Any tips from Tesla Model 3 owners ?

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Any tips from Tesla Model 3 owners ?

Mark

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#286063 3-Jun-2021 09:26

I'm about to embark on my biggest car purchase and get a Model 3.

Any owners on here have some pre-purchase tips or things they'd wished they had known beforehand ? Or even accessories that are a must have.

A tip on getting FSD for free would be nice, because I'm sure not paying $11000 for something that may or may not work and may or may not be legal to use in NZ :-)

Thanks!

taneb1

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Mercury

#2717540 3-Jun-2021 09:31

If you haven't already, would recommend checking out the Tesla Model 3 NZ group on Facebook - Its pretty active and lots of good conversations around peoples experiences.

Any comments made are my personal views and does not represent those of my employer

Linux

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#2717541 3-Jun-2021 09:39

They run best on BP 95 octane I hear :p

xpd

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#2717542 3-Jun-2021 09:42

My old boss had one, he got a Pi Zero and some package that allowed the car to upload its video footage to his NAS soon as he got within Wifi range of home rather than having to transfer to local USB in the car......

XPD / Gavin

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xpd

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#2717543 3-Jun-2021 09:43

Linux: They run best on BP 95 octane I hear :p

I heard Mercury's supply extended range by 50km, whereas Trustpower's gave no advantage.

XPD / Gavin

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SumnerBoy

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#2717544 3-Jun-2021 09:45

If you are into self-hosting nifty services look into https://github.com/adriankumpf/teslamate. You sign into your Tesla account and it logs all sorts of telemetry data for viewing in some very slick dashboards.

Also publishes events to MQTT so you can integrate with automation systems. Great bit of software and free.

SQLGeek

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#2717553 3-Jun-2021 10:18

TelsaFi is great tool, I've had for over a year, wish I had from the start. Use code TeslaKiwi to get a months free trial

You will never get close to the NEDC rage (not even dam close).

You will get more range in summer than winter, watch Tesla Bjorn for in-depth battery/range stuff https://www.youtube.com/user/bjornnyland

InsureMyTesla is probably best for the first 2 years as they will give you a new Tesla as a replacement should the worse happen

Also lots of Tesla NZ content at https://www.instagram.com/teslakiwi/

Enjoy!

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paulspain

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#2717567 3-Jun-2021 10:50

Some great tips above. A key thing is insurance which can be quite expensive (some firms are charging well over $2000/year) so check the Facebook Group for tips on current best options which can be towards or beyond $1000/year depending on the company and your situation.

A fair number of Tesla buyers choose to have paint protection film (PPF) put on their Tesla when they buy it. I didn't go down that route and I'm sure after nearly 2-years my Tesla's paint work doesn't look as slick as if I had PPF protecting it.

I choose to get FSD as I'm very interested in the technology and discuss autonomy on my podcasts and on TV and radio. It's certainly not really 'Full Self Drive' right now but it's fun and fascinating to watch it evolve.

Also, if you use a referral link such as mine then you'll get 1500km worth of free supercharging (and so does the referrer). Here's my link: https://ts.la/paul20354

Paul Spain
Founder: Gorilla Technology, NZ Tech Podcast

Obraik

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#2717585 3-Jun-2021 11:16

Unfortunately, you'll never see FSD for free. However, there is suppose to be a subscription version of it coming in the next few months (maybe longer for NZ). It does include some handy features but tbh, I don't think those features should be tied to FSD and as you've suggested I wouldn't say they're worth the $11k price tag.

I would suggest looking for some mudguards, especially if you're in the south island where grit is used on icey roads. The lower section of the back door sticks out a bit wider than the front wheels and they can end up a bit sandblasted.

As mentioned, make sure you use a referral link when purchasing as you'll get 1500km of Supercharging credit for 6 months. Mine is https://ts.la/matt30351

Looking to buy a Tesla? Use my referral link and we both get credits

nzkiwiman

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#2718272 4-Jun-2021 13:36

I am very close to getting one as well; using 50% deposit and the rest over 4 years which is the biggest hurdle to my purchase.

I don't want to be "in debt" for so long which is the main reason I haven't pulled the trigger; it is hard to be certain that I will be able to afford the repayments every month for the next four years..

Obraik

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#2718347 4-Jun-2021 15:40

If your income is uncertain for the next four years then no, you should not buy anything that expensive. However, if you have a stable job and your monthly repayment would be less than 10-20% of your monthly income then it's not necessarily a bad thing to have it on a loan.

Looking to buy a Tesla? Use my referral link and we both get credits

Mark

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#2720606 8-Jun-2021 10:41

Thanks or the info .. and the referral links, I'll use one of them for sure :-) Will get my boys to pick one hehe

I'm off to procrastinate some more ...

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nzkiwiman

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#2720694 8-Jun-2021 14:13

Obraik:

If your income is uncertain for the next four years then no, you should not buy anything that expensive. However, if you have a stable job and your monthly repayment would be less than 10-20% of your monthly income then it's not necessarily a bad thing to have it on a loan.

I have a stable income and it will be approx 22% of my monthly income (well within budget, with "if things go wrong money to spare") etc etc

It just the value of the loan and the commitments that it ties to me; I had the same "issues" when it came to getting a $5k loan for my first car, and $3k when I needed emergency dental work while I was unemployed and I got rid of my credit card as soon as I got the debit card; aka, I just don't like having debt.