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Western Road Trip in a Model 3
- Thread starter JimS
- Start date
pnwadventures
@bpr1de on Instagram
@tbisaacs , @Carolina Karl , @Fred42 , @tm1v2 , @Willy’sEV , @Bouba , @noeltykay , @pnwadventures , & @pipp
Thank all of you for your very kind words. And a special thank you to @Willy’sEV for giving kudos to Linda. She has been an incredible travel agent our entire relationship. I also want to credit her now with several of the photographs in the thread. I especially like her sunrise picture at Monument Valley. Every one of my sunrise pictures had refractive glare from the direct sun, but hers was perfect.
Photographs can serve numerous purposes. One of them is helping us mentally re-live positive experiences, which these have done for us. Another is to motivate others to want to see and experience things for themselves. Based on some of your responses, we may have succeeded a bit in that respect.
Thank all of you for your very kind words. And a special thank you to @Willy’sEV for giving kudos to Linda. She has been an incredible travel agent our entire relationship. I also want to credit her now with several of the photographs in the thread. I especially like her sunrise picture at Monument Valley. Every one of my sunrise pictures had refractive glare from the direct sun, but hers was perfect.
Photographs can serve numerous purposes. One of them is helping us mentally re-live positive experiences, which these have done for us. Another is to motivate others to want to see and experience things for themselves. Based on some of your responses, we may have succeeded a bit in that respect.
Ryan Autry
2020 Model S Performance
2024 UPDATE
I’m sure all of you are wondering why I haven’t posted pictures and prose about our road trips in the Model S I ordered. (Only joking, I know this thread went dormant a long time ago.) Well, I have two excuses:
1. We haven’t been on any scenic road trips. We did have nice trips to Vancouver, Victoria, California and Vegas, but those were by air. Now we saw plenty of Teslas, (especially in Vancouver!), but they weren’t Tesla road trips.
2. When my Model S was finally built and ready for delivery, I decided to cancel the order. I wasn’t ready to part with my Model 3, and I had not resolved the logistics of having three cars with only a two car garage and no street parking. The final straw was the discovery that my insurance would have more than doubled. (This didn’t make sense to me because I can only drive one car at a time.) I ordered the car at a time when TSLA stock was approaching an all-time high, and I felt richer than I needed to be for the first time in my life! The fact that the stock had declined precipitously when the car was ready for delivery had absolutely nothing to do with my decision to cancel. (I keep telling myself that.)
The good news is we are now finally a two Tesla household, and the following is the story of how that came to be:
Earlier this month I took my 2018 Model 3 for much needed service: New wiper blades to replace the originals, new cabin air filters, (the second time I’ve done this), and the recall for that cable thingy going to the rear lights in the trunk. In the showroom there was a beautiful Blue Model S Plaid with creme interior. The creme interior was a lot prettier than the cream interior on a Model X loaner I had 4 years ago.
Over the next few days I did some research, configured the Model S that I wanted, (LR Blue with creme interior and yoke steering), and discovered that if I took delivery before March 31st, I would receive 5,000 free SuperCharging miles, another 5,000 if I did a trade-in, and I could transfer my FSD to the Model S. I searched available inventory for such a car, but it was not available. I would have been willing to get a regular steering wheel, but I wanted to hold firm on the blue/creme color choices and I don’t really want or need the Plaid. The 402 mile range of the Long Range is a key draw for the LR Model S.
So I told Linda that I may finally be willing to trade-in my Model 3 if they can find the car for me or assure me I would still receive the “perks” even if it could not be delivered by March 31. We went to the showroom on St. Patrick’s Day and spoke with a sales representative. He searched their database but could not find the Model S I wanted. The Tesla app showed estimated delivery of the car I configured to be March 2024, but he could not assure me that the perks would be honored if delivery could not be made by March 31st. I did not want to lose another $250 order fee. (Although the difference in price of the Model S I ordered and the basically identical Model S I configured is many, many, many multiples of $250!)
So I made the decision to wait for the next potential deal. I know I will continue to enjoy my Model 3. After all, it is a “Unicorn.” They no longer make the long range rear wheel drive. They no longer come with a glass roof that turn raindrops into gold. (See Part 10 of 17 above) I bought the FSD upgrade for only $2K, (again thanks to Linda who was slightly disappointed when I told her my screen would not display traffic cones without the HW 3 upgrade!) And to quote @Papafox , it “accelerates like a Ferrari, corners like a Porsche, and will soon drive itself.” (I know his is a Performance M3, but I can assure you mine at least comes close!)
When we got home, Linda said she was a bit disappointed that I didn’t order the Model S. I told her not to worry, the sales representative would be calling me soon offering me the Plaid in the showroom for the same price as the LR I had configured. She said “that ain’t going to happen,” and I said “I know.”
The next day she read a headline on her iPad, the Model Y was going to have a $1,000 price increase on April 1st. This was a “Eurica” moment. She’s been a fan of the Model Y ever since seeing so many on our 2021 road trip. (See Part 6 of 17) I mentioned the $7,500 tax credit and the 5,000 to 10,000 SuperCharging miles. (I might have forgotten to mention the 10,000 referral credits I would receive.) I talked her into getting one with a tow hitch since electric bikes might be in our future, (This took her a bit by surprise, but I think she is okay with it. She’s looking into conversion kits for our regular bikes, which have not gotten as much use as planned over the years.) We checked the app for available inventory and her first pick happened to be available in Savannah. I contacted the sales representative to make sure it was actually on site so we could see it, and to make sure we could pick another available color if she wanted to switch. He gave the right answers and assisted me in making her order.
Everything went fairly smoothly. The trade-in offer was too low so I took her car into CarMax and got a better offer. I calculated the tax savings we would have gotten with the trade-in, along with an estimated value of 5,000 SuperCharging miles, but the CarMax offer still saved her over $1K. (We have no doubt CarMax will make a nice profit, it was a great car for an ICE car, with a killer Bose stereo system.)
So here is the result of this saga:
2024 Long Range AWD Model Y, Midnight Silver Metallic with White interior. Somewhat of a Unicorn itself since they have discontinued the color and replaced it with Stealth Grey for the remainder of 2024.
Linda deserves this car! Her last three cars have been “hand-me-downs” but she never complained.
So am I sad that I’m still not getting my Model S? Absolutely heartbroken can’t you tell? (/s) In a few years I have to start taking Required Minimum Distributions from my retirement plan. Any ideas what I should do with that money? (No, I’m not asking you @Papafox , you would have me dollar cost average into more TSLA stock.) Oh, no! I just researched it. I have to start taking Required Minimum Distributions next year!
I’m sure all of you are wondering why I haven’t posted pictures and prose about our road trips in the Model S I ordered. (Only joking, I know this thread went dormant a long time ago.) Well, I have two excuses:
1. We haven’t been on any scenic road trips. We did have nice trips to Vancouver, Victoria, California and Vegas, but those were by air. Now we saw plenty of Teslas, (especially in Vancouver!), but they weren’t Tesla road trips.
2. When my Model S was finally built and ready for delivery, I decided to cancel the order. I wasn’t ready to part with my Model 3, and I had not resolved the logistics of having three cars with only a two car garage and no street parking. The final straw was the discovery that my insurance would have more than doubled. (This didn’t make sense to me because I can only drive one car at a time.) I ordered the car at a time when TSLA stock was approaching an all-time high, and I felt richer than I needed to be for the first time in my life! The fact that the stock had declined precipitously when the car was ready for delivery had absolutely nothing to do with my decision to cancel. (I keep telling myself that.)
The good news is we are now finally a two Tesla household, and the following is the story of how that came to be:
Earlier this month I took my 2018 Model 3 for much needed service: New wiper blades to replace the originals, new cabin air filters, (the second time I’ve done this), and the recall for that cable thingy going to the rear lights in the trunk. In the showroom there was a beautiful Blue Model S Plaid with creme interior. The creme interior was a lot prettier than the cream interior on a Model X loaner I had 4 years ago.
Over the next few days I did some research, configured the Model S that I wanted, (LR Blue with creme interior and yoke steering), and discovered that if I took delivery before March 31st, I would receive 5,000 free SuperCharging miles, another 5,000 if I did a trade-in, and I could transfer my FSD to the Model S. I searched available inventory for such a car, but it was not available. I would have been willing to get a regular steering wheel, but I wanted to hold firm on the blue/creme color choices and I don’t really want or need the Plaid. The 402 mile range of the Long Range is a key draw for the LR Model S.
So I told Linda that I may finally be willing to trade-in my Model 3 if they can find the car for me or assure me I would still receive the “perks” even if it could not be delivered by March 31. We went to the showroom on St. Patrick’s Day and spoke with a sales representative. He searched their database but could not find the Model S I wanted. The Tesla app showed estimated delivery of the car I configured to be March 2024, but he could not assure me that the perks would be honored if delivery could not be made by March 31st. I did not want to lose another $250 order fee. (Although the difference in price of the Model S I ordered and the basically identical Model S I configured is many, many, many multiples of $250!)
So I made the decision to wait for the next potential deal. I know I will continue to enjoy my Model 3. After all, it is a “Unicorn.” They no longer make the long range rear wheel drive. They no longer come with a glass roof that turn raindrops into gold. (See Part 10 of 17 above) I bought the FSD upgrade for only $2K, (again thanks to Linda who was slightly disappointed when I told her my screen would not display traffic cones without the HW 3 upgrade!) And to quote @Papafox , it “accelerates like a Ferrari, corners like a Porsche, and will soon drive itself.” (I know his is a Performance M3, but I can assure you mine at least comes close!)
When we got home, Linda said she was a bit disappointed that I didn’t order the Model S. I told her not to worry, the sales representative would be calling me soon offering me the Plaid in the showroom for the same price as the LR I had configured. She said “that ain’t going to happen,” and I said “I know.”
The next day she read a headline on her iPad, the Model Y was going to have a $1,000 price increase on April 1st. This was a “Eurica” moment. She’s been a fan of the Model Y ever since seeing so many on our 2021 road trip. (See Part 6 of 17) I mentioned the $7,500 tax credit and the 5,000 to 10,000 SuperCharging miles. (I might have forgotten to mention the 10,000 referral credits I would receive.) I talked her into getting one with a tow hitch since electric bikes might be in our future, (This took her a bit by surprise, but I think she is okay with it. She’s looking into conversion kits for our regular bikes, which have not gotten as much use as planned over the years.) We checked the app for available inventory and her first pick happened to be available in Savannah. I contacted the sales representative to make sure it was actually on site so we could see it, and to make sure we could pick another available color if she wanted to switch. He gave the right answers and assisted me in making her order.
Everything went fairly smoothly. The trade-in offer was too low so I took her car into CarMax and got a better offer. I calculated the tax savings we would have gotten with the trade-in, along with an estimated value of 5,000 SuperCharging miles, but the CarMax offer still saved her over $1K. (We have no doubt CarMax will make a nice profit, it was a great car for an ICE car, with a killer Bose stereo system.)
So here is the result of this saga:
2024 Long Range AWD Model Y, Midnight Silver Metallic with White interior. Somewhat of a Unicorn itself since they have discontinued the color and replaced it with Stealth Grey for the remainder of 2024.
Linda deserves this car! Her last three cars have been “hand-me-downs” but she never complained.
So am I sad that I’m still not getting my Model S? Absolutely heartbroken can’t you tell? (/s) In a few years I have to start taking Required Minimum Distributions from my retirement plan. Any ideas what I should do with that money? (No, I’m not asking you @Papafox , you would have me dollar cost average into more TSLA stock.) Oh, no! I just researched it. I have to start taking Required Minimum Distributions next year!
Just get the new Model 3 LR. Seems like it has closed the gap quite a bit in terms of refinement, noise, ride quality, and will probably be much much cheaper.
Don’t worry, all those deals will be back most likely by May, 2024.
I’m not parting with my 2018 RWD LR M3 with full FSD till I get all those transfers and perks and then something.
I’m not parting with my 2018 RWD LR M3 with full FSD till I get all those transfers and perks and then something.
All good except maybe for the part about the bikes. I don't know how old you are. Long ago I was an avid cyclist. Last summer my nephew, trying to be helpful, got me to try an e-bike. Afterwards I decided to let this go out of fear of injury. Since them a relative, about my age, crashed her e-bike and hurt herself. Scenic walks is safer.
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