Tesla Model 3 now the best selling luxury car in the U.S.

[N54tt]

I have several friends and and neighbors who own a Model S and we have put 76k on our 3 year old Model S. The main reason for purchasing a Model S for the owners I know is not to be green but the performance of the vehicle coupled with low maintenance costs. The closest competition for a Model S performance wise would be a BMW M5, and AMG Mercedes, or an S or RS Audi. Those cars cost as much or more than a Model S but are way more expensive to maintain. We have spent $170 on maintenance and service on our Model S in 76,000 miles and this is typical for other Model S owner that I have talked to. My neighbor who has an M5 BMW has spent over $5,000 on service and maintenance in 3 years(for fewer miles than we have on our Tesla)which is also typical. I’ve done the math for us and had we been driving a gas powered M5 or similar the last 3 years we would have also spent an additional $11,000 on fuel over what we’ve paid for electricity to run our Tesla. That works out to about $5,000 a year in fuel/maintenance savings. Assuming depreciation is about the same, a Tesla is much cheaper to own than something like an M5 or AMG Mercedes. I know 2 Tesla Model S owners who have over 120,000 miles on theirs and they still drive and perform like new with almost no maintenance or service costs. Neither has yet to replace even brake pads. High performance without the expense to operate and maintain. In a sense us Telsa owners are having our cake and eating it too.

I share the same sentiment and is one of the major factors in why I ended up getting the performance model 3 when cross shopping the M3, c63. I think what you said holds true of the performance model 3 vs M3, c63 and ats-v. But unlike the new M5 that’s awd, neither the M3 nor c63 come in awd. The RS4 isn’t even avail in the states. Throw in the all weather handling as another advantage.

 

[tahoebum]

I share the same sentiment and is one of the major factors in why I ended up getting the performance model 3 when cross shopping the M3, c63. I think what you said holds true of the performance model 3 vs M3, c63 and ats-v. But unlike the new M5 that’s awd, neither the M3 nor c63 come in awd. The RS4 isn’t even avail in the states. Throw in the all weather handling as another advantage.

All weather handling is a huge plus. I drove our Model S dozens of times in a winter storm in the mountains around Lake Tahoe the last 3 years and the Tesla handles the snow/sleet/rain as well as our Audi Quattro, which is saying a lot.

Every Tesla owner I know also has owned or currently owns a German car. We are all very pleased with the lack of expensive maintenance costs, such as $1,000+ for a brake job. I have yet to meet a Tesla owner who isn't in love with their car and all would rank it as the best vehicle they've ever owned.

 

[JB]

Oh Musk...
Now he announces a new mid-tier version of the 3, still no sign of the one they said would be here. The best part is he says it will be 35k, but only in CA as the sticker is still 45k. Those that ordered standard battery...Yeah, you are still 6 months out.

 

[Buster1]

I own a Model S. It’s about 1 yr old. Best car I’ve ever owned. I especially love driving about 500 mi/week at the cost of about $10 in electrons. I also love getting free OTA updates to the software which makes the car better and better.

If anyone is thinking of a Tesla, message me (or any of the owners above) for details, we have a coupon code for about a year’s worth of free supercharging and I can get you a free wall charger as well.

 

[kenh]

I've seen Model 3's up close, and while they are really nice cars I'm not sure they meet my definition of a "luxury" car.