Used Long Term Suggestions

[kirkhilles]

Hi guys, long time Tesla fan and hopefully will be a Tesla Owner soon. My plan in to buy a used Model S somewhere in the neighborhood of $30k and I'm looking for suggestions about what to look for (feature wise, warranty wise) to maximize the possibility of having a fun, but reliable long term vehicle.

I know this is kinda a loaded question about Tesla is a relatively new company and the the vehicle is continuously being updated and revised and seems to be good about replacing parts preventatively.

So, lets say I want a 2013 S85 with 100k miles. What should I do or not do?

For instance, the Smart Air Suspension scares me. Is that likely going to be a $4,000 repair within the next 5 years? Does Dual Motor vehicles increase the likelihood of out of pocket MCU repair?

I'm no wrenchhead, but have done various straightforward repairs/maintenance on ICE vehicles (brakes, fluid changes, etc) and am willing to attempt to do things like door handle repairs and such.

What about buying privately (and knowing the history) vs rolling-the-dice and getting it straight from Tesla, BUT having a 2 to 4 year warranty to back it up?

Sorry, I know this has likely been discussed infinite times...

 

[Lukez]

Sounds like you need to do a lot of reading in these forums.
Use the search function for your questions.

 

[lskarp]

I got a 2015 Model S with 31K on it for $44,000. I went with the 2015 because I like the old grille better. Also, and more importantly, the 2015s have a 4 year 50,000 mile warranty on the vehicle and I still have 4 years left on the battery warranty. The 2014's have a max mileage cap on the warranty and the battery warranty was less as well. I am very happy with my purchase (been 1 month now), I took the car in for a few warranty items and to get a once over (THEY DID NOT DO THE AIRBAG RECALL prior to by delivery!) and they were great. Good luck with your journey.

 

[kirkhilles]

I got a 2015 Model S with 31K on it for $44,000. I went with the 2015 because I like the old grille better. Also, and more importantly, the 2015s have a 4 year 50,000 mile warranty on the vehicle and I still have 4 years left on the battery warranty. The 2014's have a max mileage cap on the warranty and the battery warranty was less as well. I am very happy with my purchase (been 1 month now), I took the car in for a few warranty items and to get a once over (THEY DID NOT DO THE AIRBAG RECALL prior to by delivery!) and they were great. Good luck with your journey.

Cool, thanks!

 

[darxsys]

My experience so far has been such that I highly doubt many of these cars can be reliable long term (10 years) without big repairs. Sure, many of these cars will be good for a long time, but many won’t. It’s rolling the dice really.

MCU will certainly fail at some point, sunroof will fail, leak, creek, rattle. Even if you don’t get air suspension, you might end up in a situation like mine where there is constant clicking noise coming from front suspension/wheels (I got coil suspension to avoid issues. Oh how naive was I...) and service center has no idea what to do about it. So if you want a long, long term reliable vehicle, I am not convinced yet that a Model S is a good choice, especially 2013 or 2014 ones. Sure, a lot of people have had good luck with their Teslas having no issues. But a lot of people haven’t had that luck, too.

Go Tesla route to get the warranty. Will likely save you money long term.

 

[random155]

I got a 2015 Model S with 31K on it for $44,000. I went with the 2015 because I like the old grille better. Also, and more importantly, the 2015s have a 4 year 50,000 mile warranty on the vehicle and I still have 4 years left on the battery warranty. The 2014's have a max mileage cap on the warranty and the battery warranty was less as well. I am very happy with my purchase (been 1 month now), I took the car in for a few warranty items and to get a once over (THEY DID NOT DO THE AIRBAG RECALL prior to by delivery!) and they were great. Good luck with your journey.

2014's have the same 8 year unlimited mileage drive unit / battery warranty. Also, I opted for the 2014 that came with 2 year or 100k mile warranty because I actually drive my Tesla. The 4 year or 50k warranty with a 33k mile car, wouldnt last me 4 years (not even close). Good luck with your search, they are great cars. However, their long term reliability is not yet proven.

 

[kirkhilles]

My experience so far has been such that I highly doubt many of these cars can be reliable long term (10 years) without big repairs. Sure, many of these cars will be good for a long time, but many won’t. It’s rolling the dice really.

MCU will certainly fail at some point, sunroof will fail, leak, creek, rattle. Even if you don’t get air suspension, you might end up in a situation like mine where there is constant clicking noise coming from front suspension/wheels (I got coil suspension to avoid issues. Oh how naive was I...) and service center has no idea what to do about it. So if you want a long, long term reliable vehicle, I am not convinced yet that a Model S is a good choice, especially 2013 or 2014 ones. Sure, a lot of people have had good luck with their Teslas having no issues. But a lot of people haven’t had that luck, too.

Go Tesla route to get the warranty. Will likely save you money long term.

Hmm. Great to know, thanks.

 

[SoCal Buzz]

My experience so far has been such that I highly doubt many of these cars can be reliable long term (10 years) without big repairs. Sure, many of these cars will be good for a long time, but many won’t. It’s rolling the dice really.

MCU will certainly fail at some point, sunroof will fail, leak, creek, rattle. Even if you don’t get air suspension, you might end up in a situation like mine where there is constant clicking noise coming from front suspension/wheels (I got coil suspension to avoid issues. Oh how naive was I...) and service center has no idea what to do about it. So if you want a long, long term reliable vehicle, I am not convinced yet that a Model S is a good choice, especially 2013 or 2014 ones. Sure, a lot of people have had good luck with their Teslas having no issues. But a lot of people haven’t had that luck, too.

Go Tesla route to get the warranty. Will likely save you money long term.

So would you rather own an Audi or BMW with 100,000 miles + or a Tesla? That's an easy answer for me given practical experience with both. No car is going to require no / very low maintenance for long-term ownership. From the experiences of those who have owned since 2012-2013, and those who have 100,000+ miles on their Teslas, I believe the long-term ownership costs for Tesla are substantially lower.

You do have to factor in the improvements Tesla implemented to stabilize a new platform in the first year + with motor bearing updates, cooling changes, battery seals, door handle design, etc. Selecting a late 2013 or 2014 car is a safer bet for long-term ownership, but even with early cars (like my 2013), Tesla proactively replaced most of the core parts to make it better. In contrast (in a non-hypothetical example) you would never get Audi to help at 80,000 miles when they realize the transmission coolant connection design was poor, and the engine must be dropped to replace. $2400 repair with $70 in parts. YMMV

PS - I would avoid air suspension on any manufacturer if goal is to retain long-term. They fail and are very expensive to replace.