Buying a Tesla is unlike any other car buying experience. Check the guide below for a few tips to keep in mind.

Schedule a Test Drive

The Tesla driving experience is totally different than your standard gas vehicle. Visit your local Tesla store to schedule a test drive to get a feel for the car. We had the car for 30 minutes and the sales rep didn’t ride with us.

Know the differences between Model 3 options

The Model 3 comes in 3 different options at various price points.

Standard Plus 

• 283 total horse power, 0-60 mph in 5.3 seconds, top speed is 140 mph, 263 mile range on the battery per full charge,

• Rear-Wheel Drive, “Partial” Premium interior, Supercharger max charging speed is 170 Kilowatts per hour (170 kWh) MAX, total battery size is 54 Kilowatts (or labeled as 54 kW), and the onboard charger max is 7.6 kW or 32 Amps (or labeled as 32A). 

• The battery and drive unit have an 8 year or 100,000 mile warranty.

  Long Range

• 450 total horse power, 0-60 mph in 4.2 seconds, top speed is 145 mph, 353 mile range on the battery per full charge

• All-Wheel drive, Full Premium interior, Supercharger max charging speed is 250 Kilowatts per hour MAX, total battery size is 82 Kilowatts, and the onboard charger max is 11.5 kW or 48 Amps (48A). 

• The LR (Tesla folks use “LR” for long range) also has more speakers.  It has 14 speakers, 1 subwoofer, and 2 amplifiers for a full audio sound. 

• Comes with LED fog lights, the S+ doesn’t. 

• Has 5 heated seats, the S+ only comes with 2 (the front two seats). 

• Comes with 1 year of free Premium 4G internet connectivity, the S+ comes with a free 30 day subscription. Both cost $10 a month. 

• The battery and drive unit have an 8 year or 120,000 mile warranty

  Performance Model

• Has a little over 500 total horse power, 0-60 mph in 3.2 seconds, top speed is 162 mph, 315 mile range on the battery per full charge, ALL-Wheel drive

• Full Premium interior

• Supercharger max charging speed is 250 Kilowatts per hour MAX, total battery size is 82 Kilowatts, and the onboard charger max is 11.5 kW or 48 Amps (48A). 

• This model has more speakers than the S+.  It has 14 speakers, 1 subwoofer, and 2 amplifiers for a full audio sound. 

• It also comes with LED fog lights, the S+ doesn’t. 

• The Performance comes with 5 heated seats, the S+ only comes with 2 (the front two seats).  The Performance comes with 1 year of free Premium 4G internet connectivity, the S+ comes with a free 30 day subscription.  After that they are both $10 a month. 

• The battery and drive unit has an 8 year or 120,000 mile warranty.

Keep Production Times in Mind

If you’re looking to purchase a brand new Tesla, then keep Tesla’s production schedules in mind. Tesla only delivers during certain months (they “boost” their production numbers at the end of their business quarter) so it’s important to know those times before you schedule a build. When we visited the store in January, they were working on Model 3 deliveries for March-April. We would’ve had to wait until June for the next production drop if we weren’t ready to purchase at that time.

Tesla Store Isn’t A Car Dealership

This is where things can get a little tricky. Since Tesla isn’t a dealership and simply the manufacturer of the car, they won’t run any your financing paperwork. Tesla has an in-house partnership with Alliant Credit Union if you want to finance through them.

Shop Around for Interest Rates

Many credit unions offer financing for Tesla’s. It’s important to choose a credit union that’s knowledgeable and familiar with the Tesla purchasing process. Keep in mind that some lenders (for instance Capital One) don’t offering financing for Tesla’s purchased through Tesla.

Drop that $100 Deposit!

Did you know that a $100 starts the process on getting your Tesla built? Yup, that’s all it takes to start. After finishing our test drive, we put down our deposit and picked out all the options we wanted.