Need help convincing a spouse or significant other to let you buy?

[McHoffa]

A friend of mine went with me to the Tesla store when I went for a test drive a couple months ago. At the time he barely knew about Tesla, only what he'd seen and heard from me basically.

Since then, he's been talking non stop about them, and wants to go with me on March 31 to put down a deposit for a Model 3. The problem is convincing his wife that it's a good buy. She could care less about cars, so it's all about budget.

So, to help him out, I started a Google sheet to let him compare buying a new car (which he'll be way overdue for by the end of next year) vs buying a Model 3. I decided to turn it into a template for others to use if they're interested. Let me know if you have any suggestions for changes or additional information.

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[rnelsonee]

Some friendly feedback - I'd make a separate box for number of years to calculate gas/electricity. Right now if you don't take a loan you get errors, and most people probably plan on keeping the car longer than the loan term. Also, most people (myself included) aren't too good with kWh figures/estimates, so maybe tie the miles travelled/week figure to that? Like if we're reasonably sure the Model 3 gets .333 kWh/mile, you can do 0.333*miles/week.

Other than that, maybe throw in tax and estimates for maintenance, although those are certainly big unknowns now.

 

[McHoffa]

When I built it, I needed to specify the miles he would charge at home (because he commutes and works near a supercharger, he plans on taking advantage of that, so his at home charge time will be less than average. Good point though, as most people WOULDN'T do that.

Also, this was made just for the purchase term. Obviously, beyond 6 years and 100k miles is pretty unknown territory, and the entire landscape could change by the time the M3 is 6 years old.

 

[Tedkidd]

If it's all about budget, how about doing a lease option? Over 3 years $9500 in tax credits knocks the lease payment down by $300 a month.

My Smart, a $26,000 car, is costing me $150 a month.

 

[McHoffa]

How exactly would you suggest doing the separate years for gas/electric? Do you mean a separate loan calculator for both?

 

[McHoffa]

If it's all about budget, how about doing a lease option? Over 3 years $9500 in tax credits knocks the lease payment down by $300 a month.

My Smart, a $26,000 car, is costing me $150 a month.

Good idea, but for a different sheet, as I'd assume you would lease the gas car as well.

 

[hoang51]

Interesting worksheet. Later on, I was going to create one similar to this, but I already informed my wife yesterday I'm putting a deposit of $1,000 to get the free $7,500 tax credit or otherwise lose free money from the federal government. Furthermore, less financial and time burdens on maintaining a conventional gasoline car (oil change, emissions, etc...). I got minimal resistance from my wife. Free money is better than no free money.

So, in that case, I would further suggest of adding maintenance costs to further enhance the financial breakdown to point out that in 6 years, a conventional gasoline car would actually cause more financial and time burden. In the state of VA, emissions testing every two year = $28 for the test and $82.50 for length of valid emission registration.

 

[Brad_SC]

There is also a cost for the parts and installation of a charging outlet (like NEMA 14-50), or HPWC. This cost can be significant.

 

[S'toon]

There is also a cost for the parts and installation of a charging outlet (like NEMA 14-50), or HPWC. This cost can be significant.

Define "significant." Most of the time the NEMA 14-50 is only a few hundred dollars. For most people the HPWC is a waste.

 

[ModelNforNerd]

For some people, I've seen them say that HPWC and the line to it has cost them close to $1200.

In my case, the wall I need it to be on is about 6 ft straight above the power panel, and I don't think I need a HPWC (40 miles/day round trip commute), so I should be able to get out of it for ~$500 tops.

 

[McHoffa]

I would think the HPWC would be a more rare decision vs the NEMA 14-50. In either case, I would just add it into the options field.

What this doesn't take into account are the priceless things like not having to go to the gas station ever again, the ability to let the car drive for you, and the awesomeness of quick acceleration in a silent car. But some people don't really care about those things as much as the bottom line (which is why I made this).

 

[Az_Rael]

Dunno if you want to do a "full" cost calculation, but you might want to add lines for maintenance costs (oil changes, fluid changes, brakes, etc). Right now you would have to WAG what a Model 3 costs to maintain, since we don't know how much the service plans are going to be, but you could make guesses based on the Model S service costs shown here: Service plans And remember that Tesla is the only game in town right now to service the vehicle, so it may be a significant consideration.

Oh - and it needs a TTL line. I don't know how much taxes are in NC, but here in Cali, they are a LOT, and would also be a cost differentiator between the $35,000 car and the $24,000 car

A great idea for a cost worksheet, though!

 

[McHoffa]

added a place for maintenance and state tax

 

[Brad_SC]

There is also a cost for the parts and installation of a charging outlet (like NEMA 14-50), or HPWC. This cost can be significant.

Define "significant." Most of the time the NEMA 14-50 is only a few hundred dollars. For most people the HPWC is a waste.

Some people (not myself) will be buying a BASE Model 3, and for them, every dollar may be harder to come by than it may be for other people. For them, a $200 NEMA 14-50 connection may be a BIG deal. Other people will need to run longer electrical lines and pay double that (or more) for the same connection. Yet, many people (like myself) will probably get the HPWC ASAP, and have to pay-out $750+tax for the module, and $200+ for the materials, and another $200+ for the installation.

This cost can be significant... though what is "significant" is subjective to each of us.

 

[raysspl]

Not much convincing on my end. The Teslas sell themselves as is already. I simply complement the AWSMNSS of these cars.

 

[McHoffa]

Not really any convincing on my end either. I actually started dating my wife just a few weeks before that infamous blog post in 2006 by Musk that stated their long term goal. At that time, I said when the 3rd gen got here, I was going to get one. Almost time!

 

[SageBrush]

I didn't look real close so apologies if I am wrong, but is the $7,500 tax credit accounted for ?

Addendum: Found it (in the total.)

My 2 cents, as someone who will place a deposit 3/31 but is frugal:

I think you have two undisclosed costs to consider.

1. is car insurance
2. is depreciation. After 6 years that ICE car has over half it's life left if taken care of and a reliable brand was bought. I'm not confident the same can be said of the Tesla.

 

[vinnie97]

is depreciation. After 6 years that ICE car has over half it's life left if taken care of and a reliable brand was bought. I'm not confident the same can be said of the Tesla.

Why? Are you basing this on the fast pace of innovation taking place in EV and battery development?

 

[SageBrush]

Hi Vinnie,

I suppose my statement is part conservative since we lack good data to say otherwise, and part skepticism based on the aging data we know Li-x goes through and the effect of deep discharging and/or fast charging.

I am not saying the battery will be toast on year #6 and 135k miles, but I will not be surprised to hear of cases where it is true. Heck, I won't be surprised if 10 - 20% of EV batteries fit this scenario. Personally, I would not buy a Tesla (or any EV) if I could not stomach (and pay for) that possibility.

--
You are right though -- I plan to lease (my first ever) rather than purchase. I don't have a choice if I want to collect the federal tax credit, I don't have a lot of confidence in the long term viability of current Gen EVs, and I expect rapid advancement.

There are GREAT reasons to buy an EV today (or soon!,) but cheapest personal transport is not one of them.
I was thinking about this while driving my wife's Honda Fit to work today. We paid about $15k, and since I maintain my cars well, my experience is that it will be good for ~ 15 years. That works out to ~ $80 a month for the car, not including fuel, insurance, repairs etc. Currently fuel is about 4 cents a mile.

I know that is an Apples to Oranges comparo, and a Honda Fit is not a Tesla. But when OP tells us that so far as his wife is concerned the only question is lowest cost for (presumably reliable) personal transport, I ignore the intangibles.

 

[hoang51]

Dunno if you want to do a "full" cost calculation, but you might want to add lines for maintenance costs (oil changes, fluid changes, brakes, etc). Right now you would have to WAG what a Model 3 costs to maintain, since we don't know how much the service plans are going to be, but you could make guesses based on the Model S service costs shown here: Service plans And remember that Tesla is the only game in town right now to service the vehicle, so it may be a significant consideration.

Oh - and it needs a TTL line. I don't know how much taxes are in NC, but here in Cali, they are a LOT, and would also be a cost differentiator between the $35,000 car and the $24,000 car

A great idea for a cost worksheet, though!

I took a look at the Model S service plan link you included. I'm thrilled to see that it's a less burden to maintain an EV than an ICE. Most of what's included in the service plan, a DIY car enthusiast can take care of, making much of that service plan moot and not included in the cost analysis.

As for calculating brakes as maintenance as an example, I would leave that at net zero because on both types of cars. You'll eventually have to change brakes, rotors, etc... Cost would be negligible to compare between two cars, even though they will exist due to different sizes and types of materials.

The only thing I see that is really required for taking a Tesla car in is to take care of the battery coolant. But this is a guess just by looking at the service plan and not digging around this forum to see if such maintenance even need a Tesla service center to take care of.