TL;DR Two words...Happy Ending ;-)
As an avid reader but only occasional poster on this forum for several months, I've learned a wealth of information as I've waited to take my place among the ranks of Tesla owners (huge thanks to the membership!). That day finally came this past Monday! I've enjoyed reading others' origin stories, so I thought I'd share mine.
I've been moderately obsessed with Tesla for a couple of years now, checking them out as I've seen the on the road or breezing through the local store. I've been driving a large SUV since 2012. It was very nice and comfortable and the cargo space certainly convenient for road trips, Costco runs, etc. The fuel efficiency was abysmal...average 12.3 MPG. And of course premium gas was recommended by the manufacturer. Also, it might as well have had a bullseye painted on it in the parking lot...often falling victim to door dings, small scrapes, etc. This past spring I kinda had enough and decided that perhaps it was time to move on. Maybe the time was right for a Tesla! Most of my driving is a short commute to work and then errands on the weekends. A setup for the absolute worst ICE gas mileage, but ideal for EV! I started doing a LOT of reading, quickly finding this forum, Electrek, InsideEV, etc. After convincing myself that the Tesla was a great, if not expensive, choice, I scheduled a test-drive in late June. The results of that were, of course, predictable. Why would I consider any other car? Based upon my usual driving habits, I figured that I didn't need more than the 60 kWh battery. Ludicrous Mode was neat to experience during the test drive, but not essential for me. Talking it over with the OA in the store, I was saying that I wanted to get the subzero package. What a refreshing moment to hear her say "why do you need that?" instead of the usual sales-y approach like trying to up-sell the TruCoat as seen in Fargo. The only thing that was really bugging me was the rumor-mill talk of AP 2.0 coming "soon". I mentioned that to the co-pilot during the test drive and the OA. Of course, they very honestly said that they have no idea what is in the pipeline, and I knew that this was true from my research. I decided to place the order in mid-July, as there was supposed to be a "big announcement" around that time. I figured if it was AP 2.0, cool. If not, I could cancel my order before 7 days, no problem. The day after I placed the order I got an email from the OA welcoming me to the Tesla family. I wrote back and said that I didn't have "range anxiety" but I had "technology anxiety" over the AP 2.0. She asked if we could talk on the phone, which I thought was very nice. She advised that I could push my order out 6 months, which coincided with the rumored end-of-year "big BIG announcement". I decided to do that, so even though I ordered in July and could have had the car in Late August, it was moved to Late December-Early January. A long time to wait, but I'm all about delayed gratification. Turns out the gamble paid off, so I was able to get the AP 2.0 software, but yet I still got the Next Gen gray seats!
Fast forward to this past Monday when we went to pick up the car. The DS staff couldn't have been nicer. We were about 15 minutes late for our appointment due to some bad weather (Portland just can't handle any snow whatsoever...) but they were running a little behind so it wasn't a problem. In fact, they were very apologetic about making us wait a few minutes! We traded in the huge SUV directly to Tesla...they actually offered us the best price over CarMax and Kelley Blue Book. The lady who did the orientation was happy to spend as much time as we needed. I had my wife sit in the driver's seat because I had already read a ton, including the owner's manual, so I had a pretty good idea what was going on. No swag offered, but oh well.
Needless to say it's such an amazing vehicle and piece of technology. Everything I expected! We didn't find any fit and finish issues at all, and we looked pretty closely before leaving the delivery appointment. Really, the whole process from start to finish couldn't have been smoother. Kudos to the whole Tesla team here in Portland.
Best Moment So Far: Just driving!
Funniest Moment So Far: Waiting for a parking spot in a small but busy lot at a local store. Two gentleman walk out of the store and one points at my car. They continue walking and get in their car to leave, leaving their spot open for me. As they back out...I see they're driving a Tesla! We roll down the windows as we pass...I say "Conservation of mass!" and he says "Enjoy your car!"
Scariest Moment So Far: Got winter tires put on yesterday at Costco. The guy tells me that the car is showing a "Tire Pressure Very Low...Pull Over Slowly" error but the tires are inflated to 45 psi, verified twice. Their equipment doesn't show anything wrong. I'm afraid to drive away so I call Tesla and get the local service center. The tech asks if I've driven it a few miles, to which I say "uh, no...there are 4 red triangles!" He says to drive it and see if they go away. About 2 sweaty miles later, the tires read 45 psi and it's all good!
In closing, I am reminded of the immortal words of Ferris Bueller who said...
"It is SO choice...if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up!"
If you made it this far through the ramble, thanks for taking the time. I hope I can contribute to this community and help guide others on the path to Tesla Enlightenment.
As an avid reader but only occasional poster on this forum for several months, I've learned a wealth of information as I've waited to take my place among the ranks of Tesla owners (huge thanks to the membership!). That day finally came this past Monday! I've enjoyed reading others' origin stories, so I thought I'd share mine.
I've been moderately obsessed with Tesla for a couple of years now, checking them out as I've seen the on the road or breezing through the local store. I've been driving a large SUV since 2012. It was very nice and comfortable and the cargo space certainly convenient for road trips, Costco runs, etc. The fuel efficiency was abysmal...average 12.3 MPG. And of course premium gas was recommended by the manufacturer. Also, it might as well have had a bullseye painted on it in the parking lot...often falling victim to door dings, small scrapes, etc. This past spring I kinda had enough and decided that perhaps it was time to move on. Maybe the time was right for a Tesla! Most of my driving is a short commute to work and then errands on the weekends. A setup for the absolute worst ICE gas mileage, but ideal for EV! I started doing a LOT of reading, quickly finding this forum, Electrek, InsideEV, etc. After convincing myself that the Tesla was a great, if not expensive, choice, I scheduled a test-drive in late June. The results of that were, of course, predictable. Why would I consider any other car? Based upon my usual driving habits, I figured that I didn't need more than the 60 kWh battery. Ludicrous Mode was neat to experience during the test drive, but not essential for me. Talking it over with the OA in the store, I was saying that I wanted to get the subzero package. What a refreshing moment to hear her say "why do you need that?" instead of the usual sales-y approach like trying to up-sell the TruCoat as seen in Fargo. The only thing that was really bugging me was the rumor-mill talk of AP 2.0 coming "soon". I mentioned that to the co-pilot during the test drive and the OA. Of course, they very honestly said that they have no idea what is in the pipeline, and I knew that this was true from my research. I decided to place the order in mid-July, as there was supposed to be a "big announcement" around that time. I figured if it was AP 2.0, cool. If not, I could cancel my order before 7 days, no problem. The day after I placed the order I got an email from the OA welcoming me to the Tesla family. I wrote back and said that I didn't have "range anxiety" but I had "technology anxiety" over the AP 2.0. She asked if we could talk on the phone, which I thought was very nice. She advised that I could push my order out 6 months, which coincided with the rumored end-of-year "big BIG announcement". I decided to do that, so even though I ordered in July and could have had the car in Late August, it was moved to Late December-Early January. A long time to wait, but I'm all about delayed gratification. Turns out the gamble paid off, so I was able to get the AP 2.0 software, but yet I still got the Next Gen gray seats!
Fast forward to this past Monday when we went to pick up the car. The DS staff couldn't have been nicer. We were about 15 minutes late for our appointment due to some bad weather (Portland just can't handle any snow whatsoever...) but they were running a little behind so it wasn't a problem. In fact, they were very apologetic about making us wait a few minutes! We traded in the huge SUV directly to Tesla...they actually offered us the best price over CarMax and Kelley Blue Book. The lady who did the orientation was happy to spend as much time as we needed. I had my wife sit in the driver's seat because I had already read a ton, including the owner's manual, so I had a pretty good idea what was going on. No swag offered, but oh well.
Needless to say it's such an amazing vehicle and piece of technology. Everything I expected! We didn't find any fit and finish issues at all, and we looked pretty closely before leaving the delivery appointment. Really, the whole process from start to finish couldn't have been smoother. Kudos to the whole Tesla team here in Portland.
Best Moment So Far: Just driving!
Funniest Moment So Far: Waiting for a parking spot in a small but busy lot at a local store. Two gentleman walk out of the store and one points at my car. They continue walking and get in their car to leave, leaving their spot open for me. As they back out...I see they're driving a Tesla! We roll down the windows as we pass...I say "Conservation of mass!" and he says "Enjoy your car!"
Scariest Moment So Far: Got winter tires put on yesterday at Costco. The guy tells me that the car is showing a "Tire Pressure Very Low...Pull Over Slowly" error but the tires are inflated to 45 psi, verified twice. Their equipment doesn't show anything wrong. I'm afraid to drive away so I call Tesla and get the local service center. The tech asks if I've driven it a few miles, to which I say "uh, no...there are 4 red triangles!" He says to drive it and see if they go away. About 2 sweaty miles later, the tires read 45 psi and it's all good!
In closing, I am reminded of the immortal words of Ferris Bueller who said...
"It is SO choice...if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up!"
If you made it this far through the ramble, thanks for taking the time. I hope I can contribute to this community and help guide others on the path to Tesla Enlightenment.
