Would I be crazy to switch from an S/X P100D to a Roadster?

[playoutside]

Hey Roadster owners, I need some advice. I have owned quite a few Teslas (S: P85, P85+ & P85D, 3: LR & P, X 75D & P100DL).

For most of the last few years, we have had two Teslas and a truck, but we currently have one Tesla and a truck. My wife drives our X P100DL most days. I have a short/no commute, so I usually drive our truck during the day when needed and take the X when she's not using it.

I've been shopping for an end of the quarter deal on a new inventory S/X P100DL. But I just got offered a deal on a Roadster.

So, my question is should I buy the Roadster or will I miss the modern Tesla conveniences? We will use the X for any long distance traveling. This will be my around town car.

Pros of Roadster: fun, way cheaper, little to no depreciation, could have expensive maintenance
Pros of S/X: safer, autopilot, faster, comfortable, low risk

 

[MorrisonHiker]

Hey Roadster owners, I need some advice. I have owned quite a few Teslas (S: P85, P85+ & P85D, 3: LR & P, X 75D & P100DL).

For most of the last few years, we have had two Teslas and a truck, but we currently have one Tesla and a truck. My wife drives our X P100DL most days. I have a short/no commute, so I usually drive our truck during the day when needed and take the X when she's not using it.

I've been shopping for an end of the quarter deal on a new inventory S/X P100DL. But I just got offered a deal on a Roadster.

So, my question is should I buy the Roadster or will I miss the modern Tesla conveniences? We will use the X for any long distance traveling. This will be my around town car.

Pros of Roadster: fun, way cheaper, little to no depreciation, could have expensive maintenance
Pros of S/X: safer, autopilot, faster, comfortable, low risk

Get the best of both worlds and get a next gen roadster next year. I can help.

 

[playoutside]

Get the best of both worlds and get a next gen roadster next year. I can help

I think I'll have to wait for a couple of years of depreciation before I get the approval to buy a new one

 

[im4uttx]

You're already driving a truck on days when the X isn't available. The roadster will be so much more fun than the truck. Seems like the roadster is one of the few Tesla that you have NOT owned, so might as well fill in that gap.

Seriously, it isn't like any other Tesla. It's a sports car, small, low to the ground, harder to get in/out of than most cars, and it's not really faster than new Tesla models due to improved performance.

But, it is a sports car. All electric. Beautiful. And is a conversation starter.

Assuming you will keep the truck, you can still use it on "bad weather days" or when you need more room than the roadster.

If you are worried about the expensive maintenance, it's probably not for you...be aware of the possible expense, but can't be worried about it.

I could have picked up a M3 new, but I chose a roadster. As my first Tesla. It was my dream car after seeing one several years back.

 

[pharma5]

Pros of Roadster: fun, way cheaper, little to no depreciation, could have expensive maintenance

I like how you had potentially expensive maintenance among the pros... very nicely done.

You're ready.

 

[markwj]

There is nothing quite like the roadster. Very unique and special. I would highly recommend it.

 

[playoutside]

I like how you had potentially expensive maintenance among the pros... very nicely done.

You're ready.

Haha oops. If I plan on driving ~4K miles/year, how much should I budget a year for maintenance?

 

[UnicornDriver]

 

[CaliM3]

Just curious, were there a lot of maintenance required for the Roadster? What type of maintenance?

 

[im4uttx]

Haha oops. If I plan on driving ~4K miles/year, how much should I budget a year for maintenance?

Annual PEM cleaning (and general check list items) is $600 with Tesla SC. Unless something breaks, not sure what else you would budget for. Probably good to have a larger fund available for the worst case scenario of battery replacing, but if the battery is in good shape, with proper care, it may last several more years without cost.

Tires will come up sooner or later, but they are not expensive like some cars have "specialty" requirements.

Some will depend on how many miles your roadster has at purchase and what shape things are in now.

 

[backmost]

Also check if the Roadster has the original battery replacement warranty, which transfers between owners via private sale. This would reduce your costs of a 3.0 battery upgrade, which is $29,000.

The Roadster is quite unlike anything Tesla made afterwards. Getting in and out is tough at first, but I'm 6' tall and 215 lbs and have no trouble. The key is to put your right foot in, then butt in the seat, and pull left leg in. Getting out I usually put left foot out, pivot, then push my arm against the seat to propel me out. The biggest mistake my passengers make is to get out by putting both feet on the ground. Usually what happens is they end up sitting on the door sill or bumping their head on the roof!

For maintenance, generally is the annual service which ranges between $600-700 at the Tesla SC. You'll go through rear tires every 7-10,000 miles depending on you drive, so keep up with tire checks to make sure your tread is good. There are two sticky threads on tires for both the 1.5 and 2.x Roadsters.

The 1.5 Roadsters generally have less issues with PEMs as they were built with military grade connectors. The later 2.x models were changed since Tesla had to cut some costs. However the 2.x cars have improved HVAC, ability to put in a double DIN radio, more carbon fiber interior trim pieces, and a tire learning system to program different tire specs. The 2.5 models had better sound dampening though this can be added to other models if you are okay with taking door panels off.

The big IF are the long term reliability of the batteries. The original cells have held up quite well, though we are unsure on the more than expected degradation from the 3.0 cells. Tesla has seemed to acknowledge this problem, but you can follow the 3.0 Longevity thread for updates. I started last year when I bought the car with a CAC of around 195 Ah and now at 175.

Any questions let us know!

 

[X.l.r.8]

Don’t hate me but 7 cars in as many years. I don’t think the roadster is for you. It’s never going to resell for anything near it’s value. The cheapest ones usually need something available from the unobtainium shelf. The support from Tesla is not like the S, 3 or the X. The performance will not be as good as any P series cars.
That being said, there is nothing more fun than the roadster to drive, period. I’m keeping my Roadster but have been driving a p85S for the past few weeks. It’s nice but it’s no drivers car, maybe that’s why the push to make them self driving. The only attachment I have with the car is the Supercharging. The power-steering is blah. The brakes are not much better than the roadster. The space is crazy large and I feel like a bully in a dodge pickup. I worry about denting the fragile aluminium body where as the Carbon shell of my Roadster is less likely to get banged up. That being said parking nearer stores is nice in the S, my roadster I park the other end of the lot.
I can’t wait to get rid of this and get back in my Roadster but I keep my cars for a long time. If I was inclined to want to change my car frequently I feel a Roadster may be a hard sell once the novelty wore off, if indeed it ever did.
The roadster like a car that is the space age future more so than the blandness of any of the later generation cars. It’s a battle cruiser v an X-wing, or a speed boat V a yacht. One is luxurious and the other is pure fun. People love owning and selling their Yachts, but speedboats they keep till they sink.

 

[gregd]

Roadster. Easy choice. My only regret in getting mine is that I didn't get it sooner. There's just something magical that happens when you get behind the wheel and drive the car. You become one with it, or it with you. I haven't quite figured out what it is, but it is very special. Every trip I take, even simply going shopping, there is someone gawking, taking a picture, or (best case) stopping to ask me about the car. It never gets old.

Besides the $600-$700 annual maintenance, do stash some money away for unexpected stuff. There are only a few "big ticket" items - PEM is the most likely failure if it's a 2.x car - but they all seem to run about $10k. The battery, if it's in good shape, will probably last, especially if you keep the car plugged in, and only drive it around town (i.e. not racing or doing long trips in range mode). Tires and such are not a big deal (unlike what will be coming with the new Roadster). Given that you're in the Pacific North Wet, do be aware that the standard tires are Summer tires, not all-season, so not intended to be driven much below about 40F. Choices are more limited with the 1.5s vs 2.x, due to the lack of Tire Learning mode.

If you can, grab the logs from the car and take a look for any issues that might be lurking. They also give an idea of any past issues and how the car has been maintained.

Each car is unique, so do check out the one you're looking to get. There might be a prior owner or someone with history here, so if you are comfortable sharing the last 4 of the VIN, we might be able to offer some guidance in that regard.

 

[hcsharp]

Don’t hate me but 7 cars in as many years.

...get back in my Roadster but I keep my cars for a long time.

Wait, what?

 

[TacC]

Wait, what?

@playoutside has had seven cars in seven years. @X.l.r.8 keeps cars for a long time.

 

[ion_1]

Day and night as others have said.

Having a truck also, my perspective:
When you drive the truck, you look over cars to see traffic
When you drive the roadster you look under trucks to see traffic
It seems I have the worst time seeing traffic when I am in a normal car...

As others have stated on this forum in the past, you don't get into this car, you put it on. You are quite connected.
Nothing like it on a twisty back road with the top off.
I had an S for a couple of weeks; IMHO: beautiful, fast, incredible electronics, disconnected from road, living room.
Complete contrast in experience (except for beautiful and fast). It seems you own a 3, that is a good gap filler, too bad no convertible available.

Yes, it will be expensive when the big ticket items hit, but as other have said, in ballpark of other cars of this class. Otherwise as maintenance free as it can be.

Just be sure you drive it or at least drive in it before you buy it to be sure it is for you. But likely you will not walk away without buying it...
(but keep the truck if you can..).

 

[Rotarypower]

To sum it up.....with the roadster, you will easily create a strong emotional attachment. That is not the case with the other cars obviously in your situation.

 

[rudholm]

I think they each have their place. I recently took a job that requires me to drive across Los Angeles twice a day during peak traffic. My Lexus LS was using over $11 in gas per day for that drive, the Roadster used about $0.80 of electricity for the same commute, but I didn't want to put all those boring commuting miles on the Roadster (or expose it to the associated accident risk) so I bought a Model 3 Performance to be my commuter box because it just made sense to use a car that is less special as my daily driver, even if it did cost more than what my 20k mile 2.0 Roadster is worth at the moment.

With the 3P, I have comfy seats, good infotainment, good climate control, room for five, and self-driving features that make the car a comfortable and practical daily driver. It's also really fast

Dates and weekends, on the other hand, are all about the Roadster.

 

[playoutside]

Thank you everyone for all of your feedback. 2 days ago I decided I would buy a Roadster instead of another S/X. Then yesterday my Owner Advisor called me with the opportunity to buy a showroom P3 at a discount if I could make the purchase by today, so I did:

I’m sure I’ll pick up a Roadster at some point.

 

[Roadster]

Wait, so after all that great feedback, you went with vanilla... again? @X.l.r.8 called it!