Pre-purchase Questions

[duncanstives]

All,

I am getting ready to place an order for a model 3 performance and I have got a few questions for people who have been through the purchase process since it is a bit different from purchasing a traditional vehicle.

1. My credit is not great... I know financing has been covered in depth elsewhere and I understand that if I have 20% down I should have no issues getting approved (my income is about $130K and my debt to income ratio is very low). Problem is I don't currently have 20%. Tesla's order page is listing 2-4 mo delivery time for the car I want. I will definitely have to 20% in 4 months time but 2 months would be a little dicey. My question is this: Once Tesla informs me that I they are ready to start building my car is there a way to delay it if needed or is it pretty much take it or leave it at that point (and presumably lose your $2500 deposit)?

BTW yes I know the prudent thing to do is bank the cash and wait... Problem is I don't wanna miss free super charging or the EV credit. Plus this will be a car for my wife since I bought the Jeep I had been wanting forever about 8 months ago and she turns 25 tomorrow so I figure this will make one hell of a present.

2. Am I correct in understanding the model 3 performance will come with a 48.5A onboard charger and cables to plug it into a 240V, 60A, 4 wire outlet? So if I put an appropriate outlet in the garage I won't need anything else to charge overnight?

3. I am located in Kentucky and will be buying from Cincinnati, Ohio Tesla store. Anyone know how long deliveries are typically taking in KY market?

4. How much time should I plan for delivery to take? I am over an hour from dealer so I am not sure if I should plan on taking an entire day off work or just a half day.

Thanks.

 

[SWMONTY]

You can delay delivery by getting back in line with no loss of deposit.

I ordered about 3 weeks before my mortgage re-fi was closing, expecting it to be 2-4 months for the car. I got an email a week later said my vehicle is a week away. I spoke with my adviser and told her my situation, she gave me the option to take delivery within 7 days of the available date or give up the vehicle assigned to me and get back in line. I couldn't apply for car financing until after the re-fi closed so I gave up my car and got back in line.

But I should have taken the vehicle. My experience is it is taking a week or two longer then the date they said on the first "your car is on its way" email. I am sure I could have delayed the delivery a couple of times and stretched out the process another week or two. Heck, they are doing it on there end to several people.

 

[smsiegel33]

1. You can always delay delivery a little bit or give up your place in line and chance when your next opportunity would be.
2. The car can handle up to 48 amps. You can charge with anything under that. How much you want to spend on your charging setup is up to you. To get the 40 amps you would need the Tesla wall charger. The mobile connector that comes with the car is limited to 32 amps. I would say most common is probably 50 amp breaker, 6/3 romex, NEMA 15-40 outlet.
3. Performance model 3s have been quoted as being delivered “by October 2018.” Whatever that means. Not sure when that will change. Actual deliveries may vary.
4. I would think a half day would work. 2 hour commute leaves you 2 hours or so to take delivery.

 

[duncanstives]

Thanks for the quick responses guys.

That is good to know... I suspect I will more likely run into the opposite problem (being ready to buy the car and waiting on them) than them being ready on waiting on me... Just wanted to make sure I don't accidentally lose $2500 on some freak think if they email me the day after tomorrow... LOL.

From the looks of things it may be a little while anyway cause we are getting black interior and it seems like models 3s performance with black interior are not being made yet... White looks super nice but wife is an industrial electrician and often works in dirty manufacturing plants (ironically it is a large Tesla competitor that largely, if indirectly, pays both our salaries). Plus we do a lot of camping and dirt biking so the white would be a nasty shade of "dirt" in no time.

 

[MikeATL]

As others said, you won't lose your $2500 deposit as long as you ask to be kept in line (I think they are happy to keep your cash for now.)

I don't think 20% down is a universal rule for car loans... this is not a mortgage governed by national mortgage regulations. You may want to check a local small bank or credit union for better rates and terms.

In terms of delivery, what a lot of people have said is that they usually locate the car and check it out before their Delivery Specialist has time to talk to them. Get there early and search the lot for your VIN. When you actually get with the specialist, you're mostly signing papers and might only have 20 minutes with them to look at the car. While Tesla seems to be good about fixing obvious manufacturing defects later, they might not be as willing to fix damage if can't prove it was there before you accepted the car. Some people recommend bringing someone else with you to help check the car out if you're squeezed for time. I would try to take the whole day off ... you'll be too excited to focus on anything else anyway!

Forum Tip: Post unrelated questions (charging vs order questions) as separate posts and, of course, always search to see if your question was previously answered before posting.

 

[duncanstives]

Thanks for all the replies. Ordered and on its way!

Duncan St. Ives on Twitter