As others have mentioned, it's really a personal decision. However, I'll put out my two cents as to why my wife and I decided to wait for another year or two (actually cancelling my order). First, my wife and I love the car. Nothing like it and probably won't be for several years. As was eluded to in earlier in the thread, my kids pushed very hard for us to buy the car. Our 10 year old nearly cried when we told him we were cancelling the order. Some of our thoughts:
1) While the Model S appears to be a very safe vehicle overall, the rear (fixed) headrests are way too short for our 13 year old (6ft) son and any other passengers of that height in the back seat. A violent rear end collision would toss the head backward (after going forward), with no support of the head which I think could lead to severe neck injury. I want to wait & see how the "official" crash test results come out...
2) There are no back-up sensors on a very quiet vehicle. We have a four year old who plays with all kinds of "toys" in the garage and driveway. I didn't like the combination of no back-up sensors; a quiet vehicle and a young kid who likes to play in the garage/driveway.
3) We planned to use the Model S for all local family trips. With five people in the car, we really need some basic level of storage which the Model S is lacking.
4) My wife and I planned to share the Model S. It is my understanding, that CURRENTLY, the key fobs do not trigger the individual profile settings. Both of our current vehicles have this feature and it would be frustrating for both of us to share the car without this feature.
5) The sun visor seems to be an afterthought...tiny with no light for the mirror...
6) My wife loved that there was no center console so she could place her purse there...I hated it because I don't carry a purse and everything I placed in the area would be rolling around (especially the way I drive).
7) As Consumer Reports pointed out in their raving review - they cannot recommend the car because there's not enough data to tell the reliability of the vehicle. I have no idea how reliable the car will be in the longer term. I've seen some people with up to 10,000 miles or so at most. And, with what, maybe 15,000 cars produced thus far? Not a lot of data points...I have noted some people, though, having issues with leather wear on the b pillar after only a few months with the car. I don't want to pay $80k for a vehicle and then worry how I get in and out of the vehicle.
8) While future versions of the Model S MAY increase a little, it's doubtful that they'll go into a different price range entirely. If you can "afford" a Tesla Model S now, in all likelihood you'll be able to afford one in a year or two. I anticipate the battery range to improve over the next year or two at the same or even lower cost. I didn't want to be "stuck" in 5 years trying to sell a car that essentially has an obsolete battery.
9) I loved the look of the 21" inch wheels, but afraid of bending, road rash, winter driving, etc., just not real practical from my perspective in the Midwest. Unfortunately, I really don't care for the 19" wheels and would have to go aftermarket which would add to the cost.
10) A SuperCharger station is not scheduled anywhere I drive for 2 years...I could have excluded this option for now, but it would cost $500 more when I decided to add the feature.
11) The full $7,500 Fed credit is in place for the first 200k cars, so it'll still be there when I want to purchase in a year or two or three - whenever there is a "refresh" or whatever Tesla will call the inevitable improvements which are made over the next few years.
12) Tesla is currently profitable due to CA EV credits sold to other car manufacturers. While I THINK they can make it as a stand-alone car manufacturer selling battery technology and cars, it is still a risky proposition. I felt I had to be comfortable with the "worst case" scenario of what would happen if Tesla went out of business. By itself, I could probably deal with this factor, but adding all of the other considerations put me into the "wait" category. I think the financial position of Tesla will be much more clear. We'll know if sales remain constant or fall off after the early adopters have purchased; we'll know if they can manufacture the cars at a profit; and we'll know if they can increase production levels and maintain/increase quality.
13) Resale - our "car" strategy the past 15 years has been to buy "slightly used" with around 10K or fewer miles and then sell at around 75k-80K after the warranty expires, but before large maintenance bills (e.g. timing belt) arrive. We're usually able to sell our vehicle for 50-60% of our purchase price after 5 or more years. I don't see that happening if we buy a Model S now. In 5 years, the battery will most likely be obsolete in terms of comparison range. The Fed credit will still be in place for NEW cars. And, Elon has stated he'll be selling top-of-the-line loaners/service cars which WILL qualify for the Fed credit. So, I think it'll be tough to sell a used Tesla in five years at anything greater than 30-35% the after-credit purchase price. That was just too much "loss" for me.
Perhaps more than my two cents. Again, despite the lengthy post, we do love the car and feel it is a historical vehicle. We would have liked to have been early adopters, but for us, we felt we'd enjoy paying the $80k much more in a few years after most of our concerns have been addressed by time.
