Quick Tesla upgrade question

[madoka]

I haven't shopped for Teslas, but I have a friend who asked me about it. The recent upgrade to the Roadster got me thinking.

Given the upgradability of the car, wouldn't the smart play be to buy the base model now and then upgrade the batteries to something better in a few years when the prices come down?

Kind of like buying a slower processor and then upgrading to a faster one when they are cheaper.

 

[tweakmonkey]

The batteries will never be cheap enough that this will make sense imo

 

[nedfunnell]

The batteries will never be cheap enough that this will make sense imo

What? It just happened with the Roadster. I mean, if you want to drive for cheap, get a Metro. But keeping some money back by buying the 60 instead of the 85 and hoping for second-gen batteries to spend that on later is reasonable. No, nobody is going to get a new pack for the amount they saved by getting a 60, but the new technology might come out at the right time and price point to make someone happy they stuck with the 60.

 

[bigi]

More Info Here

It might work as the battery cost is the biggest factor in Tesla price. The question is how much and when you will be able to do it AND if the savings are worth it.

 

[Viper GTS]

I guess it would depend on what you wanted out of the car. The variants you would actually want to drive (knowing your gtr habits) are not available with the smaller battery.

If you're just looking for a commuter car maybe it would be more reasonable. There's nothing particularly compelling about the S aside from the performance. The styling isn't memorable, the interior isn't up to true luxury standards, and reliability seems a bit problematic (though not out of line with German luxury I suppose). The performance, though, is unmatched.

Viper GTS