Yep. EVs, as mass produced products, are in their relative infancy.
drove a Tesla Model 3 AWD Dual Motor
- Thread starter MrPlow
- Start date
Agreed. To some they're the greatest thing since sliced bread. As you say "since age is a moving target" they might be singing a different tune in years to come. Only time will tell, and human nature being what it is we might never get a true story from a lot of people who got burnt. They're still in their infancy.
Last edited:
This 100%! I guarantee that if any one of the Kool-Aid drinkers had serious issues they would dummy up about it.
Right. You're so sure of it because that's what you'd do with something you're too emotionally invested in that belches exhaust.This 100%! I guarantee that if any one of the Kool-Aid drinkers had serious issues they would dummy up about it.
No one is normally like that if they get burned. We'd be hearing about it if it was normal. No one has deep enough pockets to want to hide something like that on a $40k car. That's a pleb's price range.
Nope.This 100%! I guarantee that if any one of the Kool-Aid drinkers had serious issues they would dummy up about it.
"Do me right and I will tell 10 friends. Do me wrong and I will tell the world."
"Without data you're just another person with an opinion." Personally, I prefer quality statistics.
And right now, the number of failed battery packs in Teslas, starting in 2020, is virtually non-existant.
If these cars were so doomed, why is every manufacturer investing billion$ in them? My guess is, they did their due diligence.
I guess they are Kool-Aid drinkers too? Here's CEO Kallenius for example, "Like a V8 on steroids."
I posted a thread on here that the OE tires on my wife's Mach-E are basically worn out after 30K, as many of the naysayers predicted.This 100%! I guarantee that if any one of the Kool-Aid drinkers had serious issues they would dummy up about it.
I didn't shy away from it or try to minimize it. Full transparency is good.
I replaced the Pirelli P-Zero P24 summer rubber on our M3P at about 22K; the backs were worse than the fronts. @Trav recommended the Michelin Pilot Sport tires, which made the car even better, especially after a little break in period.
The Michelin Pilot Sport tires on our GS350 F Sport, also staggered, are just about done.
The biggest surprise I've had with our M3P, as well as the other cars, was the recent jump in insurance. Ouch! The battery is fine.
I've been lucky on tires so far at 25k miles, but beyond my childish shenanigans, most of the miles are racked up 40 at a time at 62mph. It's pretty gentle on them just cruising to work.
The rear tires on my wife's RWD Model 3 were basically done at 22k miles with a rotation at 15k miles. It saw mostly stop and go in town and I don't think either of us were gentle with the go pedal.
Michelin Pilot Sports are some of the best road tires out there. I'll definitely be doing some research when it is time for new tires, but based on the factory alignment settings I expect to have to replace the rears before the fronts instead of for the full set, plus I do use drift mode occasionally, for research of course.
What's funny is that I actually do have rally car experience. I used to rally a Subaru locally. And I've been in plenty of crazy fast cars like the Porsche GT3 which is one of my favorites.
What got me is exactly what you described. I was expecting maybe a higher end Toyota camry or even WRX style of acceleration. Little did I know the 4 door grocery getter I was driving was one of the Stealth Performance models that doesn't come with all the fancy extra racey bits. It's just the normal car, with Ferrari levels of acceleration and control.
I would never gun it in a GT3 driver seat with the steering wheel all the way forward with the seat back too far back. And I will never make that mistake again in a Tesla, either... lol
I was in the same mindset as you for, well, ever until recently really looking at the numbers and examples of how long these cars can last. I don't need more than 120 miles of range (270 now), which is the main metric that degrade over time with Tesla batteries. The Tesla drivetrains outside of their earlier years are at near god-like levels of reliability even compared to all the Toyotas I have owned in my life. If not driven hard, they don't even need a brake pad change for 150,000+ miles. No oil changes. Less fuel costs, etc. There are a good number of Teslas out there in service with hundreds of thousands of miles on the original batteries running as expected with reduced range.
There is literally no proof at all of some widespread factual event that stops all EVs from functioning after 200,000 miles or 16 years of use.
I actually LOVE that there is so much widespread fear over the battery packs going out of warranty on EVs. There's no way I would have gotten such a great deal on something with higher miles. People would look at me funny like some sort of dummy for buying a Toyota with 230,000 miles on it, which likely ends up lasting at least another 100,000 miles without much major issue.
Regardless, it's still a very wise and prudent decision to bet against petrol prices by buying an EV for low enough cost to get far more than the value out of it by driving it into the ground. It's not like I am financially ruined if it doesn't pay back 100%. I still got the fastest and most reliable car money can get at that price.
On top of that, even with a dead battery, a bricked Model 3 can fetch $8-12k USD for scrapping into parts.
Another thing that's pretty sweet about these cars is how fast the steering ratio is. like 10.2:1 or something crazy. Fastest ratio of any production car not equipped with variable ratio steering like I think is on the GT3 I drove a few times. The only car I've been in that can match the raw terror of the suped-up EVs.
Of course the Model 3 is not a Ferrari or high end Porsche, but it really does mimic the comical levels of instant control you have over speed and steering on those fancy race cars. It's very obvious there is still a giant heavy battery needing to be yanked around corners.
With that said, the car is easy to dive smooth and chill around even in the insanity drive mode, just don't sneeze in the grocery parking lot.
It's amazingly quiet. I have also never been in any compact-ish car that didn't hurt my back at all. The seats are great for my 6'4" beefcake.
Of course the Model 3 is not a Ferrari or high end Porsche, but it really does mimic the comical levels of instant control you have over speed and steering on those fancy race cars. It's very obvious there is still a giant heavy battery needing to be yanked around corners.
With that said, the car is easy to dive smooth and chill around even in the insanity drive mode, just don't sneeze in the grocery parking lot.
It's amazingly quiet. I have also never been in any compact-ish car that didn't hurt my back at all. The seats are great for my 6'4" beefcake.
There is an old aphorism that goes something like So you want a fast car? How fast do you want to spend?
These used Tesla Model 3s turn that on its head, since a buyer gets plenty of fast for used Camry/Accord money.
Also, if the OP is saving $400.00 a month in fuel, fuel savings alone will pay for the car in less than four years.
Seems like quite the deal, and he can always tell the naysayers how badly he feels not buying $4.50/gal gas, soon to be $5.00.
These used Tesla Model 3s turn that on its head, since a buyer gets plenty of fast for used Camry/Accord money.
Also, if the OP is saving $400.00 a month in fuel, fuel savings alone will pay for the car in less than four years.
Seems like quite the deal, and he can always tell the naysayers how badly he feels not buying $4.50/gal gas, soon to be $5.00.
Depends on whether you expect the same range and whether you want to pay an arm and a leg for exotic car parts.
For a plug in Prius I wouldn't worry too much but for a car made by a company changing designs on the assembly line as soon as someone push a button on the computer, I would be a bit concerned about parts when they age.
Don't expect free charging to last forever. Most companies who had them start charging for them after a few years. Still a good deal compare to buying gas, but no longer free.
Still a good deal even if it doesn't last forever. I would jump into an EV if I pay $400 gas a month and someone offer me free charging.
https://www.carscoops.com/2026/06/car-brand-durability-study/
"A Tesla Is Twice As Likely To Reach 250,000 Miles As A Subaru"
"A Tesla Is Twice As Likely To Reach 250,000 Miles As A Subaru"
Well that's not a super high bar, but anyway.
Right? I'm friends with a few Subaru owners that love their cars, but their comments on reliability long term is troubling.
