The "savings" from giving up your Tesla (under Loan) for a Cheap, old car, paid off

[FLMan]

Not that anyone is going out to lunch now. Or, in an office.

LOL! I guess that puts me firmly in the minority and my 120 mile round trip commute certainly costs a heck of a lot more than the OP's $1100 in that time period.

For me the economics heavily favor an EV - any EV, not just a Tesla though. However, the overall point is valid, if you don't have the need or discretionary income, then you should definitely think about these things. I did this same analysis before buying an EV and came to the opposite conclusion for my situation.

 

[valaeyron]

Speaking to the other side, in my line of work, I've seen many people who "did everything right" end up dying or becoming severely disabled right around when they retired. So there's a balance, there's no getting your younger years back. Those vacations not taken, dinners not gone to, cars not bought all for the sake of saving for your "future" might be a regret.

Then there’s the older people who had their fun, weren’t responsible, and now need those who *did* play it safer fund their needs.

Sorry. Not sure how people who did defer their gratification get their share of regret in this scenario.

For bottom readers :

1. keep your model 3
2. Used cars can cost money
3. Should have got a leaf, BMW bad
4, Chicks love a model 3 so do customers
5 No need to save money, model 3 cheap
Please correct me if I am wrong but I do not have enough
booze to go through every word.

this was a good tldr;

 

[terranx]

Then there’s the older people who had their fun, weren’t responsible, and now need those who *did* play it safer fund their needs.

Sorry. Not sure how people who did defer their gratification get their share of regret in this scenario.

Like I said, there's a balance. You can live comfortably into your older age without having to pinch every single penny. Hell, just in the last 2 year I've lost count of how many people who I had to pronounce dead who otherwise could have lived decades. I'm not going to waste away my 30s just because I might have a little bit more money when I'm 60.

 

[valaeyron]

But when those people are 60 will they admit they had their share of fun decades ago, and that’s why they can’t afford nice things now?

That has never happened.

 

[RipVanFinkle]

I lived frugally so I could live better now and give my kids the life I never had. Sending them to good schools has brought me more joy than any material things. The way I see it, when I'm dead and gone, the gifts I've bestowed my kids will be my legacy. It will live on through them well past my lifetime and hopefully pay off in their kids lifetime.

Do I regret not buying toys in my 30s? Hell no. I'm having too much fun now!

 

[ODWms]

I couldn’t agree more!!!!

 

[one2many]

Hum If I stopped eating, I could get an S plaid.

 

[valaeyron]

Hum If I stopped eating, I could get an S plaid.

Bonus. I’d lose weight too.

 

[mswlogo]

You won’t save money buying a Tesla. A better comparison would be buying a plug-in Prius or something. Which would be cheaper. Not a POS BMW. Even new BMW’s break all the time.

I think in states with cheap electricity a base Model 3 could be cheaper to own if you drive enough. The higher end S/X will never pay for itself and I’d never get one if you have to borrow to get it.

But one way I do justify getting a Tesla is it’s crash tests. They are top notch. If it saves you a visit to the hospital or the morgue it was more than worth it.

 

[RipVanFinkle]

You won’t save money buying a Tesla. A better comparison would be buying a plug-in Prius or something. Which would be cheaper. Not a POS BMW. Even new BMW’s break all the time.

I think in states with cheap electricity a base Model 3 could be cheaper to own if you drive enough. The higher end S/X will never pay for itself and I’d never get one if you have to borrow to get it.

But one way I do justify getting a Tesla is it’s crash tests. They are top notch. If it saves you a visit to the hospital or the morgue it was more than worth it.

In all honesty, are there cars that don’t fare well in crash tests anymore? Gone are the days of SUVs crumpling and rolling in crash tests…

 

[mswlogo]

In all honesty, are there cars that don’t fare well in crash tests anymore? Gone are the days of SUVs crumpling and rolling in crash tests…

Granted, a lot of cars these days are extremely good. Surely not the 20 year old BMW junk the OP thought he’d initially save money on. But from what I’ve researched Tesla is in another league of its own on crash tests. Have others caught up to where Tesla is at? Maybe, I have not recently researched, but I bet they are expensive too.

 

[OxBrew]

I've been there before. Sold a 1.5 year old Outback and got a 10 yo Golf TDI. Saved a ton on expenses overall, but had to fix it all the time.

Never again. Fixing cars is no longer fun. They always seem to break exactly when my only choice is to spend a bunch of time on my back in the snow. And I hate the hassle of taking cars to the shop, now that I can afford it.

Plus, just done burning gas. Gas stations are stinky and gross. Driving by them is giving me great joy.

 

[one2many]

Well back in the day, I had a bad starter, had to date chicks on
a hill and could push my car. Ah the good old days.
Never mind.

 

[RonKorakas]

Curious (and maybe I missed it) but did you calculate your costs on charging the Tesla prior to selling it?

You mean the Electricity Usage? Yes, I did, but it was negligible. I had a special account that they have for people who live in my area, in Texas. Comes out to $52 a year. Yes, TOTAL Electricity Cost = $52. (the account is $26 every 6 months, unlimited charging)

 

[RonKorakas]

I wanted to give my 2 cents on the whole "Driving a cheapo car will always save you money/driving a nice car gives customers a good impression" part of this conversation - before it fizzled out.

I bought my first Tesla, a 2013 Model S, when I was in the army. I was a low rank - so when I showed up with it one day, a LOT of my superiors had a couple of words with me. HOWEVER, most of them knew that I was older, and more mature than most soldiers my age. So, the conversations that followed actually made the superiors realize that I was good with finances, and credit, and making big life decisions that it gave them an extra "interest" in me and what I could bring to the table. This in turn led to more responsibility, different tasks, etc - and eventually led to getting promoted before others, and fairly easily, as most of my superiors knew they could count on my maturity, dependability, assertiveness, and guts.
When I left the service, this exact concept carried on with the other Business deals I engaged in. It was as simple as the investors, or business partners being impressed and/or having LOTS of questions about the Tesla - that it "fermented" the conversation, and created a synergistic connection. Even when I applied for a regular-ish job, a couple of years later, 1/3 of the conversation was about the car, and because it lent itself for me to expand upon myself, and my decision making, I ended up getting the job - a Management position - right off the bat.

Now, while a lot of these successes had to do with my personality, and fluidity I have in conversation - those opportunities to showcase myself would have not have been here had I been driving a Cheapo, 20 year old, busted BMW. Sometimes it has - if I'm meeting with a BMW enthusiast, or a "hot rod" type - but meeting someone who has a million questions about the Tesla is about 90% guaranteed.

Ultimately, I have had more, better opportunities, and had situations lead to better opportunities purely by having a "nice car" - that I know very likely would have happened if I had a crappy old car.

-Ron

 

[valaeyron]

Now, while a lot of these successes had to do with my personality, and fluidity I have in conversation - those opportunities to showcase myself would have not have been here had I been driving a Cheapo, 20 year old, busted BMW. Sometimes it has - if I'm meeting with a BMW enthusiast, or a "hot rod" type - but meeting someone who has a million questions about the Tesla is about 90% guaranteed.

Ultimately, I have had more, better opportunities, and had situations lead to better opportunities purely by having a "nice car" - that I know very likely would have happened if I had a crappy old car.

Congrats, and thank you for serving (truly!!).

This says more about you, though. There are plenty of people who do live above their means and end up without the story above to show for it. Clearly you were not one of those…but this path is not one that is reliably repeatable for most…whereas the math does work out in favor of Corollas, Accords, and Camrys (and similar).

 

[RonKorakas]

Congrats, and thank you for serving (truly!!).

This says more about you, though. There are plenty of people who do live above their means and end up without the story above to show for it. Clearly you were not one of those…but this path is not one that is reliably repeatable for most…whereas the math does work out in favor of Corollas, Accords, and Camrys (and similar).

Thank you for your support.

I see what you mean. I came from extreme poverty, growing up. But I don't think it had much of an effect on me, other than I just don't want to live that way and I don't want my children to end up that way either. For me, I made most of my luck. But there were certain circumstances, and certain tools that allowed me to use my assertiveness and forward thinking to get ahead. I think that's the way I see it - speaking of using the Teslas to take advantage of opportunities - that they were tools, but just like any other tool, it matters what you do with it. Whereas I succeeded, someone else who doesn't have my type, or any kind of assertive, strong personality, would probably not have had the outcome I did. Maybe they would have gone to those meetings, and interviews, and they had little to say about the car, or gave short answers, so much that even that tool did nothing for their situation. The way I see it, if you don't come out of a meeting exhausted and energized, feeling like you succeeded because of 95% your own effort, then no matter how many tools in your disposal you won't make it far - you need to work on yourself before anything else.

I also had another point to make - I'd rather drive the Tesla, which to me is my "forever car", for 10 years, and make the most of it, and enjoy it, until it "pays for itself" in gas savings and no maintenance (even if I had a loan payment), than to drive a crappy car, that I know I will not keep, just to "save" money. I've never really accomplished anything by just "saving my money". I rather used the little money I had to invest, and to increase it exponentially through an aggressively expansive means. That's how I actually got ahead. That is in fact how I bought my first Tesla. I invested in stocks, and made enough to buy it - whereas most people said that I should "save" the money at the time. I was able to have a 220% ROI after all said and done.
So, for me, being passive, and saving your money doesn't work out. I'm too anxious and impatient with finances to just let them sit. I need it to be working for itself, with compounded increment.

-R.

 

[ElectricNerd]

We are selling my 12 year old Toyota full size truck that we are paying on as I bought it used two years ago in order to budget for our new to us 2021 Model 3. I’m about to have to go back to the office more, and gas is only going to continue to go up. At current per gallon prices it takes about $80 to fill it up and it averages 12 miles a gallon. To us the Tesla is a smart purchase even though my monthly payment will go up. We don’t mind it as we won’t have to worry about gas prices going up. Our other vehicle is a paid off hybrid SUV.

I would have gotten another Toyota but the dealers around us are charging markup or excessive dealer adds. It’s turned me off of looking at a Toyota in the future. I really like Tesla’s sales model as it’s no headache, no arguing, no haggling. We see this Model 3 almost like an investment as I expect it to maintain its value or at least hold it much better than some of the other makes.

 

[RonKorakas]

We are selling my 12 year old Toyota full size truck that we are paying on as I bought it used two years ago in order to budget for our new to us 2021 Model 3. I’m about to have to go back to the office more, and gas is only going to continue to go up. At current per gallon prices it takes about $80 to fill it up and it averages 12 miles a gallon. To us the Tesla is a smart purchase even though my monthly payment will go up. We don’t mind it as we won’t have to worry about gas prices going up. Our other vehicle is a paid off hybrid SUV.

I would have gotten another Toyota but the dealers around us are charging markup or excessive dealer adds. It’s turned me off of looking at a Toyota in the future. I really like Tesla’s sales model as it’s no headache, no arguing, no haggling. We see this Model 3 almost like an investment as I expect it to maintain its value or at least hold it much better than some of the other makes.

That's awesome. I did the math, the first year I owned my first tesla. I saved about $6500 on real gas mileage (because I was driving the exact same distance, and it wasn't going to change. So, it was a real apples to apples comparison). With gas prices the way they are, I'm glad I went back to the Tesla.

 

[valaeyron]

I rather used the little money I had to invest, and to increase it exponentially through an aggressively expansive means. That's how I actually got ahead. That is in fact how I bought my first Tesla. I invested in stocks, and made enough to buy it - whereas most people said that I should "save" the money at the time. I was able to have a 220% ROI after all said and done.

That’s an awesome story! I totally agree with you that acquiring fancy “tools” doesn’t mean they’ll be utilized effectively, only the person can do that…YMMV!!