tmarcc
"Everyone has a right to a wrong opinion."
I considered this carefully for my own lease. After discussing it with Tesla Finance, I went for the least amount down. The primary reason for me: in the unlikely event the car is totaled, it was my understanding that we wouldn't get back any of that down payment back as part of an insurance claim. The money paid up front could be lost. Putting the least amount down was not particularly expensive over the life of the lease ($170ish based on what we were considering), so we chose that option. Basically, we were willing to pay that extra $170 in interest as insurance against losing a larger deposit.
Separately, we were in California and evidently did not need gap insurance.
Separately, we were in California and evidently did not need gap insurance.