What would make you buy a used Model S right now?

[RobertF]

1.49% financing

 

[JSkrehot]

Tesla would have to refresh all of the black nose cones to make them look like newer models. Then I'd do more than open the CPO site and close it 5 seconds later.

 

[pangolina]

The rate of the battery degradation in my 2011 Leaf. My comfortable range right now is about 30 miles + some buffer in city driving mode (i.e. little to no highways).

I like Model S a lot. Test drove it numerous times, and these 45K used cars are very tempting.

 

[Nuclear Fusion]

Also the fact that based on what I've seen, an out-of-warranty Tesla is a ticking time bomb of headaches, empty wallets, and visits to the shop. I'll be leasing any car I obtain from Tesla.

Can you elaborate?

 

[daniel]

... Also the fact that based on what I've seen, an out-of-warranty Tesla is a ticking time bomb of headaches, empty wallets, and visits to the shop. I'll be leasing any car I obtain from Tesla.

From this page

Tesla Model S Reviews, Ratings & Pricing - Consumer Reports

which might require a subscription, Consumer reports gives "reliability verdict" of 2/5 for the 2013 Model S, 1/5 for the 2014, 3/5 for the 2015, and 5/5 for the 2016. All the years from 2012 to 2016 give "owner satisfaction" of 5/5.

It would seem they are getting better, which would argue against buying an out-of-warranty Model S now, since the out-of-warranty ones today fall into the years with poor reliability ratings, but the improvement since 2014 argues against extrapolating this advice into the future.

From this page

New & Used Car Ratings, Reviews & Buying Guides - Consumer Reports

which also might require a subscription, only two cars in the entire list get a higher overall rating. The Model S gets an 86. The Lexus LS gets 87 and the Infiniti Q70 gets an 88. It is true that in the pop-up box for highs and lows, reliability is listed as a low. But since that's taken into account in the overall rating, it's still a minor point. To get some perspective, comparing my old Honda Civic and my Toyota Prius to my Tesla Roadster, the Roadster is the least reliable. But that's because in 6 years it's had three repairs. The other two cars, in 17 years, and 13 years respectively, had only one very minor repair each, and in the case of the Civic, the "repair" was merely that one of the rear passenger head rests would not slide down and had to be lubricated.

The Model S is a fine car. (But it's WAYYYYY too big for me.)

 

[LBusDoor90]

If 1) it got less wide due to some kind of engineering magic, 2) I could get a lifetime supply of Crisco with it to grease its sides each morning and night to get it in and out of my garage and 3) I could interrogate under bright lights the previous owner about his/her charging and driving habits.

 

[The Pope]

I cancelled my Model 3 reservation and bought a CPO Model S. Picking it up in a few days. My reason - having a third child. Rear-facing seats made that an easy decision.

 

[daniel]

If 1) it got less wide due to some kind of engineering magic, 2) I could get a lifetime supply of Crisco with it to grease its sides each morning and night to get it in and out of my garage and 3) I could interrogate under bright lights the previous owner about his/her charging and driving habits.

If they make the car narrower you won't need the Crisco.