I thought I’d share my experience of buying a used Model S from the Birmingham Tesla shop.
Brief background. I bought a Hyundai Ioniq electric in 2017 and decided I wanted a Tesla so that I could enjoy charge-anxiety-free driving in a car with better performance. I had decided a long time ago that, if the price is roughly the same, it would be a no brainer to go Tesla rather than any other brand EV.
First of all I originally went to Tesla Birmingham to show them photos of the headlights on a 2018 MS that I was thinking about buying from an independent dealership. One headlight had failed and the other yellowing. I was trying to get an idea of whether they would both be fixed under the remaining warranty.
After hearing that the yellowing headlight was a questionable fix and a general feeling of unease buying from that independent dealer, I decided not to buy it.
Instead, while I was in the Birmingham Tesla shop, I asked them to show me what used model S they had in stock. Red 75D.
There was a 2018 75D available with <28k miles which was several thousand more expensive than the one I was previously considering, but the 1 year/10k mile warranty plus assurance that it would be delivered with 'everything fixed' got me over the line.
I was offered less than £15k on my 42k mile 2017 Hyundai Ioniq premium SE electric (in good condition), so I decided to have a stab at selling it privately.
I inspected the S a few days later in Birmingham prior to delivery.
I was assured that both headlights would be replaced, it would have new tyres and the one dint and significant paint issues I pointed out would be fixed. And the CCS upgrade would be applied.
When it was delivered over a week later, it came with a bunch of Tesla merchandise, which was nice.
But only the CCS upgrade had been done, so I called and it was booked in for all the remaining work on the following Tuesday.
The Saturday prior, my partner pressed the button to open the tailgate and she lifted it at the same time. Something she was used to doing with the Ioniq, of course.
This led to the tailgate sticking neither open nor closed, with us unable to move it and the car reporting it as open.
I called Tesla and they booked it in for Monday, but since the car was due in on Tuesday I decided to live with it (not being lockable) until then.
I dropped it off on the Tuesday morning and they gave me a P100D loaner. That was nice.
The service guy replaced both headlights and an alloy and the bodywork guy made the dint disappear completely and fixed most of the paint issues. It's a 4 year old car - I don't expect it to be as good as new. And, of course, they fixed the tailgate issue. Stretched cable, he said.
And he replaced the broken rear number plate holder and fitted two new (green striped) plates.
So with everything done, I was happy.
Then a couple of days later, when I wanted to get a free charge from a local Tesco, I found my type 2 cable was missing from the frunk. The bag was there, but no cable.
I guess, while the frunk was out of the car for headlight replacement, someone in the service department had borrowed the cable and not returned it.
It took too long, honestly, for a replacement to arrive. Eventually they sent a junior guy to hand deliver a type 2 cable.
Meanwhile I sold the Ioniq for a bit under £18k, so I was super happy about that.
Now, I'm loving my S. Even though the Enhanced Autopilot upgrade still hasn't been reapplied to the car. They did say it would take up to three months to happen. Why, though?
Anyway, I'm happy with my Tesla. The ride is fantastic. I drove my Ioniq once more before it was sold and in comparison I noticed a lot of body roll. No noticeable body roll in the S.
I've ordered a Thinkware F770 to be fitted as TeslaCam is disappointing.
There are lots of other comparisons I could make with the Ioniq, but very few where it's better (e.g. Carplay & cooled seats) and countless where the Tesla is better.
Am I glad I purchased an approved used car directly from Tesla? Yes. Peace of mind is worth a lot. And I'm probably going to pay for extended warranties going forward.
Shame they make the occasional f-up like not doing the work prior to delivery and losing the type 2 cable. I guess these are symptoms of a less organised service department.
And maybe inadequate communication between sales and service.
Not a perfect experience, but no regrets.
Brief background. I bought a Hyundai Ioniq electric in 2017 and decided I wanted a Tesla so that I could enjoy charge-anxiety-free driving in a car with better performance. I had decided a long time ago that, if the price is roughly the same, it would be a no brainer to go Tesla rather than any other brand EV.
First of all I originally went to Tesla Birmingham to show them photos of the headlights on a 2018 MS that I was thinking about buying from an independent dealership. One headlight had failed and the other yellowing. I was trying to get an idea of whether they would both be fixed under the remaining warranty.
After hearing that the yellowing headlight was a questionable fix and a general feeling of unease buying from that independent dealer, I decided not to buy it.
Instead, while I was in the Birmingham Tesla shop, I asked them to show me what used model S they had in stock. Red 75D.
There was a 2018 75D available with <28k miles which was several thousand more expensive than the one I was previously considering, but the 1 year/10k mile warranty plus assurance that it would be delivered with 'everything fixed' got me over the line.
I was offered less than £15k on my 42k mile 2017 Hyundai Ioniq premium SE electric (in good condition), so I decided to have a stab at selling it privately.
I inspected the S a few days later in Birmingham prior to delivery.
I was assured that both headlights would be replaced, it would have new tyres and the one dint and significant paint issues I pointed out would be fixed. And the CCS upgrade would be applied.
When it was delivered over a week later, it came with a bunch of Tesla merchandise, which was nice.
But only the CCS upgrade had been done, so I called and it was booked in for all the remaining work on the following Tuesday.
The Saturday prior, my partner pressed the button to open the tailgate and she lifted it at the same time. Something she was used to doing with the Ioniq, of course.
This led to the tailgate sticking neither open nor closed, with us unable to move it and the car reporting it as open.
I called Tesla and they booked it in for Monday, but since the car was due in on Tuesday I decided to live with it (not being lockable) until then.
I dropped it off on the Tuesday morning and they gave me a P100D loaner. That was nice.
The service guy replaced both headlights and an alloy and the bodywork guy made the dint disappear completely and fixed most of the paint issues. It's a 4 year old car - I don't expect it to be as good as new. And, of course, they fixed the tailgate issue. Stretched cable, he said.
And he replaced the broken rear number plate holder and fitted two new (green striped) plates.
So with everything done, I was happy.
Then a couple of days later, when I wanted to get a free charge from a local Tesco, I found my type 2 cable was missing from the frunk. The bag was there, but no cable.
I guess, while the frunk was out of the car for headlight replacement, someone in the service department had borrowed the cable and not returned it.
It took too long, honestly, for a replacement to arrive. Eventually they sent a junior guy to hand deliver a type 2 cable.
Meanwhile I sold the Ioniq for a bit under £18k, so I was super happy about that.
Now, I'm loving my S. Even though the Enhanced Autopilot upgrade still hasn't been reapplied to the car. They did say it would take up to three months to happen. Why, though?
Anyway, I'm happy with my Tesla. The ride is fantastic. I drove my Ioniq once more before it was sold and in comparison I noticed a lot of body roll. No noticeable body roll in the S.
I've ordered a Thinkware F770 to be fitted as TeslaCam is disappointing.
There are lots of other comparisons I could make with the Ioniq, but very few where it's better (e.g. Carplay & cooled seats) and countless where the Tesla is better.
Am I glad I purchased an approved used car directly from Tesla? Yes. Peace of mind is worth a lot. And I'm probably going to pay for extended warranties going forward.
Shame they make the occasional f-up like not doing the work prior to delivery and losing the type 2 cable. I guess these are symptoms of a less organised service department.
And maybe inadequate communication between sales and service.
Not a perfect experience, but no regrets.
