Decided to sell my new BMW X5 and buy a Model S, crazy?

I've just bought my new 2015 BMW X5 (xDrive35i) 3 month ago, but, in recently the Tesla fascinates me a lot after reading some posts on Quora & some reviews...
Actually I paid attention to the tesla in 1-2 years ago, but never thought I should buy a sedan as the first car for my family.
But now, I decide to sell my X5(thousands of dollars loss especially the tax loss in CA!) and order a MS 70D (just put down the deposit), am I crazy??!
Anyway, I'm excited to be going to join in the Tesla family :tongue:


Below are my initial configuration and reasons, very appreciate for your suggestion & comments!


1) Exterior color: Pearl white
- though my X5 is a dark color, we decide to get a lighter one for the sedan especially in the CA;
after compared to those colors, the pearl white is a little better than others, I trust my wife's eyes (she is a designer


2) Roof: Glass Pano Roof
- I felt depressing while masking the sunroof in my X5, so I just want more lights come in.


3) Wheels: 19" basic
- actually I want the cyclone wheels before because its nice looking and energy saving, but after reviewing the posts in here, I decide to buy the basic one then switch to a TST aftermarket one if I want, which will save me more than $1000! Thanks for your guys' posts!:smile:


4) Interior: basic seats & decor, premium package
- My wife is a vegetarian and refuse animal leathers, I agree, so just choose the default seats(saved money also, but plan to select the premium package due to the lights & power liftgate though it includes leather dashboard


5) Model: 70D
- no large range requirement: very short commute (12 miles a day, may be 1 mile in future), also we just lived nearby the supercharge station, WOW~:wink:
- so most of the time we will use it to do shopping & weekend short travel (maybe some long distance travel in future after owning the model S)
- AWD: just for the potential safety, a little more power and very different feeling said by some guys in this club?


6) Autopilot
- a must have


7) Sound system: the basic (need a HIFI upgrade?)
- This is the only one which made me hesitated, please don't hesitate to share your thoughts
- Not a fancier but I'm always listening musics while driving by iphone bluetooth, and my X5 have a "harman kardon" surround sound, not sure whether this is better than tesla's basic or hifi package? do you know is there any comparison between the HK and tesla's hifi system?


Ok, that's my thoughts, thanks a lot for your review and comments!:smile:

:biggrin:
money punished me!

money matters, actually no much range & perf requirements.

Douglas said:

No not crazy, but a 70D? :smile:

Also, the Supercharger is not for everyday use (weekend use). Its more for road trip usage.

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nice suggestion! will query them, thanks!

tom66 said:

Since the leather is a concern... I know that Tesla made non-leather steering wheels available for some customers. It wouldn't surprise me if they would customise your car to have a non-leather trim with premium package (presuming the ordinary car is leather free?), just make an enquiry, probably best by phone, and see what they say.

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Ah, thanks, just know this, but anyway, my company also supplied a lot of free chargers.

Douglas said:

You will love it, just watch that supercharger use. If you use it a lot you will get a letter from Tesla reminding you that it's not intended for weekly use.

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Great, thanks for your post, travwill!
btw, how about your Fidelity Sound? better than x5's HK sound system?

travwill said:

Interesting. We have an X5 and a Model S. They are both great cars, great designs, and very functional. I can't cover everything but here are immediate thoughts that pop into my head:

- The X5 has a bit better luxury build quality that the MS, even with premium interior but they are both super nice
- The pano on our X5 is great, huge, and the MS one is nice also. The X5 doesn't have the huge bar across it like the MS but still, it is a must have to feel that openness. You may miss the ability to use the automated shade that the X5 has some, but not much since it is so tinted.
- The systems, interface, and usability of electronics, navigation, etc is so much better in our MS - much easier to use and intuitive.
- The X5 we have seems like it is a billion parts, and maintenance will eventually become an issue. I feel like this a little less with our MS.

Either way, the MS is totally functional and has way more space than I expected. The back cargo area is huge and just as usable as the X5, if not more. It isn't as high but it goes way back and is actually easier to load/unload, etc.

-T

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Thanks, I think I'd have another test drive to evaluate the sound system.

Chasedrgc1223 said:

I'd say go for the Hi-Fi, it really is wonderful, and honestly why not.

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Thank you CHG-ON!
I will schedule one more test drive to evaluate the sound system

CHG-ON said:

Good for you! Sorry about the hit on taxes and depreciation. But what the heck!

My thoughts, owning a Model S:

Color: A lovely choice!

Wheels. I have the 21 Cyclones and love them. But tire replacement is expensive and frequent and I have to keep my eyes peeled for potholes. 19's really are a better choice.

Pano roof: I have no issues not having a sun shade. The tint is great. I also love the openness it provides.

Interior: I do not believe that the dash is leather. Perhaps it is with the premium interior. I didn't get it because it provides no value to me. The suede is definitely synthetic.

70D: I prefer to have as much range as possible for trips. But it really depends on how you plan to use the car.

AutoPilot: you bet!!!

HiFi: HiFi is very important to me. Basic is pretty bad. Premium is OK, but only OK. Check out the tread on Light Harmonics on this forum. It seems that the premium is more upgradeable than the basic. I have the premium and plan to upgrade at some point. Probably an additional 1,500-2K. Not that much in the scheme of things, considering the cost of the car. But the premium is very livable as it is. Just takes some judicious tweaking of settings. I hear that the sound stage and bass performance are miuch better in the X. I have not had a chance to hear it. The way the packages were set up when I bought my P85+, I think I had to get it with everything else I wanted, so the cost was irrelevant. But I could be wrong. It's been a while since I ordered. But hell, I would have paid for it anyway!

Congratulations! You will love the car. It changed everything about how I feel about owning a car and driving.

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Thank you TaoJones!
I Plan to upgrade to a new one in 5 years maybe (I even tried to drive it only for 3 years by leasing, but rejected due to short credit history...)
for dashcams, yes, I always use that, also used a GoPro as a HD dashcam while traveling.
Radar detector? I prefer to use the Waze

TaoJones said:

Not crazy at all - welcome to the party! I have confidence that my X5-driving friend will follow in your footsteps as soon as he gets tired of 4-figure repair bills now that his X5 is getting long in the tooth.

The Model S is a completely different experience without the AP features. I would not have bought a Model S without them, and driving a loaner without them is painful. Yes, yes, yes, still better than driving an ICE, but I wouldn't drive an ICE and that's not really the point, now is it.

Either the basic audio or the upgraded audio still need a Reus Audio upgrade. Listen to the latter and then drive a loaner/demo without it and you'll immediately discern the difference, even if you've abused your auditory capabilities for decades as have I.

If you're trying to calculate TCO, include either the costs of transitioning every 50,000 miles or the (tacitly optional) costs of subsequent annual services and the ESA (not a warranty) for miles 50,001-100,000. The 2nd 50,000 miles will set you back about $7,000 and that's without Tesla enforcing the $200/issue verbiage in the ESA. One can easily make the case that these cars are indeed like iPads and that there will be plenty of reason to upgrade every 2-3 years just because. At least for now. The trippy part will be in juxtaposing a new Model 3 versus a CPO Model S in a few years. But I digress.

Don't forget dashcams, a good radar detector (doesn't have to be built in - just hardwired for the sake of aesthetics), good tint, and paint protection. Espresso maker optional. It's the little things

These cars are meant to be driven. Good luck and enjoy the ride.

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Thanks GoTslaGo!
You are a big fan !!!

GoTslaGo said:

OP--

You may want to check out eye.surgeon's post on how to increase your sound volume if you Bluetooth stream from your IPhone. Just search his posts.

I haven't tried it, but I did notice that when I linked my IPhone and played off of it, the volume was very low. When I suggested to my wife that I was thinking of trying what he suggested she gave me a dirty look ("don't you dare touch my radio"), so I let it go. Either way the Tesla plays better with the slacker radio, and I've gotten to enjoy the "randomness" of the slacker radio.

We too have X5/S combo. X5 is older, 2013, previous generation, so less relevant to your question. I am just waiting to test drive a Model X before I pull the trigger and buy an X or second S (or maybe a 3...). Any opportunity I get, and if I am allowed :wink: I drive the S.

70D is great! Don't let other posters make you think otherwise. However, we will probably get a 90D of some sort with next purchase to get a longer distance option since we'll probably be giving up the ICE for it.

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