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I’ve always had petrol cars but looking to buy my first EV. Most likely it will be the Model S, from around 2017 (although also considering model 3 so as I can pull trailers).

But, what are the things to look out for when buying a second hand tesla of that age? If I was buying a combustion car I know what the issues might be, the must have service items and running costs for next few years.

But how does that compare to a Tesla? What questions should I be asking about replacement parts, servicing etc and what are the future costs I need to bear in mind?
 
Due to far less moving parts, it is typical for a Tesla to need far less servicing costs than an EV.

For my 2017 and 2019 Model X's I encoured absolutely no maintenance costs.
Thank you.

I’ve just been reading about a ‘known’ issue with daytime running lights. Particularly on pre. 2018 models. Any truth in that?

One of the things which concerns me (especially as some of the cars I’ve seen have around 100k miles) is the battery life. What can you realistically expect from the battery’s before they need replacing?
 
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Thank you.

I’ve just been reading about a ‘known’ issue with daytime running lights. Particularly on pre. 2018 models. Any truth in that?

One of the things which concerns me (especially as some of the cars I’ve seen have around 100k miles) is the battery life. What can you realistically expect from the battery’s before they need replacing?
My DRL in my 2017 MS are fading a bit. Fortunately it is evenly and I won’t replace them until they get worse.

Battery has been good so far with 83k miles. There are some reports of replacements and there are other reports of people getting 100’s of thousands of miles on one pack. If you ever do need a replacement, check with @wk057 .

 
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I bought my 2017 used a year ago. I have had the 12v Battery and passenger headlight replaced and I also had Tesla come out to recalibrate the driver's seat 2x. all under warranty. So, zero maintenance costs.

I have spent $$$ on things like upgrading to the MCU2($2000), window tint ($450), lowered the car, added camber arms and an alignment($800), VS Forged wheels & tires($5,200), In the process of installing an NVX Sub, Amp & Focal door speakers ($600). I'm running out of things that I can modify....
 
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I just started to experience some shuddering with my braking and I figured it was probably time to get new ones along with rotors. Tesla just serviced my car and that was $2000 for new brakes and rotors. Mileage seems to be all over the place with these cars it doesn’t make any sense my needed replacement and only 44,000 and I do not drive my car hard at all. Still though for what I get out of it pleasure wise this has been the only significant cost I’ve had
 
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I just started to experience some shuddering with my braking and I figured it was probably time to get new ones along with rotors. Tesla just serviced my car and that was $2000 for new brakes and rotors. Mileage seems to be all over the place with these cars it doesn’t make any sense my needed replacement and only 44,000 and I do not drive my car hard at all. Still though for what I get out of it pleasure wise this has been the only significant cost I’ve had
Wow. I’m at 84k miles and my brakes are still practically good as new.
 
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Wow. I’m at 84k miles and my brakes are still practically good as new.
I know it’s hard to understand trust me when I tell you I hardly ever hard brake. When I started looking at some other threads on brake issues I too noticed that most people had over 60,000 miles and their brakes till performed as new when others like myself had their brakes fail at a fairly low mileage, 44k i when ICE vehicles would typically need brake pads replaced….
 
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I'd check if the car's infotainment system is running MCU1 vs MCU2 (currently a $1,750 or more upgrade) MCU2 is supposed to be much more responsive and has a functional web browser, Netflix, and some other Apps. I have MCU1 but do not have any issues with it. Maybe I got lucky but some people report MCU1 having long wait times to power up and being ready to drive, screen blacking out or resetting for no reason, etc...there's also a eMMC recall out so see if that's been performed. If it hasn't I've heard Tesla will knock off a few hundred from the cost of the MCU2 upgrade.

Check for abnormal battery degradation. It's normal to lose maybe 8-10% of the original range after 5-6 years. My 2016.5 75D had 260 mile range when new but present day it's closer to 235 miles.

Look for damage to the underside of the car since that's where the battery pack is located.

The DRLs burning out is annoying. I keep my car on range mode which seems to disable to DRLs so I can preserve them.

Check what version of Autopilot is included. If the car doesn't have cameras where the sidemarkers are then it's likely AP1, which is still more than useful.

Hopefully you get free unlimited supercharging transferred over and lifetime premium connectivity. I think cars delivered before April 2017 have the transferable supercharging.
 
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