Trade in Question

I went back and looked at my notes.

Order placed - 6/26
Lease application placed and approved - 6/29
Trade inspection - 8/11
Delivery - 8/17

I was given an estimate of the trade value by the sales specialist a day or two after I test drove. His estimate was off by a little bit but at least in the ball park. I also got a number from Carmax that was worse than the final number from Tesla.

Net/net - I used my trade as the cap reduction on the deal and then Tesla sent me the balance about six weeks after delivery - my 535i was worth more than the maximum allowable cap reduction.

On the deposit - you shouldn't be at risk of losing the deposit because of the lease application process. I'd spec the car, place the deposit and then immediately apply for lease financing. Obviously your car is worth much more than the max allowable cap reduction and I have to believe after that getting the remainder financed is pretty simple.

AMPd said:

I was hoping you guys could tell me how the trade in program at Tesla Motors works. I own a standard 85kwh Model S and was thinking about trading it in for a P85D, however I want to lease the P85D.
It seems straight forward but I've never traded a car in so I'm not sure how the process works.

Another question: Is there a way to know if I qualify for the lease before trading my car in and before placing the deposit, I just don't want to lose the deposit in case I don't qualify
I am thinking about an inventory vehicle I found on the website, not a custom order.

Thank you! and Merry Christmas!

Click to expand...

I just did this exact process. I traded in a S60, used the positive equity as downpayment. They let me keep the S60 until delivery of my 85D, which is leased.


I rolled sales tax into the lease payment and paid $0 extra at delivery. Ended up with a $680 / month payment.
- 10k miles
- 85D
- Pearl White
- Next Gen Seats
- Autopilot