WTB: 70D or 85D with Rear Facing Seats

[AlaskaMatt]

Greetings from Alaska!

My wife and I would really like to purchase a 70D or 85D with Rear Facing Seats. We would purchase the vehicle and initially use it in Colorado for the summer before having it brought to Alaska. However, finding the unicorn used 70D/85D with rear facing seats is proving quite elussive!!

We are aware of the option of installing the seats afterwards but we would prefer not to if at all possible.

We are a fun loving family of six so the rear facing seats would be quite nice to have even though we won’t need them all the time as our other vehicle holds 8.

If anyone is willing to work a deal with us we would be extremely grateful!!

Matt

 

[HankLloydRight]

Welcome Matt!

How big are your two smallest kids? The Rear Facing seats are good for kids up to about 80 pounds.

What's your budget or price range? There are several P85Ds for sale with RFS in the $80k-$87k range.

 

[AlaskaMatt]

Thanks for the welcome!! This is very exciting for our family, the kiddos are loving the concept of purchasing a Tesla. Speaking of, the kids are 2, 4, 7 and 9. We figured the 4 and 7 year old are in the sweet spot for the rear seats based on Tesla’s specs we have seen. We are hoping to get a few years use out of the seats but recognize it won’t be forever!

I’ve seen the P85Ds for sale with the RFS already installed. We would love to purchase one of those but realistically those are out of our price range. We are looking more in the 50k range. I know an 85D (w/RFS) just sold from the FaceBook thread for around 55k so I’m hoping we can find something!!

Thanks for posting so quickly. We are really hoping this great group will work better than scouring CraigsList ads, auto broker, etc.

Matt and the rest of the Kirbys

 

[IdaX]

Not a huge number of them available but there are some on autotrader: Tesla Model S AWD / 4WD Vehicles for Sale in North Pole, AK 99705: 3rd Row Seats - Autotrader

This one in particular looks like it might be competitive for you: Cars for Sale: Used 2015 Tesla Model S for sale in Belleville, IL 62226: Sedan Details - 464933336 - Autotrader

 

[AlaskaMatt]

Thanks for the info! Oddly enough the one in Belleville, IL is the one that just sold for $55k I was referring too. We were super bummed to miss out on that one. Hopefully something else pops up...Matt

 

[AlaskaMatt]

70D purchased! Thanks for all the awesome help from this incredible community.

Matt

 

[IdaX]

Awesome dude! Congrats on finding a Tesla to suit your needs. Good luck getting it all the way to Alaska

 

[Bafflerock]

Thanks for the update.

Is there a place on this website that members post their process for purchasing Tesla's out of area? I've seen a few that I wanted to purchase but by the time I've done the research I feel I need to do for buying a car "unseen" it's off the market? How do most handle things like ensuring the base is in good shape, shipping, title exchange, etc ?

 

[AlaskaMatt]

Bafflerock,

Not that I have seen but I didn’t search specifically for that. I read numerous posts and researched as much as I could all over the internet. The Tesla community seems incredibly helpful and I was shocked how much memebers of this forum chimed in to provide assistance.

My biggest takeaways from the process:

1. Ensure you have the Tesla inspected at a Tesla Service Center prior to purchasing. Agree on the price but ensure it is clear the sale is contingent on the inspection. Talking with a service center rep he said he saw two Tesla’s in the last week that were no longer in Tesla’s network due to an accident. To get the Tesla back in costs a lot but the tech did not specify an amount.

2. I searched every morning and night across several search platforms, eBay, car gurus, EV-CPO.com - Tesla New, Used, and CPO Inventory Listings, all of craigslist, this forum, etc. This technique seemed to work because it enabled me to build a relationship with sellers immediately and go from there.

3. We did a video chat with the seller so we could get to know them better and see the car live. This seemed to help both of us feel better about the process.

4. I use USAA and they were great at walking us through the title exchange, loan payoff and seller final payment. Apparently this varies by state though so I won’t go into more details because I would be painting a picture for our specific situation. FedEx was our friend.

Hopefully that helps. If anyone else stumbles onto this thread I’m curious what else they would add!

Matt

 

[IdaX]

So based on your other post it looks like you bought a 70D and are going to then add the rear-facing seats later? How does that work...

 

[AlaskaMatt]

Correct. I’ve been working closely with other forum members to figure out how to do this properly. I haven’t done it yet but it is looking like it will be very doable. I’m using the service bulletin from Tesla, seats I purchase from a 2013, and the additional parts and pieces I will need from Tesla. Fortunately they are still selling some of the random pieces we will need.

Matt

 

[HankLloydRight]

Just in case you haven't come across it yet, here's a really good video tutorial on the RFS:

 

[AlaskaMatt]

I actually have not yet, thank you so much!

Matt

 

[deaddog]

Matt - thanks for all the updates. Can you elaborate on this statement: "a service center rep he said he saw two Tesla’s in the last week that were no longer in Tesla’s network due to an accident. To get the Tesla back in costs a lot but the tech did not specify an amount?"

Do you know what it means to be no longer in Tesla's network?

I have seen a number of Teslas for sale that have had accidents/bodywork and, absent a salvage title, have never been told that they were somehow out of "Tesla's network" or out or warranty or anything else other than diminished in value.

As a side note, all prospective buyers should ask explicit questions ("any accident/bodywork/paintwork?"). Work that is detectable by a paint meter (which is basically every repair involving paint) will almost always reduce your dealer trade-in value (and should reduce your private sale value).

I've been surprised by how many sellers don't disclose this info unless explicitly asked, including on this forum. Don't just rely on your CarFax.

 

[AlaskaMatt]

As far as I can tell the Tesla needs to be recertified for Tesla to start working on it again.

See these links for some more information:

Salvage Tesla Issue • r/teslamotors

Need some help figuring out my salvage model S

I agree with your assessment about finding a clean Tesla, harder then one would think!

Matt

 

[deaddog]

As far as I can tell the Tesla needs to be recertified for Tesla to start working on it again.

See these links for some more information:

Salvage Tesla Issue • r/teslamotors

Need some help figuring out my salvage model S

I agree with your assessment about finding a clean Tesla, harder then one would think!

Matt

Ok, you are talking about cars with salvage titles. A salvage title is a huge flashing red light - although it varies by state, salvage title typically means it was deemed totaled (by accident) by an insurance company. Salvage cars have NO manufacturer warranty (it voids immediately) and generally can't be insured. Sometimes (not usually) they can be repaired sufficient to obtain a "rebuilt" title - which can be insured but, generally does not reactivate the manufacturer warranty. And obtaining "rebuilt" involves inspection by the State - which often won't detect material problems remaining with the car.

Bottom line -- almost everybody should stay away from salvage title cars and they shouldn't be used to determine market value of clean title cars. If you want to rebuild it yourself and/or the deal is ridiculous (like 20% of market price), and you like risk, go ahead and roll the dice. But for almost every car buyer -- run. This is especially true if the seller doesn't redflag the salvage or rebuilt (or other "branded" title status) in huge letters as the first piece of info in their ad.