My experience with the Tesla Model 3

jhurkot

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I wonder if said institute took into consideration battery life, recycling costs of said batteries, downtime on a trip due to recharging. You know, real world stuff.

Kind of a crock of $hit their resale spiel too. Who wants to buy an 8-10 y/o electric car that needs ~8g in batteries around the same time as iirc that’s the expected life and cost of the average ev no?

A 10 y/o focus goes for about 3-4g and engine/trans wise could probably last awhile yet figuring their numbers of 250k km. An electric vehicle with an original purchase price of about the same that needs batteries isn’t gonna be worth $hit.

In 8 years you think the price of batteries will be higher?
Model 3 power train is mint after 1 million miles.
Battery will last 500,000 miles.
It’s the safest vehicle EVER in the history of crash testing.
Software updates improve the car and add features. Gets better over time, not worse.
Maintenance is pretty much reduced to washer fluid and tire rotations.
But if you think that a 10 year old Ford Focus is a better value then you’re free to buy one.
 

Cdnfireman

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In 8 years you think the price of batteries will be higher?
Model 3 power train is mint after 1 million miles.
Battery will last 500,000 miles.
It’s the safest vehicle EVER in the history of crash testing.
Software updates improve the car and add features. Gets better over time, not worse.
Maintenance is pretty much reduced to washer fluid and tire rotations.
But if you think that a 10 year old Ford Focus is a better value then you’re free to buy one.

All of this mostly supposition on your part..... they haven't been out long enough to anticipate lifespan on any component, including the battery.

Electronics can and do fail... imagine what the CPU on your Tesla will cost when it craps out some day. The bearings in the motors will eventually wear out, and like most motors when they go it will be suddenly and the slop in the bearings will cause the armature to collide with the stator. Being constructed with rare earth magnets etc, the rotor hitting the stator will fracture the magnets, turning the motor into a mass of fragmented junk.
Your Tesla still has a suspension, brakes, steering, interior and exterior components that will break and fail. And being a very limited production vehicle, imagine what the parts will cost, because there will be little or no aftermarket parts support, similar to what the exotic supercars experience today. Napa doesn't carry brake rotors for Ferrari enzos.
The battery lifespan/replacement/recycling question is something everyone glosses over, because there is no viable way currently to dismantle or recycle them, and with few sources of the raw materials to construct them, its disingenuous to say that the costs will go down. Depending on Afghanistan, china and the Congo for battery materials doesn't leave most people optimistic.
I'm glad you're enjoying your new EV, its an interesting use of technology. It is however, very limited in scope and interest to the mainstream until a better energy storage system is invented.
 

jhurkot

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All of this mostly supposition on your part..... they haven't been out long enough to anticipate lifespan on any component, including the battery.

Electronics can and do fail... imagine what the CPU on your Tesla will cost when it craps out some day. The bearings in the motors will eventually wear out, and like most motors when they go it will be suddenly and the slop in the bearings will cause the armature to collide with the stator. Being constructed with rare earth magnets etc, the rotor hitting the stator will fracture the magnets, turning the motor into a mass of fragmented junk.
Your Tesla still has a suspension, brakes, steering, interior and exterior components that will break and fail. And being a very limited production vehicle, imagine what the parts will cost, because there will be little or no aftermarket parts support, similar to what the exotic supercars experience today. Napa doesn't carry brake rotors for Ferrari enzos.
The battery lifespan/replacement/recycling question is something everyone glosses over, because there is no viable way currently to dismantle or recycle them, and with few sources of the raw materials to construct them, its disingenuous to say that the costs will go down. Depending on Afghanistan, china and the Congo for battery materials doesn't leave most people optimistic.
I'm glad you're enjoying your new EV, its an interesting use of technology. It is however, very limited in scope and interest to the mainstream until a better energy storage system is invented.

The model 3 motor uses permanent magnets and is built in the USA at a cost of $750 USD.
Brake rotors? How can they wear out when they are never used?
Yes suspension components, wheel bearings, door handles, etc will fail eventually. The aftermarket will be there because there is money to be made. The CPU could fail but like all electronics what are the chances of its price increasing?

It’s a simple design with very little fluids, belts, chains, rotating parts, and sensors.

I appreciate your skepticism though and if you are ever between Revelstoke and Lethbridge you’re welcome to see for yourself.
 

BEL

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Just read all 19 pages. Interesting topic (or at least the posts that stayed on topic), thanks for posting your experiences and the updates, and I look forward to reading more.
 

Stompin Tom

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In 8 years you think the price of batteries will be higher?
Model 3 power train is mint after 1 million miles.
Battery will last 500,000 miles.
It’s the safest vehicle EVER in the history of crash testing.
Software updates improve the car and add features. Gets better over time, not worse.
Maintenance is pretty much reduced to washer fluid and tire rotations.
But if you think that a 10 year old Ford Focus is a better value then you’re free to buy one.

I predict the biggest hit to resale value with be the technology advancements themselves. Kinda like buying an 8 year old computer, it was great when it came out, but the new stuff is so advanced nobody wants it. Tesla and other in the market will kill the resale by making better and better products.
 

X-it

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Well it still is pretty impressive to have something this heavy run down a road for more than 2hrs, but even more impressive to me is the milwaukee impact guns ...whole crap, they are unbelievable what they can rattle off. It was painful to watch that whole thing. It was like watching an episode of Trudeau
 

jhurkot

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Going to need charging stations at staging areas now.

Charge at home(while you sleep) and fast chargers near highways.

I guess there are some pretty big power lines over top of Boulder and frisby parking lots though…
 
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