Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Regrets [Anyone regret trading in their ICE for their Tesla?]

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
Can you share your thoughts on the maintenance differences?

Oh, and it wouldn't matter if someone else does the maintenance, you still have to spend the time to take it in for oil changes, timing belts, and the like. (Don't get me wrong, Tesla's do require maintenance (and/or repair), just a whole lot less of it.)
As far as my BMW maintenance? Barley did any....just basic maintenance, and under warranty. The only thing I did for my BMW was an oil change after warranty, which was like 80$, oh, and replaced tires and that was the entire life span of the car from when I bought it. Actually paid more maintenance for Telsa than I did for BMW. And no my commute is not from space coast to Orlando haha.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Happy Hippo
Sloth, just remember the good times in the relationship. 🤣
Sloth writes in model 3 forum:
“Ok I’m tempted (to get model 3 performance) but I dunno I love my model y“

 
Sloth, just remember the good times in the relationship. 🤣
Sloth writes in model 3 forum:
“Ok I’m tempted (to get model 3 performance) but I dunno I love my model y“

😂
 
As far as my BMW maintenance? Barley did any....just basic maintenance, and under warranty. The only thing I did for my BMW was an oil change after warranty, which was like 80$, oh, and replaced tires and that was the entire life span of the car from when I bought it. Actually paid more maintenance for Telsa than I did for BMW. And no my commute is not from space coast to Orlando haha.
How long have you owned your BMW? Some models fare better than others, and problems usually occurred after 60-70k. Tesla maintenance can be expensive, especially after the warranty expired. Overall, I wouldn't say regret purchasing Tesla over ICE, but the services of Tesla prevent me from buying from them again.
 
Is your commute from the Space Coast to Orlando? I've got the same commute! I'll look out for you on the road. ;)

If that is your commute, be sure you've got a Time-of-Use (TOU) meter installed at your house. I did the math and it definitely saves me money.
Not my regular commute as I am retired. However, if I go anywhere outside Merritt Island it is usually to Orlando.

Glad your TOU is working for you. I cannot benefit as I have solar so I have net metering. Starting in 2018 when it was commissioned I was always a net supplier of juice and my bills climbed from around $7 to $9 as I had to pay those fees FPL tacks on. I am still a net supplier(as such I get a credit at the end of the year so my credits pay may bill) but my bill has jumped to $27/mo since FPL threw in the $25 min charge! Someone said that was aimed at solar users and Snowbirds.
 
Cleaned the air conditioning, 136$ first then, tire rotation , again air condition cleaned becUse it stinks, and wiper blades replaced, 272$.
Wiper blades needing to be replaced in less than a year? Seems like a defective part and should be warranty issue. Amazed Tesla tried to charge you.

AC cleaning twice due to stench on a one year old car? AC is only supposed to be needing maintenance every 6 years according to Tesla manual. Sounds like you might have defective parts in the AC system. Have you looked around in model y sub forums about this? Perhaps Tesla has updated parts for older model y which in theory would be covered under warranty. I live in dry California and my 2012 Volt suffered from Ac stench. AC was fine during first trip of the day. However next time we started the car there would be some initial AC stench for about 10 seconds. Solution for my 2012 Volt was to run the fan, no AC, for about 30 seconds before turning off car to get rid of moisture in cabin air filter. However my model Y never had AC stench.

Two Tire rotations on a 2021 model y and you hardly drive according to previous posting? Tesla recommends rotations every 6,000 miles. Are you rotating too frequently? I admit I am horrid about taking my cars in for scheduled tire rotations. Yet, I don’t have issues. Hmmm 🤔. I’m just lucky. But on my model y performance I might start rotating them on a better schedule.

Did your bmw come with extra perks such as free rotations etc?
 
Wiper blades needing to be replaced in less than a year? Seems like a defective part and should be warranty issue. Amazed Tesla tried to charge you.

AC cleaning twice due to stench on a one year old car? AC is only supposed to be needing maintenance every 6 years according to Tesla manual. Sounds like you might have defective parts in the AC system. Have you looked around in model y sub forums about this? Perhaps Tesla has updated parts for older model y which in theory would be covered under warranty. I live in dry California and my 2012 Volt suffered from Ac stench. AC was fine during first trip of the day. However next time we started the car there would be some initial AC stench for about 10 seconds. Solution for my 2012 Volt was to run the fan, no AC, for about 30 seconds before turning off car to get rid of moisture in cabin air filter. However my model Y never had AC stench.

Two Tire rotations on a 2021 model y and you hardly drive according to previous posting? Tesla recommends rotations every 6,000 miles. Are you rotating too frequently? I admit I am horrid about taking my cars in for scheduled tire rotations. Yet, I don’t have issues. Hmmm 🤔. I’m just lucky. But on my model y performance I might start rotating them on a better schedule.

Did your bmw come with extra perks such as free rotations etc?
One tire rotation. And actually the first week of getting the car I got that smell in the car. Yeah nothing was replaced under warranty.
 
One tire rotation. And actually the first week of getting the car I got that smell in the car. Yeah nothing was replaced under warranty.
sheesh what is going on over in FL customer service wise. Clearly your car has AC issues or this is a known issue which has some sort of fix such as if car is in garage, ensure humidity doesn’t reach insane levels. . I woulda tried talking to manager etc.
Take my example, earlier this year my car was in for panel gap correction service in Los Angeles (all issues were fixed under warranty) and it was taking longer than expected. Tesla noticed I badly dented my 21” rim although my car was a few weeks old. I dented it on second day of ownership against an oddly placed concrete island in narrow parking structure. Anyhow, Tesla gave me a new 21” wheel.
 
sheesh what is going on over in FL customer service wise. Clearly your car has AC issues. I woulda tried talking to manager etc.
Take my example, earlier this year my car was in for panel gap correction service (all issues were fixed under warranty) and it was taking longer than expected. Tesla noticed I badly dented my 21” rim although my car was a few weeks old. I dented it on second day of ownership against an oddly placed concrete island in narrow parking structure. Anyhow, Tesla gave me a new 21” wheel.
The ac seems fine on the second cleaning. Maybe because I use mobile service.? Is that excluded from the warranty?
 
Seems like your "concerns" are mostly philosophical. You feel it's weird to have to plug in at night, but I bet you plug in your cell phone nightly (or fairly often). You say you don't drive a lot, 10 miles during the week, but you have "concerns" about the range. Ride, can't argue that point, some people don't like it, I am fine with it. It is a stiffly sprung ride? Yes, but I also hate mushy rides. If you don't like the interior design, can't argue that point, that's a matter of personal taste. BTW, short drives are less efficient like in an ICE car as well. But if you do the math, I bet you will find that it IS cheaper to drive an EV vs ICE. Now you don't drive a lot, so I can see why you think it's not that much cheaper. But at 25,000/yr, MINUS any maintenance comparisons, the cost of driving my Tesla is only about 20% or so of say a mid size suv that averages 20mpg.

If I can help it, I will never drive an ICE car for commuting and daily again. I don't have to buy gas. I don't have to change transmission fluids. I don't have to get an oil change. I never have to feel the transmission shift ever again. I LOVE the smoothness of the acceleration. I love regen braking. I love how passing is much easier and less stressful (lots of 2 lane back roads where I am). In an ICE, I have to consider the car's acceleration possibility and wonder if I can pass or not. There's a lot to love for me. I also happen to like the the styling of the Model Y. I am cool with the ride. I am ok with the interior.

At the end of the day, the good news is, you can get rid of the Tesla right now and probably break even. Life is too short to drive with regret. Sell it.
 
No but I cannot say that I would have it as my only vehicle either. It's great for running around town. Short trips dont take a toll on EVs the way they do on ICE, even in the winter. My electric rate is $0.08/kWh. Will see what winter brings...I don't think I'd want to road trip in a Tesla during winter because of range hit. Stopping way too often when my Q7 goes over 500 miles on a tank.