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$35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

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Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#311

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tested one years ago (not the model 3) and hated it. There are plenty of people who don't want to own a Tesla even when cost isn't a factor.

Why would those people buy one though? The parent's comment was that people who purchase the car are unlikely to want to return it after driving it. They were not saying, everyone who drives one will want to buy one.

Because now you can't drive one without buying it first.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#312
post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cars have always had delivery fees. Delivering something that weighs several tons is not cheap.

It's cheap in NorCal - my friend had a Model 3 delivered by a dude. Literally. A dude drove his car to his house and then called Uber. P.S. by "dude" I meant that the man just drove the car to the owner's place from their Fremont factory (30 min).

That.... doesn’t sound shady. At all.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#313
post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Once you drive it, you are not going to want to return it, so all this is moot for most people.

I drove a Model S. None of my cars is a Model S. I remember the “salesperson” talking about how quiet it was as wind noise whistled through the cabin like we were in a Corolla. The A4 I was driving at the time was immensely quieter at highway speeds but I nodded and played along. I’m convinced the aspirational status of Teslas means people who haven’t experienced actual luxury vechicles are buying into the hype that…

Agreed. I had a 2016 A4. Went to Austin for a conference, was in a 2016 Model S. Road noise was better in the Audi.

And in my current car, compared to a friend's new S? No comparison, mine is far quieter, despite being a V8 (Jaguar XJ) thanks to in cab active noise cancelling and others.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#314
post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So presumably they are hoping many $35k buyers will be tempted by the $37k which presumably has a better margin for Tesla

I don't think anyone will actually buy $35k model. They made it so undesirable that it's almost laughable. Reminds me of 2004 Honda Accord DX model with $16995 with roll-up manual windows, plastic hub caps and manual tranny that hardly anyone bought. Most will opt for $40k premium model. Though 37k is much better value, it's missing the core features that tickle fancy of Tesla buyers. Standard Interior Includes: Manu…

> it's missing the core features that tickle fancy of Tesla buyers

Can you clarify what you mean here? I would think that the "core features that tickle fancy" would be things like autopilot, but that's an expensive add-on package regardless.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#315
post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So presumably they are hoping many $35k buyers will be tempted by the $37k which presumably has a better margin for Tesla

I don't think anyone will actually buy $35k model. They made it so undesirable that it's almost laughable. Reminds me of 2004 Honda Accord DX model with $16995 with roll-up manual windows, plastic hub caps and manual tranny that hardly anyone bought. Most will opt for $40k premium model. Though 37k is much better value, it's missing the core features that tickle fancy of Tesla buyers. Standard Interior Includes: Manu…

Manual everything tends to be popular with the "I don't want a bunch of shit breaking when this vehicle is old" crowd.

If I had ~40k burning a hole in my pocket I'd get the base spec with the big battery and all the self driving bells and whistles.

I can see the most basic model with the biggest battery being popular with the kind of people who buy an accord and put 200k on it over 8yr.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#316

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unless you made a particularly large downpayment, you were probably already underwater on the loan. That's extremely common for the first 1/3-1/2 of the loan period on nearly any car.

Point taken and comment updated.

Unfortunately, this happens and is one of the main reasons companies don't like to take about changes in price in public.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#317

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Though a model 3 does not compete with an A4, it competes with a Honda Civic or similar...

It was a Model S we were in And even so, the comparison of Teslas to other cars just highlight the absurdity of their MSRPs relative to the luxury they deliver. I’m assuming you mean Model 3 is the size of a Civic or similar so it competes with them. I mean technically sure, but the pricing doesn’t reflect that! Until today it cost as much as an A4 at A3 levels of room, and honestly maybe not even A3 levels of luxury…

I have a Model S and I used to own several BMWs. Honestly, what luxury does an entry level BMW or Audi even provide ? BMW 3 series is a joke with it 4 cylinder engine, soft handling, and a tiny screen where you have to visit the dealer to get a map update. Teslas are way more luxurious in the sense that they provide a 21st century car.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#318
post #276

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"In summary, Tesla is essentially saying “you can’t test drive it but if you don’t like it you can cancel your car search for a few months and ding your credit score for nothing”" Where do they say that? On the site is a big "Test drive" button which goes to https://www.tesla.com/drive which, I asume, will let me test drive a Tesla. Without Buying.

You won’t be able to test drive _the specific car you are buying_ before committing to purchasing it. You’d only be able to test drive another instance of that model, but not the specific one you’d be committing to for X years. This deprives you of the ability to, e.g., avoid purchasing a particular instance of a vehicle that has some annoying defect or flaw.

You can always refuse delivery if you are not happy with the car

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do the other manufacturers include this in their base price advertisements?

nope, but they also allow me to negotiate. I cannot negotiate with tesla.com Also, 1.2k is a LOT of fee! Boardwalk and Momentum (two large dealerships here in norcal) both try to charge doc fees around $400, not 1.2 kilodollars!

Just wait for the used tesla market to kick off.

Once people start having issues getting parts, these cars will be joining the market for cheap.

Re: $35,000 Tesla Model 3 Available Now

#320

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yup, I was spending $400/mo on gas which is now close to $50/mo before you figure in oil change costs. Quite a few cars/trucks run synthetic these days which can really start adding up.

But how much are you going to pay to replace the battery?

https://cleantechnica.com/2018/04/16/tesla-batteries-have-90...

"Actual Tesla owners report about a 5% drop in battery capacity by the 50,000 mile mark but after than, the rate of degradation drops considerably. On average, cars with 160,000 miles on them still have 90% of their battery capacity remaining. Projecting forward from the real world data available, a Tesla battery should still have 80% battery capacity after 500,000 miles of driving, the group claims. The vast majority of internal combustion engines would have stopped functioning long before then."

Assuming a conservative usage of 20k miles/year, it will take you 25 years to reach 500k miles.

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