Purchasing Used Model S...FSD Transfer?

[alrnr2232]

Hello folks,


You might find this question is bored, so my apologies.

I just want to clarify the full self driving feature would be transfer if I purchase the vehicle from a 3rd party dealership.


I tried a 2017 model S 100D yesterday. I really liked the car. Since it was first time trying Tesla for my wife and me, we spent some time to navigate the touch screen on the vehicle.

Then we found that the autopilot and FSD was enabled on that vehicle. I did not have a chance to test it though.
The dealer, he didn't know anything about Tesla, was not able to answer most of my questions.

Since the feature was already activated, it might be transferred to me. However, I was not sure, so asked for the car sticker. They told me that they would ask Tesla and retrieve the sticker soon.

And today, I just received the sticker from the dealership. It was the original copy of Tesla.
It says that it included Enhanced Autopilot for $5000, and there is no FSD listed on the sticker.

So I am wondering if the previous owner purchased FSD his or herself, so that it could be transferred to me.
Or, I would become a man on such horror stories on articles...FSD gone.

I wish I could get the answer, and then be the owner of tesla, join this community.

Thank you and have a wonderful Friday!

 

[zanary]

Just my guess, but I don't think in 2017 FSD was transferrable, only previous years.

 

[AMPd]

Just my guess, but I don't think in 2017 FSD was transferrable, only previous years.

Are you sure? I don’t think this is correct, you might be thinking of free supercharging.

 

[beatle]

Tesla has a history of removing features that were not on the original sticker and were added afterwards. They will put them back if there is sufficient documentation from them. Seeing it on the screen may not be enough.

 

[2101Guy]

My suggestion in this situation: Get it IN WRITING from the selling dealership that the FSD feature will remain with that vehicle for as long as you own it. Otherwise, you run the risk of it being removed next time Tesla does an audit, and without something in writing from the dealer, you will have near zero recourse of getting it back and/or getting compensated $10k (the cost of FSD) for its removal..

 

[Tam]

Just my guess, but I don't think in 2017 FSD was transferrable, only previous years.

...So I am wondering if the previous owner purchased FSD his or herself, so that it could be transferred to me....

Tesla has reassured us over and over again either by phone, chat... that FSD cannot be removed because it stays with the VIN, with the car, and not to any specific owner.

That said, we've heard that Tesla does remove FSD when there's an owner transfer in some cases so the above assurance is not in writing and is not accurate.

The fact that your used car has a functional FSD does not prevent Tesla to take it away and it would demand proof of purchase.

You do have proof of purchase for Enhanced Autopilot but you don't have any proof that someone has paid a certain amount of money for the FSD.

 

[ucmndd]

There’s just no guarantee. Tesla’s behavior to date has ensured as much, and they’ve demonstrated complete lack of accountability on the subject in the past.

If keeping FSD is the difference between you buying and not, I think your only real choice is to buy private party from an original owner. Everything else is a $10k bet. How lucky are you feeling?

 

[ADEEL421]

So I was in your boat a few months ago. I did a lot and lot of research and came to conclusion that Tesla can remove it if you buy it from any other dealer however if it’s a private party sale or directly from Tesla used car inventory only then you have a full assurance that they won’t take the FSD away.
Honestly I’m not sure how much are you really saving from buying it from another dealer. Have you checked Tesla used car inventory. Their cars are super clean and come with warranty. Yes I know the buying process is painful and require patience but at the end it’s a peace of mind and quality and clean car. I endup buying mine from them directly and I am so thankful and happy that I didn’t buy it from another dealership. Their prices is very reasonable and used inventory is clean. They don’t sell crap. When I picked up my car I couldn’t believe that it was a used car. Still till this day people who sit in my car think it’s new.
may honest recommendation would be buy it from Tesla. I see you are into FSD so I would not gamble on that. The only reason I got Tesla was FSD. Even though it’s not fully out yet but the features you get is well worth it. I would not gamble 10k on another dealer regardless of what Tesla tells you now. Imagine you bought the car and they turned it off....you will have no place to go...there is no help!

 

[AMPd]

So I was in your boat a few months ago. I did a lot and lot of research and came to conclusion that Tesla can remove it if you buy it from any other dealer however if it’s a private party sale or directly from Tesla used car inventory only then you have a full assurance that they won’t take the FSD away.
Honestly I’m not sure how much are you really saving from buying it from another dealer. Have you checked Tesla used car inventory. Their cars are super clean and come with warranty. Yes I know the buying process is painful and require patience but at the end it’s a peace of mind and quality and clean car. I endup buying mine from them directly and I am so thankful and happy that I didn’t buy it from another dealership. Their prices is very reasonable and used inventory is clean. They don’t sell crap. When I picked up my car I couldn’t believe that it was a used car. Still till this day people who sit in my car think it’s new.
may honest recommendation would be buy it from Tesla. I see you are into FSD so I would not gamble on that. The only reason I got Tesla was FSD. Even though it’s not fully out yet but the features you get is well worth it. I would not gamble 10k on another dealer regardless of what Tesla tells you now. Imagine you bought the car and they turned it off....you will have no place to go...there is no help!

You’re joking right?

 

[2101Guy]

You’re joking right?

its hit or miss, in my opinion. I bought my 2017 used late 2019 and mine was literally like new when I picked it up in the showroom that day. Freshly washed, literally immaculate inside, and still had the new car smell. Granted, mine was some sort of inventory/demo vehicle with very low miles (I still only have 9k miles on it right now)

Also, usual car forum rules apply (people create accounts to post negative experiences/problems, not to post "all is well") so theres that.

But yes, Im positive dirty ones are sold as well

 

[AMPd]

its hit or miss, in my opinion. I bought my 2017 used late 2019 and mine was literally like new when I picked it up in the showroom that day. Freshly washed, literally immaculate inside, and still had the new car smell. Granted, mine was some sort of inventory/demo vehicle with very low miles (I still only have 9k miles on it right now)

Also, usual car forum rules apply (people create accounts to post negative experiences/problems, not to post "all is well") so theres that.

But yes, Im positive dirty ones are sold as well

There is that but not all the negative experiences get posted, so I’m sure there’s more than we see on here.
To say outright the cars are super clean is inaccurate because as you said it’s hit or miss.

 

[alrnr2232]

Tesla has a history of removing features that were not on the original sticker and were added afterwards. They will put them back if there is sufficient documentation from them. Seeing it on the screen may not be enough.

Exactly. That's why I asked for the sticker and the sticker does not say that it came with FSD when the car was manufactured.

 

[alrnr2232]

My suggestion in this situation: Get it IN WRITING from the selling dealership that the FSD feature will remain with that vehicle for as long as you own it. Otherwise, you run the risk of it being removed next time Tesla does an audit, and without something in writing from the dealer, you will have near zero recourse of getting it back and/or getting compensated $10k (the cost of FSD) for its removal..

Well the dealership really does not know anything about Tesla. The manager was not sure about it, either. I don't think that they would provide me a written statement (don't wanna be responsible for that). I will update my situation soon. Thank you!

 

[alrnr2232]

Tesla has reassured us over and over again either by phone, chat... that FSD cannot be removed because it stays with the VIN, with the car, and not to any specific owner.

That said, we've heard that Tesla does remove FSD when there's an owner transfer in some cases so the above assurance is not in writing and is not accurate.

The fact that your used car has a functional FSD does not prevent Tesla to take it away and it would demand proof of purchase.

You do have proof of purchase for Enhanced Autopilot but you don't have any proof that someone has paid a certain amount of money for the FSD.

Well the dealership does not have any information from the previous owner, so I was not able to find any evidence for proof of purchase FSD. thank you for your informatoin.

 

[alrnr2232]

There’s just no guarantee. Tesla’s behavior to date has ensured as much, and they’ve demonstrated complete lack of accountability on the subject in the past.

If keeping FSD is the difference between you buying and not, I think your only real choice is to buy private party from an original owner. Everything else is a $10k bet. How lucky are you feeling?

Thank you for your reply. I would rather find some used inventory from Tesla's website xD

 

[alrnr2232]

There is that but not all the negative experiences get posted, so I’m sure there’s more than we see on here.
To say outright the cars are super clean is inaccurate because as you said it’s hit or miss.

So you're saying that the official Tesla used inventory may sell crap tesla?

 

[alrnr2232]

So I was in your boat a few months ago. I did a lot and lot of research and came to conclusion that Tesla can remove it if you buy it from any other dealer however if it’s a private party sale or directly from Tesla used car inventory only then you have a full assurance that they won’t take the FSD away.
Honestly I’m not sure how much are you really saving from buying it from another dealer. Have you checked Tesla used car inventory. Their cars are super clean and come with warranty. Yes I know the buying process is painful and require patience but at the end it’s a peace of mind and quality and clean car. I endup buying mine from them directly and I am so thankful and happy that I didn’t buy it from another dealership. Their prices is very reasonable and used inventory is clean. They don’t sell crap. When I picked up my car I couldn’t believe that it was a used car. Still till this day people who sit in my car think it’s new.
may honest recommendation would be buy it from Tesla. I see you are into FSD so I would not gamble on that. The only reason I got Tesla was FSD. Even though it’s not fully out yet but the features you get is well worth it. I would not gamble 10k on another dealer regardless of what Tesla tells you now. Imagine you bought the car and they turned it off....you will have no place to go...there is no help!

Hello, ADEEL421,

Well, that will be my next action, too. My wife called this used car dealership last night, and there was a "Tesla Expert," they stated. The lady told my wife that the FSD won't be transferred if we purchase the car(really?). And they still advertise the vehicle has FSD on their website xD

My wife tried to find some room since the "expert" told her that, but the dealer said that they won't discount a penny from the listing price.
So we decided not to go with that dealership and browsing some model S on Tesla's used inventory

The main reason why my wife and I looked up local dealership was that my region does not have that many used Tesla choices on Tesla's official used car inventory. Suitable cars are mostly located in California, and I'm in Wahsington D.C So it was not money issue and actually these used dealerships in my region charge pretty much the same amount on Tesla's website. And I just wanted to see the actual car before purchasing.

If I purchase one, mine would be somewhat different from "super clean" since my budget is for around 30K to 40K mileage Tesla. But I'm glad that you had gone through the complicated steps well and picked up a great car! I hope I would do the same.

 

[Zorg]

There is no reason for Tesla to remove the fsd if it was purchased. The documented instance of Tesla removing it was for car that was enabled by mistake and never purchased. About you go visit a service center and ask somebody to check the vin? And if it has eap, it is a $5k upgrade to fsd.

 

[AMPd]

So you're saying that the official Tesla used inventory may sell crap tesla?

Yes, I’m saying that because it’s a fact. Tesla will sell and has sold used cars in crap condition.

 

[alrnr2232]

Yes, I’m saying that because it’s a fact. Tesla will sell and has sold used cars in crap condition.

Thank you, AMPd. Is there any link or search word that I can see about them in this forum?