Owning a Tesla or another EV

[DC Concours]

I am looking at buying a used car this winter. Maybe a used Tesla. It has been a few years so a lot of data is out about the cost savings and reliability of these cars.

Anyone here own one, and is it really worth it say over a used Toyota Camry? The internet is full of love it hate it videos and anecdotes.

[maxtog]

I would love to have an EV, but I still don't think they are up to snuff yet.  None really meet my specs/need quite yet.
They have four major advantages:

1) They are more reliable (in theory)
2) They are quieter (assuming reasonable road sound deadening)
3) They will likely have much less service expense.
4) You can charge at home and not have to deal with gas stations.

Depending on usage pattern, they won't necessarily save any money (certainly wouldn't for me- I did lots of calculations) when you factor in the total cost ownership, depreciation, and driving patterns.

I would want an electric version of essentially a Japanese Luxury Sport Sedan.  Still nothing from Infiniti/Nissan, nothing from Acura/Honda, nothing from Lexus/Toyota.  What are they waiting for??  Anyway, I want great performance but don't need super range (because I just don't travel much).  For me, the major negatives that prevent me from jumping are:

1) Choice: I want a car.  NOT a truck.  NOT an SUV.  NOT some "space alien" look, either.  There are too few options.
2) Price: they are just too expensive still to make economic sense in many situations.
3) Aesthetics: many (and now all Tesla's) are just ugly to me.
4) Controls:  I want a real dashboard in front of me and physical controls.  No protruding TV-on-a-stick.
5) Weight:  OMG they are heavy.  That greatly hurts cornering and braking.
6) Safety: I am still nervous about fire hazard when it would sit in my attached garage.

Not having a local dealer/support rules out what is even left.  Tesla: would be concerned about build quality, poor controls, and mediocre aesthetics.  So still waiting and waiting (and driving my now 14-year-old car.. but only 39K miles and looks new).

Can't say what would float your boat.  But do your homework!

[VirginiaJim]

Toyota is taking another path I think.  They are betting on hydrogen fuel cells.


https://www.torquenews.com/1/toyota-ceo-confirms-focus-hydrogen-despite-increasing-electrification-efforts


Even though there is little to no infrastructure in hydrogen in this country.  Personally I don't like Elon Musk and I wouldn't buy anything he makes but that's me.  You see plenty of Tesla's out there though.


I think that there will be a tipping on the number of EVs here and our electrical grid.  They also need to make up the highway taxes that are paid with buying fuel.  I just renewed my Prius and VA is imposing a road tax on the registration renewals which is more than the cost of the registration.  They are also offering a mileage choice in paying those taxes.  We drive too much to use that.  I've been using Toyota hybrids since late 2004.  Had no issues with batteries with the Gen2 but did with the Gen3 which is why we bought a gen4.  Warranty is better on those than in the past.  We get about 50 mpg on that car.


But back to EVs.  There are more charging stations than ever before.  Quite a few with Tesla.  It appears to be the predominate one.    I'd be more prone to use an EV for local and have my own charging with local driving and commuting rather than long distance. 


We should be self-sufficient in oil and not have to worry with imports from countries that try to choke off the supply.  They should drown in their own sand. 

[maxtog]

Well, the issue with road tax is easy- they can just take a odometer reading at the annual safety inspection (for States without an inspection, that might be annoying, although there aren't many- Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas, and a few others with complexity).  I see hybrids as the "worst of both worlds" type of situation.  All the complexity, expense, maintenance, and strangeness/quirks of two drive systems, so I have never been interested in them.  Plus, in my situation, I just don't drive enough to justify it.

For those of us who don't drive a lot and rarely take 100+ mile trips, the charger situation is kinda moot, as long as one has a way to charge at home.  And that will be a big problem for people who live with on-street or lot parking.  Of course there are more and more charging stations, but that won't be convenient like a gas station where you are "filled" and gone in just 3 min.

We definitely should be oil self-sufficient in the USA.  This idea that suddenly EV's can replace gas in even a few DECADES is insane.

[Stasch]

Well, the issue with road tax is easy- they can just take a odometer reading at the annual safety inspection (for States without an inspection, that might be annoying, although there aren't many- Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas, and a few others with complexity). 

Michigan doesn't do inspections either.  For states that don't do them, the EVs (Teslas at least) report all kinds of info out of the software.  Wouldn't be hard to pull / send an odometer reading at the required intervals.

[Boomer]

Having driven a few BEVs and one Fuel Cell EV as well as a couple of Hybrids, at the moment I would opt for the Hybrid, but even then they are stupid money.
The Fuel Cell EV (Toyota Mirai) would be my choice but there are only 12 Hydrogen filling stations in the UK.
The BEVs (Tesla S, Hyundai Ionic 5, and few too small for me to consider) are all good with amazing throttle response and power, but the range issue and recharge times are a killer for me.
That and the ridiculous prices.

I'm a big guy so need something like the Tesla S for comfort, but they all come with huge motors and huge prices.
Nah, I'll stick with my 25Mpg Lexus LS430 for the foreseeable future. It's big, comfy, quiet and paid for.

If money were no object I may well opt for a large BEV, but then I'd probably have several other cars as well.
BEVs are just not there yet for me.

[DC Concours]

You guys have great analysis. I have been looking at used Teslas on their site. Prices are reasonable. The issue is the added cost of charging station at my home, fight with the HOA, and the battery replacement cost in a few years (with used cars). I hate that my iphone batt is now at 80% capacity and I must charge it once in the afternoon. Annoying.

Most of my driving is in the city with lots of charging stations around. But for those times I want to drive long distances...

It seems that Camry is the way to go for now. Maybe a used Lexus 350. A good used one is going for the same price. And you get so much more car (suv).

[maxtog]

There is usually no perfect or right answer, just a bunch of tradeoffs.  Everything just "depends" and requires a lot of thought and analysis.  Something I think most consumers aren't used to doing, don't want to do, and/or simply can't do.

[DC Concours]

I am abandoning the idea of an EV. Can't afford to install a charger on top of fighting the HOA. By the time all that gets approved my battery will need replacing.

Only if it ran of AA

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1034144893334798