Looking for some advice [new vs used - is fsd worth it]

[Aleck77]

Hey everybody!


I am a new member here and am hoping to get some input from some veteran Tesla owners.


I have been watching Tesla for awhile now. I really like their mission and what they are trying to accomplish. I feel like I have watched just about every tsla realated video on youtube and have decided that my next vehicle will be electric.


So I think I finally got my wife onboard and she has given me permission to get a new car. I have decided that I want to get a model 3 long range awd. Leaning heavily towards white with black interior. Unfortunately, a brand new car is out of our price range so I have been browsing a few of the used car sites as well as the used inventory on the tsla website. Our budget is between 44k to 48k-ish and I think I'm finding some good deals thru the tsla website. I am trying to decide between either s 2019 or 2018 that comes with fsd and the acceleration boost or a 2021 from Tesla's existing inventory. I could care less about the acceleration boost, but is the fsd package worth it?...or am I better off trying to go with the 2021 model that doesn't have all the bells and whistles?

Just curious to see what your opinions are if you were in my shoes. Any help you guys can give would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!


-- Andy --

 

[skygraff]

Welcome and glad you’re ready to go EV in support of the mission!

Unfortunately, what you’re asking is rather subjective and based on your driving style/needs. If you are planning to use FSD when it is fully implemented, buying a car with it enabled, now, might be better than trying to purchase it later. However, if it isn’t something you care about (now or later), it may not be worth the price. Some of the older cars will have EAP (Enhanced Auto Pilot) which isn’t far from the current feature set of FSD (not the beta version a few are testing) so that might be in the one without FSD.

If I were in your shoes, I’d sit down with any other expected drivers and create a want/need pros/cons style list. You’ve watched the videos and read the material but, if you haven’t yet, take a test drive. Obviously, with the pandemic, there may be limits but Tesla doesn’t hard sell when you test drive and, if they still have this capability, they can use their test drive software to mimic other drivetrains and power packs so you can feel the alternative experiences.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[Dre78]

Ben Sullins has a great, but long (25 minute) video to help with economics; trying to make this as objective as possible. Hope this helps with a more informed decision.

Personally (very subjective), I would have bought FSD at the onset because 1) I'm lucky enough financially to afford, and 2) FOMO. Contrast with helping a friend with their decision, and trying to convince them FSD shouldn't be a deal breaker because of their financial situation.

Good luck!

 

[joebruin77]

As others have mentioned, it really is a personal preference. If I was buying a used car because I could not afford a brand new one, I would want to keep my expenses as low as possible. I would personally choose the 2021 without FSD so I could get the longer bumper to bumper warranty.

 

[Dynamite647]

Hey everybody!


I am a new member here and am hoping to get some input from some veteran Tesla owners.


I have been watching Tesla for awhile now. I really like their mission and what they are trying to accomplish. I feel like I have watched just about every tsla realated video on youtube and have decided that my next vehicle will be electric.


So I think I finally got my wife onboard and she has given me permission to get a new car. I have decided that I want to get a model 3 long range awd. Leaning heavily towards white with black interior. Unfortunately, a brand new car is out of our price range so I have been browsing a few of the used car sites as well as the used inventory on the tsla website. Our budget is between 44k to 48k-ish and I think I'm finding some good deals thru the tsla website. I am trying to decide between either s 2019 or 2018 that comes with fsd and the acceleration boost or a 2021 from Tesla's existing inventory. I could care less about the acceleration boost, but is the fsd package worth it?...or am I better off trying to go with the 2021 model that doesn't have all the bells and whistles?

Just curious to see what your opinions are if you were in my shoes. Any help you guys can give would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!


-- Andy --

I was in the same boat as you few months back (Oct 2020). After doing a test drive and some research I chose a new 2021 Model 3 LR without the FSD. It was a very expensive purchase for me but I am happy with it (besides the quality defects/software issues). I chose this because i live in a cold climate (Canada) and the heat pump does help a little. The extra range comes in handy as I do not need to charge my car every night.

I did look at a few used models (both from Tesla & Kijiji) but the price was not too far away from a new one, also where I live the tax is @ 13% so considering everything a new one cost me just north of $70k while similar spec used (with FSD) were going for above $65k.

The car is already fast as is so no need to look for "Acc boost" option. You can always add this later on. Basic Autopilot at the moment works fine but you will have phantom brake issue. Feel free to watch my youtube videos as they might help you a little bit.

 

[BeeGood]

I think for those of us in that price range, it’s tough to justify FSD. Unless you have a specific use case for it, you’re paying $10K more to get what is currently a small lift over the included autopilot.

So the question becomes, do you value the two year old LR version over a new SR+. So 300 miles ( or less considering there will be some battery degradation) versus 260 miles and a new battery pack...

If it’s me, I’d go with the car with the newer battery pack. How often is that extra 50 miles (max) going to be a factor? I think that’s the question you have to answer.

 

[RedWhite19]

I personally don’t think the FSD is worth it. You buy a car so you experience what the car is all about. Even with the Autopilot that comes with the car now, I’ve hardly used it, maybe 3-4 times since getting my car late September. There are some cool aspects of it, but worth 10k? I don’t think so. Plus, there are rumors that there could be a subscription version of FSD in the near future. So, there’s that as well. Best of luck.

 

[house9]

If it was me I would:
- buy new
- skip FSD
- buy as much range as you can afford

EDIT: Also be aware your insurance costs are most likely going to go up

 

[MXracerjimmy]

I as well was in the same boat in California. Buy new without anything I wanted (color, wheels, options) to fit budget or go pre-owned. Long story short, I bought a pre-owned 2019, blue, wheels, full self driving for 36K still under factory warranty, Have had no issues other than the annoying squeaks and rattles which seem to be across the board, In turn a month later a kid that works for me wanted to get one. I tried and tried to push him to get a pre-owned with all the goodies but he ended up going new, paying for the red paint, paying for the wheels but couldn't afford the $10K full self driving.I think he was like $48K by the time he was done. He is kicking himself everyday. Now the challenge is finding either a good third party or reputable dealer with what you want. We have a great company here in SoCal that only deals in Teslas directly from Tesla so they are fully documented with history. My particular car was a lease return where the owner couldn't afford it. Turned back into Tesla and Tesla sold it at auction. Sure it had miles on it but it's a trade off everyone has to decide on. I drive 120 miles a day round trip and use self driving all the time. Is it worth it, for me yes because the previous owner paid for it. Would I shell out 10K on a new one for it, probably not but the other thing is it's just plain cool. I have taken the care in twice on the bumper to bumper warranty and have no issues with the service center except correcting the squeaks and rattles. I will say the one thing I am most unhappy with is that Tesla offers and extended warranty if you purchase from a private party, if you purchase from a third party dealer, they wont sell it to you. That is posted on their site. I contaceted the dealer I purchased it from and there is a company that offers an extended warranty the has great coverage and you can take it to Tesla for anything you need. It takes you from the 50K to 100K for 5 years or 50K miles. $3200.00. I decided not to do it because of the amount of miles I drive, I would burn through that in 2.5 years. Hopefully you will find what works best for you.

 

[MXracerjimmy]

Correct @house9. Insurance will increase.

 

[jjrandorin]

(moderator note: edited thread title to include what the OP question is)

 

[run-the-joules]

BS has a great, but long (25 minute) video to help with economics; trying to make this as objective as possible. Hope this helps with a more informed decision.

Can we please not send him any more clicks?

 

[ucmndd]

$10,000 is a big bet on a company that makes big promises in this space and then fails over and over again to deliver.

They confirmed a month or two ago that subscription FSD is coming in 2021. It will be $$$ on a monthly basis but I’d be far more inclined to activate it for a month here and there (road trips maybe) vs forking over an incredible amount of money for what is right now not much of anything useful.

Which is a long-winded way of saying at your budget I’d be strongly inclined to buy new and skip the FSD. Lots of improvements in the 2021 refresh.

 

[run-the-joules]

$10,000 is a big bet on a company that makes big promises in this space and then fails over and over again to deliver.

That's a wonderful and polite way of putting it. Well done.

 

[St☰v☰]

I bought my 19 with only autopilot (TACC) and not FSD. When the trial FSD came out for $4k, I opted for it. I tried it for the weekend and cancelled it. while the summon is cute feature and a novelty at best, it was so slow I could walk to my car quicker. Furthermore, I like driving and like control of my vehicle. That said, until it get's to the point in which it is totally autonomous, it's not worth it since you still have to hold the wheel and tug on it every 30 or so seconds, where's the value?

 

[run-the-joules]

I bought my 19 with only enhanced autopilot and not FSD. When the trial FSD came out for $4k, I opted for it. I tried it for the weekend and cancelled it. while the summon is cute feature and a novelty at best, it was so slow I could walk to my car quicker. Furthermore, I like driving and like control of my vehicle. That said, until it get's to the point in which it is totally autonomous, it's not worth it since you still have to hold the wheel and tug on it every 30 or so seconds, where's the value?

I'm… so confused. Smart Summon is part of Enhanced Autopilot. Do you mean you have Basic Autopilot?

 

[St☰v☰]

I'm… so confused. Smart Summon is part of Enhanced Autopilot. Do you mean you have Basic Autopilot?

Yes sorry, I did edit my post to correct it.

 

[run-the-joules]

Yes sorry, I did edit my post to correct it.

Right on. Makes way more sense now haha

 

[Deep Purple]

That's a no for me on FSD. The feature is expensive and worth little monetary value.

 

[camalaio]

Most "worth it" videos/explanations rely on one of two approaches: using the car in the future as a "RoboTaxi" (which does not and might not ever exist during the lifetime of your car), or simply as an assisted driving feature (which does exist today).

The RoboTaxi bet is one I wouldn't make for a simple reason: I'm not leasing my car out to strangers, especially ones that are unmonitored. I mean, think of what people already do in taxis driven by humans. No thanks.

As for the assisted driving features, the primarily useful ones (traffic aware cruise control, AutoSteer) are already included with basic AutoPilot. It's up to you to decide if things like Smart Summon or automatic lane changes are worth the price difference for the cars you're comparing. I personally do not use them, but make near daily use of cruise control.

I've always looked at the FSD price like "wow, I can do a lot of other things for $xxxx that would make me happier". But that's because that's true for me; maybe it's not for you.