Pointless comparison?

[exaccord]

I know I'm going to get a lot of "that doesn't mean anything" for this post. I know this is a vague "test" But... I did a comparison of a CPO vs a new 85 with the same features.

Here is the CPO I used: 85 kWh Model S P36158 | Tesla Motors -- I chose this one because it was the cheapest 85 with relatively low miles (less than 5k)

I went to the design studio and mocked up a car with the same features.

The 85 CPO is for sale for: $67,000
The new 85 sells for: $85,000 (before tax credits)

What does it mean? probably not much, unless you had a much larger sample size, but I don't have that kind of time.

 

[FLDarren]

Unless autopilot is a deal breaker for u, the CPO is by far the better deal here. The autopilot is useless to me seeing as how I love to drive this amazing machine. U still get the warranty and a power lift gate.

 

[travwill]

Unless autopilot is a deal breaker for u, the CPO is by far the better deal here. The autopilot is useless to me seeing as how I love to drive this amazing machine. U still get the warranty and a power lift gate.

Good point, if you can just live with normal old cruise which is fine for most people. Also, depends on if you take long trips a lot, may want AP. The other feature(s) of AP would be auto collision warning & breaking (which works pretty well from experience) and future promises then like side collision warnings, auto steer, auto parking, etc (but that is a whole other thread).

-T

 

[exaccord]

Unless autopilot is a deal breaker for u, the CPO is by far the better deal here. The autopilot is useless to me seeing as how I love to drive this amazing machine. U still get the warranty and a power lift gate.

Thanks for the input, I don't think I care about ap enough to spend that kind of money. I also think the resell "ROI" would be better on a CPO. But being out of warranty by then, who knows?

 

[muleferg]

Unless autopilot is a deal breaker for u, the CPO is by far the better deal here. The autopilot is useless to me seeing as how I love to drive this amazing machine. U still get the warranty and a power lift gate.

Me 2

 

[ecarfan]

Not a pointless comparison. It illustrates how quickly Tesla is evolving the Model S, and the sizable savings that can be had if one is willing to forgo the Autopilot features. The earlier S is clearly a fantastic car and to anyone who has never owned one it will feel like a huge step forward compared to any ICE on the road, in my opinion.
Of course if a tricked out gadget-ridden Mercedes S500 or Porsche Panamera interior is the highest priority, no Model S will do. But seeing how the Model S has stolen market share from other expensive luxury sedans, it seems clear that not everyone wants that kind of interior I a $100K automobile.

 

[BoerumHill]

I know I'm going to get a lot of "that doesn't mean anything" for this post. I know this is a vague "test" But... I did a comparison of a CPO vs a new 85 with the same features.
Here is the CPO I used: 85 kWh Model S P36158 | Tesla Motors -- I chose this one because it was the cheapest 85 with relatively low miles (less than 5k)

I went to the design studio and mocked up a car with the same features.

The 85 CPO is for sale for: $67,000
The new 85 sells for: $85,000 (before tax credits)

What does it mean? probably not much, unless you had a much larger sample size, but I don't have that kind of time.

Actually, it's an excellent method, comparing a new order with the CPO cars, the caveat being it's rarely apples to apples (i.e., back then the Tech Package was a $4250 option.)

One thing you could add to complete the picture is depreciation. There are a couple ways to calculate it, and your answer will depend on the assumptions you use. I used three examples below I've seen with the Model S.

1. Depreciation assumptions: $1K per month and $1 per mile. By looking at the order tracker ("Model S Deliver Update" thread & the order tracker spreadsheet), we see that VIN P36158 was probably assigned in February and completed production late March or early April 2014. Let's assume the latter, so the car is 16 months old. Let's call it 5K miles for simplicity. Fair price would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $64,000 (this is the most aggressive depreciation schedule.)
2. Depreciation assumptions: $1% per month and $0.85 per mile. The car is 16 months old with 5K miles. Fair price would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $67,150 (moderate depreciation schedule.)
3. Depreciation assumptions: $700 per month and $0.70 per mile. The car is 16 months old with 5K miles. Fair price would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $70,300 (conservative depreciation schedule.)

It's an imperfect science as it doesn't take into account any other information regarding the condition of the car, but I think it gets you in the ballpark. Personally I would not suggest you should build a design studio car and compare that directly to a CPO. To my mind the best practice would be to research the original price (Look under "Tesla for Sale", lots of folks post the original sticker - that gives you the original list of the base and various options), then apply one of the above three depreciation methods.

But the reality for most of us in the CPO market is we're trying to decide if we want to get a discount on a CPO - a car which might have a few more options/features - or buy new and accept we can't tick off every single box.