Latest Price Drop Discussion

[thx1139]

...and you do know that's how things work at every company ever (also the term for it is not supply and demand, but economies of scale)? I guess you think Apple should charge a million dollars a piece for the first few hundred iPhones of each new model and then decrease the price as production scales up until they cost a couple hundred at the end of the year?

You do realize as Apple releases new or revised versions of iPhones the previous versions lower in price. My phone and my sons phone are the same. His bought a year after mine was $200 cheaper.

 

[happyzod]

Tesla's unlike ICE vehicles are mostly new tech and high tech devices. All devices like this have a history of dropping in price. I havent ever tried to figure out what my 2015 85D which cost like $95K would cost today. Just thrilled how it compared to other vehicles at the time and how at 100K miles is still drives the way it did when we took it home. If you had looked at Tesla history you would know that the price of the vehicles either drop over time or the cars get more capability for the same price. If you want a car where every year the manufacturer raises the price then I suggest going with a traditional manufacturer.

You had the 3 year garantee with 50% resale value.

 

[Xenius]

Public Service Announcement: Prices change. Do not buy widget X if you're not willing to pay the price for widget X at the time of sale. If it goes on sale later, someone else gets lucky, but you still have your widget.

If you're that worried about it, lease the thing. Then at the end you'll have nothing, regardless of how much that nothing costs someone else

 

[jonlaxn]

The history of Tesla has been more car for less money as time goes on - this has happened to pretty much every owner ever. Some times are worse than others - usually buying right before a major change, like buying the last AP 1 car, buying right before the D's were released, recently, paying full price for a Ludicrous car.

I picked up my first Tesla (85D) the day they announced the 90D ...point is, you still have the car you bought and if you enjoy it, don't let this take the joy away. The money was gone when you picked up the car, but it still has the original value to you and if you were to replace it in 3-4 years, the replacement will be that much better and less expensive.

I just picked up a Performance S, with "free" Ludicrous, but knew up front that "free" Ludicrous would at a minimum devalue the existing L cars and would likely soon be offered to everyone and would have little real resale value to me. On the upside, I have an amazing new car that I will enjoy driving for a number of years.

I just took delivery of my Tesla Model S. I did not pay for Ludicrous mode. (+$20k) You mentioned free ludicrous mode... when did that happen?
My Controls say Chill, Sport, Insane and Insane+. Is there one more mode? Or do i have Ludicrous, and not know it>? THanks

 

[jdw]

I just took delivery of my Tesla Model S. I did not pay for Ludicrous mode. (+$20k) You mentioned free ludicrous mode... when did that happen?
My Controls say Chill, Sport, Insane and Insane+. Is there one more mode? Or do i have Ludicrous, and not know it>? THanks

Insane and Insane+ are what a Performance car without Ludicrous displays. The "free" Ludicrous was a promotion for existing Tesla owners who bought Performance cars. They have since dropped the price, and you will likely be able to buy Ludicrous for a lot less than a few days ago.

edit: Technically, raised the base price of the P's, but included Ludicrous at no extra charge.

 

[Sutton 3P]

Public Service Announcement: Prices change. Do not buy widget X if you're not willing to pay the price for widget X at the time of sale. If it goes on sale later, someone else gets lucky, but you still have your widget.

If you're that worried about it, lease the thing. Then at the end you'll have nothing, regardless of how much that nothing costs someone else

Since this is representative of many such condescending statements that things tend to decrease in value over time and therefore I am an idiot and a loser to complain that Tesla has decreased the price by 10% literally overnight (as well as lied about FSD prices, about price drops not happening again, etc etc). Perhaps you have no concept of future value and don't apply it to your finances but most people do when buying commodity items like a car. It is fair to expect some stability in the future value.

 

[JulienW]

If only Tesla would HIDE and change their prices based on how much they can stick you for the way all other dealers do (let me talk to my manager).

Also buy a TV when the new model comes out and then see what people are paying in a year.

 

[jdw]

Perhaps you have no concept of future value and don't apply it to your finances but most people do when buying commodity items like a car. It is fair to expect some stability in the future value.

I don't think stability is a word that you can apply to the resale value of used cars ... even the release of the Model 3 pulled down the value of used Model S cars. A new "Super 3" would pull down the price of the previous 3's. The way I see it, you give Tesla money, they give you a car. No matter what happens from there, they have the money and you have the car. They can't ask you for more money and you can't ask them for more car.

 

[Watts 4 Me]

(Spoiler alert, the prices are going to drop again in January.)

Be careful, I got hate posts when I posted back in June that prices would drop in July.

 

[jerry33]

I don't think stability is a word that you can apply to the resale value of used cars ... even the release of the Model 3 pulled down the value of used Model S cars. A new "Super 3" would pull down the price of the previous 3's. The way I see it, you give Tesla money, they give you a car. No matter what happens from there, they have the money and you have the car. They can't ask you for more money and you can't ask them for more car.

Mostly true, although in the time I've had my S, there is now a trip graph, links to the calendar on the phone, and other improvements as well (plus a few UI things I would rather they revert).

 

[Petra]

The cars are great and I love the performance model 3, BUT

I bought my M3P+ in January for $73 000 (+taxes, delivery, etc) with FSD, white interior and white multicoat paint.

Today that car costs $62 000

Factor in my additional $1875 rebate and I've lost $9125 in 6 months, plus normal depreciation. Now tell me again about how my car is actually an appreciating asset

My P3D- stickered at $75k (before taxes, destination, etc.). The exact same configuration today (based on this thread) would be $57k.

Granted, I got the full $7500 federal tax credit, the $2500 California rebate (which I'm no longer eligible for... blast that rebate limit ), unlimited free data, unlimited free Supercharging, and $900 in subsidy from various local entities but that still leaves a little left over... which was completely made up for in YouTube revenue in the 10 months since I took delivery. I may have paid a silly amount of money for this car, but I can't complain.

There is an argument to be made for price stability and estimating future depreciated value, but how much that matters depends on your specific case and what your plans are when making the purchase.

 

[Watts 4 Me]

You do realize as Apple releases new or revised versions of iPhones the previous versions lower in price. My phone and my sons phone are the same. His bought a year after mine was $200 cheaper.

How can you compare $200 to 5k+?
Not everyone has money to blow. And any savings help.

 

[tryceo]

Old cars get cheaper. Get used to it. Resale value for most luxury cars goes down 30% in a year.

 

[jerry33]

How can you compare $200 to 5k+?
Not everyone has money to blow. And any savings help.

200/1000 is 20% 5000/100,000 is 5% (or 10% over 50,000).
When you purchase a Tesla you're basically purchasing a computer. Prices for the same hardware reduce rapidly, or you pay the same price but get a lot more.

The secret to happiness with any high tech product is:
1. Purchase the best you are able to afford.
2. Never read another review or forum post until the product you bought no longer does what you purchased it to do.
3. Repeat.

 

[tryceo]

How can you compare $200 to 5k+?
Not everyone has money to blow. And any savings help.

if you buy a 75k car, you officially have money to blow

 

[SSonnentag]

Tech items are out-of-date and cheaper practically by the time you've gotten the item home. Cell phones being a rare exception; they just seem to get more expensive with each release.

 

[MagnusMako]

Insane and Insane+ are what a Performance car without Ludicrous displays. The "free" Ludicrous was a promotion for existing Tesla owners who bought Performance cars. They have since dropped the price, and you will likely be able to buy Ludicrous for a lot less than a few days ago.

The promotion part is correct, however now that's over and in the most recent pricing restructuring the base model S price increased but the Performance version is now including Ludicrous for free instead of making it a $20k option as you can see on the site right now. I do fee for those who just took delivery and paid $20k for Ludicrous, when it's now free.

People say that "prices change" but that is a rather vague blanket statement. Tesla's prices change much more erratically and unpredictably compared to the rest of the industry where msrp prices are generally unchanged until the next year. Tesla is definitely a different car company which is still trying to make a profit so they have some leeway but I think some people would hope by now they would have more stable pricing instead of such drastic swings. Even Elon himself tweeted back in late February there would be "no further pricing reductions from here", but as we can see that hasn't held up. We see the same thing with pricing increases, where FSD is suppose to continue to increase in price. However, that is completely contingent on it's grand vision becoming a reality, which may be years and years away (especially with federal regulations needed) - meanwhile tens of thousands have already paid for it.

I'm not vouching against Tesla, but I do think there are many areas where they could improve with their business model. When the rest of the industry catches up within relative margins, they are going to really feel the pressure to get things right or customers will easily jump ship and never come back. They still have a good cushion with their core capabilities and well engineered components but it will only be a matter of time before that magic sauce will be replicated or even trumped by others.

 

[tuoncan]

I bought my house in 2006 for $545k. A year later it worths $350k. Who should I go and complain to?

 

[Camera-Cruiser]

I appreciate some of the feedback here, while others sound very cultish.

First off, no, $65k luxury cars don't fluctuate by $10k day to day. That is a ridiculous claim at any point in time, but especially so in 2019.

Second, yes I have the same car and I agreed to it's value etc etc. However, I did not factor 15% being lopped off the MSRP in 6 months' time (this obviously affects resale). This is not because I want to screw people out of getting a better deal, but because I want to have a reasonably constant MSRP and not one that moves like stock options. If you don't understand this, then good luck with your finances.

Third, what people have a hard time admitting to here is that Musk is a compulsive liar (and has even been sued by the SEC for this). As a customer I don't like that he constantly lies about the products he's selling (and yes I am well aware that the M3 appreciating is a brazen example of this). I don't like that it makes Tesla buyers look like suckers or rubes who cultishly follow whatever the dear leader says. Even if I don't care at all about the $10k, it's embarassing because I look like a fool by association.

Car prices can and do fluctuate by thousands daily. Manufacturers do this via their dealers often dropping prices $5k or more. Right now (July 2019) take $8K of an Escalade, I'd say that was premium vehicle - More $$ than a P3D. I just googled best new car deals July 2019 to find this.

https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/cadillac/escalade/prices

All July 2019 deals listed here:
https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/best-car-deals
($6,000 back on Nissan Murano)
and this is just the open to the public published stuff.

And, let's not forget Acura's $20,000 price drop on their NSX:
2019 Acura NSX gets $20,000 discount after slow 2018 sales

and here's Autoblog's list of July 2019 deals (it's a slide show so you have to click through it) $10K off Nissan Titan, $6K-9K off Chevy Bolt's, etc

The Best New Car Deals: July 2019

You don't look like a financial fool. If your friends and associates are tracking the purchase price of your stuff, you need different friends and associates. Realistically, we've all been told by smart money people that you should never buy a new car, so you are in the company of very many who have gone before you, and those that will follow. If you want to feel like a fool, then kick yourself for not buying Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, Amazon, or earlier stock stalwarts like GE, Coke, GM, and Yahoo. I paid thousands more for my Pearl White P3D than you last year, but it doesn't bug me a bit. It was that much more time saved in the carpool lane. Time does have a price, and I've got my return on it.

The issue is that you are Tesla laser focused now. I didn't see Teslas (or follow forums) as much until I bought one. Same thing for a Subaru Crosstrek I got my daughter, I didn't notice them as much until now.

The difference between my kid's Subaru and my Tesla is that I haven't once visited a Subaru forum to become educated to be disappointed about what I may or may not have missed out on.

Tesla will do whatever is necessary to stay in business, I hope.

I just wish they would bring service and delivery back up to the high standards they had prior to the 3.

 

[jerry33]

People say that "prices change" but that is a rather vague blanket statement. Tesla's prices change much more erratically and unpredictably compared to the rest of the industry where msrp prices are generally unchanged until the next year.

That is not the way I understand it. Car manufacturers make many price changes (e.g. rebates to the dealer, booking deals, etc.) The consumer never sees these because they are hidden. Tesla is more transparent because there is no dealer network.