The dream has happened. After quite a journey, I now own a beautiful Model S.
I had been watching the market relentlessly, with HUGE help of EV-CPO of course. After nearly a year of considering, budgeting, and debating we called Alliant and were approved for financing. We gave the $1000 deposit and waited for next instructions. As is apparently the case for many, communication was mediocre at best. Albeit it was the end of the year and the seemed incredibly busy. So, I waited...waited...waited... and watched every video on Youtube (Thank you KMan, James Cooke, Like Tesla, Bjorn Nyland, and many more). I spent many hours using this great resource of TMC to learn everything I could. We then installed our Nema 14-50 with the guidance of my cousin who happens to be an electrician- maybe this dream was going to come true after all.
Earlier on, we had decided to travel to the location of our "new" car in order to bypass an addition $2000 shipping charge. So, we made a trip out of it. My wife and I hopped on a flight to New York spent a few days roaming the city and traveled to Philadelphia via train. The Tesla Showroom in Devon, PA was where our car was; so, we grabbed another train from 30th in Philly and were met John, a local Delivery Orientation Specialist. He picked us up in a beautiful new Model S and took us to the showroom.
Of course, the car looked stunning. Its Blue Metallic with original 19" wheels. John and the rest of the team were very welcoming and helpful. Due to weather, our temp plates didn't arrive on time, but John was able to circumvent this issue. I inspected the car and was a bit bummed to see chip in the paint. I brought this to their attention but was told that the detailer claimed these imperfections were smaller than what they will fix during the CPO process. Other than that, the car was fantastic. After signing some papers and receiving a mug and a pen, we were on our way home...over 800 miles, 5 Superchargers, 2 days, 1 destination charger in route to Nashville.
Right away, the acceleration was at the forefront of my attention. Its immediate, tactile, and powerful. So much fun. The seats, though they are the older Performance version, are very comfortable. Luckily, the CPO we picked out was equipped with Smart Air Suspension; so, the ride was quite smooth. I was worried that on this long of a drive, 16+ hours, we would all be bored to tears. That was not the case. Many people have negative comments about the sound system in the Model S. I found the UHFS and Streaming Slacker Radio to be incredible. We had so much fun just cruising and telling the car to play what ever song or artist came into our heads.
When searching for the right CPO for us, the great AP debate was raging and we weren't sure if we could afford to spend the extra money to get a AP enabled CPO. Ultimately we decided against it as a Tesla without AP is much better than no Telsa at all. The concern vanished as soon as I hit the road. The fun of the drive was all that I needed. People will tell potentially buyers that AP makes all the difference; obviously I can't say thats not true, but I can say that the car is still incredible without it.
Range anxiety was non existent for most of the trip. I drove in 19 degree weather with climate control on in whatever manner I felt. Being this is my first electric car, I wasn't sure how stopping to charge would effect the drive. The Harrisburg, Strasburg, and Lexington VA supercharger were perfectly spaced to provide the seriously fast charging needed. Most had a lot of food/coffee/bathroom options and usually the car was ready to go before I was. Wytheville, VA was our next stop- grabbing a waffle and passing the time. The only spot I found range to be troublesome was between Wytheville and Knoxville. Though the P85 was originally rated for 265 miles, ours is 3.5 years old and is now showing 245 at full charge. Add that to the fact that it is freezing outside and nearly 200 mile gap between Superchargers. Thanks to Plugshare, I found a destination charge at Mountain Motorsports in Kodak, Tn. It was definitely a huge help. Somebody buy something from those guys on behalf of all of us that have been saved by their charger. We finally made it to the Knoxville Supercharger and laid down to sleep at 2 AM at a nearby Ecolodge. I know...but we had just spent a ton of money. Got get it back somehow. The drive how from Knoxville was a breeze, keeping my consumption under an average of about 340 wh/mi (correct my if thats the wrong units. I'm new).
The drive was relaxing, fun, joyous, and calm. None of the iPads, books, or games we brought were needed to entertain us. The car and the radio were enough. It was a very special experience. Pretty positive I'll never buy an ICE vehicle again. Thanks for making me a part of the family.
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I had been watching the market relentlessly, with HUGE help of EV-CPO of course. After nearly a year of considering, budgeting, and debating we called Alliant and were approved for financing. We gave the $1000 deposit and waited for next instructions. As is apparently the case for many, communication was mediocre at best. Albeit it was the end of the year and the seemed incredibly busy. So, I waited...waited...waited... and watched every video on Youtube (Thank you KMan, James Cooke, Like Tesla, Bjorn Nyland, and many more). I spent many hours using this great resource of TMC to learn everything I could. We then installed our Nema 14-50 with the guidance of my cousin who happens to be an electrician- maybe this dream was going to come true after all.
Earlier on, we had decided to travel to the location of our "new" car in order to bypass an addition $2000 shipping charge. So, we made a trip out of it. My wife and I hopped on a flight to New York spent a few days roaming the city and traveled to Philadelphia via train. The Tesla Showroom in Devon, PA was where our car was; so, we grabbed another train from 30th in Philly and were met John, a local Delivery Orientation Specialist. He picked us up in a beautiful new Model S and took us to the showroom.
Of course, the car looked stunning. Its Blue Metallic with original 19" wheels. John and the rest of the team were very welcoming and helpful. Due to weather, our temp plates didn't arrive on time, but John was able to circumvent this issue. I inspected the car and was a bit bummed to see chip in the paint. I brought this to their attention but was told that the detailer claimed these imperfections were smaller than what they will fix during the CPO process. Other than that, the car was fantastic. After signing some papers and receiving a mug and a pen, we were on our way home...over 800 miles, 5 Superchargers, 2 days, 1 destination charger in route to Nashville.
Right away, the acceleration was at the forefront of my attention. Its immediate, tactile, and powerful. So much fun. The seats, though they are the older Performance version, are very comfortable. Luckily, the CPO we picked out was equipped with Smart Air Suspension; so, the ride was quite smooth. I was worried that on this long of a drive, 16+ hours, we would all be bored to tears. That was not the case. Many people have negative comments about the sound system in the Model S. I found the UHFS and Streaming Slacker Radio to be incredible. We had so much fun just cruising and telling the car to play what ever song or artist came into our heads.
When searching for the right CPO for us, the great AP debate was raging and we weren't sure if we could afford to spend the extra money to get a AP enabled CPO. Ultimately we decided against it as a Tesla without AP is much better than no Telsa at all. The concern vanished as soon as I hit the road. The fun of the drive was all that I needed. People will tell potentially buyers that AP makes all the difference; obviously I can't say thats not true, but I can say that the car is still incredible without it.
Range anxiety was non existent for most of the trip. I drove in 19 degree weather with climate control on in whatever manner I felt. Being this is my first electric car, I wasn't sure how stopping to charge would effect the drive. The Harrisburg, Strasburg, and Lexington VA supercharger were perfectly spaced to provide the seriously fast charging needed. Most had a lot of food/coffee/bathroom options and usually the car was ready to go before I was. Wytheville, VA was our next stop- grabbing a waffle and passing the time. The only spot I found range to be troublesome was between Wytheville and Knoxville. Though the P85 was originally rated for 265 miles, ours is 3.5 years old and is now showing 245 at full charge. Add that to the fact that it is freezing outside and nearly 200 mile gap between Superchargers. Thanks to Plugshare, I found a destination charge at Mountain Motorsports in Kodak, Tn. It was definitely a huge help. Somebody buy something from those guys on behalf of all of us that have been saved by their charger. We finally made it to the Knoxville Supercharger and laid down to sleep at 2 AM at a nearby Ecolodge. I know...but we had just spent a ton of money. Got get it back somehow. The drive how from Knoxville was a breeze, keeping my consumption under an average of about 340 wh/mi (correct my if thats the wrong units. I'm new).
The drive was relaxing, fun, joyous, and calm. None of the iPads, books, or games we brought were needed to entertain us. The car and the radio were enough. It was a very special experience. Pretty positive I'll never buy an ICE vehicle again. Thanks for making me a part of the family.
View media item 116481
