Model 3 vs S ?
Discussion
I'm currently sitting at around £5k repair bills on our X, which essentially is the same as the S but bigger body. Air suspension, AC compressor both needed sorting both are 'known' problems. I still have steering rack, rear suspension struts to do, the charger port can also go on both, and the big ticket item the battery.......£20k replacement from Tesla if that goes, you can try third party fixes but most of them seem temporary at best. New battery on the 3 I think is around £8k and they do fail.
How lucky do you feel?? I'm getting rid of mine as soon as the replacement car arrives, if you want a reliable used car don't get any of these things.
How lucky do you feel?? I'm getting rid of mine as soon as the replacement car arrives, if you want a reliable used car don't get any of these things.
Get a 3 if you like going round corners quickly. Get a S if you like wafting around and do a lot of cruising on A roads/motorways etc
If I were in your shoes, I would get this Model S P100D with Ludicrous mode+ for £25k - Apparently they can do 0-60 in 2.4 seconds. Perfect for the school run, right?
You have the benefit of a new battery, with warranty.
"2019 Tesla Model S P100D
MOT- 4th September 2026
Mileage- 64,239 (Will go up as in daily use)
This car seems to have every optional extra, including heated and cooled front seats. Ludicrous + mode.
New High Voltage battery fitted by Tesla under warranty in March 2026. Battery and drive unit warranty with Tesla until 29th March 2027, unlimited mileage warranty."
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202605312...
If I were in your shoes, I would get this Model S P100D with Ludicrous mode+ for £25k - Apparently they can do 0-60 in 2.4 seconds. Perfect for the school run, right?
You have the benefit of a new battery, with warranty.
"2019 Tesla Model S P100D
MOT- 4th September 2026
Mileage- 64,239 (Will go up as in daily use)
This car seems to have every optional extra, including heated and cooled front seats. Ludicrous + mode.
New High Voltage battery fitted by Tesla under warranty in March 2026. Battery and drive unit warranty with Tesla until 29th March 2027, unlimited mileage warranty."
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202605312...
andrew-6xade said:
...and if you want a balanced view, ignore the bloke above.
He's weird.
I’d also hazard a guess he’s owned a Tesla a lot longer than you.He's weird.
Getting a balanced view on Tesla is nearly impossible. GZ for many years loved his MX even though, if I remember correctly, it was the most unreliable car he’s ever owned. Now it’s hurting his wallet and is a ticking time bomb. Somebody suggested a P100D, a car with only about a years battery and motor warranty, the replacement battery it had last year was probably a refurb but it goes to show they do fail. Are you feeling lucky…
If you can’t afford a nasty surprise with an EV, buy one with the most warranty you can find in your price bracket. You’ll have plenty talk about how free from trouble they are and when pressed they list a string of warranty claims they’ve needed to make.
And just to add - model S was the first mass market car they designed and built - a bunch of engineers learning how to do it with a million changes implemented on the fly over the years, everything from door handles to suspension arms. The Model 3 was the first car they built to a budget, early ones built in a tent. Components like suspension fail because they’re cheap. You need to be looking 2022 onwards as that’s the sort of time they’d sorted out most of the gremlins, ideally rven later with the facelift M3 and MY.
Gone fishing said:
Somebody suggested a P100D, a car with only about a years battery and motor warranty, the replacement battery it had last year was probably a refurb but it goes to show they do fail. Are you feeling lucky
A P100D had a list price of over £130k from memory, so it's lost £100k in value. As the saying goes 'Things are cheap for a reason'. Edited by gangzoom on Sunday 14th June 06:36
J4CKO said:
Hmm, so sounds like the Model 3 is the safer bet then ?
I’d be looking at an early highland (the latest design), they’re just creeping into budget.The standard range models have as much range as the earlier M3 long range cars, they’re also much better cars and if the lack of indicator stalk annoys you, you can retro fit one. It’s comparable to buying the current range of any car from another make v the last generation one, there will be plenty of notable improvements.
I'm in the same sort of position. Someone kindly drove into the side of my model 3 long range on a 71 plate. Car was great but the insurance payout means that I can't stretch to the Ryzen cars if I don't want white/black. Mine was red/white interior.
So I've started to look at the model S. I do 26k a year hence why Tesla's work well for me. The 100d is in budget but ideally I'd like the 'Raven', but they command a premium.
Are the pre raven cars much worse to run?
So I've started to look at the model S. I do 26k a year hence why Tesla's work well for me. The 100d is in budget but ideally I'd like the 'Raven', but they command a premium.
Are the pre raven cars much worse to run?
J4CKO said:
If you had a budget of say 25 grand, which would you buy ?
What are the pros and cons of each model other than size ?
I've just done this - bought a 3, 2022 reg - 2023 model year. Approved used from Tesla.What are the pros and cons of each model other than size ?
It's a long range AWD, 40k miles and came with 10k main warranty left plus an extended 10k on top.
The separate battery and motor warranty is another 4 years 80k miles from now.
Should be cheap reliable motoring for the next 3-4 years, as I travel 20-25k miles a year.
J4CKO said:
If you had a budget of say 25 grand, which would you buy ?
Having test driven many, many different EV's over the last month or so I went with a Model 3 Dual Motor, 21 plate with 29k miles from RSEV in Hampshire, negotiated down to £22k and it's in the pearl Red which was my preferred colour.Couldn't be happier, both with the car and the buying experience with RSEV.
I appreciate everyone's buying criteria is different & there were about half a dozen cars which were perfectly ok in isolation, unless you've driven a Tesla and that then highlights (to me at least) the flaws of the others.
Happy shopping!
Chris
Just sold my 2025 pre juniper model Y performance with latest hardware 4 and bought a 10 year old model s with sc01.
The S is so much more relaxed and a lot less of the constant warnings. I actually look forward to driving it more than the Y. The free SuC is also a massive advantage.
The S is so much more relaxed and a lot less of the constant warnings. I actually look forward to driving it more than the Y. The free SuC is also a massive advantage.
J4CKO said:
If you had a budget of say 25 grand, which would you buy ?
What are the pros and cons of each model other than size ?
I ve just bought a 22 Model 3 LR AWD with 45k miles, which was still - just - under warranty for £19,500. What are the pros and cons of each model other than size ?
I would have preferred a Model S, bar it being far too big for where I live. However, I d have had to pay a £3,000 premium for a car that was at least two years older and had 40k or so extra miles, which I couldn t justify, despite preferring the Model S cabin, styling, comfort and refinement.
The Model 3, meanwhile, is more manoeuvrable, more nimble, more efficient, cheaper to run and likely to be more reliable. The Model 3 is definitely the logical choice for most people, though the S is nicer.
Have a dual motor Y and daughter has post 22 lowest spec rwd 3. Done miles in both, also done multiple test drives in `cooking 670hp model' S and Plaid, 3P etc.
If you want something that is fun and can be hussled along narrow roads the 3 is the way to go. It's small enough to not be a worry on narrow roads. The rear seats fold so there is actually a fair amount of room for crap, though the S being a hatch and much larger is way ahead if this is a requirement. S is wafty and fast and much better suited to faster, more open roads. Not way different from my X150 XKR in terms of compromises, but S way faster, cheaper to run, less noise, better sound system.
But none of this conveys the major differences between Tesla EVs I've driven and ICE cars I have /had. Tesla just massively more responsive - like driving around in 2nd at peak revs ALL the time. Our AWD Y is much more responsive than with the supercharged jag or the 996. I sold the jag and will likely sell the 996 cab and get a new M3P, but if a >21 Plaid came up at a similar price with <40k miles I'd be tempted too.
S is fundamentally better to do big miles in, but newer 3 is also much more civilised than older, so less difference if size is not a factor. So much so that in a couple of weeks we are doing spring/damper swap on my daughter's car to put the newer Highland stuff on it.
If you want something that is fun and can be hussled along narrow roads the 3 is the way to go. It's small enough to not be a worry on narrow roads. The rear seats fold so there is actually a fair amount of room for crap, though the S being a hatch and much larger is way ahead if this is a requirement. S is wafty and fast and much better suited to faster, more open roads. Not way different from my X150 XKR in terms of compromises, but S way faster, cheaper to run, less noise, better sound system.
But none of this conveys the major differences between Tesla EVs I've driven and ICE cars I have /had. Tesla just massively more responsive - like driving around in 2nd at peak revs ALL the time. Our AWD Y is much more responsive than with the supercharged jag or the 996. I sold the jag and will likely sell the 996 cab and get a new M3P, but if a >21 Plaid came up at a similar price with <40k miles I'd be tempted too.
S is fundamentally better to do big miles in, but newer 3 is also much more civilised than older, so less difference if size is not a factor. So much so that in a couple of weeks we are doing spring/damper swap on my daughter's car to put the newer Highland stuff on it.
Scrubs said:
Still love the look of the Model S. Not sure how many have the 'free super charging for life' available but that is an attractive offer for anyone.
I would disagree with this. Even if you cover a huge mileage, I’d imagine the amount you might ‘save’ in free charging is far less than the Model S premium in higher running costs, extra maintenance costs caused by worse reliability and higher purchase costs compared with the Model 3.
I love the Model S and far prefer it to the Model 3 as a stand-alone product, but everything I’ve read from owners suggests that it is by far the more costly, less reliable car to run. Opting for an older one with free supercharger means having a car that is well out of battery warranty, too, unlike a Model 3 of the same value, which seems like something of a false economy to me.
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