Tesla Model S hits the UK second-hand market - at a premium

The Tesla Model S EV – perhaps the only truly desirable electric car – has started to hit the secondhand market in the UK, but you’ll have to pay a premium.

You can have a Tesla Model S now, but it’ll cost you

The Tesla Model S is now, finally, starting to the UK in RHD, and it offers, for the first time, an electric powertrain that comes very close to offering the same convenience in use as a normal ICE car.

True, it’s a far from cheap car to buy – prices start from around £50k and go up to around £100k if you throw caution to the wind and spec up almost everything on the Model S options list.

But despite the steep prices, the Model S can be something of a bargain, especially if you’re a business user.

For the current tax year (up to April 2015) business users will pay zero BIK on the Model S – even if it’s a £100k Model S – although that will ratchet up over the next five years to 13 per cent (5% 2015-16, 7% 2016-17, 9% 2017018 and 13% 2018-19), but even at 13 per cent BIK that’s not much more than a third of the BIK on many comparable luxury ICE cars.

So it’s no surprise there’s strong demand for a new Tesla Model S, with Tesla quoting delivery times, realistically, of around 6 months.

But the first Model S’s are now starting to hit the market, with our old friends *Supervettura – purveyors of all things ‘super’ in cars and UK dealers for Koenigsegg and BAC – having one of the first Model S on sale.

Supervettura’s Model S isn’t quite top spec – it doesn’t have leather or the Performance Plus Package – but it is a Performance 85 model with enough extras to bring its list price up to around £82k, so it’s a model S with real appeal.

That’s down to the performance – 0-60mph in not much over 4 seconds – thanks to more than 400bhp and a big wodge of instant torque, and a range that’s quoted as over 300 miles on a full charge (less in the real world) and running costs that seem insignificant compared to a comparable ICE car.

But if you want to get in to a Model S now – not when Tesla can manage to deliver one – is going to cost you a premium, and in this case its around £13k – Supervettura wants £95k for their Model S.

But if you are a top-rate taxpayer, you’ll save the premium on your BIK before the end of the tax year if you’re currently driving almost anything comparable to the Tesla Model S.

*Disclaimer: Supervettura are a Cars UK advertiser

Keef Wivanef says

August 11, 2014 at 10:56 am

Be very careful with the brakes…there is a LETHAL DEFECT that Tesla is sweeping under the carpet.
This problem persists to this day and may well explain the large number of crashes (some fatal) involving Teslas ramming into the back of other cars.

Date Complaint Filed: 09/24/2013
Component(s): ELECTRICAL SYSTEM , ENGINE , SERVICE BRAKES Date of Incident: 09/21/2013
NHTSA ID Number: 10545230
Manufacturer: Tesla Motors, Inc
Vehicle Identification No. (VIN): 5YJSA1CN9DF…
SUMMARY:
THE CAR WAS GOING AT ABOUT 5 MPH GOING DOWN A SHORT RESIDENTIAL DRIVEWAY. BRAKE WAS CONSTANTLY APPLIED. THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. IT HIT A CURB AND THE MIDDLE PORTION OF THE CAR LANDED ON A 4.5 FT HIGH VERTICAL RETAINING WALL. THE WALL IS ONE FOOT AWAY FROM THE CURB. THE FRONT PORTION OF THE CAR WAS HANGING UP IN THE AIR. THE CAR WAS AT ABOUT 45 DEGREE UP AND ABOUT 20 DEGREE TILTED TOWARD THE RIGHT SIDE. AN ENGINEER FROM TESLA SAID THE RECORD SHOWED THE ACCELERATING PEDAL WAS STEPPED ON AND IT ACCELERATED FROM 18% TO 100% IN SPLIT SECOND. HE BLAMED MY WIFE STEPPING ON THE ACCELERATING PEDAL. BUT HE ALSO SAID THERE WAS A BUILT-IN SAFE-GUARD THAT THE ACCELERATOR COULDNOT GO BEYOND 92%. THE STATEMENTS ARE CONTRADICTORY. IF THERE IS A SAFEGUARD THAT THE ACCELERATOR CANNOT GO BEYOUND 92%, THERE WOULD BE NO WAY THAT MY WIFE COULD STEP ON IT 100%. THERE WERE SOME MECHANICAL PROBLEM THAT CAUSED THE ACCELERATOR TO ACCELERATE ON ITS OWN FROM 18% TO 100% IN SPLIT SECOND.
This complaint was published on dozens of websites, blogs and Motoring publications at about the time that the information came to light.
The comments section below each of the publications was flooded with posts that laid the blame squarely upon the driver’s gender, low IQ, choice of foot-ware, and inexperience in driving such a fine car.
Sample comment: Mark •
Unfortunately, they did not take an IQ test from the driver. That might have been useful information. After all, accelerating from 5 mph to such a speed that you can make a car climb up a wall, must have given you at least 30 seconds to invoke the brain and react!! Possible reactions:
1. switch pedals.
2. put gearbox in reversed direction.
3. destroy your driver’s license, as for sure you have not obtained it legally.

The Tesla Model S was found to be innocent of all charges.
Sometime later David Noland published a report on Green Car Reports of a near accident involving “unintended acceleration” and attributed the blame mostly to his large feet and unsuitable footwear.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1091002_life-with-tesla-model-s-is-pedal-placement-a-safety-hazard
There was no question of his gender or inexperience being a contributing factor but he did suggest that the close placement of the brake and accelerator pedals might increase the chances of such a mishap The comments on the article once again held the Tesla to be entirely blameless.
Sample comment:
Aaron •
So, depressing both petals causes unwanted action. Solution: Don’t do that.”User error” is what that’s called, not “design-induced operator error.” If anything, the design-induced operator error should be attributed to your overly large boots. Car manufacturers can do only so much to idiot-proof their vehicles, the rest is up to you.
It seems that David Noland did not lodge a report with NHTSA.
Taken in isolation neither of these incidents provides clear evidence that there was any defect with the car and there is no report of NHTSA requiring any inspection or recall of the cars.
It is fairly unlikely that NHTSA employees would trawl through the Tesla enthusiast’s forums as part of their investigations so it was left to your humble reporter Keef to dig a little deeper in search of the truth.
The sources of my information on braking issues with the Model S come from two forums.
The TMC (Tesla Motors Club) in USA and the Ebilforum in Norway.
Both of these forums allow posting only by registered owners or those who have lodged a deposit for purchase. These forums are extremely pro-Tesla and any members that make posts that are at all critical of the car can expect to be ridiculed and called a troll or worse.
Despite this danger some owners have spoken out about the braking problems that they have experienced.
The problems fall into two categories;
A/. Poor braking in wet conditions.
B/. Soggy brake pedal which sometimes falls all the way to the floor.
The problem of the brake pedal falling to the floor can also lead to accidental pressing of the accelerator pedal which can be even more alarming.
There have been many reports of the Tesla running into the rear of other cars. It is my opinion that these braking issues may have been a contributing factor to some of those accidents.
Dealing first with the wet weather braking issue;
The Model S like most other Electric Vehicles has regenerative braking.
This means that taking the drivers foot off the accelerator will cause the car to slow down fairly rapidly.
This is not a substitute for the hydraulic braking system which still needs to be effective for stopping rapidly.
The Tesla regenerative braking works on the rear wheels only and does not provide sufficient braking power to safely halt the two and a half Ton car in an emergency situation.
Because the brakes are used less often on an EV it is common for rust and dust to build up on the brake rotors and make them less effective particularly if the rotors get splashed with water.
Some carmakers provide automatic brake drying/conditioning to mitigate this problem.

The problem of a soggy brake pedal and a pedal that falls all the way to the floor has been reported on other makes of car especially those fitted with Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS).
This is usually on older vehicles and is a fault condition caused by a hydraulic leak or air on the system.
It is a serious safety defect and the car must not be driven until the fault has been repaired by a qualified technician.
ABS equipped cars need specializes diagnostic and repair to remove air from the ABS controller.
The complaints on the TMC and Ebilforum sites have reports from many different owners that their pedals do drop to the floor and, even more alarmingly, that they have been told by Tesla Service Centres that this is “normal” that it cannot be fixed and that it is nothing to worry about.
There has been some discussion that perhaps the Model S uses some kind of “fly by wire” system such that even though the brake pedal has gone to the floor full braking power is maintained.
I do not believe this is the case.
The Tesla uses a conventional Brembo hydraulic braking system with the vacuum assist to the brake master cylinder provided by an electric pump rather than the manifold vacuum on a conventional car.

The full discussion threads on braking issues are easily found at the TMC and Ebilforum and cover many web pages.
Sample threads are here:
http://www.teslamotors.com/en_AU/forum/forums/got-accident-todayanyone-experienced-brakes-failure
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/25791-Braking-in-rain
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/26063-My-brakes-need-a-morning-coffee-some-days
http://elbilforum.no/forum/index.php/topic,13140.0.html

What is remarkable about all of these threads is that instead of the reported problems being taken seriously and being properly investigated the complainants are categorized as “trolls” or “shorts” in a classic example of “shoot the messenger”

Comments

Keef Wivanef says
August 11, 2014 at 10:56 am
Be very careful with the brakes…there is a LETHAL DEFECT that Tesla is sweeping under the carpet.
This problem persists to this day and may well explain the large number of crashes (some fatal) involving Teslas ramming into the back of other cars.
Date Complaint Filed: 09/24/2013
Component(s): ELECTRICAL SYSTEM , ENGINE , SERVICE BRAKES Date of Incident: 09/21/2013
NHTSA ID Number: 10545230
Manufacturer: Tesla Motors, Inc
Vehicle Identification No. (VIN): 5YJSA1CN9DF…
SUMMARY:
THE CAR WAS GOING AT ABOUT 5 MPH GOING DOWN A SHORT RESIDENTIAL DRIVEWAY. BRAKE WAS CONSTANTLY APPLIED. THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. IT HIT A CURB AND THE MIDDLE PORTION OF THE CAR LANDED ON A 4.5 FT HIGH VERTICAL RETAINING WALL. THE WALL IS ONE FOOT AWAY FROM THE CURB. THE FRONT PORTION OF THE CAR WAS HANGING UP IN THE AIR. THE CAR WAS AT ABOUT 45 DEGREE UP AND ABOUT 20 DEGREE TILTED TOWARD THE RIGHT SIDE. AN ENGINEER FROM TESLA SAID THE RECORD SHOWED THE ACCELERATING PEDAL WAS STEPPED ON AND IT ACCELERATED FROM 18% TO 100% IN SPLIT SECOND. HE BLAMED MY WIFE STEPPING ON THE ACCELERATING PEDAL. BUT HE ALSO SAID THERE WAS A BUILT-IN SAFE-GUARD THAT THE ACCELERATOR COULDNOT GO BEYOND 92%. THE STATEMENTS ARE CONTRADICTORY. IF THERE IS A SAFEGUARD THAT THE ACCELERATOR CANNOT GO BEYOUND 92%, THERE WOULD BE NO WAY THAT MY WIFE COULD STEP ON IT 100%. THERE WERE SOME MECHANICAL PROBLEM THAT CAUSED THE ACCELERATOR TO ACCELERATE ON ITS OWN FROM 18% TO 100% IN SPLIT SECOND.
This complaint was published on dozens of websites, blogs and Motoring publications at about the time that the information came to light.
The comments section below each of the publications was flooded with posts that laid the blame squarely upon the driver’s gender, low IQ, choice of foot-ware, and inexperience in driving such a fine car.
Sample comment: Mark •
Unfortunately, they did not take an IQ test from the driver. That might have been useful information. After all, accelerating from 5 mph to such a speed that you can make a car climb up a wall, must have given you at least 30 seconds to invoke the brain and react!! Possible reactions:
1. switch pedals.
2. put gearbox in reversed direction.
3. destroy your driver’s license, as for sure you have not obtained it legally.
The Tesla Model S was found to be innocent of all charges.
Sometime later David Noland published a report on Green Car Reports of a near accident involving “unintended acceleration” and attributed the blame mostly to his large feet and unsuitable footwear.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1091002_life-with-tesla-model-s-is-pedal-placement-a-safety-hazard
There was no question of his gender or inexperience being a contributing factor but he did suggest that the close placement of the brake and accelerator pedals might increase the chances of such a mishap The comments on the article once again held the Tesla to be entirely blameless.
Sample comment:
Aaron •
So, depressing both petals causes unwanted action. Solution: Don’t do that.”User error” is what that’s called, not “design-induced operator error.” If anything, the design-induced operator error should be attributed to your overly large boots. Car manufacturers can do only so much to idiot-proof their vehicles, the rest is up to you.
It seems that David Noland did not lodge a report with NHTSA.
Taken in isolation neither of these incidents provides clear evidence that there was any defect with the car and there is no report of NHTSA requiring any inspection or recall of the cars.
It is fairly unlikely that NHTSA employees would trawl through the Tesla enthusiast’s forums as part of their investigations so it was left to your humble reporter Keef to dig a little deeper in search of the truth.
The sources of my information on braking issues with the Model S come from two forums.
The TMC (Tesla Motors Club) in USA and the Ebilforum in Norway.
Both of these forums allow posting only by registered owners or those who have lodged a deposit for purchase. These forums are extremely pro-Tesla and any members that make posts that are at all critical of the car can expect to be ridiculed and called a troll or worse.
Despite this danger some owners have spoken out about the braking problems that they have experienced.
The problems fall into two categories;
A/. Poor braking in wet conditions.
B/. Soggy brake pedal which sometimes falls all the way to the floor.
The problem of the brake pedal falling to the floor can also lead to accidental pressing of the accelerator pedal which can be even more alarming.
There have been many reports of the Tesla running into the rear of other cars. It is my opinion that these braking issues may have been a contributing factor to some of those accidents.
Dealing first with the wet weather braking issue;
The Model S like most other Electric Vehicles has regenerative braking.
This means that taking the drivers foot off the accelerator will cause the car to slow down fairly rapidly.
This is not a substitute for the hydraulic braking system which still needs to be effective for stopping rapidly.
The Tesla regenerative braking works on the rear wheels only and does not provide sufficient braking power to safely halt the two and a half Ton car in an emergency situation.
Because the brakes are used less often on an EV it is common for rust and dust to build up on the brake rotors and make them less effective particularly if the rotors get splashed with water.
Some carmakers provide automatic brake drying/conditioning to mitigate this problem.
The problem of a soggy brake pedal and a pedal that falls all the way to the floor has been reported on other makes of car especially those fitted with Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS).
This is usually on older vehicles and is a fault condition caused by a hydraulic leak or air on the system.
It is a serious safety defect and the car must not be driven until the fault has been repaired by a qualified technician.
ABS equipped cars need specializes diagnostic and repair to remove air from the ABS controller.
The complaints on the TMC and Ebilforum sites have reports from many different owners that their pedals do drop to the floor and, even more alarmingly, that they have been told by Tesla Service Centres that this is “normal” that it cannot be fixed and that it is nothing to worry about.
There has been some discussion that perhaps the Model S uses some kind of “fly by wire” system such that even though the brake pedal has gone to the floor full braking power is maintained.
I do not believe this is the case.
The Tesla uses a conventional Brembo hydraulic braking system with the vacuum assist to the brake master cylinder provided by an electric pump rather than the manifold vacuum on a conventional car.
The full discussion threads on braking issues are easily found at the TMC and Ebilforum and cover many web pages.
Sample threads are here:
http://www.teslamotors.com/en_AU/forum/forums/got-accident-todayanyone-experienced-brakes-failure
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/25791-Braking-in-rain
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/26063-My-brakes-need-a-morning-coffee-some-days
http://elbilforum.no/forum/index.php/topic,13140.0.html
What is remarkable about all of these threads is that instead of the reported problems being taken seriously and being properly investigated the complainants are categorized as “trolls” or “shorts” in a classic example of “shoot the messenger”