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To New Utah Model S Owners - Things I Learned Along the Way

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BryanW

R#664, Model S#1526
Jun 3, 2012
124
0
Utah
Hello Fellow Utahns who have recently ordered / received their Model S, as well as Utahns who are thinking about buying a Model S.

In Utah, we do not have a Tesla Store/Showroom/Gallery/Information Station, nor do we have a service center. But, owning a Tesla here is wonderful, and the process of getting it here is easy. Here are a few tips and tricks I learned through our Model S purchase which perhaps you will find useful. Some of this information is very Utah specific. The latter stuff less so and is found in other threads as well, but helps to have consolidated in one place.

Also, other Utah Tesla owners, please feel free to post with the things you have learned as well.

1. Getting and registering the car is actually quite simple, but there are a few steps which are worth knowing to prevent repeat trips to the DMV.
Utah is a self registration state:
- First, do all the paperwork, work with Tesla, schedule transport, and get the car, use the temporary CA registration tag.
- Then you need to get the VIN inspection done. To do this, fill out your part of this form: http://tax.utah.gov/forms/current/tc-661.pdf , then call your local police department and schedule to have them come inspect the car and sign off.

Then take to the DMV:
- VIN inspection paper (done above),
- your paperwork from Tesla (including the "bill of sale", I sent this form http://tax.utah.gov/forms/current/tc-843.pdf to have Tesla fill out and return, I'm not sure they do it automatically.),
- your driver's license,
- your proof of insurance,
- and your credit card to pay registration and taxes (varies by your city of registration) to the DMV.
- if you also have the title (depending on if Tesla sends it to you or your bank), they will give you your plates on the spot. If your title needs to go through your financing institution first, they will give you a temporary license and you get the plates when the title clears


2. Utah allows you to drive your Model S solo in the HOV lane with a clean car decal.
Once you have your permanent plates, you can register for your decal here.
Fill out the form, link at the bottom of the page, (I could not get it to send from Firefox (Mac), though Chrome worked fine) then they send you approval with a link to pay a $10 registration fee. Takes about 3 days after paying to get the decal in the mail. The decal goes on the front windshield to the right of the rear-view mirror. Also, you must keep the "permit" in your car with your registration for the decal to be active. After that, you can drive in the HOV lane all by your lonesome in your beautiful Model S (or Roadster)!

3. Tinting
If you got the rear facing seats (we have 3 young children) you will definitely want to get the rear hatch tinted, as the kids have complained about both glare and heat back there.
There are several Model S tint threads, including pictures that are worth reading through to see how different brands and depths of tint look on the Model S. Utah's window tinting law dictates that the front door windows allow for at least 43% visible light transmission, the windshield can only be tinted to the AS1 line, and you can go as dark as you want on the back doors and rear glass.

We had ProTint do the tinting for our Model S. We chose the 3M crystalline tint, as it has the best heat blocking properties. We went with crystalline 40 for the rear glass and the rear passenger windows. We went with the crystalline 50 for the front door windows. ProTint did a fabulous job, and I would definitely recommend them. They charge $600 for the 3M crystalline, they also carry Solar Gard's Ultra Performance for $300 if you want to go a little less expensive. While there I also had ProTint add additional clear bra protection to Telsa's factory paint armor. I had them remove the 40% on the hood (we have a blue Model S, and that line always looked terrible with a very visible line about 20 min after any given wash) and do the full hood, right and left fenders including the A pillar to the top of the door, and the headlights. Basically, this added the remaining frontal surface of the car not covered by the factory pain armor, and the only piece they removed was the partial hood. Total cost for the added paint protection was $750, and it looks awesome!

4. Other odds and ends
-For the touch screen, I got the Nushield, as per this thread, and Use code KPR%10 to get 10% off your NuShield order (per carrerascott). The screen is very easy to install, hides finger prints better then without, and is invisible once on (you have to look very closely to find the edges of the film around the edge of the touch screen).

-I ordered carrerascott's consolidated manuals to make the glove box more tidy. He did a great job, sells them at cost.

5. Service
We are in the Denver Service Center area. Rob, Luke, and Casey are great to work with, you'll love them.
As there isn't a Tesla Service center here in Utah, we are all in the 1 out of 10 Tesla owners who do not live within 100 miles of a Tesla Service center. Given that we went with the "4 year anywhere" service package with unlimited ranger visits (that's just us, you'll want to look over each of the packages, as well as the option to pay as you go, and determine which will be best for you).

6. Have a blast!
The Model S is pure fun to drive, you're going to love it!
I'll look forward to seeing your Model S on our Utah roads!
 
Thank you for the info! I just placed an order yesterday for a performance plus model with all the trimmings -- multi-color red with grey wheels. I'm trying to decide grey leather (my preference) or black (wife's preference).

There are 7 of us in my family (lol Utah) so we'll be using the rear facing seats when we all go out. I'll be doing the tinting you recommended.

Eden Utah is where you'll find my car.
 
I'm really glad this information is helpful.

We do also have some small (at least compared to other states) incentives for purchasing an EV here in Utah.
I've included the link to Tesla's incentive page below, but it's out dated and most of the links are bad.
Here is the link to Utah's clean car tax credit, which is $605 for Telsa's purchased in 2013.

Tesla's link for Utah incentives can be found here. The information from Tesla's page is included below.
NATIONWIDE INCENTIVES - United States
$7,500 US Federal Tax Credit

EV Incentives in Utah
EV owners can use Utah's HOV lanes without meeting the occupancy requirement
Utah offers a non‐refundable income tax credit of upto $750 for the purchase of a new electric vehicle titled in the State of Utah until Dec. 31, 2013

Additional Local Incentives
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City offers free access to their EV charging stations
Free metered parking in Salt Lake City for maximum time limit for qualified electric cars with clean air license plates.
 
FYI, Luke went to Hawaii to open their service center. The new guy, Dan seems like a pretty good guy. My car gave them a red flag for the 12v and he tracked me down and took care of the upgrade immediately. It was late on a Friday before the 3 day weekend so that was nice.
 
Also check with envision in salt lake for tint, bra, and wraps. Luxe auto spa does wonderful work as well for tinting and details.

There is a large car meet every Saturday morning on 106th and river front parkway (across from Mulligans) starts around 8:30 and goes past noon some days. Would be amazing to see some electrics there!
 
I talked to Tesla on the phone today about winter tire wheel options for my ordered P85+. The P85+ comes with Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires and according to the Michelin website, "The Pilot Sport PS2 is not intended to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice." -- a problem for us Utah folks.

They recommended me purchasing a "Pirelli Winter Wheel and Tire Set" from them for $2,400 which includes installation.

I asked who would install the tires, and he told me that Salt Lake City is getting a Tesla Service Center before the end of the year. Maybe this already a widely known, but if not, there you go.
 
I asked who would install the tires, and he told me that Salt Lake City is getting a Tesla Service Center before the end of the year. Maybe this already a widely known, but if not, there you go.

This is very good news indeed! :biggrin:

- - - Updated - - -

Salt Lake City | Tesla Motors

Been on the web for a few days. It is very exciting!

That makes it pretty official!

Service center, Superchargers, the things that make Tesla owners so happy!
 
Yes, park free but the UDOT RFID sticker for your windshield (which replaced the 'C' lic plates) does NOT do it. You need a SLC DoT sticker on the back window for the beloved parking enforcement people. Wife got a parking ticket in the LEAF.
It was promptly thrown out but she had to go argue it away in person. Now we have the
'SLC Green Vehicle' sticker too (which, of course, is really ugly). :rolleyes:

SLC DoT 801-535-6630
 
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I registered my car today, taxes where painful. Their system wouldn't let me apply for my vanity plate right away. They said I had to come back in a couple of weeks, did they do something wrong? The lady had to ask for help several times during the process.
 
I registered my car today, taxes where painful. Their system wouldn't let me apply for my vanity plate right away. They said I had to come back in a couple of weeks, did they do something wrong? The lady had to ask for help several times during the process.
This is the correct process Joe. My 335d has Vanity plates and they showed up three weeks after my normal Utah plates arrived.
 
This is the correct process Joe. My 335d has Vanity plates and they showed up three weeks after my normal Utah plates arrived.

I think you misunderstand, but maybe I'm the one misunderstanding. They wouldn't let me place an order for the vanity plates. They want me to come back in a couple of weeks to order them, then I will need to wait a few more weeks to get them.