Used Roadster buying experience

[strider]

Maybe some of you have a suggestion as to how I can convince my wife to trade up to the S? You never know, maybe she will like it despite the heft.

As the others have said, just let her drive it - by herself so no pressure. Maybe it's maintenance time for her BMW and don't get a loaner - just have her commute in the S. She may fall in love with it. Otherwise there's always Gen 3 which will be the size of a 3-series.

 

[STak]

Thanks for all the suggestions.
Well, I picked up the beast today and parked it next to the 3 in the garage. I'd say it is easily a foot longer. But that's probably the worst of it.
When I drove it out of the dealership, it felt much tighter and refined than I remembered from the summer test drive. Maybe they improved a lot since the early demo cars. It feels quieter, the suspension seems to have less rattles, and overall just better. Maybe it has to do with the Performance black interior with red pinstripe and carbon dash. Maybe it's the pano roof. I'm really quite impressed. It's funny how my opinion has changed completely since yesterday. The interior is really nice. Almost as good as my buddy's 5 series M sport package that he picked up just last month. That's saying a lot for a car made by such a new car company.
Now the tables have turned in a funny sort of way. If my wife likes it, I get to keep the R but she'll be the primary driver of the S. If I don't let her drive it, then byebye Roadster and we still have an ICE in the garage. This is not going to be an easy decision.

 

[Doug_G]

Shirley you jest...:wink::biggrin:

Don't call me Shirley.

 

[vfx]

... This is not going to be an easy decision.

Sure it it is. Sell R, buy 2nd S.

 

[strider]

Now the tables have turned in a funny sort of way. If my wife likes it, I get to keep the R but she'll be the primary driver of the S. If I don't let her drive it, then byebye Roadster and we still have an ICE in the garage. This is not going to be an easy decision.

Well you have some fun discussions coming up with your wife! I would let her have the S if she likes it and you keep driving the R. Then if you feel yourself longing for the S then order another one and sell the R (or drive the R until Gen 3 or Roadster replacement comes out). It's expected to be more like a 911, more luxury, less go-kart. Don't think you can go wrong with any of these decisions!

 

[STak]

My wife's first experience does not bode well, at least so far. We were slightly late going out for dinner Saturday night to meet some friends and she started fiddling with the vanity mirror to put on lipstick. You can probably guess what happened next. "I can't believe you paid $$$ for this car and it doesn't even have lights on the mirror?!" It's really too bad that this was her first encounter with the S. It's such a great car in so many ways but this is what she experiences in the first 5 minutes with the car.

I'm glad I bought the R used. If I sell, I can get most of my money back. I will miss it however. I think there's still a chance though. My next attempt will be to let her drive it as you guys suggest. The bimmer has a malfunctioning window that I can send in to fix. It could take a week.

 

[Timothy]

I don't know what the sales staff is like at Menlo Park now, but they were really sneaky when I bought my roadster in the spring of 2011. My son and I showed up just to look. (He has Model S #261 now, BTW.) The salesman chucked us the keys and said to come back sometime. I have never had a car dealer do that before! They always go with you and let you take a sedate little ride with them in the car.

Anyhow, the two of us drove up to 280 and I was impressed at the acceleration up the on ramp. But I expected that. I really wanted to see what it was like on the twisty roads. I have driven only open sports cars since my first car decades ago (started with an MG-TD in college.)

So we went to Page Mill Road--a great place to test it. Except for the !@#$%^& traffic. Finally that dissipated and the only car left in front of me was a brand new red Corvette. The driver glanced back at me, hit the throttle, and took off! Could I keep up with him? Yup. I stayed right on his butt all the way to the summit at the Skyline Highway.

My son and I headed back--with huge smiles on our faces. When we got back to Menlo, I plunked down my deposit.

When we left, I said to my son, "Hey, I wonder if that Corvette was under commission by Tesla? Think how many cars he helps them sell!"

Hmmm.... Sneaky bastards!

 

[Andrew Wolfe]

That's always been standard practice at Menlo Park - although it was usually "come back in about an hour."

I was told that they want you to take the time to drive it like it was your own.

 

[Doug_G]

Indeed - standard practice. I asked the salesman at Menlo to come with me, because I didn't know the area at all. That worked out really well because he showed me all the places near the store where we could "play". Had a blast. Bought a Roadster. Bought a Model S. That was one heck of an expensive test drive.