SR Purchasing Doubts

[Mr X]

See, now mine changed. Charging my car right now and full charge is showing 224 miles. Went up 11 miles on the guessometer from just a few hours ago




On EV's, numbers for range are never accurate. That's why I use the battery percentage and never have any worries

 

[ElectricIAC]

If I wasn’t after a Y (and or an X) for the Mrs, I’d still buy an SR. It’d almost never get driven out of town though.

 

[Fadiawesome]

Probably a dumb question, but how do you preheat the battery in the 3 without a dedicated battery heater?

to the best of my understanding, the car puts the motors in an inefficient state which basically means it moves/spins the motors and creates heat waste which is then channeled to the battery. I think it is limited to 3.5 kw for the rwd cars and 7kw for the awd cars.

 

[Kandiru]

2015-on EV veteran here and traveller.

Always, always pick the model with the longest possible range,
you will not regret it driving through that blizzard having to blow
hot air on the winshield and eating up an extra 100mi on a 100mi trip.
We usually drive AC-off coat zippered to neck and seat heater on on long winter
trips, blizzards an exception.

 

[TomB985]

Like most on here, I do not have infinite financial resources.

I would love a long-range car. Heck, I would love a Model X for that matter. But the additional financial strain I would go through coming up with another $10,000 is NOWHERE close to the occasional range anxiety I get with my SR +. 95% of the time it's no issue at all, and the remaining 5% just requires a little planning.

After almost a year and 16,000 miles, I am confident I picked the right car. Being comfortable financially is far more important than the rare occasion I could bypass a supercharger with the long-range model.

 

[jfinephilly]

to the best of my understanding, the car puts the motors in an inefficient state which basically means it moves/spins the motors and creates heat waste which is then channeled to the battery. I think it is limited to 3.5 kw for the rwd cars and 7kw for the awd cars.

Thank you for the info. How does someone initiate the preconditioning?

 

[TomB985]

Thank you for the info. How does someone initiate the preconditioning?

It happens under certain conditions. Primarily when charging in cold weather and headed to a supercharger, but also sometimes when preheating the cabin and it's cold out. No real way to monitor or control the situation, these things pretty much do what they want.

 

[chrisf60526]

Chicago here. Not quite as cold as Minnesota. I initially went in thinking LR AWD MOdel 3 b/c of AWD and the extended range. I went with the standard 3 with no FSD. Basically, the base model with a better paint.

You'll be fine. I saved around $9k by not getting the LR and put the money into getting the 220 line into my garage (which you need to really get). I am not saying that the LR is not worth it and for me it wasn't whether or not i could swing it or not....but $9k is good money to save.

The SR+ drives fine in the snow and we have had no issues with range. Nothing against the LR model but we have not missed the LR yet.

 

[ElectricIAC]

SR is one of the best values undoubtedly for $36,200 (inc destination, exc tax) on a new car with no adjustments. Most of the goodies, none of the fluff.

 

[M_D129]

Probably a dumb question, but how do you preheat the battery in the 3 without a dedicated battery heater?

The 3 uses waste heat and current to warm the battery.

I’ve found that 20-30 min of climate running before leaving will almost always give me full regen capability.

I set it at 68, and use the seat heaters.

 

[vickh]

SR is one of the best values undoubtedly for $36,200 (inc destination, exc tax) on a new car with no adjustments. Most of the goodies, none of the fluff.

I agree. Hopefully the least % loss when it comes to trade in too.

 

[super20g]

My SR is supposed to be 220 at 100%. However, it has charged to low 2's since it was new. Cut that in half for cold weather driving, in an area that you have to go pretty far out of your way to get to a supercharger, and it is not a car I am all that thrilled for my wife to drive herself and the kiddos around when its really cold out if they have much driving around town planned. I wouldn't be as concerned if it was a LR.

 

[Metalmanstan]

Thanks everyone!! These responses have definitely boosted my confidence. Most likely will be buying! My next question is, the end of the quarter crazy sales that Elon does. When do they start revealing those? My lease ends on March 28th. What are the usual end of quarter dates?

 

[ElectricIAC]

I’d almost buy a SR over an SR+ just for the built in “buffer”. It’ll be interesting down the line to see if Tesla offers upgrade to full SR+ by software for a price similar to the S60/75 thing.

 

[rdcisneros3]

Always, always pick the model with the longest possible range

Terrible advice. Don't listen to people like this. There are many factors that this flawed line of thinking doesn't consider.

 

[rdcisneros3]

I’d almost buy a SR over an SR+ just for the built in “buffer”. It’ll be interesting down the line to see if Tesla offers upgrade to full SR+ by software for a price similar to the S60/75 thing.

I believe this is possible. You can upgrade SR to SR+ after purchase by paying the difference.

 

[tvad]

I believe some here are focusing on the OP's 10 mile commute and the 100-200 mile/week average and glossing over this very important aspect of his needs:

"Depends if I'm hiking or not. When I do hike, there are slow local chargers near to where I hike(picture shows chargers and the green blob is where I hike), but my friend is willing to "lend" me his car for those days in the winter when I need more range (just my day off when I hike). .

Am I overthinking this or should I go for it? The only thing that scares me is the loss of range in the winter. Right now, it's 28°F and snowing. I've heard the loss of range in the winter could be up to or near 50%. That's a significant amount of miles taken off. We have an ICE car for the longer trips in the winter if that helps."

So, consider he is someone who takes long(ish) trips to hike...sometimes in winter...which may significantly skew his otherwise manageable distance.

If the OP sometimes needs his friend to "lend" him his ICE car for those winter hikes, then wouldn't he be better suited with a longer range battery?

If not, then why?

 

[Metalmanstan]

I believe some here are focusing on the OP's 10 mile commute and the 100-200 mile/week average and glossing over this very important aspect of his needs:

"Depends if I'm hiking or not. When I do hike, there are slow local chargers near to where I hike(picture shows chargers and the green blob is where I hike), but my friend is willing to "lend" me his car for those days in the winter when I need more range (just my day off when I hike). .

Am I overthinking this or should I go for it? The only thing that scares me is the loss of range in the winter. Right now, it's 28°F and snowing. I've heard the loss of range in the winter could be up to or near 50%. That's a significant amount of miles taken off. We have an ICE car for the longer trips in the winter if that helps."

So, consider he is someone who takes long(ish) trips to hike...sometimes in winter...which may significantly skew his otherwise manageable distance.

If the OP sometimes needs his friend to "lend" him his ICE car for those winter hikes, then wouldn't he be better suited with a longer range battery?

If not, then why?

The truth is, I can't afford the long range. Even the SR+ is pushing it for me. Spending an extra 10 grand to use it once a week in just the winter? Nah. I could save that up for something else or additional stuff for the car.

 

[rdcisneros3]

If the OP sometimes needs his friend to "lend" him his ICE car for those winter hikes, then wouldn't he be better suited with a longer range battery?

If not, then why?

Because he may not be able to comfortably afford an extra $10K. And he said he has an ICE to take for longer trips.

 

[ElectricIAC]

I believe this is possible. You can upgrade SR to SR+ after purchase by paying the difference.

True but no way would I pay $4,990 for 20-25 rated miles and “dumb” AP.