Why so many Tesla’s in the span of a few years?

[kelpcar]

People buy 5 year old iPhones too. That resale market also isn’t zero.

But the majority of people are not holding on to Teslas for the average length of ICE ownership. And rightfully so. It’s a technology platform with wheels. This is by design and is concerning.

Your concern is based entirely on conjecture.

With the exception of the Roadster, we're only 10 model years in, far fewer for the 3 and Y. The people who bought at the beginning paid top dollar and for the most part could afford to do so readily. They also have the money to upgrade again as the cars got even faster, as well as longer ranged.

But if these cars were all falling apart like a 5 year old iphone, we'd be hearing the tales of woe by now.

 

[kelpcar]

I know personally on the Rivian forum, most of the members are trying to be eco conscious. This turn around of vehicles being bought and sold so quickly worries me. Just like phones as one member mentioned, we can easily just get rid of one and buy another year after year. But with full sized vehicles, this could pose an issue of waste for the environment? I know that battery technology takes a heavy toll on the environment in the manufacturing but over the lifespan of the vehicle is overall a reduction compared to the ICE. I just hope we aren’t buying and selling every time something slightly newer comes out and never get to the environmental benefit that EVs are supposed to carry.

I'll going to say some moderately harsh words, as someone who gets a Y delivered tomorrow, yet still has an R1S order deposit in.

If one is truly eco conscious, they shouldn't be cosidering a Rivian. The extended battery is 135 KWh and delivers the same range as a Tesla Y does with a 75KWh battery. Their EPA ratings are 70/69 mpe, versus 111 and 122 for the AWD Ys. 48 and 49 KWh/100mile vs 28-30. Now this is certainly better than the Hummer's 47 mpe, but it's still pretty terrible in comparison.

It's obvious a bigger SUV with a lot more cargo capability, and most of us would say it's more attractive with a form more common to the classic SUV look. But that means more drag. Few of us need quad motors or a 0-60 of 3.1s, esp in a 7500lb vehicle.

We may covet it all the same, and if it ever does get delivered for the pre March price with a federal tax credit, it will be a steal, either to keep, or to immediately resell for a big profit. I personally will keep the order in, and hopefully get a test drive one of these days and see if I would want to play the same sell quick and upgrade game. But prior to this Y, I've been on two Outbacks since 1997. My current one will go to Oregon to be a 10 month/year car for my mom so her older trucks will last longer in the serious part of winter.

 

[Takeaway]

I've always gone through cars. Even those that I have loved most I eventually grow bored of and then swap them out. My record for owning a car is 39 months (forced due to a lease). It's my bad habit.

 

[Horty4]

I'll going to say some moderately harsh words, as someone who gets a Y delivered tomorrow, yet still has an R1S order deposit in.

If one is truly eco conscious, they shouldn't be cosidering a Rivian. The extended battery is 135 KWh and delivers the same range as a Tesla Y does with a 75KWh battery. Their EPA ratings are 70/69 mpe, versus 111 and 122 for the AWD Ys. 48 and 49 KWh/100mile vs 28-30. Now this is certainly better than the Hummer's 47 mpe, but it's still pretty terrible in comparison.

It's obvious a bigger SUV with a lot more cargo capability, and most of us would say it's more attractive with a form more common to the classic SUV look. But that means more drag. Few of us need quad motors or a 0-60 of 3.1s, esp in a 7500lb vehicle.

We may covet it all the same, and if it ever does get delivered for the pre March price with a federal tax credit, it will be a steal, either to keep, or to immediately resell for a big profit. I personally will keep the order in, and hopefully get a test drive one of these days and see if I would want to play the same sell quick and upgrade game. But prior to this Y, I've been on two Outbacks since 1997. My current one will go to Oregon to be a 10 month/year car for my mom so her older trucks will last longer in the serious part of winter.

Yea like I mentioned in an above post, I’m not balls to the wall eco conscious but would like to start moving in that direction. I have an R1S in as well and will 100% go through with the order with the original pricing ( I cancelled when they raised the prices ). That is the main reason I am looking to pick up a MYP in the meantime seeing as I probably won’t get the R1S by later 2023 or worse.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

Your concern is based entirely on conjecture.

With the exception of the Roadster, we're only 10 model years in, far fewer for the 3 and Y. The people who bought at the beginning paid top dollar and for the most part could afford to do so readily. They also have the money to upgrade again as the cars got even faster, as well as longer ranged.

But if these cars were all falling apart like a 5 year old iphone, we'd be hearing the tales of woe by now.

You opened that door:

Here we go:
1. two air shocks, $1400 each
2. two new screens and MCU's $3500 each (claims denied by Tesla)
3. new wheels, 21's crack, warped and bend constantly, replaced numerous 21 inch tires @ $500 each - reminder this car has no spare
4. rear negative camber fix $1400 for new adjustable camber links, so the rear tires would last more then 8,000 miles on 21's
5. 3 headlight replacements (full unit) under warranty due to eye brow DRL death
6. 8 door handle replacements some paid for my Tesla, some by me. range $1100 to low of $300 each
7. rear taillight replacement (leaking)
8. front alt steering link failure $1400 each
9. paint peeling off red high performance brake calipers $800
10. new wheels $350 each X 3
11. new windshield (3) $1100 each
12. new charging cable for HPWC ($80)
13. new HPWC $250 (found a used one)
14. Car in shop for months waiting on parts after a minor fender bender ($7500), still there.

Other costs:
$3000 in property taxes each (Fairfax County Tax Thiefs) per year
$300 3 year EV Tax each
$500 in Uber costs to deal with issues, ever move a car seat to an Uber multiple times in one week?
my labor 8 trips to SC to have the cache flushed in my MCU, then get charged full price, for the recall.

Current 2016 has the following issues, major leather issues on seats that have never had asses on them (rear seat)
2014 is in the body shop and been there since mid December waiting on parts.
NAV shows i'm in another state, and slams on the brakes because it thinks I'm speeding in a 25 MPH zone when I try to use AP1
intermittent Air Suspension Sensor failure (Tesla, we cant find any issues),
Slow as Joe charging. again my time, 1 hour plus to charge the P85 and 50 minutes to charge the 90D on Supercharger
My time, treated like it is nothing...over and over.

Following lies:
Bespoke service for the Model S
Model S loaners
FSD

love the car... just not the "service"

 

[glide]

There is no analog to a phone here where Apple stops updating IOS, apps stop working as a result, with the wildcard of cel provider standards changing, eventually resulting in an inoperable phone (e.g. retirement of 3g).

Tesla Roadsters from 2008 still charge and drive, right?

I also don't know where you're getting the data to support the "majority of people are not holding on to Teslas" - based on what evidence?

I think we'll have to agree to disagree (and I won't downvote your post - your opinion, just don't share it) .

There most certainly is. If you can’t see it, I don’t know what to tell you.

And regarding your comment on the Roadster, clearly you haven’t spoken with a roadster owner. Let me know when you see a Roadster pull into a supercharger.

 

[ChadS]

Amazing! So which one is your favorite?

Right now, I'd say the 2018 Model 3 Performance has been my favorite so far (at least as a daily driver). Completely trouble-free, so much fun to drive...and so easy to live with on a daily basis. It didn't grab me immediately, but it really wormed itself in to my heart over time.

Of course, it all depends on your situation. For example, my wife has an X - which we take on vacations, and it's much better-suited for that. If we only had one car, or if hers was something smaller, I might say that my Model S was my favorite because we'd be running in to space issues in my car.

My Roadster was once my favorite - and I took a lot of road trips in it - but then Superchargers became available, and my Mom needed to be driven to appointments. The Roadster lost "favorite" status once there were other Teslas that would meet my needs better. (It was still hard to give up, though!)

I haven't had the Y long enough to say much yet. It's certainly not as much fun to toss in to a corner as the 3 was. But it does have some really nice utilitarian touches that the 3 didn't, including the ability to haul my bike using the hitch receiver. We shall see.

 

[kelpcar]

Yea like I mentioned in an above post, I’m not balls to the wall eco conscious but would like to start moving in that direction. I have an R1S in as well and will 100% go through with the order with the original pricing ( I cancelled when they raised the prices ). That is the main reason I am looking to pick up a MYP in the meantime seeing as I probably won’t get the R1S by later 2023 or worse.

well if you do, there will absolutely be another to take that Y and continue driving it through its natural life. There's no waste factor,

 

[Corndart]

There most certainly is. If you can’t see it, I don’t know what to tell you.

And regarding your comment on the Roadster, clearly you haven’t spoken with a roadster owner. Let me know when you see a Roadster pull into a supercharger.

A former GM of mine sagely pushed back one day (after I was making speculative statements / conjecturing about some aspects of the product) - show me the data.

When you have the data demonstrating that Teslas that aren't averaging 12.1 years of service on the road (current US average), then there will be some substance to your claim. As of now, you can't possibly have the data because there are no Teslas on the road that have been produced in sufficient quantities that even qualify to be compared with that average.

Until then, it's exactly as I said above - speculative statements and conjecture not supported by anything except your words.

Your comment about Roadsters at a Supercharger are pretty laughable given they cannot be charged at one.

Tesla Roadster (first generation) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[jjrandorin]

Also idk how to “like” the replies so thanks for everyone replying. Most of it makes sense, still have a small part of me that wonders. But hey, only god has all the answers.

There is a minimum amount of posts one has to have before those controls show up. I am a volunteer mod so I dont know the number the site owners have it set at, but it will appear for you if you continue to post.

 

[glide]

.

When you have the data demonstrating that Teslas that aren't averaging 12.1 years of service on the road (current US average), then there will be some substance to your claim.

Your comment about Roadsters at a Supercharger are pretty laughable given they cannot be charged at one.

Tesla Roadster (first generation) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Well you’re in for a treat. Because that day is today. The Tesla fleet does not average 12.1 years on the road. You’re proving my point. They have not been around that long so you cannot conclusively say.

And you’re also proving my point with the Roadster. We know it cannot supercharge. So it’s usefulness, along with its support from the manufacturer, is already in very steep decline. They will not be around in another few years.

 

[Corndart]

Well you’re in for a treat. Because that day is today. The Tesla fleet does not average 12.1 years on the road. You’re proving my point. They have not been around that long so you cannot conclusively say.

And you’re also proving my point with the Roadster. We know it cannot supercharge. So it’s usefulness, along with its support from the manufacturer, is already in very steep decline. They will not be around in another few years.

 

[Suns_PSD]

You opened that door:

Here we go:
1. two air shocks, $1400 each
2. two new screens and MCU's $3500 each (claims denied by Tesla)
3. new wheels, 21's crack, warped and bend constantly, replaced numerous 21 inch tires @ $500 each - reminder this car has no spare
4. rear negative camber fix $1400 for new adjustable camber links, so the rear tires would last more then 8,000 miles on 21's
5. 3 headlight replacements (full unit) under warranty due to eye brow DRL death
6. 8 door handle replacements some paid for my Tesla, some by me. range $1100 to low of $300 each
7. rear taillight replacement (leaking)
8. front alt steering link failure $1400 each
9. paint peeling off red high performance brake calipers $800
10. new wheels $350 each X 3
11. new windshield (3) $1100 each
12. new charging cable for HPWC ($80)
13. new HPWC $250 (found a used one)
14. Car in shop for months waiting on parts after a minor fender bender ($7500), still there.

Other costs:
$3000 in property taxes each (Fairfax County Tax Thiefs) per year
$300 3 year EV Tax each
$500 in Uber costs to deal with issues, ever move a car seat to an Uber multiple times in one week?
my labor 8 trips to SC to have the cache flushed in my MCU, then get charged full price, for the recall.

Current 2016 has the following issues, major leather issues on seats that have never had asses on them (rear seat)
2014 is in the body shop and been there since mid December waiting on parts.
NAV shows i'm in another state, and slams on the brakes because it thinks I'm speeding in a 25 MPH zone when I try to use AP1
intermittent Air Suspension Sensor failure (Tesla, we cant find any issues),
Slow as Joe charging. again my time, 1 hour plus to charge the P85 and 50 minutes to charge the 90D on Supercharger
My time, treated like it is nothing...over and over.

Following lies:
Bespoke service for the Model S
Model S loaners
FSD

love the car... just not the "service"

That is just atrocious. Any expenses over about $1-2K/ 100K miles is excessive and beyond what I've ever spent on my ICE vehicles to maintain perfect running condition.

Re: the thread topic. I have one friend that swaps Tesla's every 6 months or so. I would just say that he makes a good income and doesn't really have hobbies or kids, so it's just what he does for entertainment. Making the deal and everything.

Not for me, but it takes all kinds in this world.

 

[Mateo83]

I feel the same way about collecting old VW's, I don't really need more than 1. But I'm always shopping for a certain year/ make for a good deal.

 

[Jersey_guy_202]

Other costs:
$3000 in property taxes each (Fairfax County Tax Thiefs) per year

This is not really a Tesla thing I guess, but holy cow, note to self not to move there for retirement.

 

[Unclepaul]

Strange to see someone try to put a negative spin on something that is quite positive.

I am soon getting my 3rd Model X. Upgraded my 75X to 100X to get faster charging, longer range and take advantage of the Section 179 tax credit that allowed me to write off the entire purchase price in the first year. Plus got a $7,500 additonal tax credit on each.
This was a financial no brainer.

2nd X(Raven) was consumed in a fire (not it's fault) and have been waiting almost a new year to get the latest refresh.

Due to the recent increases of value for all Teslas, many are getting more for them than they paid for them. This encourages them to look at them as essentially free cars, and incentivizes them to trade up to an improved model. Lots of happy owners feel lucky to see their cars increase in price, instead of depreciate like usually expected.

Tesla has a program of constant improvement. Many of these improvements give incentive to trade up. Common practice in the automotive industry as well.

The fact that so many Tesla owners trade up to another Tesla gives credence to their satisfaction with their ownership experience, as they stay with Tesla.

In conclusion, the click bate title of OP might not be representative of what is going on in the Tesla Community.

 

[M3BlueGeorgia]

There most certainly is. If you can’t see it, I don’t know what to tell you.

And regarding your comment on the Roadster, clearly you haven’t spoken with a roadster owner. Let me know when you see a Roadster pull into a supercharger.

Some of the early Superchargers had J1772 plugs so Roadsters could charge there.

 

[Darren Donovan]

There are plenty of people who would like to buy their first EV, their first Tesla but the price is still too high. A previously owned Tesla vehicle is the perfect solution.

But then there are answers above yours that said prices for used Teslas are more than new.

 

[Corndart]

But then there are answers above yours that said prices for used Teslas are more than new.

Stop being obtuse. Resale market for cars is a fairly new and temporary phenomenon, which will balance itself back out. Used Teslas were cheaper than new ones far longer than this temporary spike.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

This is not really a Tesla thing I guess, but holy cow, note to self not to move there for retirement.

It decreases each year as the car depreciates...so it does slowly decrease.. once the warranty expires we will be moving to the Hyundai Genesis GV90... so I least i can get a tax write down for a vehicle over 6K GVWR.