Why buy a new S when one can save 20-40K on used?

That new car smell. :biggrin:

Well, factor in the $7500 tax credit for the new 85D. Also other newer options that may/not matter to you eg Next Gen seats, reported better build quality, black alcantara headliner. But, I do agree, if you don't care about AP or dual motor, it certainly is not worth buying a new 85D over a used P85.

If you don't care about Autopilot/TACC then no you're not missing anything.

And I'd say now is the best time to buy. I think the hardware differences is really driving the price down CPO's right now

It's worth it if you want the latest and greatest. Otherwise it almost makes more financial sense to buy CPO vs new.

- - - Updated - - -

Er, didn't mean to say "almost" in my previous reply. As people mentioned before, if you don't care about dual motor or autopilot, a used P85 is a fine choice.

ahurst said:

That new car smell. :biggrin:

Click to expand...

That's what sold me!

I think it's great that people can now get a nice low mileage Model S for less than $65K in some cases, cars that just a year ago were "the latest and the greatest! More choices, more EV owners, more Tesla enthusiasts. Win win.

Autopilot and AWD were important to me. I was totally set on getting an inventory 70D later this year. But I snagged the car in my sig for under $60k. While those features were important to me, they weren't $20k important to me.

For me, $20k isn't really enough of a discount. Living in Colorado, I can get $13500 off a new vehicle and I want AWD which is worth another $5k more. I'm not seeing and any D models for $20k less than new (except that $100k one that just showed up for sale in the forums). If there was a D model for $20k off (in the $55k to $70k range) then I would definitely consider it..but they don't exist.

I do ask about inventory models from time to time but so far all of those have been pretty loaded and usually over $100k.

Don’t Plan on Reselling: These 10 Cars Depreciate Fast

As shown in the link, high depreciation is common with a lot of high end cars but this question gets asked about Tesla because it appeals to more than just those with high incomes. But one answer to your question is that to many people with high incomes, they're never going to buy someone else's vehicle, even if it still has the new car smell, and comes with more options than the one they are buying new. It's simply out of the question, like flying coach.

For me, a new 70D is $90,200. In NC, I only get the fed incentive, so $82,700. I walked away from a $82k inventory 85 because of the wrong color combination in March and didn't have all my wanted features. That car had $8k off (and had Autopilot). Taking that as a reference point, I would be at $74,700. I am buying my CPO at $57,200. I am picking it up and driving it home, or else I would pay a $500 transport fee (I included the $1,200 transport and fees above), so let's say $57,700. That is a $17k for a potential inventory car or $26k for a brand new car. I figured $20k-ish buys a lot and I could keep this new one for 5 years vs. my normal 8-11, and get a used Autopilot at that point. Or maybe then I could get a semi-autonomous car. Long term, as much as I really wanted Autopilot, I can't imagine with Elon talking about autonomous in a few years that there would not be a sensor, sonar, radar, lidar, whatever upgrade "must have" in the next few years. I can save now and drive what two years ago was the absolute best car on the road. This may not work for everyone. You have to see where it fits for you. But I can understand making the "value" play here.

In my case the Federal Tax Credit, and the Sales tax exemption eliminated much of the savings in buying used. That and the CPO program hadn't really taken off when I placed my order.

Plus I really wanted the following features

The new blue color (there are a lot of these cars around so at least I'll have a slightly different color for a few months)
Heated Steering wheel (probably really rare on CPO cars)
Black Headliner (I'm completely OCD about headliners for some reason)
Next Generation Seats (I'm a tall skinny guy, and the new seats fit like a nice glove)
Autopilot hardware. It isn't just adaptive cruise control, but lane following as well. I wasn't convinced they'd have auto parking, but if they do then that's a bonus.
AWD (i live in Seattle and all the rumors of it raining all the time are true).

I should also add that I'd been looking at the Tesla MS for a long time. In fact I previously ordered one and then got cold feet because of how much money was involved, and canceled before it went into production. This time I didn't feel really comfortable until I had the Blue 70D on order. So the last thing I want to do is even look at the CPO website. I'm tired of the Tesla Anxiety and I'd rather be blissfully unaware at least for a few months on $'s I could save.

I already know the car is going to be obsolete before I get it. Like for example it doesn't have the Nividia X1 chip in it, or rear facing radar.

The good news is we live in very exiting automotive times.
The bad news is "Ughh, there just went $15K" when something is announced.

Is it Oregon or Colorado or another nearby state whose state incentive even applies to used cars as long as it was never titled/registered there? Each state incentive tips the scales. If NC charges 8% tax on cars rather than 3%, but then waved the 8% on EVs, I would buy new in a heart beat. For me, $15k is the breaking point. If I can't save $15k when all is said and done, I might as well go new/inventory and get exactly what I want. Thus, with WAs incentive until July, I would definitely focus on new/inventory.

Keep in mind the saving is because you have an inferior car. It is still a model S but everyone knows the old model s is not the new model S. I guess it might be just demand right now, but if people comes to their senses the old model S is not worth as much as it is listed on the CPO website IMO.

In my opinion the 85D is superior to the P85 in every way. More efficient, better battery life becuase it is a newer pack when you compare the cpo vs a new s85D. S85D have higher range. It has better handling. It has AWD. It has better warranty.

So if you want to compare apples to apples, you need to see how much a cpo s85D cost. But you cannot because it doesnt exist yet. By the time the cpo s85d are on the website, i am sure they will have something better.

So my point is if you can live without the extra features of the new car and you are OK with driving a used car, then the CPO cars are your best bet because you save a lot of money. However if you rather pay the extra money for the extra features, then buy new.

Right now i dont see much of a deal on the CPO tesla. Given time, i think the early rush of sales of these CPO will level off and hopefully tesla will price these CPO more to reflect the market supply and demand.

Cyclone said:

Is it Oregon or Colorado or another nearby state whose state incentive even applies to used cars as long as it was never titled/registered there? Each state incentive tips the scales. If NC charges 8% tax on cars rather than 3%, but then waved the 8% on EVs, I would buy new in a heart beat. For me, $15k is the breaking point. If I can't save $15k when all is said and done, I might as well go new/inventory and get exactly what I want. Thus, with WAs incentive until July, I would definitely focus on new/inventory.

Click to expand...

Colorado. $6,000 state tax credit even for used if never registered in the state.

While I was growing up, my father always bought only 2 or 3 year old used cars. He had a real knack for finding some beauties. There is a lot to be said for the money you can save, but for others (like me, unfortunately) they can't resist having the latest and greatest. I will be counting on those like my father when it comes time to sell my current Model S :wink:

On the Tesla CPO website, how can you tell if the car has power folding mirrors? That is a key option I need due to garage size.

ahurst said:

On the Tesla CPO website, how can you tell if the car has power folding mirrors? That is a key option I need due to garage size.

Click to expand...

The VIN needs to be 8k or higher. Below 7k they were not folding, and somewhere in the 7-8k range, it changed. Mine is 78xx, but I'm not sure yet if it has it or not (the photos I got don't include the control button). That said, I do not know if that requires the tech package on pre-2015 cars. Someone car to chime in if that is also a requirement?

AWD and jump seats were important to me. Whereas there are a couple of CPO cars with jump seats, there are no cars with AWD yet.

After diving Audis for many years, I knew I wouldn't be happy in anything that wasn't the absolute fastest model available. The autopilot (and other updates) combined with an attractive small business leasing option don't make the decision very hard either.