driven even if it doesn't have all the new tech. Bonus: CPOs and some inventory cars still have FUSC for lots less money.

What’s FUSC?

 

[GJ79]

Yes, I expect the car to be running and providing good service at 30 years old. I have vehicles that are near that age where rust is the only serious flaw in the design and I have classics in my collection that are aging well.

Check with me in 2045 for an update and by then I will have accumulated $90,000 in fuel savings.

I remain confident that this car will last.

I have just set a reminder on my phone with a link to this thread

 

[cadurney]

I agree with the CPO suggestions. I just pulled the trigger on a '15 85D that has everything I want, a 4 year, 50,000 mile warranty on top of the 18,000 miles already on the car; all for thousands off of inventory or new. My plan is to keep the car for at least 10 years and look for battery pack replacement costs to be lower, which may give me another 10 years.

 

[NOLA_Mike]

Here's one that hit 200,000 miles last year:

Tales from a Tesla Model S at 200k miles