Hey everyone, we’re hoping to join the Tesla club in the near future. I’ve been searching for awhile and I found a 2015 Model S 85D that is in great condition…excellent almost. It has 103k miles on it but had a new 85kwh 400VDC battery put in by Tesla back in May 2022. The previous battery didn’t even fail, the owner just wanted to follow the suggestion of a new one put in at the 7 year mark. The car has free supercharging and is priced at $23k. We were ready to pull the trigger because it fell in our budget when we thought it qualified for the $4k tax credit but just found out it doesn’t qualify as it was 1) bought from previous owner and not a dealership and 2) was purchased after Aug 16, 2022. Do we suck up the unexpected $4k? Or is this not such a good deal anyways (tax credit or not) and we should continue our search? TIA!
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Is this Model S a good deal or keep looking?
- Thread starter username787
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The first question is to verify that it had a "NEW" battery installed in 2022. It seems HIGHLY unlikely that someone would come along and say "Here, let me spend about $22K on this car for the heck of it and then sell it for about $25K". Also the fact that I'm not aware of Tesla even having new 400V 85KWH packs in 2022...
Sounds more likely that it's a car from the first half of 2015, the battery failed and was replaced with a used battery under warranty...
Definitely get a picture of the battery label which should be more or less behind the passenger's front wheel if I remember correctly... It should start with a T, then the next 2 numbers would be the year it was built and if it ends in R# or anywhere else says Reman then it's a replaced used battery.
Either way, whether it is worth it or nor is more up to you... Just be aware that there's still a decent chance at some point you may have to spend $10K for a used battery... And other random repairs. Or not...
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Could be ok deal. But I think it's important to qualify this statement from the seller and see service records. The Tesla paperwork will say why battery replacement was completed (fault or customer request). A $15K + battery replacement, just to sell at $23K sounds off. Also, important to find out what over major service has been completed (any work / replacement of motors, does car have MCU2 upgrade, any issues with charging, battery heater, fuses, etc.). If seller is willing to share all the Tesla service paperwork, you could get much better feel for what you are buying.
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I'm not aware of anyone getting a new battery for $15K unless they asked for used, then won the lottery because Tesla didn't have any and gave them new instead...
If it's an 85D I wouldn't expect any motor issues.
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Right, that's just the part cost. Depends on circumstances, type of refurb. battery and Tesla goodwill too. Probably closer to $20K all in.
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brainhouston
Active Member
even if so, it would have been 350v 90kwh pack, no way Tesla had 85 new lol
alternative way to check if no label is to look at usage statistics in SMT
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Guchmyster
Member
New batteries from Tesla even an upgrade to 90kwh are ~$21K. I have a 2013 MS P85+ with 109k miles for sale if you are in California. My car still charges to 231 miles out of ~250 new. Autotrader - page unavailable
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zoomer0056
Active Member
Get the service records from the owner. I dont know how to do this except to screen capture from the owners app. Ask them to allow you to use their app to view all the records. Once the car is yours, you won't have any access to previous service records.
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brainhouston
Active Member
I think u can download everything in the app to pdf
I never serviced the car but bought parts, n i can save my invoices as pdfs
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Going to promote my own listing here ($17,500 after tax credit, which mine definitely does qualify for), but I think unless there's a good reason that you want the larger size/hatchback of the Model S, that a used Model 3 is going to be a better bet in your price range.
- You get newer generation batteries and drive units that seem to have worked out many of the early failure points. IMO a 2018 Model 3 is a much more reliable vehicle long term than a 2015 Model S, new battery or not.
- Much better charge curve & efficiency means real-world roadtripping times will be much better in the Model 3
- Modern autopilot + FSD capability
- The 2015 has the old Mobileye "highway autopilot" which has pros/cons but is no longer updated. even 2018 Model 3 is capable of all the latest AP updates.
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Thank you everyone. Well, this made me do more digging and his post left out a minor important detail. It was the 12V battery! Not the motor battery 
. Geez haha. Thanks so much for all the input. I passed on the car and found me another!
. Geez haha. Thanks so much for all the input. I passed on the car and found me another!
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