Buying Guide for a Tesla Model 3 Second Hand

The arrival of the relatively affordable and efficient Tesla Model 3 makes switching much easier. In 2016, the ‘people’s Tesla’ forces the major breakthrough for both the brand itself and the electric car in its homeland America. Due to the enormous popularity in combination with the relatively low production numbers, Europe will only have its turn in the spring of 2019. Norway and the Netherlands in particular love the Model 3, although that is mainly because of the tax benefit.

Electricity costs have risen faster than fuel prices. Next year you will also add up and from 2026 the Tax and Customs Administration will knock on your door for the full MRB. Even so, the EV remains popular with frequent drivers, adders and motorists who want to get rid of fossil fuels for environmental reasons, especially now that the used car supply is increasing. Tesla adds something important to that: a cool image.

An early ‘Dutch’ Tesla Model 3, with XK registration.

First Model 3s from US

The Model 3 is the first EV with more than one million built. Europe initially got its Model 3s from the Fremont, California factory. Today, all versions destined for Europe come from the Gigafactory in Shanghai. 30,000 pieces have already found their way to the Netherlands. At its peak in 2019, Tesla took the number 1 position in the sales statistics with great force majeure. In 2022, only 827 Model 3s were registered. With the subsequent price reductions that Tesla implemented, ‘trade’ had to fall, to € 5,000. Bad news for the companies, good news for the prospective second-hand buyer.

We picked up a Tesla Model 3 Long Range AWD for this Buying Guide.

Here we go into technical points Model 3

The Tesla Model 3 is the youngest participant in the Buying Guide, the section in which we look at the strengths and weaknesses of certain models when they have reached used age. It was on the market in the United States three years earlier than here, so we should not be bothered by all the teething problems in the Netherlands. The reviews of mainly enthusiastic lease drivers and owners in our region show that they drive their car a lot. Here we ignore range, WLTP and kWhs and side issues such as charging points and budgets and focus on the points you should pay attention to when considering a second-hand Model 3.

Standard Range Plus, Long Range (AWD) en Performance

The Model 3 can be distinguished in the Standard Range Plus (SR), the Long Range (LR) with or without All Wheel Drive (AWD), and the Performance (P) AWD. The SR has no heated rear seats and fog lamps and has a simpler audio system. The P has a rear spoiler, stronger brakes, über-turbine wheels and a modified chassis. At the end of 2020, Tesla carried out the largest update, recognizable by renewed headlights, matt black window frames, mirror supports and door handles, an electrically operated tailgate, improved water drainage, better (sound) insulation thanks to double glazing on the side windows, new wheel design, new center tunnel without piano paint, scroll wheels on the steering wheel, a heat pump for better heating, improved performance and longer range on all versions. Later that year you could even tick steering wheel heating. At the end of 2021, the SR will be equipped with LFP batteries that you can charge to 100 percent.

The photo model, a Long Range AWD from 2019 and prepared by Dealer Auto’s in Emmen, has 115,000 kilometers on the clock. The first owner adorned his ‘Deep Blue Metallic’ (at € 1,600) Model 3 with a carbon-look plastic rear spoiler, had all the chrome removed and the rims coated in a light anthracite tint. Inside, he allowed himself a suede-covered steering wheel and had the matte wood wrapped with anthracite-colored foil.

Model 3 pretty trouble free

Most Model 3s go through life fairly trouble-free. Tesla enthusiasts praise the model for its relatively low running costs, long driving range, low maintenance costs, excellent driving characteristics, minimalist interior, good seating comfort, speech recognition, streaming services, smartphone integration and ease of use, despite the lack of physical buttons.

Paint quality downside

There are also downsides: the paint quality, the side windows that freeze quickly, the clumsy exterior mirrors and ditto door handles. You have to love the sporty suspension comfort, although it hardly bothers most users. Still, it’s something to watch out for on your test drive. The main miss is the tailgate: that should have been a fifth door for loadability.

Suspension arms problem

For convenience, we divide the technology into hardware and software. The hardware is bulletproof, except for one common problem: the wishbones. Almost every Model 3 user will have to deal with a creaking, grinding and thumping front suspension well before the 100,000 kilometers. The lower wishbones must then be replaced, because the balls of the steering knuckles are not properly sealed, so that salt and water find their way there, resulting in rust. Usually replacement is done under warranty and sometimes under leniency when it has expired.

The balls of the steering knuckles are not properly sealed, so that salt and water find their way there.

Model 3 serviced every two years or 40,000 miles

The Model 3 requires maintenance every two years or 25,000 miles. Service technicians replace cabin filters, check the brake fluid and adjust the brake calipers. In countries where salt is sprinkled, the car would even have to go to the garage every 20,000 kilometers. Tesla also has mobile service technicians. You can have the maintenance carried out on location via the app. Thanks to its regenerative properties, the Model 3 (and almost all of its peers) hardly suffer from brake pad wear. The discs suffer from corrosion rather than wear. Bad specimens can be recognized by pits in the surface of the material. Replacement is then in order.

Watch for leakage

Another point is leakage. So open the boot lid and inspect the luggage compartment for traces of water. That comes in through the sealing rubber or ‘just’ through the reverse so over the edge when you open the valve during rain or snowfall. Tesla puts a new rubber or sealant off the rim underneath.

Take out a good window insurance

The Model 3 has a fixed panoramic roof as standard. Be aware that it may burst. Usually it happens during the tightening of the roof racks. There are also reports of creaking and grinding when driving faster than 100 km/h. So it’s good to give your upcoming Model 3 a test drive. The windscreen also sometimes spontaneously shows a crack, whether or not caused by a stone. So make sure you have good insurance. If you insist on a black (Solid Black), definitely check the paintwork. This color in particular is sensitive to corrosion as a result of stone chips.

Large screen quickly got used to

Then the software. Initially, there were most of the problems and hick-ups. Tesla counters this by continuously performing updates ‘over the air’. This means that even the oldest copies always stay up-to-date in terms of software. Still, some updates the next morning for nasty surprises. For example, users are confronted with windshield wipers that work differently and functions that have ended up in a different place in the menu. Tesla has also not yet fully mastered the phenomenon of ‘phantom braking’, in which the car brakes sharply from Auto Pilot mode out of nowhere, as evidenced by recent reports from abroad. Furthermore, all Tesla drivers are positive about facilities such as the interior heating via app, the autopilot and the camera surveillance via the sentry mode. And that large screen in the center of the car: you get used to it in no time, even if you are a total layman.

Tires last just as long

Even though the Model 3 has been on the market for a short time, there are plenty of copies to be found with plenty of kilometers of experience. The supply is steadily increasing, but the prices are slowly falling. Every 10,000-25,000 kilometers you save a service of usually € 300 to € 400. At Tesla you register your car via app for a service consisting of a set of windshield wipers, windshield washer fluid and brake fluid. Every 20,000 kilometers the mechanics make the calipers normal. The biggest cost item is the tyres, but with normal use they last just as long as a fuel car.

The many enthusiastic users have long silenced the skeptics. It’s about the different mindset: you have to learn to deal with a different kind of keys (smartphone), operation (touch) and charging (at home or on the road). There are also plenty of reasons to forgo the EV: you have to stop every two and a half hours, a caravan weighing more than 1,000 kilos is not allowed and you can easily score receipts with a Tesla. The Model 3 has been on the market for too short a time to worry about battery degradation. When in doubt, you can have a test done.