• lower maintenance costs than ICE vehicles
• higher insurance costs than ICE vehicles
• possibility of long delays for repairs (moreso than other EVs)
• possibility of company going out of business, and impact on software maintenance, software updates, and parts availability (also moreso than other EVs)
June of last year, I finally got a used 70D Model S from Tesla since it comes with 4yrs/50K mile warranty for $47K to minimize the risk. Delivery experience was not the best but Tesla made it right.
I would occasionally drive my wife's MB SUV and just couldn't get over how dated everything felt. Decided to trade that SUV in for a Model X and now we are an all Tesla household (never would have imagined this). I traded in the Model S for a Model 3 last July since it's more efficient/fun commuter car and I grin every time I get in it and often find excuses to drive it. The product is that good. It changed the whole driving experience for me.
Maintenance so far has just been tires and washer fluid. Lower insurance cost through USAA. Zero issues with repair even though the closest service center is 200+ miles way in Salt Lake City.
Service is handled by two Mobile Service techs in our area because of the interestingly fast adoption here in the Boise, Idaho area... I schedule via the app they call within 24hrs to confirm and they show up either at our driveway or work parking lot to fix issues.
If they need it longer, they also drop off a loaner. The pundits have been saying that Tesla will never make it or will go out of business since 2009. Yet here we are in 2019 and YoY growth and sales are still growing. Amazon, Apple or Google will quickly snatch up Tesla if it ever get's in peril.
My experience has been eloquently put by Chamath Palihapitiya on this video:
Excluding the obvious that Model 3 is smaller and weighs less less, the drive units on the Model S/X are conventional induction motors.
The dual-motor versions of the Model 3 have an induction motor in the front and a permanent magnet synchronous reluctance motor (PMSRM) in the back making it much more efficient:
https://evannex.com/blogs/news/taking-tesla-s-model-3-to-get...
The new Model S/X "Raven" updates were able to leverage this new (PMSRM) drive unit tech which also improved their efficiency up to a record 370miles:
https://www.tesla.com/blog/longest-range-electric-vehicle-no...
https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/24/18513899/tesla-model-s-x-...
The Model 3 is more fun to drive since it's more nimble. Though the ride quality and cabin noise on the S/X is better. The S feels like a boat, while Model X feels like a tank. The Model 3 has improved battery cooling and "track mode" which you can't do on the S/X since both will overheat (2012 design?).
Lastly, the Model 3 is also the only Tesla that can take advantage of the maximum rate of 250kW that was introduced on the V3 superchargers which can charge up to a rate of 1K mile an hour.
> lower maintenance costs than ICE vehicles
I researched it prior and it seems people pay very little for maintenance. I've personally logged 13k mi in 10 months and literally had no maintenance expenses.
> higher insurance costs than ICE vehicles
There are so many variables to insurance pricing. Not to mention that you can bargain. I honestly have a hard time comparing. My rate is around 600 per 6 months.
> possibility of long delays for repairs (moreso than other EVs)
I've heard about wait times for particular parts. I haven't had an issue myself. I can't compare to other EVs, since I haven't owned others.
> possibility of company going out of business, and impact on software maintenance, software updates, and parts availability (also moreso than other EVs)
This seems extremely unlikely at this point. Should it happen, the car will still charge and drive just fine.
My question about long delays for repairs was regarding collision repairs, about which I've heard horror stories of months-long delays. I've never heard anything like that for vehicles made by big manufacturers.
Regarding Tesla going out of business, I wonder if they're more likely to get a bail-out if needed, since so many powerful/wealthy people drive their vehicles. Nonetheless, I worry about having a car that is so dependent upon software, and which currently can't really be maintained by anyone other than Tesla. Presumably Tesla would open up their maintenance protocols so other people could keep the cars on the road, and a cottage industry would pop up to maintain the vehicles.