Those of you who’ve been following the saga with my Tesla Model 3 order since March know what a rollercoaster ride the process has been. Tesla has really streamlined the automobile purchasing process but has a few kinks to work out when it comes to delivery. I've made a list of pros and cons about the process and also some advice for people who'd like to buy a Tesla but that will come in another blog post.
My delivery date window hopped back and forth about seven times between March 24th and late July. A few weeks ago my VIN number populated on the Tesla app and I set my delivery up for August 4th. A few hours before I was supposed to pick up my car I got a call from the dealership.
They said the car was throwing an error code related to the brakes but it was only a bad brake caliper and I could still pick up the car after the faulty caliper was replaced. My wife and I drove to the dealership that day. Strangely, I was feeling super nervous but didn’t know why, something just felt “off”. We were greeted by a Tesla employee in the showroom and they assured us that the car was almost ready and the service tech just needed to take the car for a test drive and then it would be ours to drive away. We waited.
A half an hour later I saw a mechanic come into the showroom and speak with one of the sale associates. I leaned over and whispered to my wife, “I’m not getting the car today.”. Sure enough, the sales associate shuffled over to us and meekly said, “It isn’t going to happen today.” He was wincing a little when he said it as if he was bracing for a tirade of expletives.
Long story short, the issue was a bad electronic part (VC Control module) that operates the parking brake. They had to ship the part from Chicago and install it so we had to move the delivery date to August 10th at noon.
This time delivery went off without a hitch.
I finally got to pick up GreyMatter (what I named my car in the app). My wife came up with that name and I think it’s brilliant on so many levels.
After three days I’m absolutely loving the car. It’s whisper quiet, rides and handles well, and is so freaking fast. In fact, this car is stupid fast. I come from a long line of gear heads but I wasn't prepared for this. The first time I really stomped the accelerator my perception became "fuzzy" and the g-force pushed my sunglasses up from my nose to my forehead. Chill mode will be my friend until I get used to this power. After driving a Toyota Prius for five years prior to this, it'll likely take a good long time.
Also, the technology built into the vehicle is absolutely mind-blowing. It’s going to take a few weeks to learn everything it can do.
Most importantly, Amstel approves of the new car. He loves the glass roof and the air conditioning vents built into the back of the armrest.
I used the Supercharger for the first time yesterday and got around 150 miles of range for about $9. This is the most expensive way to charge yet still it was half the price of gasoline.
I don't have a way to charge at home now but am looking forward to getting a charger installed because I've heard at-home charging can cost about half to one quarter of what it costs to charge at a Supercharger.
I'm glad I ordered and took delivery when I did because Tesla announced yesterday that this particular configuration of Model 3, the Long Range, is now sold out well into 2023. You currently can't even order one on the website.
I'm looking forward to getting to know this car for the next few weeks and trying not to get any speeding tickets. I still can't believe this car is mine after so many years of wanting one. Dreams can come true.
All for now. Be well and enjoy your weekend!
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Let’s Keep In Touch
Nice to see that you have your Tesla finally. It looks great, I have never been inside a Tesla car. I would ask you to take a tour together around :)
Enjoy your new car mate, safe and sound.
Thank you! It's like no car I've ever ridden in, definitely like something from ten years in the future. I'd gladly give you a tour in it.
That is really awesome. I am so excited for you. $9 for that kind of range isn't bad at all! I wonder how much it cuts into your range when you floor it like that. I am pretty heavy with the accelerator coming off tops and I am hard on my brakes coming to a stop, so I would probably kill my battery life!
Thank you my friend. Hard accelerations definitely reduce range, as does driving over 75mph on the highway. Since it has regenerative breaking, hard decelerations actually feed more energy back into the batteries. The one pedal driving took a while to get used to. It feels like you're driving with the emergency brake on but once you get used to it is a far more efficient way to drive. I think I've only hit the actual brake pedal maybe three times in the past four days of driving.
Oh really? I guess I didn't know about the whole one pedal driving thing. I can see why that would take some time to get used to. They upped the speed limit on a lot of our expressways to 75 a couple years ago, so going 80 is a regular occurrence here :)
Awesome! You got it and its a splendid beast! The home charger will save a fortune when you get it. In the UK its about a fifth of the cost I believe, to charge it at home.
Looks sweet, enjoy!
Thank you! I'm really enjoying it so far. Yeah, I can't wait to get my home charging solution solved. Ultimately I'd like to get some solar panels set up and charge it that way with a Powerwall. We have a L2 charger going in right across the street from our building so at least I won't have to drive far to top it off in the meantime.
Solar panels! Awesome, then you can drive for free. If that's not living I don't know what is!
It would be very awesome to think nature would be powering your car. The only time I'd have to pay for charging would be for the occasional long road trip.
Looking very sleek. Amstel seems to be enjoying it, so what more could you ask for? Gotta say, the brake thing would kinda freak me out, but I'm glad you got it sorted, and I hope you have many smooth rides. Your wife, as ever, is so freaking cool. It's a brilliant name.
Thanks @honeydue! Amstel loves to ride in the car. He gets really hot now due to his heart condition but those AC vents on the back of the middle console work perfectly for him. My wife really did pick a brilliant name: 1.) It was purchased with money made from using grey matter; 2.) it has a ton of grey matter (processing power); 3.) it takes grey matter to learn how to drive it; and 4.) it is really, physically is grey matter. Brilliant! It sure beats "QuickSilver" which was my next top choice.
If Amstel approves, you clearly made the right choice.
Enjoy GreyMatter :^)
Amstel gets final sign-off on everything. : ). Thank you Vincent!
A big congratulations on your new ride. It really feels so good I must confess
Thank you!
Congrats to you, your wife and Amstel! Enjoy your ride :)
Thank you my friend!
Finally, the long wait has paid off, Eric. Congratulations on your Tesla car. I can see the happiness in your eyes and your writing. Even Amstel also looks very happy to drive a new car with you. Have a nice day my friend.
Yes, good things come to those who wait. : ) I'm having so much fun learning everything this car can do. Thanks and I hope you enjoyed your weekend!
Congrats! Amstel looks good in it too.
Thanks! It always takes him a little while to get used to a new vehicle. He loves to “surf” on those center consoles.
OMG!!!! You got it!!! Congratulations! She makes you look amazing!! Amsel looks pretty happy too.
I am really interested in solar panels. That would truly be cool.
Be safe out there with that speed demon!
Yes! I got it this past Wednesday. I have to drop it off for paint protection film tomorrow and I'll be without it for a few days. The Tesla roof and Powerwall are both super interesting. It will make it easy to live off the grid. Thank you Denise!
Thank you for sharing!! You are so cool. And then, you have a Tesla.
Enjoy!!
You're welcome, Denise! Thank you! I'm really not that cool, more of a nerd really. : )
Seriously. Nerd is the new cool? Doncha know? 😀
Too bad that wasn't the case in high school! Lol.
Fuck, yeah! Alright. I’ve been meaning to hit you up to hang out. Now we HAVE to get together and get pictures of our cars next to one another. That would be an epic Hive post! I’ll text you! Congratulations!
That sounds like a great plan! I’m off to Montreal soon then am planning my first road trip in the 3 after that but from mid-October to January we’ll be here. Reach out any time! I hope you’ve enjoyed summer, hard to believe it’s almost gone!
I'm so happy for you that your dream car finally arrived, just watch that speedo😉
Dreams do come true if you believe and work hard enough at it, well deserved Eric, enjoy👌
Thanks so much @lizelle! The acceleration is addictive. I’m learning to trust the car driving itself now (autopilot) and that’s going to be a long process. It’s so weird to feel the car steering autonomously!
I would also find it REALLY difficult trusting a car on autopilot!
However accelerating will be great on the open road when you do your Ohio trip, enjoy it Eric!
Oh it is difficult. It's not so much that I don't trust it to stay in the lane. It does that REALLY well. I don't trust that it will swerve when people driving by (who are on their phones) drift into my lane. Some day soon I'll test its defensive driving abilities.
Epic! I've been back and forth on electric cars for a long time now and just haven't been able to pinpoint the benefits. However the amount you can get off from a new buy today kind sweetness the pot. Congrats on being part of the tesla family!
Thanks! This just seemed like the right time for me with the used car market being so inflated. I’m glad I ordered in March because Tesla has raised the price of this car four times since I pulled the trigger.
This is an absolute beast, it's actually the colour for me. I think th wait was worth it. I knew Tesla was known for their quality services but then, this is sheer class, the design, the technology and the Finesse. It's safe to say you've put the money from the old car into better use. Wow. Congratulations again, hahaha Amstel approves
Thanks @josediccus! It's, by far, the nicest car I've ever owned. Amstel thinks he's pretty hot stuff when he's riding in it. Lol.
I think your old car was that good, but this one is sheer class, I was actually taken away. Maybe you could do a video of the interior one day.
This is really cool.
You must be having fun right now with this car..
The grey matter name is really partly because i am in the medical field.
Then I love the look of the car already
I am happy that you are happy.
Thank you! It's going to take a lot of grey matter to learn everything this car can do. Lol. I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Nice nice nice. I like it.
Have a lovely weekend
So exciting!!! Amstel sure looks happy and ready for a trip.
Thanks, my friend. Good to hear from you! Amstel is definitely ready to roll. : )
Oh good!! Finally! I hope it runs awesome for you, a "good things come to those who wait" scenario!
I love the color, and the name ❤️
Thanks! I'm loving it so far. It makes every other car I've driven seem primitive. I can't wait to take it on the first road trip but that won't be until late-September.
Woooooow! Lo hiciste hermano! indagando en Hive encontré éste post ya que no te conocía, al igual que tampoco conocía éste modelo de tesla pero el auto esteticamente es una locura! no me imagino el arduo trabajo detrás que tuviste que hacer para poderlo adquirir, estoy muy feliz por tí!
Woooooow! You did it brother! researching on Hive I found this post since I didn't know you, just as I didn't know this tesla model either but the car aesthetically is crazy! I can't imagine the hard work behind it that you had to do to be able to acquire it, I'm very happy for you!