Is LR worth an extra 6k?

[RedModel3]

I think it's like computers, where you want to buy the fastest processor and most memory possible. Buy the biggest battery you can afford. Battery range degrades over time, and if you are a first time EV owner, the lack of exact mileage calibration will surprise you. That is, even though you see that you may have "100 miles" of range, in the real world it may only give you 70 or 80 drivable miles. Especially if you have a heavy foot. Go for the range.

 

[rpiotro]

Don't forget, The SR+ is lighter by about 400 lbs. if I remember correctly. It shows in how the car handles.

It all depends on what you want. When I ordered mine in June it was a $10,000 jump. I'd have to give it some thought at $6K. But, the SR+ suits my needs perfectly. YMMV.

 

[tarndt]

I think it's like computers, where you want to buy the fastest processor and most memory possible. Buy the biggest battery you can afford. Battery range degrades over time, and if you are a first time EV owner, the lack of exact mileage calibration will surprise you. That is, even though you see that you may have "100 miles" of range, in the real world it may only give you 70 or 80 drivable miles. Especially if you have a heavy foot. Go for the range.

This. Also for winter driving the added range is a requirement for me to make winter trips. There are trips that were not possible in the winter with my SR+. Resale was also a factor.

 

[Wray]

I have a SR+ and while it is certainly enough for me (range-wise), there's alot of features that I miss that are active/built-in in a LR. Here a list of things that makes me reconsider selling my SR+ and buying a LR:

1. AWD - Faster acceleration and much safer in colder conditions (although this doesn't bother me too much).
2. 75KW Pack - More range (but you can't charge this like the LFP Pack to 100%. The LFP also loses alot in colder conditions, i noticed).
3. Premium sound - 4 front speakers are built in the SR+ but not wired. Compared to the LR having 6 more speakers aswell as an amplifier and a sub in the back; the sound is miles better than in my SR+
4. Heated Steering - while the SR+ has a heated steering wheel, it's not activated (yet). LR has this.
5. Heated Passengers - the Heated Back seats in the LR are already activated on delivery, on the SR+ this option costs $300 (in-app purchase)
6. Ambient lightning - Like the Heated steering, there's built in Ambient lightning in the SR+ but not activated. LR also has this.

My opinion: buy the LR. If you don't care about these kinds of things too much, get SR+ and buy EAP or FSD with the remaining money :^)

 

[BigNick]

Plus there's an almost-a-year wait on the SR+ (next September) where the LR is available in December.

 

[Kevy Baby]

I have an SR+ and have never had any issues with range.

I have a 46 mile R/T daily commute and have taken a couple of road trips up and down the coast and have found that my (and my passengers') need for a brief stop pretty well coincides with the car's need to charge.

I can't speak for the handling performance in snow, but I can attest that there is no problem in the rain: other drivers are usually the biggest issue with that.

The sound system in the SR+ is inferior, but the Premium is not worth the difference. There are plenty of DIY kits available to boost the output of the SR+. (I had a high-end system installed in my car, but that was a bit more of an investment).

The acceleration difference isn't that important to me, but I that is a personal preference. I still have plenty of fun in my SR+

When I buy my next Tesla (all things being the same), I will get another SR+.

 

[mswlogo]

Sorry, looking back my comment was ambiguous. I would skip the SR+ and go right to a LR.

We knew what you meant. I was just pulling your leg.

Range is king. AWD and Accel are a bonus.

 

[smith1157]

I'm currently debating this very question. It seems to be a no brainer to pick the LR for 6k, however, with the LFP battery option on the SR I'm on the fence. I currently have both reserved (LR and SR w/LFP). Charging to 100 percent a day and the possibility of longer life span with little degradation for 6k less is making me lean towards the SR.

 

[Jeremy3292]

When the price difference was $10k, maybe not. But now that is $6k, unequivocally yes. You'll also get the LR 6-9 months before the SR+ lol.

 

[smith1157]

You can get a SR LFP that's in inventory (this morning there were several in Atlanta) next month so it's actually a faster delivery than the LR. Problem is you might not get the desired specs. I reserved a LR with the aeros and my SR LFP has the sports. Price diff between the 2 is 3500. Decisions....decisions.

 

[bjrosen]

I have a SR+ and while it is certainly enough for me (range-wise), there's alot of features that I miss that are active/built-in in a LR. Here a list of things that makes me reconsider selling my SR+ and buying a LR:

1. AWD - Faster acceleration and much safer in colder conditions (although this doesn't bother me too much).
2. 75KW Pack - More range (but you can't charge this like the LFP Pack to 100%. The LFP also loses alot in colder conditions, i noticed).
3. Premium sound - 4 front speakers are built in the SR+ but not wired. Compared to the LR having 6 more speakers aswell as an amplifier and a sub in the back; the sound is miles better than in my SR+
4. Heated Steering - while the SR+ has a heated steering wheel, it's not activated (yet). LR has this.
5. Heated Passengers - the Heated Back seats in the LR are already activated on delivery, on the SR+ this option costs $300 (in-app purchase)
6. Ambient lightning - Like the Heated steering, there's built in Ambient lightning in the SR+ but not activated. LR also has this.

My opinion: buy the LR. If you don't care about these kinds of things too much, get SR+ and buy EAP or FSD with the remaining money :^)

If it's a matter of money don't buy FSD, AWD is a real benefit today not 10 years from now. I have FSD, I wouldn't buy it again. It's worthless. Until they get to Level 4, and I don't think that's possible with the current sensor suite but lets assume that it is, there is no point in having FSD. Level 2 FSD is more work than just driving the car yourself. With Level 2 you have to be watching the road, just as you do when driving the car yourself plus you have to be monitoring the cars behavior because it frequently does something scary. You have to keep your hands on the steering wheel and give it a little bit of torque but not too much because if you attempt to correct the car FSD disengages. As for your foot, when you drive yourself you just keep your foot on the accelerator, with FSD is engaged where do you put your foot?, it doesn't like it if you are using the accelerator.

 

[Birdsfan]

The extra money will be worth it in resale plus having the upgrades makes it a no brainer to me. If financed, the extra cash over 4-5-6 years is what, a couple cups of coffee a day?? For me it's always better to have it and not need it then need it and not have it....In my case I opted for the performance cause I needed to get to that next red light before you

 

[KenC]

I would think $6k for the extra range, not to mention all the other differences would be well worth it.

 

[tm1v2]

Don't forget, The SR+ is lighter by about 400 lbs. if I remember correctly. It shows in how the car handles.

I believe this. It's been a while, but I vaguely recall a coworker's 2018 RWD Model 3 handling somewhat better than my 2021 M3P.

A more clear comparison in my mind is RWD vs AWD Model S. I think the RWD P85+ was the best-handling pre-yoke S. I haven't driven a yoke car yet, I understand they've had further suspension updates. (Before the P85+ the S was simply too soft. The P85+ was the first one where Tesla tightened things up. They kept that with the dual motor cars, but the extra weight in the front was noticable, not too bad but I could feel the difference.)

It all depends on what you want. When I ordered mine in June it was a $10,000 jump. I'd have to give it some thought at $6K. But, the SR+ suits my needs perfectly. YMMV.

At the old $10k difference I agree that SR+ was a totally reasonable choice for anyone who didn't need the LR range or care much for the extra acceleration. For example, if you were buying a commuter car where I live, the extra speed, range, and AWD of the LR would be 100% useless in that role.

However at the current $6k difference I think LR is basically a no-brainer unless you're very cash-strapped or REALLY will never, ever road trip in the car. (Not saying you need an LR for road trips, mostly you don't, but I think the extra range is useful if you road trip a lot.)

It seems like Tesla is deliberately trying to steer most new orders to LR, aside from the SR+ LFP inventory drops. I expect the SR+ vs LR price difference will grow again, and the delivery estimate difference will shrink again, as Tesla fills more of the Hertz order and increases LFP battery production.

 

[t1m1t]

For those that sold their 2021 SR+ for the 2021 LR, what quotes were you getting for your SR+ models? I'm getting about $1000-1500 more than what I pay/paid (after taxes and fees). Seeing how the LR also got price hikes, I don't see the price difference between the two models and the extra money I made on the sale being any different than when I purchased my SR+ (the price difference was about $10,000 at that time)...

 

[Two-rocks]

$46720 for my 2021 SR+, 7k miles (prices seem to have gone up even more).
Paid 38k (plus TTL) less a 2500 rebate that was only valid on the SR+. At the time the difference was over 10k.

Add the possibility of federal incentives and we had to jump.

 

[Shelburne]

Counter point to AWD, living in New England with RWD is fine - the amount of salt/sand applied is crazy. I avoid driving any car because of it, but not the weather.

I also live in New England - a very rural part of New England - and I have to strongly disagree with you. I've owned two AWD Jeep Grand Cherokees that both managed to dance their way around multi-car pile ups in snow and ice. I also owned a full time AWD Eagle Talon sports car that never let me down in snow and ice. AWD definitely gives you better traction and more accurate steering on snowy/icey roads than RWD cars.

 

[t1m1t]

$46720 for my 2021 SR+, 7k miles (prices seem to have gone up even more).
Paid 38k (plus TTL) less a 2500 rebate that was only valid on the SR+. At the time the difference was over 10k.

Add the possibility of federal incentives and we had to jump.

Does the federal incentive apply to cars already purchased? For me the LR shows a delivery date of Dec. If I were to pick up the car in Dec and the incentive came out in Feb, would my LR qualify? I always thought the car had to be purchased while the incentive was live and done so before it ran out.

 

[Jeremy3292]

Does the federal incentive apply to cars already purchased? For me the LR shows a delivery date of Dec. If I were to pick up the car in Dec and the incentive came out in Feb, would my LR qualify? I always thought the car had to be purchased while the incentive was live and done so before it ran out.

The bill text has not been released yet so no one knows for sure and it is all speculation at this point. Link below is from a couple of weeks ago and shows that they have to give us the actual bill text before we know what the details are:

The Tesla EV Tax Credit

The Clean Energy Act for America would have a positive impact on Tesla by making most Tesla cars eligible for an $8,000 (House version) or $10,000 (Senate version) refundable tax credit and handicapping Chinese EVs from entering the US market. However, Tesla does not employ unionized labor, so...

www.voltequity.com

 

[CapeOne]

Plus there's an almost-a-year wait on the SR+ (next September) where the LR is available in December.

Not necessarily. If you search Tesla's existing inventory, there are over 80 new SR+ posted online right now.