Standard Range Model 3 Now Available for $35,000

The wait is over – Tesla is now selling a $35,000 all-electric sedan.

The announcement was teased by Elon Musk is recent days and Tesla made the budget Model 3 available for order Thursday afternoon.

The Standard Range base model will start at $35,000, travel 220 miles on a single charge, hit a top speed of 130 mph and go from 0 to 60mph in 5.6 seconds.

Standard Interior includes:



Manual seat and steering adjustment

Cloth seats and base trim

Basic audio

Standard maps and navigation

Center console with storage and 4 USB ports



A version called “Standard Range Plus” is $37,000 with 240 miles of range, a top speed of 140mph, and a 0 to 60 mph time of 5.3 seconds.

Standard Range Plus also give the option for a “Partial Premium Interior” that includes:



12-way power adjustable heated front seats

Premium seat material and trim

Upgraded audio – immersive sound

Standard maps & navigation

LED fog lamps

Center console with storage, 4 USB ports and docking for 2 smartphones



Tesla also announced that it is shifting sales worldwide to online only. “You can now buy a Tesla in North America via your phone in about 1 minute, and that capability will soon be extended worldwide,” the company said in a blog post.

Tesla said it wants to make it easier to try out and return a Tesla. Consumers can now return a car within seven days or 1,000 miles for a full refund.

“Quite literally, you could buy a Tesla, drive several hundred miles for a weekend road trip with friends and then return it for free,” the post said.

Shifting all sales online, combined with other ongoing cost efficiencies, will enable Tesla to lower all vehicle prices by about 6% on average, allowing the company to achieve the $35,000 Model 3 price point earlier than expected.

“Over the next few months, we will be winding down many of our stores, with a small number of stores in high-traffic locations remaining as galleries, showcases and Tesla information centers,” the post said. “The important thing for customers in the United States to understand is that, with online sales, anyone in any state can quickly and easily buy a Tesla.”

Tesla also announced a number of firmware upgrades for both new and existing customers. The upgrades will increase the range of the Long Range Rear-Wheel Drive Model 3 to 325 miles, increase the top speed of Model 3 Performance to 162 mph, and add an average of approximately 5% peak power to all Model 3 vehicles.

 

[wwu123]

Just to add my personal experience, I took delivery of Model 3 Midrange in Dec 2018. Per the MPVA, I paid $35,000 for Model 3 + $11000 for Midrange i.e. $46000 (didn't include other upgrades), but today when I configure the same vehicle, the costs is $40,000 ..

So, essentially, I paid $6000 more for the same vehicle just 2 months ago ... of course, I get $3750 more in the fed tax rebate, so essentially I still overpaid $2250 for the same spec car

And in another quarter, the fed rebate gets cut another $1875 - so you'll have overpaid only $375 compared to future buyers, which is nearly a wash. So in all, maybe one quarter's worth of buyers will have timed it just right to get a $2000 better deal than you, out of possibly dozens of past and future quarters - that in itself is not the end of the world, esp when one does not have a crystal ball.

 

[evJOULE]

I was able to get through to them and did go through the trade evaluation process. They offered me $4,600 less for my daily driver then the current Manheim MMR wholesale value, meaning they could drive my car to the auction up the road and sell it for $4,600 more than they paid for it. So not a serious offer...

I had the same experience. In fact, I was warned in advance by the Tesla rep helping me to just sell it myself, as I will be able to work out a better deal. He also told me that Tesla will just push my used car to guys that, as you said, move them at auction. I got the impression that they really don't want to deal with used car inventory, and that Tesla values trade-ins for quick turnaround so that there is room for a middle man to deal with moving them.

 

[gobble]

I had the same experience. In fact, I was warned in advance by the Tesla rep helping me to just sell it myself, as I will be able to work out a better deal. He also told me that Tesla will just push my used car to guys that, as you said, move them at auction. I got the impression that they really don't want to deal with used car inventory, and that Tesla values trade-ins for quick turnaround so that there is room for a middle man to deal with moving them.

Stuff like this tells me long-term Tesla is in trouble. Once the fanboys stop ordering their cars sight unseen and they have to act like a serious car company, selling to the normal public won't be so easy. I almost always sell my cars private party because I know I can do a bit better, but I'd guess 90% of car buyers don't want to deal with that. How many people just go buy a new car without trading their old one? I also find myself enjoying the game of buying a car, most people don't. Tesla is going to have a hard time selling to the average traditional car buyer. Closing their stores goes farther in the wrong direction.

 

[Magellan55]

Yeah this is certainly a bold move to close sales offices. My guess is they figure a lot of their target market are young first time car buyers or those that leased before, so no trade-in and limited experience in how car buying was done before. Or maybe they will be announcing a partnership with Carmax or other national used car company to manage trade-ins? And there's no game at all here - just buy the car online like you would anything from Amazon. That certainly appeals to a lot of people, especially Millennials.

My biggest concern is the accessibility of cars to sit in and test drive. Enthusiasts would rent a Turo, but most car buyers wouldn't think of doing that, or even know what Turo is. Musk may tout that 80% of 3 buyers last year ordered online instead of in store, but how many of them sat in one first or test drove one? I bought my S online, but first I sat in one several times, took two test drives, and took a P100D home overnight to see if it was worth the extra $$ before I put any money down. But Musk would count me as on online purchase, not needing a sales office.

 

[Knightshade]

My biggest concern is the accessibility of cars to sit in and test drive. .

Non-issue.

Service/delivery centers are staying open (indeed, they're opening more of em) and that's where they keep the loaners for service use anyway, it's trivial to keep test drive cars same place.

 

[vzaitsev]

I would assume you just need to wait a short while for them to update the website.

thanks ! i saw in some post that prices update in a month.

 

[vzaitsev]

And in another quarter, the fed rebate gets cut another $1875 - so you'll have overpaid only $375 compared to future buyers, which is nearly a wash. So in all, maybe one quarter's worth of buyers will have timed it just right to get a $2000 better deal than you, out of possibly dozens of past and future quarters - that in itself is not the end of the world, esp when one does not have a crystal ball.

I agree you get to enjoy the car 6 months ahead than others who are buying it today and its most fun car to drive. Is there any advantage with benefitted tax? or we can just say hey we got tax benefits but we have given it back to Tesla for by paying more and by being an early adopter.

 

[evJOULE]

Stuff like this tells me long-term Tesla is in trouble. Once the fanboys stop ordering their cars sight unseen and they have to act like a serious car company, selling to the normal public won't be so easy. I almost always sell my cars private party because I know I can do a bit better, but I'd guess 90% of car buyers don't want to deal with that. How many people just go buy a new car without trading their old one? I also find myself enjoying the game of buying a car, most people don't. Tesla is going to have a hard time selling to the average traditional car buyer. Closing their stores goes farther in the wrong direction.

I disagree. Look at all the blowback from traditional dealerships that Tesla has to wade through. How much are they spending in legal fees just to be able to say that they can open up shops in all states? In the long run, it might be better to just stop swimming against the current, close most of the stores and replace them with even more service centres that they won't have to fight to keep open.

In terms of trade-in value, car sales might be the most dishonest form of sales ever devised. I can honestly say I have never been given a fair trade-in value at any dealership regardless of brand, and I think it is fair to say that any owner will likely get the most value for their used car by finding his/her own buyer.

 

[gobble]

I can honestly say I have never been given a fair trade-in value at any dealership regardless of brand, and I think it is fair to say that any owner will likely get the most value for their used car by finding his/her own buyer.

I'm with you on that but we're in the minority. I prefer to buy my cars for a private individual, an enthusiast like me. Most people prefer the convenience and safety of buying from a dealer, probably similar to why most people use a realtor to buy/sell a house (which I think is unnecessary). Most people also don't want to deal wtih selling their car private party. I do all the time but again I'm in the minority.

If Tesla doesn't have a serious plan for trades I think that's a real issue once this first wave of fans ends and real people start buying their cars. It didn't work out for me and I thought I wanted to buy one.