jumping from Beemer to Tesla

onzlo

I've been lurking around on different EV forums and Facebook groups, I'm fairly settled that I want to make the switch. Just unsure about some things before I commit to anything.

I've my eye on a Model 3 SR+. Has pretty much everything I like and a good range. I have a 200km round trip commute to Dublin and I like the idea of that extra range as a cushion. There are a couple of new fast chargers on my route too, which is always welcome.

The Tesla configurator is a little confusing to me. VRT is listed as €3140 but is VRT relief for EVs deducted from the price? Or is the VRT relief something we have to apply for ourselves? It is pretty clear that the seai grant of 5k is deducted by Tesla.

Is there a time limit to apply for the home charger grant after buying the car? There is a possibility that we could be moving house in a year or two. I've my eye on a zappi because solar in the future is a strong possibility. Are there any other wall chargers that are good too? Maybe cheaper one for the time being just in case? :P

I'm looking at a 202 or 211 reg. So it's not really anytime too soon. Reason is, I still have finance on my 420d that I'd like to get under a certain amount. Probably could wait till it's paid off completely, but the change is definitely more want than need

Anything else I should consider before

Gumbo

onzlo wrote: »

I've been lurking around on different EV forums and Facebook groups, I'm fairly settled that I want to make the switch. Just unsure about some things before I commit to anything.

I've my eye on a Model 3 SR+. Has pretty much everything I like and a good range. I have a 200km round trip commute to Dublin and I like the idea of that extra range as a cushion. There are a couple of new fast chargers on my route too, which is always welcome.

The Tesla configurator is a little confusing to me. VRT is listed as €3140 but is VRT relief for EVs deducted from the price? Or is the VRT relief something we have to apply for ourselves? It is pretty clear that the seai grant of 5k is deducted by Tesla.

Is there a time limit to apply for the home charger grant after buying the car? There is a possibility that we could be moving house in a year or two. I've my eye on a zappi because solar in the future is a strong possibility. Are there any other wall chargers that are good too? Maybe cheaper one for the time being just in case? :P

I'm looking at a 202 or 211 reg. So it's not really anytime too soon. Reason is, I still have finance on my 420d that I'd like to get under a certain amount. Probably could wait till it's paid off completely, but the change is definitely more want than need

Anything else I should consider before

Price quoted by Tesla is the price you pay out of your pocket. All grants are taking into account.

No time limit for the home charger but, the longer you leave it, the risk you have that it gets removed or reduced. We have already seen this with the removal of the free charger to a 600e grant and also the reduction in solar PV grants. Apply straight away but have it installed in a way that it can easily be removed. You just stick and external socket on the end everyone’s happy.

Once range is good, then your covered. Performance wise, your 420d will feel Stone Age compared to it.

drunkmonkey

Hold off if your not in a rush there will be downward price pressure yet. They dropped 9% in china with another 20% mooted this year. Not something you want to see happen especially if your financing it.
The price of the SR+ is € 47,840, that includes all grants and delivery, it's the price you pay.
Test drive the new M135i while your waiting.
Only problem with waiting is grants may be scrapped but we should know well in advance.

unkel

With your huge commute and some social driving, you will save a fortune on fuel, which would pay for a lot of the depreciation of your new car, which would justify buying sooner rather than later. You'd save roughly €4k per year in fuel alone. And you will save pretty much everywhere else too. Maintenance, tax, tolls, etc.

MightyMunster

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Hold off if your not in a rush there will be downward price pressure yet. They dropped 9% in china with another 20% mooted this year. Not something you want to see happen especially if your financing it.
The price of the SR+ is € 47,840, that includes all grants and delivery, it's the price you pay.
Test drive the new M135i while your waiting.
Only problem with waiting is grants may be scrapped but we should know well in advance.

About the grants, the business grant was scrapped with only a couple of weeks notice in the last budget so wouldn't be so sure about knowing well in advance...

drunkmonkey

I suppose they've said grants will be scrapped so could happen anytime. Safe until Easter or May at least.

jhegarty

kceire wrote: »

Price quoted by Tesla is the price you pay out of your pocket. All grants are taking into account.

But watch out for the "Price after Est. Savings". This is not the price you pay and includes estimated petrol savings.

drunkmonkey

You have to select cash price to see the real price. Same if your looking for the business price.
Bruton was using the Tesla trick of saying the cost of the car is less as the fuel is less. You can imagine the uproar if other manufacturers started doing the same with petrol and Diesel.

Lumen

Suggest you hire one for a couple of days from UFODrive to see how much range you get in winter and how it suits your commute.

krissovo

Lumen wrote: »

Suggest you hire one for a couple of days from UFODrive to see how much range you get in winter and how it suits your commute.

I would highly recommend this suggestion and pick a rainy/windy day. A lot depends on what style of "Beemer driver" you are if you will have any range cushion from your commute in less than optimal conditions.

I got sub 200km's in a SR+ from a full charge in California before Christmas. Conditions looked optimal with 19 deg but a headwind on the coast highway a drop of rain and me driving like I stole it killed the range pretty quickly.

ted1

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Hold off if your not in a rush there will be downward price pressure yet. They dropped 9% in china with another 20% mooted this year. Not something you want to see happen especially if your financing it.
The price of the SR+ is € 47,840, that includes all grants and delivery, it's the price you pay.
Test drive the new M135i while your waiting.
Only problem with waiting is grants may be scrapped but we should know well in advance.

They just opened a factory there, I’d say the price drop in China reflects the cheaper cost of producing and supplying in country

ELM327

If you're coming from a bike to a model 3 you'll enjoy the comforts.
I'm sure you meant bimmer not beemer but still

Lumen

ELM327 wrote: »

If you're coming from a bike to a model 3 you'll enjoy the comforts.
I'm sure you meant bimmer not beemer but still

I've always called BMW vehicles "beemers" regardless of wheel count.

ELM327

Then you'd be incorrect.

Mickeroo

onzlo

Price quoted by Tesla is the price you pay out of your pocket. All grants are taking into account.

No time limit for the home charger but, the longer you leave it, the risk you have that it gets removed or reduced. We have already seen this with the removal of the free charger to a 600e grant and also the reduction in solar PV grants. Apply straight away but have it installed in a way that it can easily be removed. You just stick and external socket on the end everyone’s happy.

Never even considered installing the charger in a removable way. I've seen a few that have been, essentially, bonded to the wall. I have 2 sets of external wall plugs already there. One just happens to be beside the meter if that makes a difference.


Not in a major rush to change just yet. I just like to research big changes like this before I make a leap. Especially for something I really rely on, like my car.

Suggest you hire one for a couple of days from UFODrive to see how much range you get in winter and how it suits your commute.

I had no idea that there was a dedicated EV car rental place in Ireland! I've a test drive booked for a Model 3 on Saturday. I can see myself renting one for a day or 2 to get a better feel for things.

As regards to what kind of driver I am, I take it nice and easy on the motorways. A tip a few years ago quietened me down

I thought Bimmer was US English. My apologies :P

Orebro

Charger connected to external socket as opposed to being hard wired to house is highly recommended. I recently had to troubleshoot my charger and had it off the wall and into the boot of the car in less than 10 mins, same for putting it back on the wall. Without a socket it would have been a proper PITA.

Gumbo

jhegarty wrote: »

But watch out for the "Price after Est. Savings". This is not the price you pay and includes estimated petrol savings.

I thought everyone was aware of that.
I’m talking about the purchase price. The physical price that you have to pay.

CFC007

If you would like €30 off your first rental with UFO drive drop me a pm. I rented one back in November and it was a great experience

onzlo wrote: »

Never even considered installing the charger in a removable way. I've seen a few that have been, essentially, bonded to the wall. I have 2 sets of external wall plugs already there. One just happens to be beside the meter if that makes a difference.


Not in a major rush to change just yet. I just like to research big changes like this before I make a leap. Especially for something I really rely on, like my car.



I had no idea that there was a dedicated EV car rental place in Ireland! I've a test drive booked for a Model 3 on Saturday. I can see myself renting one for a day or 2 to get a better feel for things.

As regards to what kind of driver I am, I take it nice and easy on the motorways. A tip a few years ago quietened me down

I thought Bimmer was US English. My apologies :P

onzlo

Charger connected to external socket as opposed to being hard wired to house is highly recommended. I recently had to troubleshoot my charger and had it off the wall and into the boot of the car in less than 10 mins, same for putting it back on the wall. Without a socket it would have been a proper PITA.

This is something I'm definitely going to look into. Always thought chargers needed another switch in the fuse board because of the power they draw. What charger do you use? Is it a 7kw charger?

If you would like €30 off your first rental with UFO drive drop me a pm. I rented one back in November and it was a great experience

Might just take you up on that in a month or 2. Credit card needs to recover after Christmas

Royale with Cheese

If you're buying private then just pay the extra €10k and get the long range version. I bought through the business so went with SR+ to keep the tax bill down, but when the BIK rules end I might transfer the car into my name and trade up to a similar age long range. To even hit 75% of the stated range at this time of year you need to drive quite modestly, so with a 200km commute the extra range would be worth the 10k for me. The added 150bhp probably wouldn't hurt either.

Gumbo

onzlo wrote: »

Never even considered installing the charger in a removable way. I've seen a few that have been, essentially, bonded to the wall. I have 2 sets of external wall plugs already there. One just happens to be beside the meter if that makes a difference.


Not in a major rush to change just yet. I just like to research big changes like this before I make a leap. Especially for something I really rely on, like my car.



I had no idea that there was a dedicated EV car rental place in Ireland! I've a test drive booked for a Model 3 on Saturday. I can see myself renting one for a day or 2 to get a better feel for things.

As regards to what kind of driver I am, I take it nice and easy on the motorways. A tip a few years ago quietened me down

I thought Bimmer was US English. My apologies :P

I never heard of a charger connected to an external socket.
I thought they had to be wired back to their own RCBO in the fuse board.

onzlo

Royale with Cheese wrote: »

If you're buying private then just pay the extra €10k and get the long range version. I bought through the business so went with SR+ to keep the tax bill down, but when the BIK rules end I might transfer the car into my name and trade up to a similar age long range. To even hit 75% of the stated range at this time of year you need to drive quite modestly, so with a 200km commute the extra range would be worth the 10k for me. The added 150bhp probably wouldn't hurt either.

The LR model definitely something to consider. But I'm a little worried about insurance with such a powerful car. Had a claim in 2016 that drove my insurance through the roof. It's only normalising now.

I don't think I'd ever be caught out on the commute. There are some slow charger points available in work (2 for about ~20 EVs on campus. They have an active group for scheduling charging. And it's free) with plans to add more. Not sure when. But my commute passes about 4 ecars charging stations. I think I could be ok

Financially, right now anyway, I think the SR+ is the way to go.

onzlo

ted1 wrote: »

They just opened a factory there, I’d say the price drop in China reflects the cheaper cost of producing and supplying in country

I was on the phone to Tesla in the UK yesterday (got redirected from the garage).

I asked him about a price drop with the gigafactory opening in Germany. He said they don't expect a price drop until about 2023. Seems fair since they are only starting to build it this year afaik.

Creamy Goodness

onzlo wrote: »

The LR model definitely something to consider. But I'm a little worried about insurance with such a powerful car. Had a claim in 2016 that drove my insurance through the roof. It's only normalising now.

Do an online quote, you might be surprised. I had a claim about 7 years ago (minor enough €1000 damage) and my there's a €420 difference in my insurance on a BMW 116i (€780) vs a Model 3 Performance (€360). Both with Axa.

Royale with Cheese

My insurer has me down as driving a performance even though I asked to be quoted on a SR+, it doesn't appear to make any difference to them.

onzlo

Currently with AXA and rang them just now to ask about insurance.

I don't meet their underwriters criteria for a Tesla. Apparently, Tesla cars are usually above group 50 insurance. Which means that someone would need to be over 30, 5+ years NCB and some other reason I can't remember.

Fuming. I'm late 20's with 4 years NCB.

Any other insurers cover Teslas?

Checked 123.ie and they don't have a Model 3 listed. However, they gave me a very good quote on a Model S 75D