[Steverino]

At the company’s November 17 Investor Day 2022 General Motors president Mark Reuss said that GM service departments have now repaired more than 11,000 Teslas. “That’s a growing business for us. I gotta say it’s a new business,” he said.


That's surprising. I wonder what type of repairs? My guess, traditional car stuff: wheels, tires, brakes, fluids, headlights, dents and the like. Diagnosing a motor, battery or software issue is likely not on the menu.

Service is reportedly a soft target for dealers to shoot at depending on where the Tesla owner lives and how busy the Tesla service center is. And in a year or two, "feel free to browse our Silverado EV, Equinox EV, Blazer EV (or depending on the dealer, Hummer EV, Cadillac Lyriq EV, Sierra EV. Buick Electra EV) while you wait..."

 

[Owl]

So THAT's why my local Chev dealer here in southern Ontario has had its used lot full of Teslas for the past year, and a sales prep facility full of Teslas. I mean, half to two-thirds of all the vehicles on the lots are Teslas.

 

[Bill Step]

I see lots of used tesla's for sale around here too.whats everyone doing w/ them,,leasing??

 

[dvb]

“That’s a growing business for us. I gotta say it’s a new business,”

You bet! Spying is surely a new business 😋

 

[Steverino]

"Where do you get your Tesla serviced, Bob?"

 

[begreen]

Makes sense. Tesla's service does not have a good reputation in some areas.

 

[obermd]

I see lots of used tesla's for sale around here too.whats everyone doing w/ them,,leasing??

Yes - it's the only way most Tesla drivers can afford a $60 thousand car.

 

[scottf200]

That's surprising. I wonder what type of repairs? My guess, traditional car stuff: wheels, tires, brakes, fluids, headlights, dents and the like. Diagnosing a motor, battery or software issue is likely not on the menu.

FYI, there is a subscription you can now get from Tesla to get access to some of their tools.
I've had a mobile 3rd party EV tech come to my place to do brake related work when I didn't do annual 'clean and lube' regularly (pin lubed, etc). Anyway had to get my rotors and brakes replaced on the front. An example of the service usage was that after doing the front brakes there is a built-in procedure for disabling the regen as well as some 'high speed' to hard brake counting to 'set' the pads.

Tesla Service

service.tesla.com

Diagnostic Software
Includes: Toolbox 3 Diagnostic Software & Standalone HV Battery Shipping Evaluation Tool (Model S, 3, X, Y)

 

[underest]

Yes - it's the only way most Tesla drivers can afford a $60 thousand car.

That's funny because the estimates for Tesla leases are about 20% of their new car sales. Tesla leases aren't great, hence the low number - not to mention, many benefits of leasing aren't applicable with Tesla. FWIW, a $60K Model 3 Performance leases for approximately $940/month, or you can traditionally finance for $1022/month with the same cash due at signing.

I won't get into the subject of leasing vs. financing, but I don't know why anyone wouldn't lease...even if you wanted to buy the car outright. All the risk is on the bank!

 

[Steverino]

I don't know why anyone wouldn't lease...even if you wanted to buy the car outright. All the risk is on the bank!

I buy and hold and I avoid interest payments. What risk are you referring to?

 

[obermd]

That's funny because the estimates for Tesla leases are about 20% of their new car sales. Tesla leases aren't great, hence the low number - not to mention, many benefits of leasing aren't applicable with Tesla. FWIW, a $60K Model 3 Performance leases for approximately $940/month, or you can traditionally finance for $1022/month with the same cash due at signing.

I won't get into the subject of leasing vs. financing, but I don't know why anyone wouldn't lease...even if you wanted to buy the car outright. All the risk is on the bank!

When you lease you finish your payments and have absolutely nothing to show for them. Also, I ran into an issue in Virginia while I was in the Air Force. Virginia considered leased vehicles to be owned by the leasing company so military members from out of state didn't get the benefit of no property tax under Federal Laws.

 

[underest]

I buy and hold and I avoid interest payments. What risk are you referring to?

When you lease, the bank makes a determination of what the value of the vehicle will be in a set time frame. Commonly, 3 years old, with 30K miles. Your lease payments are paying the difference between the purchase price of the vehicle and the banks' pre-determined residual value. If the vehicle is worth more than that residual value, trade it in. I've done it on my last 4 cars. My best one was a 2012 Ford Edge Sport - I drove it for 2 years, 10 months, and paid a total ownership cost of less than $2.4K. Residual value/buy out was $24,900. I traded it in at a BMW dealership for $38K.

If the value is substantially less than the residual, you can turn it in and walk away from that large depreciation...OR, if you love the car, you can re-negotiate the "used" purchase price and do a traditional finance. My advice to anyone is when you lease, you get TWO opportunities to negotiate and save vs. one. Additionally, let's say you get in a car accident and while the car isn't totaled, it's had some serious damage...bank now takes that loss of value, not you.

To each their own, and do what works best for you, but I don't ever see any reason to not lease, unless you absolutely trash your cars and neglect maintenance. We all know the first few years of depreciation are the largest, so why would you lock that in to a 5, 6, 7 year loan when you don't have to? Let the bank eat that.

 

[underest]

When you lease you finish your payments and have absolutely nothing to show for them. Also, I ran into an issue in Virginia while I was in the Air Force. Virginia considered leased vehicles to be owned by the leasing company so military members from out of state didn't get the benefit of no property tax under Federal Laws.

You actually do...if there is equity in the car, trade it in, and pocket the cash. Even with a traditional finance, 3 years into a 5 year loan, you have "nothing" to show for it. The bank still owns the entire car, not just 2/5 of it.

If there isn't any equity and it's "upside down", re-negotiate the new "used" purchase price and keep it...or don't and walk away. Not sure of your specific issue with property tax and a leased vehicle, or how that factors into your tax rate since it's all pre-determined in the state the vehicle was registered.

For simplicity:

Scenario 1: Let's say you negotiate the purchase price on a new 2023 Bolt EUV at $36K out the door for a 3 year, 15K mile lease. GM Financial determines that in 3 years, a Bolt EUV with 45K miles will be worth $18,500. Your lease payment is $500/month. Speed ahead to December 2025 - Come to find out, either you didn't drive as many miles or the Bolt held its value extremely well. The trade in value is of your Bolt is $24,500. Now you have $6,000 in equity that can go straight to you. Or, buy out the residual knowing you got a great deal on a Bolt for the years to come.

Scenario 2: Let's say you negotiate the purchase price on a new 2023 Bolt EUV at $36K out the door for a 3 year, 15K mile lease. GM Financial determines that in 3 years, a Bolt EUV with 45K miles will be worth $28,500. Your lease payment is $375/month. Speed ahead to December 2025 - Come to find out, the Bolt didn't hold its value well...maybe you had an accident or two that's dropping the value further. The market value of the Bolt is only $17,500. You have an opportunity to walk away...or an opportunity to buy the vehicle outright, knowing the new market value. So you now were able to negotiate an additional $10K in savings, you would've never had at the front end of the first deal. Again, you get 2 opportunities to save and negotiate. Also, FWIW, this isn't applicable to current Tesla leases...they don't let you buy them out anymore. Hmmm...think about why.

Again, do whatever you think is best for your specific situation, but I stand behind leasing each and every day, even if you know up front you want the car for 5-10+ years.

As the age-old saying goes, "If it appreciates, buy it. If it depreciates, lease it."