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Pre-Owned private party Model S purchase

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thegooch49

thegooch49

Member
Sep 6, 2017
185
104
Pacific NW
#1
Hello, I have a question about a pre-owned Tesla that is up for sale on Craigslist in my area. It's a 2013 with 36K miles for $50K. This S is fully loaded, and seems like a great price compared to a CPO on tesla.com. The main drawback, is that I wouldn't get the 2 or 4 Year CPO warranty. This car is just now turning 4, so it's original 4-year warranty is coming to a close. The ad says that the current owner just purchased "2 Year Extended Service Plan". I need to clarify with the owner, but I read this to be NOT a maintenance plan, but a 2 years or 25,000 miles, whichever occurs first extended warranty. I read on tesla.com that these are transferrable to new owners, so that is a $2000 warranty extension thrown in.

With all that said, this car is stacked, and meets every one of my needs and even all of my wants. I do have a couple of questions regarding how this would all work.

How does transfer from a private party to me work on a Tesla? An ICE or CPO Tesla seems pretty straight forward, but how does the transfer between parties work on a private sale? How does one get the car out of his/her mytesla, and linked to mine?

I've always gotten inspections done on cars I have purchased in the past. How does this work with a Tesla? Knowing that it has a 2-year extended service plan, do you all think that an inspection is necessary? If so, is this something I could call Tesla service about, and schedule?

Here is the ad if anyone is curious. I'm super new to Model S, and would welcome any advice and thoughts on price here. If you guys don't advise private sales, and think I should stick with CPO, that would be great info as well.
2013 Tesla Model S P85
 
#4
Disclaimer: I have not yet purchased a used Tesla. But I did go through the process of verifying the history of one.

During a conversation with the seller they gave me the name of their service adviser and I was able to speak with them to verify the service history of the car. They verified the details/validity of the extended warranty and explained how a transfer goes down. They were VERY helpful. During that conversation the SA informed me they offer an inspection service (I can't recall the cost) but they were scheduled out about 6 weeks so I passed.

Given the vintage of the car you are looking at I think the service history would be VERY telling as to what problems, if any, the current owner dealt with. Say all the door handles were replaced at some point, that's probably a good thing.

There are a lot of more experienced people here that will chime in with the most common "gotchas" to look for in this particular car and sniff for in the service history.
 
#5
Yes they were available, but the parking sensors aren't on the bumper. Folding mirrors are a gimmick, but they were introduced in 2013 as part of the tech package (which that car appears to have) so it might. Build date or photo of the window controls will tell you for sure.

Good catch! P85 will knock your socks off :) If you're anywhere near snow country the extra wheels will definitely be nice with snow tires on them.
 
#6
Thanks everyone! I definitely have the itch to get one.....$50K is honestly above my budget, but this is so loaded, that it has all of my wants, needs, and more. I don't know too much about the CPO process yet, but having this car with a 2-year 25K doesn't seem too much more risky than a CPO with the 'lesser' of the two warranties. This specific car seems to have more to offer than current CPO's at the same price. Could be a great option.
 
#7
Sorry, I realized I did not answer your question. Once you buy the car and the reg/title is in your name, you can get mytesla transferred over to you.

If you plan on keeping the car, IMO - 2 years warranty is not enough. Just as an example if the MCU screen goes, that's about $3500 bucks.

For your budget, it seems you can easily get a 2014+ car. I don't think folding mirrors are a gimmick, the car is wider than most and for tight parking situations, or even street parking. Having folding mirrors makes a difference in your sense of security that no one will bump into your mirrors.

My personal rule of thumb for tesla is always to buy the latest model you can afford. They make so many running changes that getting a later one does make a huge difference in how you enjoy the car. I for one, could not stand how the early '14 and below turn signal stalk is located. It's very unnatural and i'm glad they fixed it in the later '14 cars.

As for this car in question - I would keep looking. It does not appear that the person who wrote the ad is the original owner? I could be wrong. I'm not a personal fan of all the custom red touches, but it kind of tells you what kind of owner he is. I like the 100% stock guys, when buying used.

I would also expand your search criteria, since you are int he PNW, you should search here in the SF Bay Area too. We have a lot of private party used cars for sale at any given time (due to our market) and a drive home would be a lot of fun.

Just for reference, I had briefly considered a late '14 one owner vehicle here a few months ago. It was a P85 with 19K miles on it. Every option, except for 3rd row seat. They wanted $52K.
 
#9
stan23 said:
Sorry, I realized I did not answer your question. Once you buy the car and the reg/title is in your name, you can get mytesla transferred over to you.

If you plan on keeping the car, IMO - 2 years warranty is not enough. Just as an example if the MCU screen goes, that's about $3500 bucks.

For your budget, it seems you can easily get a 2014+ car. I don't think folding mirrors are a gimmick, the car is wider than most and for tight parking situations, or even street parking. Having folding mirrors makes a difference in your sense of security that no one will bump into your mirrors.

My personal rule of thumb for tesla is always to buy the latest model you can afford. They make so many running changes that getting a later one does make a huge difference in how you enjoy the car. I for one, could not stand how the early '14 and below turn signal stalk is located. It's very unnatural and i'm glad they fixed it in the later '14 cars.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info, and your thoughts on 2-years maybe not being enough. For 50K, I would be looking at a pretty high mile (or lack of optioned) 2014. Looking at past P85 sales on ev-cpo, there have only been a few. Of the 10 x 2014 P85's that were < $50K, only 1/2 had sunroofs (which is on my 'need' list of options). 3 of those 5 only had 2-year CPO warranties, putting me in the same boat. Plus I'd be tacking on $2K delivery unless I got really lucky. They are out there, but it seems like I would have to get a non-performance 85 if I'm wanting 2014+ that is sub $50K.

BUT, the cars are out there, and prices should seemingly keep creeping down :) Thanks again for the advice and opinion.
 
#11
thegooch49 said:
Thanks for the info, and your thoughts on 2-years maybe not being enough. For 50K, I would be looking at a pretty high mile (or lack of optioned) 2014. Looking at past P85 sales on ev-cpo, there have only been a few. Of the 10 x 2014 P85's that were < $50K, only 1/2 had sunroofs (which is on my 'need' list of options). 3 of those 5 only had 2-year CPO warranties, putting me in the same boat. Plus I'd be tacking on $2K delivery unless I got really lucky. They are out there, but it seems like I would have to get a non-performance 85 if I'm wanting 2014+ that is sub $50K.

BUT, the cars are out there, and prices should seemingly keep creeping down :) Thanks again for the advice and opinion.
Click to expand...

You should ask about the 'repaired' cars that Tesla has. Apparently these are cars which had 1 or 2 body panels repainted during ownership. Not all are reported on carfax either. This is a sample list I got from my OA back in July.




1. 2014 Model S P85 – 37,132 miles - $53,100 (Originally sold for $106,300 when new)

a. Fully clean Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports

b. Discounted due to potential previous accident history (hood repaired/replaced up to Tesla standard)

2. 2014 Model S P85 – 34,946 miles - $57,300 (Originally sold for $111,200 when new)

a. Fully clean Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports

b. Discounted due to potential previous accident history (rear bumper and liftgate repaired/replaced up to Tesla standard)

3. 2014 Model S P85+ - 46,701 miles - $58,400 (Originally sold for $123,550 when new)

a. Accident reported to Carfax and Autocheck

b. Discounted due to potential previous accident history (No details on which panels repaired/replaced. However, all repairs are completed up to Tesla standard)

4. 2014 Model S P85+ - 29,633 miles - $59,900 (Originally sold for $120,950 when new)

a. Accident reported to Carfax and Autocheck

b. Discounted due to potential previous accident history (Front left side damage repaired/replaced up to Tesla standard)

5. 2014 Model S P85+ - 22,638 miles - $61,700 (Originally sold for $121,950 when new)

a. Fully clean Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports

b. Discounted due to potential previous accident history (front bumper repaired/replaced up to Tesla standard)

6. 2014 Model S P85+ - 24,404 miles - $63,900 (Originally sold for $123,750 when new)

a. Fully clean Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports

b. No sign of previous accident history (therefore no discount)

7. 2014 Model S P85+ - 47,098 miles - $60,400 (Originally sold for $121,550 when new)

a. Fully clean Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports

b. No sign of previous accident history (therefore no discount)

c. This is the vehicle you originally inquired about
 
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#13
My old Prius cost several thousand to replace the screen as well, now it costs like $150, prices always fall as parts become more available, and I believe the faulty part on both Tesla and Prius is a chip that needs replacement, not the whole unit, so a similar cheap swap service will probably spring up around used Teslas. It's better to plan for the future of course, but there are years of warranty left for most of us before that will be a concern.
 
#14
Chaserr said:
My old Prius cost several thousand to replace the screen as well, now it costs like $150, prices always fall as parts become more available, and I believe the faulty part on both Tesla and Prius is a chip that needs replacement, not the whole unit, so a similar cheap swap service will probably spring up around used Teslas. It's better to plan for the future of course, but there are years of warranty left for most of us before that will be a concern.
Click to expand...

Consider that the Model S has been out for 6 years now, and prices for the MCU has not changed. It's proprietary and we all know how Tesla feels about 'aftermarket' parts.

If a cheap swap service would have been viable, i'm sure it would have been available by now.

The MCU is of course just one part that may or may not fail. What about the auto present door handles. At $1K a pop, you're looking at $4K right there....

If you follow and read the Tesla owners forum as I do , you start to see out of warranty cars with issue and the costs associated with them. Folks are not happy. An out of warranty Tesla is a scary reality. It's not like there are any 3rd party shops you can go to. Your only course for repair is Tesla.

Read this: Another Screen Defect | Tesla
 
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#15
stan23 said:
You should ask about the 'repaired' cars that Tesla has. Apparently these are cars which had 1 or 2 body panels repainted during ownership. Not all are reported on carfax either. This is a sample list I got from my OA back in July.
Click to expand...

Thank you for this! I've heard elsewhere that these cars exist, it's good to see the numbers on them. I (finally) got a call from a CPO advisor. She's going to start the hunt, and she brought up these 'scratch and dent' cars with some panels replaced. I let her know that these are absolutely an option when searching, so hopefully something will turn up!
 
#16
stan23 said:
Consider that the Model S has been out for 6 years now, and prices for the MCU has not changed. It's proprietary and we all know how Tesla feels about 'aftermarket' parts.

If a cheap swap service would have been viable, i'm sure it would have been available by now.

The MCU is of course just one part that may or may not fail. What about the auto present door handles. At $1K a pop, you're looking at $4K right there....

If you follow and read the Tesla owners forum as I do , you start to see out of warranty cars with issue and the costs associated with them. Folks are not happy. An out of warranty Tesla is a scary reality. It's not like there are any 3rd party shops you can go to. Your only course for repair is Tesla.

Read this: Another Screen Defect | Tesla
Click to expand...

No one offered to comp the DVD nav system in my Acura or the Bluetooth module. Or the radio head unit in my BMW that failed outside of warranty. I was able to find a remanufactured DVD, but the other was at the mercy of the dealer.

Stuff does fail. Perhaps more on a Tesla, who knows.

And if you save $7k purchasing a 3rd party car, you have the savings to cover it.

But I stil would not purchase without some sort of inspection by Tesla and knowing the history of the car.
 
#17
brkaus said:
But I stil would not purchase without some sort of inspection by Tesla and knowing the history of the car.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I think an inspection is the key. Even buying a CPO, do you really know the history of the car? I would argue no. I think I would get more history about the car from a single owner private sale, than a CPO. To be fair, a CPO is gone over and inspected by Tesla, which I think is the key.
 
#18
A warranty contains no magic. It is just insurance. And the company that offers it intends to recoup all of their expenses from the insurance, including their overhead. So statistically speaking, you are better off financially without paying for an extra warranty. Despite how it looks when you go on the internet and look at anecdotal problem reports - remember that Tesla has the actual failure rates and costs, and that is how they set their warranty prices. It's just like casino gambling - you might have a lucky day, but the house wins in the end.

Of course, you are not a statistic. For most people an extended warranty will be a waste of money (it was on our Roadster out of warranty for 4 years and our Model S out of warranty for 3 years), but there are always some for which is will not be true, and they are glad to have the warranty. Unfortunately, there is no way to determine which camp you will be in until it is too late. Even counting the number of problems a car has had in the past doesn't help by itself - it depends on the nature of both the problem and the fix. Was it a one-off problem, or something that happens to many cars? Were the problems FIXED, in which case a car with a long list of service visits might now be better than another car for which the problems have not been addressed?

As far as I am concerned, if something has a warranty, great. If not, and it's a bit cheaper, that's great too. Especially in the case of a Model S, where you have an 8-year, unlimited mile warranty on the most expensive bits no matter what. I agree with above advice to try to see the service history, and I always get an inspection when buying a used car.

As for folding mirrors: my wife's 5-year-old S doesn't fold. My new S does. I like having it...but to be honest, we haven't ever hit a situation where it has helped. Obviously it will be a big deal if you have a really narrow garage.
 
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#20
ChadS said:
A warranty contains no magic. It is just insurance. And the company that offers it intends to recoup all of their expenses from the insurance, including their overhead. So statistically speaking, you are better off financially without paying for an extra warranty. Despite how it looks when you go on the internet and look at anecdotal problem reports - remember that Tesla has the actual failure rates and costs, and that is how they set their warranty prices.

Of course, you are not a statistic. For most people an extended warranty will be a waste of money (it was on our Roadster out of warranty for 4 years and our Model S out of warranty for 3 years), but there are always some for which is will not be true. Unfortunately, there is no way to determine which camp you will be in until it is too late.

As far as I am concerned, if something has a warranty, great. If not, and it's a bit cheaper, that's great too.
Click to expand...

Issue with tesla is that they have no historical data to make an informed decision whether or not extended warranty is needed or not. We cannot use the data from the toaster, because the sample size is much much smaller and not as complex as the model s.

The Model S came out in 2012, so we're just seeing out of warranty samples recently.

Also were discussing the merits of buying cpo (which comes with a fresh 4/50 bumper to bumper warranty) vs private party.
 
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