Thinking of buying a M3P or a classic Mercedes

[Slow_Lane]

Have you considered a 2 or 3 Yr old Model S instead of a new M3?

Acceleration still pretty quick at 4.2 secs and a bit more like a normal / existing car with stalks, buttons etc as expected.

 

[Ant M3]

My last two cars were a 17 plate Merc C Class AMG and a BMW 3 series Msport 67plate
The merc had a nicer looking interior and the BMW was a nice drive
I find my M3P only mildly worse for feel of the materials but the drive is better than the merc and the interior is better than the BMW.

aftercare is defo better with the Germans though , Telsa have a long way to go on this IMO

 

[Mr Miserable]

I have a Model S. The wife wouldn't let me sell it when the Tesla arrived, just in case. Then the story changed that we would use the Merc for long journeys only. It hasn't done 40 miles since the Tesla arrived. She won't drive anything but the Tesla.
The Model S is a great car and the finish and quality is top notch. It's a lovely drive too.
The Model 3 isn't a patch on the Merc in many respects BUT it's simply great fun to drive.
Just get a Model 3. If nothing else it's great to drive in Central London without needing to pay a soon to be £15 congestion charge and when you park on a meter in Westminster you only need to pay for 10 minutes but get 4 hours! That's nice.

 

[pgkevet]

I like my '18 Tesla S - lots of room and power and great fun to drive. I moved out of London many years ago so i don't have the issues of trying to park it into tight spaces or congestion charges. But my nearest SC is 90 miles away and getting appts and having to rock up at 9.00 am with little negotaition on alternatives or havng to wait several weeks for a service slot is a pain. Let alone the price they'll charge you or a brake service or alignment. Insurance costs may well be significant for some too and the issue with new cars without spare wheels is always a nagging worry let alone updates that change things you were happy with or introduce new bugs you have to live with until they get sorted. Oh, and cold batteries and heaters that suck range out of the thing when only doing short trips.

I also have my aged '93 200sx which is coming to end of liife unless I invest a heap of money in it (and I'm tempted). The joy of a low slung car with comfy seats, dirt cheap insurance, all round visibility, tremendous load space and controls you can find by feel. It also has non of the distractions of radios (died years ago) or worries about airbags going off or being nagged by seatbelt buzzers or having to keep your foot on the accelerator to stop it slowing down (coasts for ages with a foot hovering over the brake in case you need it) or range anxiety or having to pick a marque specific garage to look at it. Or putting in pin numbers each time you get in/out to open/close gates. yeah, I have to drive it with respect now but it's like an old comfy jacket but I have to admit that the days of whacking down the autobahn at 125mph in it have gone now that newer cars can stop faster. I take it for a run every couple of weeks and it's a reliable old friend you don't mind filling with concrete blocks or taking rubbish to the dump or filling with bag of cement or dog hair.
Do you really believe my Tesla will still be running in 26yrs.

As for a Mark 2 jag - you can keep that. I've driven one when they were new. No room behind the wheel for a decent sized person with classic jag brakes that you think won't stop in time (but always do while your heart fibrillates)

 

[gangzoom]

Im torn between getting a 1990 w126 s class and a M3P. I know this is like comparing apples to oranges, but has anyone ever gone from classic car ownership to Tesla ownership and not regretted it?

It's an interesting question, I recently bumped into a colleague of mine and we got chatting about cars. Turns out he still drives has 1990s BMW 3 series which he owned from new, with over 200k on the clock but honestly you couldn't tell. It's his pride and joy which he keeps in top condition.

I on the otherhand have had 3 EVs since just 2015. Purely just in financial terms the amount of money I've thrown away on cars in comparison to him is just crazy .

I've also recently had a chance to use my days 2009 Mazda 6 for a week or so. My parents bought it brand new in the old scrappage scheme, they live in London so it's only done 17k in over 11 years !! I worked out their cost per mile in the Mazda was actually MORE expensive than our Model X (was doing 15k miles per year).

However the Mazda only cost them £14k brand new, and if am been honest it does the job of taking me+my daughter+a bike to nursery everyday just as well as our X, though no tow bar fitted.

.

Ultimately do what you want to do, the fact you are on this forum suggest you want to buy the Tesla. Very few people regret getting any EV, and Teslas are no different.

Our X is the most expensive and most unreliable car I have ever owned by a country mile. The amount of money it costs is obscene compared to my colleagues car or my dads, yet all of them do essentially the same job.

But I have no regret about getting ours, what I have decided though is changing cars is a waste of money and time. We are going to run both of our current cars till they fall apart, the other car is a Lexus which I have no worries about, the Tesla will be fine too, though I am prepared to spend money/time fixing it over the years, if it turns out to be more reliable than expected thats a bonus.

 

[gangzoom]

Do you really believe my Tesla will still be running in 26yrs.

That really is the killer question isnt it. For EVs to be truly 'green' the answer should be yes. But I would be pleasantly surprised if our X makes it to the end of its battery/motor warranty without needing four figure sums to keep it road worth/stop it from falling apart.

I do intend to try and find out at least, who knows in 2030 I might be wondering about keeping a 'classic' 2017 EV versus getting a brand new self driving machine......Though that does unlikely, both our X lasting that long and ture driving autonomy.

Infact I have more confidence my dads current 2009 Mazda will be fully working in 2030 than our X, which probably says it all about how good I think Tesla build quality is .

 

[Durzel]

The only thing that worries me, really, is the dependence on Tesla on service availability and parts.

The former wouldn’t be such an issue were it not for the latter. I remember having similar wait times for servicing on an Audi, but I could at least take the Audi to a specialist instead. Often this would be cheaper.

Tesla do have the ranger service too, which sounds great (I haven’t used it yet) which might be enough for most things.

There is also the fact that there are much fewer moving parts, so in theory less than could go wrong.

As has been said by others I think you need to go in with your eyes open, and consider how far away from a Tesla Service Center you are, just in case you have to go there.

 

[Shortcircuit]

Thanks guys and that’s the thing these cars will end up as robo taxis...and that’s it. Maybe that’s why build quality is not there.
For what they are they are extremely expensive.
Essentially all cars do pretty much the same thing get you from a to b.
Of course an ev is non polluting.
There is however, if you are mechanically inclined a beauty to be able to not depend upon a dealer.
I bought a Jaguar XF-S last year a 2015 model and it was problematic.
Don’t know what I was thinking buying a diesel but that’s another story...
Here are some pictures of the s class im looking at...

 

[Mr Miserable]

It looks awful.
It'll smell awful.
It is awful.

 

[Cyclone1]

Thanks guys and that’s the thing these cars will end up as robo taxis...and that’s it. Maybe that’s why build quality is not there.
For what they are they are extremely expensive.
Essentially all cars do pretty much the same thing get you from a to b.
Of course an ev is non polluting.
There is however, if you are mechanically inclined a beauty to be able to not depend upon a dealer.
I bought a Jaguar XF-S last year a 2015 model and it was problematic.
Don’t know what I was thinking buying a diesel but that’s another story...
Here are some pictures of the s class im looking at...

View attachment 542117 View attachment 542118 View attachment 542119 View attachment 542120 View attachment 542121 View attachment 542122

Love it. Buy it.

 

[gangzoom]

Thanks guys and that’s the thing these cars will end up as robo taxis...and that’s it.

Which ultimately is what the Model 3 is built for.

If you are after an classic EV which is also usable I would look out for a used P85, or even a rare P85+. Yes you have to worry about the MCU bricking itself (fixable), and at some point you will need to budget for a brand new 85 pack battery - Tesla has already produced a 'new' 85 pack for this purpose but you wouldn't get much change from £20k so budget for it at some point in future. But interms of classic status those cars are far more diserable than the 3.

Just look at Roadster prices, a few years you could pick one up for under £40k, now they are heading to double that value, and worth every penny I recon.

P85s now come up for sale very rarely, so their values will already be starting to climb soon if not already.

 

[DaddyCool]

It looks awful.
It'll smell awful.
It is awful.

On the plus side you'd get a lot of chickens in there and it looks reasonably fox proof.

 

[DaddyCool]

.

Bike in derailleur and chain ring side down... who knew?

 

[pdk42]

Thanks guys and that’s the thing these cars will end up as robo taxis...and that’s it. Maybe that’s why build quality is not there.
For what they are they are extremely expensive.
Essentially all cars do pretty much the same thing get you from a to b.
Of course an ev is non polluting.
There is however, if you are mechanically inclined a beauty to be able to not depend upon a dealer.
I bought a Jaguar XF-S last year a 2015 model and it was problematic.
Don’t know what I was thinking buying a diesel but that’s another story...
Here are some pictures of the s class im looking at...

View attachment 542117 View attachment 542118 View attachment 542119 View attachment 542120 View attachment 542121 View attachment 542122

A friend of mine bought a "bargain" E-class. 90k miles but immaculate, interior had all the toys etc. But it turned into a money pit. Endless problems with suspension, ECUs, gearbox, ... - you name it. Buying old cars is always a bit of a gamble.