[Update: It happened] Track Mode not happening for P3d-

[lotusland]

Tesla Support indicated to me today that Track Mode will not be offered for the P3D-. It's not on the roadmap and is simply not going to happen. I have a back-and-forth e-mail thread with Tesla going back to before I got my car, asking about TM. Prior to today I was working with an employee who claimed to also own a P3D- and he indicated they were working on it and that he too wanted it. Today was a different guy and he stated -- twice -- that it is not going to happen. Of course Elon tweeted that it would happen, but that does not seem to matter now.

My 3 is still my favorite car of all-time but this is a disappointment. There are certain aspects to TM that could have been easily added to the minus cars. The combination of a walled garden and holding back features is not ideal either. The lesson seems clear -- don't buy early. I'm interested in the truck but will wait until it has been shipping for at least a year before considering a purchase.

 

[Vines]

Tweet Elon about it, post the relevant parts of the email and straight up ask him? From what I remember he said February, and that probably means on Elon Time within 3-4 months of February.

Tesla CS people you talk to don't make policy, but often want you to stop using their time.

 

[MagnusMako]

Even if they're not planning on doing it or thinking about doing it now, that could change without notice. Elon could suddenly decide he needs to make it right with what he said, or decide it's feasable with some workaround because of some reason they didn't want to do it and he could tell his team to make it happen. If it's not in the cards anymore, then we should deserve to know why, since Elon did say it would happen.

 

[Jeffers0n]

He said January before and deleted his tweet after. I’m in the same boat of waiting for track mode too.

 

[Lucky13]

I was just thinking about this today. Can someone with some clout please tweet him and Remind him? I don't even have Twitter lol. So want

 

[lotusland]

I think the minus is a bastard stepchild at this point. There probably were not a whole lot sold. I have only seen one P3D+ on the road and I assume there are even fewer P3D-. They probably just decided it was easier to take the heat. If true though, it's a flat-out lie on the part of Elon, to core customers. I don't think I have seen that before.

And look, owners seem way more obsessed with refunds/pricing then they are with getting TM. I doubt there are many who even asked Tesla to provide TM for the minus cars. I think Tesla hoped the shiny $5k check would make people forget TM and it seems to have mostly worked.

 

[Glamisduner]

I think the minus is a bastard stepchild at this point. There probably were not a whole lot sold. I have only seen one P3D+ on the road and I assume there are even fewer P3D-. They probably just decided it was easier to take the heat. If true though, it's a flat-out lie on the part of Elon, to core customers. I don't think I have seen that before.

And look, owners seem way more obsessed with refunds/pricing then they are with getting TM. I doubt there are many who even asked Tesla to provide TM for the minus cars. I think Tesla hoped the shiny $5k check would make people forget TM and it seems to have mostly worked.

The price of the performance 3 is 9k cheaper than it was just 2 months ago. 500 cheaper for white interior, 5k off pup, 3100 off the base price and 10÷ off that total in taxes not to mention financing... While my car is still in and out if the shop for delivery issues...

Not that i every thought cars were a good investment but this asset is depreciating way too quickly. The price is dropping $2000 a month!

And to top it off. No Track Mode!

 

[MXWing]

The $5000 off 3P- was pretty much the peace offering. FUSC isn't worth $5K. Not even worth $500 if you value your time.

How many AWD buyers in 2018 would have paid up to 3P- if they could get 1 second faster for 5-6K in the end. I bet a lot.

 

[Glamisduner]

The $5000 off 3P- was pretty much the peace offering. FUSC isn't worth $5K. Not even worth $500 if you value your time.

How many AWD buyers in 2018 would have paid up to 3P- if they could get 1 second faster for 5-6K in the end. I bet a lot.

It could be worse for me but there fact is still that I'm on my 3rd payment and every month the price of the car had dropped at least $1000! If we didn't get the 5k peace offering id probably be looking to get rescued from this sinking ship of a car. Don't forget I pay tax and financing on that 5k even though I got a refund.

The cars are a great bargin now but it seems people will be better off waiting until next year to buy. I predict another $3500 off by first quarter 2020, and AP3 plus some fsd incentives.

 

[happyzod]

It could be worse for me but there fact is still that I'm on my 3rd payment and every month the price of the car had dropped at least $1000! If we didn't get the 5k peace offering id probably be looking to get rescued from this sinking ship of a car. Don't forget I pay tax and financing on that 5k even though I got a refund.

The cars are a great bargin now but it seems people will be better off waiting until next year to buy. I predict another $3500 off by first quarter 2020, and AP3 plus some fsd incentives.

I mean you need to take into account that when you drive it off, it depreciates $7500 b/c of the tax credit. People factor that in when buying used teslas.

 

[happyzod]

Tesla Support indicated to me today that Track Mode will not be offered for the P3D-. It's not on the roadmap and is simply not going to happen. I have a back-and-forth e-mail thread with Tesla going back to before I got my car, asking about TM. Prior to today I was working with an employee who claimed to also own a P3D- and he indicated they were working on it and that he too wanted it. Today was a different guy and he stated -- twice -- that it is not going to happen. Of course Elon tweeted that it would happen, but that does not seem to matter now.

My 3 is still my favorite car of all-time but this is a disappointment. There are certain aspects to TM that could have been easily added to the minus cars. The combination of a walled garden and holding back features is not ideal either. The lesson seems clear -- don't buy early. I'm interested in the truck but will wait until it has been shipping for at least a year before considering a purchase.

Yes it's sad that the P3D- will never have track mode and the improved cooling associated with that feature. However, the bright side is everyone who wanted one got a 5K refund to make up for the PUP price drop. Originally, track mode was not promised for the P3D-.

 

[KSilver2000]

Isn’t this always the case being an early adopter, especially with technology related products. I say wait until two years later when leases are returned. Our X, which was a 2-year lease return, was practically close to half off of original price. And you can pick up a Model S P90DL from Tesla in the $60’s now. Similarly, I bet in two years time, used Model 3’s can be had for at least 40% off original price.

 

[UngaBunga1989]

Tesla’s are the most technology-based cars in the world right now and when I purchased mine I fully expected that it would depreciate like the computer-auto love child that it is. Historically computers depreciate even faster than autos (whose depreciation rates are already terrible) so why anyone would not expect a nearly constant stream of price cuts / improvements in performance for the “latest, greatest model” just like exists in the rest of the tech space is beyond me.

I love driving my M3P, but fully expect it will depreciate horrifically — heck, it already has!

Enjoy the car and don’t think about depreciation. If you do, it will only diminish the value of your driving experience — which is what we all really were purchasing anyway, and that has not changed.

 

[happyzod]

Tesla’s are the most technology-based cars in the world right now and when I purchased mine I fully expected that it would depreciate like the computer-auto love child that it is. Historically computers depreciate even faster than autos (whose depreciation rates are already terrible) so why anyone would not expect a nearly constant stream of price cuts / improvements in performance for the “latest, greatest model” just like exists in the rest of the tech space is beyond me.

I love driving my M3P, but fully expect it will depreciate horrifically — heck, it already has!

Enjoy the car and don’t think about depreciation. If you do, it will only diminish the value of your driving experience — which is what we all really were purchasing anyway, and that has not changed.

That's a horrible argument to make since Musk regularly touts that Teslas keep their value the longest.

 

[UngaBunga1989]

That's a horrible argument to make since Musk regularly touts that Teslas keep their value the longest.

IMHO he is just plain wrong. That is like arguing that the original Apple Macintosh would hold its value longer than any other computer. Believe what Elon says, or what you can personally observe. How is the price of the Model 3 holding up so far over the past 6 months? I firmly believe that the Model 3 is going to depreciate like a rock. That said, I fully expect it and do not really care as it is the most enjoyable car to drive that I have yet experienced.

Early-on, Teslas held their value rather well. There was a mystique about them and they could not produce enough cars to satisfy demand. That has largely changed. Tesla is not lowering prices because there is more demand than supply...they are lowering prices because they cannot sell all of the cars they are building at the prices they are asking. That does not ever bode well for the depreciation curve.

BTW, I am a pretty big Tesla Fanboy. I love what the company is doing and love the cars, but I am also under no false illusion that these things are not going to follow a depreciation curve more in line with a consumer electronics product than a collectible (or even traditional) automobile.

 

[MountainPass]

I wouldn't count on an SC employee knowing that type of information. But we can certainly agree P3D- owners got the short end of the stick.

 

[Saghost]

That's a horrible argument to make since Musk regularly touts that Teslas keep their value the longest.

The thing is - it's all relative, and the end of the market Teslas fall on has the worst depreciation as a whole.

Yes, a four year old Tesla without the latest hardware is much less capable than a new Tesla. But it's not just competing against those - it's also competing against four year old Mercedes and new Toyotas.

With the software updates and phone app, it still competes pretty well with both of those, so relative to other luxury cars the depreciation is better.

 

[lotusland]

You guys are proving my point, conflating the $5k refund with Track Mode. The $5k refund is not a big deal to me, I kept FUSC. I chose what I thought was the best car when I purchased mine, not based on price but on features. I don't want 20" wheels.

I wouldn't count on an SC employee knowing that type of information. But we can certainly agree P3D- owners got the short end of the stick.

It's fortunate for you (MPP) there are not many P3D- out there. Without TM I probably won't buy any aftermarket handling mods or wheels.

 

[Glamisduner]

You guys are proving my point, conflating the $5k refund with Track Mode. The $5k refund is not a big deal to me, I kept FUSC. I chose what I thought was the best car when I purchased mine, not based on price but on features. I don't want 20" wheels.



It's fortunate for you (MPP) there are not many P3D- out there. Without TM I probably won't buy any aftermarket handling mods or wheels.

Yes I'm on the fence, I was wanting wheels but waiting for track mode. With the 9k drop in price I'm thinking to not invest another dollar into this money pit. No sense in getting bigger brakes it better wheels since it will never be a capable car.

 

[Knightshade]

Tesla Support indicated to me today...

HUCA.

"support" reps (for not just tesla) routinely give wrong or contradictory answers that should not be relied upon.

In relation to the P for example we've seen them say there'd be a HW upgrade to add + and that there wouldn't be.... and that the 5k refund was only for + buyers and that it's for + and - buyers. And that track mode will be + only and that it will come to the - eventually.