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Used Tesla Model S Sedans Sell Faster Than Any Other High-End Used Vehicle (marketwatch.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the retained-value dept.

According to a survey conducted by Autolist, "used Tesla Model S sedans sell faster than luxury-car competitors do, and faster than other top-selling used vehicles from Motor Co. and General Motors Co.," reports MarketWatch. From the report: Used Model S sedans had the briefest time on the market of all vehicles included in the survey, taking, on average, 87 days to sell. That was about 5% quicker than the average for vehicles in the model's peer group, which included the Audi A7, the Porsche Panamera, the BMW 6 Series, the Mercedes-Benz CLS and the Lexus LS 460. The listing prices of used Tesla Model S sedans were between 3% and 5% above their peer-group average for the past year, after controlling for price differences among the models, Autolist.com said. "We would expect top-performing vehicles in a peer group to have prices [about] 2% above our adjusted expectations for the segment. But 3% to 5% above, and maintaining that level of performance over the past year? That's surprising," Alex Klein, Autolist.com's vice president of data science, said in emailed comments.

50 comments

  1. AP1 and free supercharging? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Perhaps AP1's higher current capability and free supercharging on pre January '17 cars helped this a bit.

    -- 3/17 Model S 75D owner

    1. Re:AP1 and free supercharging? by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 1

      Speed of sale is also relative to number of items on the market. But maybe that's a bit too complicated of a factor to consider. Keep it simple, stupid.

    2. Re:AP1 and free supercharging? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nah, the 'Free fuel for life' clause wouldn't have influenced any buying decisions. This is definitely an apples-to-apples comparison.

    3. Re:AP1 and free supercharging? by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Tesla guarantees resale value for the first few years too, so the used market will never offer cars for less than Tesla will buy them back for. Since Tesla's offer is average for a luxury car, the private resale value will always be above average.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    4. Re:AP1 and free supercharging? by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 1

      Tesla guarantees resale value for the first few years too, so the used market will never offer cars for less than Tesla will buy them back for. Since Tesla's offer is average for a luxury car, the private resale value will always be above average.

      Which really has nothing to do with the topic at hand. You may want to read the fine print of the Tesla 'guarantee' before you tout it.

    5. Re:AP1 and free supercharging? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If there is 'massive depreciation that piece of shit electrics suffer' then why does the data point to the 'piece of shit electrics' selling faster, and at a higher price than similarly equipped traditional fuel burners?

      Oh wait, were you saying that people buy things for a higher price faster because they depreciate faster? Because if you did, you're a fucking moron.

    6. Re: AP1 and free supercharging? by kenh · · Score: 2

      Used Model S sedans had the briefest time on the market of all vehicles included in the survey, taking, on average, 87 days to sell.

      Since when did selling a car in just under 3 months qualify as quick?

      --
      Ken
    7. Re: AP1 and free supercharging? by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 1

      Used Model S sedans had the briefest time on the market of all vehicles included in the survey, taking, on average, 87 days to sell.

      Since when did selling a car in just under 3 months qualify as quick?

      Hah. I sold my old 99 rusty Silverado pickup last year in 3 days.

    8. Re: AP1 and free supercharging? by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      They didn't say it was quick, they said it was the quickest luxury car. What qualifies as a luxury car? Any one that sells slower than the Tesla S.

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
  2. Not Surprising by Luthair · · Score: 3, Interesting

    For every other luxury car maker there are 20+ years of used cars on the market. So for those models they're not only competing with their own model year, they're competing with the previous generation. Further, I'm not sure if it holds true for Tesla, but higher end sedans are typically leased so there is a continual supply of cars a few years old entering the used market.

    1. Re:Not Surprising by Gussington · · Score: 1

      For every other luxury car maker there are 20+ years of used cars on the market. So for those models they're not only competing with their own model year, they're competing with the previous generation. Further, I'm not sure if it holds true for Tesla, but higher end sedans are typically leased so there is a continual supply of cars a few years old entering the used market.

      What is the definition of 'luxury'? Back in the day it was easy, electric windows, aircon, leather etc we're only found in 'luxury' cars, but even the Toyota Corolla has all that now.
      Personally, I think the Tesla S looks ok on the outside, but the inside doesn't have much luxury vibe to it. Very sparse and plain looking. The Tesla X just looks like some cheap Chinese garbage. It's all fat and egg shaped and has warped proportions. Compare the less expensive Porsche Macan or Audi SQ5 which is how a luxury SUV should look.

  3. The real question is... by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 1

    Why are Tesla owners selling their cars so fast? Are they in a hurry?

    1. Re:The real question is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Two primary reasons:
      #1- They are getting the new model
      #2- They could not afford it

      A third is probably:
      #3- Ex-Wife forced me to sell it

    2. Re:The real question is... by Smidge204 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      #2a - The lease is up.

      Lease expires, user returns it to Tesla who then resells it as a used vehicle.
      =Smidge=

    3. Re:The real question is... by TomGreenhaw · · Score: 1

      We aren't selling our 4 year old Tesla because we bought the 4 year extended warranty, so ours has 8 years everything but tires warranty. We don't have the hardware needed for autopilot though so we can't enjoy any self driving goodies the newer models have. If we weren't in belt tightening mode, we might trade it in anyway to get the self driving stuff...

      --
      Greed is the root of all evil.
    4. Re:The real question is... by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      It's interesting that you are in a "belt tightening mode" yet you still spend over $60k on such a frivilous enjoyment. Most people I know who are in "belt tightening mode" have vehicles less than $10K.

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
    5. Re:The real question is... by TomGreenhaw · · Score: 1

      Ahh those heady years when my kids graduated from college and I had some extra money... Now it's a priority to put more money away for retirement. Frivolous maybe - enjoyment definitely.

      --
      Greed is the root of all evil.
    6. Re:The real question is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They may think prices will drop after Tesla goes bankrupt, because of parts availability and how difficult Tesla has made it to let anyone else work on their cars.

  4. I want a Tesla roadster by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All other Teslas are butt ugly

    1. Re:I want a Tesla roadster by R3d+M3rcury · · Score: 1

      There are a few out there. The 2010s are about 60-70K, 2008's are running about 50-60K.

  5. Dirty Fuels Suck by rtb61 · · Score: 0

    People want electric vehicles they can hook up to their solar panels and battery pack and charge for free, excluding of course up front capital cost. They get the added benefit of a long term ego boost of being less of a planet polluter, not just exhaust but also noise, as a bonus they also get to thumb their noses at a bunch of extremely disliked corporations. The message is, stop being anal retentive, accept the design losses and infernal combustion engine plant losses and make the switch. Do it early rather than late else be crushed in the infernal combustion engine collapse fall out. Make no mistake, if you do not make the jump, China will fuck you over bad, real bad (no real oil sources, they are developing renewable and nuclear energy independence, their cities are extremely polluted and their cars have not really entered the international market and going all electric is a very smart way to do that). Once China electric car manufacturers gain that market share, trying to claw it back will be really, really, hard.

    --
    Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    1. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by Cmdln+Daco · · Score: 1

      "Make the switch"?? My car is a 2006 model, and it seems to be running fine. I will buy another like it when it quits working. How am I going to be 'crushed in the collapse?' You make no sense.

    2. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      so according to you, electric car owners are basement dwellers who don't go out during the day. Having a real job, I actually go to work during the day.

    3. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by Areyoukiddingme · · Score: 1

      "Make the switch"?? My car is a 2006 model, and it seems to be running fine. I will buy another like it when it quits working. How am I going to be 'crushed in the collapse?' You make no sense.

      Presumably when all the gas stations disappear overnight. Or something. Rubble rubble...

    4. Re: Dirty Fuels Suck by radiumsoup · · Score: 1

      That's, "Robble robble." Because he's a hamBURGLAR, who rob...oh, never mind.

    5. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Ahhh 2006. Quite the border between built to last and doomed to fail. You will make the switch to something soon. The days of keeping a 30 year old engine ticking along ended 30 years ago.

    6. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You should tell the 1993 4Runner in my driveway that, because it's at 25 years with no signs of stopping any time soon. The body will rust off before the Toyota 3VZE engine gives up, as long as the exhaust header recall was performed (it was).

    7. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by networkBoy · · Score: 1

      There's a handful of engines that are still out there like this.
      I have an 04 5.7 Hemi. That beast is good for at least 300K, but the rest of the truck is falling to bits already.

      --
      whois gawk date unzip strip find touch finger mount join nice man top fsck grep eject more yes exit umount sleep dump
    8. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by ledow · · Score: 2

      I have no problem with electric cars.

      But I literally bought a brand new car last year. It's petrol-based.

      The reasons? The electric models cost twice as much. They didn't go as far. I'm not a boy racer so the thing they do win on (acceleration) doesn't interest me at all (in fact, I think it should be limited because people will start to rely on it and expect it and it's completely unsuitable for "around town" especially given that they are so quiet).

      I wouldn't be able to kit out my house to charge it in any sensible time (solar in my area just isn't viable, I've had this discussion any number of times). I have a 100A charging socket on the outside wall, which runs an electric kiln. I'd have to seriously upgrade the house electrics and add another point to get to the stage I could sensibly charge an electric car even overnight. That would cost thousands, and mean getting someone to re-certify all my household electrics and maybe upgrade the incoming household power (100A, 220V max at the moment).

      I can't take the car on driving holidays. Sure, I could use something else, but with hours of charging gaps, including hours of trying to FIND an electric charging point that doesn't trickle-charge, just destroys the concept of travelling by car rather than commuting.

      I did 5000 miles around Europe in one trip, stopping only to camp. Even the camping time wouldn't be enough to charge at the standard rates, even if I paid the campsites for their standard charging points. That's only going to get worse when EVERYONE has an electric car as you'll need 400A feeds to multiple charging points, which is blowing all the green credentials out of the water (no, you can't "just charge on a schedule to reduce peak load" - peak load is peak because that's when most people want to use it!).

      Also, I can't name many electric charging points near my house. There are some, I know, but I wouldn't know where they are because they are so unadvertised and rare. The only one I *know* is in a council car park that closes at 8pm. There's another in a supermarket down the road. That's in a town with hundreds of thousands of people. By comparison, if I was to drive to those two places I would pass 4-5 petrol stations. None of those stations have an electric charging point, by the way.

      Then for most modern cars you need to lease the battery. Sorry, I don't do that. That's like DLC for a car. I buy outright, so that I own the vehicle.

      So, without any serious moral objections to an electric car (hell, we had electric milkfloats in the 60's doing the rounds on every street), with the money to buy a new car outright, with the capability to upgrade my house to make a new charging point, within miles of central London, in a huge large town full of people, with the knowledge that oil is going to run out, but with standard usage of my vehicle as I've done since I learned to drive... electric just can't even figure in my plans, really.

      Sure, I can accept tons of limitations. Use the car only for work. Use the car only in the day. Take the car and leave it charging every few days while I go shopping. Hope that there is always going to be a charging space. Spend a lot of money on my house. Always have to plan to use it for an airport run in the middle of the night.

      But then I'm not only out lots of money, pretty much the same amount in fact, but I also have lots of inconvenience and life-changes to make. And I'm reliant on public transport, air travel, renting cars on holiday, etc. etc. etc.

      Technically, it would actually translate to "stop using your car" as the most efficient way of helping, which I could have done 20+ years ago if that was something viable, and which I wanted to actually do.

      I'm sure, in time, when the power companies wake up and put nuclear everywhere, we can all be upgraded to 1000A incoming power for ordinary housing, and then old cars will all die because there is no compelling reason to keep them. But, by my calculations, that's AT LEAST th

    9. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A manual transmission is non-negotiable for me, so no EV ever.

    10. Re:Dirty Fuels Suck by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      Less of a planet polluter? I've never seen the final decision on whether the manufacturing of the vehicle and the use of large rare-mineral magnets overcomes the positive effect of electric power or not.

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
  6. Dipshit slashvertisement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    n/t

  7. Luxury? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    the model's peer group, which included the Audi A7, the Porsche Panamera, the BMW 6 Series, the Mercedes-Benz CLS and the Lexus LS 460.

    Tesla don't make luxury cars, they make expensive base model vehicles. Calling the A7 or the Panamera a "peer" of the Model S is ridiculous.

    The only similarity is price - in terms of quality of construction, actual luxury, materials used, the Audi or the Porsche severely beat the Tesla. A Model S is worse than a Toyota Camry and only costs the same as an A7 because of the expensive batteries.

    It's like sticking a price tag of $1,000 on a Big Mac and then claiming it's a peer of a Michelin starred restaurant meal just because they both now cost the same.

    1. Re:Luxury? by green1 · · Score: 1

      You're somewhat right, but it's not quite that simple.

      The Model S does not have the same level of fit and finish, or materials, or comfort of any of those vehicles. But none of those vehicles have the same level of tech in their vehicles either. Lane keeping and adaptive cruise control on those other vehicles is several years behind that of the Tesla (though Tesla is working hard to fix that by removing functionality from the Teslas... but that's another rant), and the app and internet integration aren't as good in any of those other vehicles either, and the raw power, and instantaneous application of it that you get from a Tesla can't be compared to any internal combustion vehicle.

      I would never describe my Tesla as a luxury vehicle, it simply isn't, but you can't really compare it to lower end vehicles either as it does offer some amazing features that they don't. Tesla themselves don't call it a luxury vehicle either though, they call it a "premium" vehicle, and I have to say that's a better description. Beyond that, The Tesla is a very large sedan, apart from height it's probably a physically larger vehicle than any of the vehicles they're comparing to, and that's another factor often defined as part of the class.

      I personally don't think they're in the same class, but not in the one is better than the other type of way, more in the apples to oranges kind of way. Just like a sports car and a pickup truck don't appeal to the same buyers, a Model S doesn't appeal to someone looking for a high end luxury car, just like those same cars don't really appeal to someone looking for the tech and the power train of the Tesla.

      Luckily we still have choices, and not everyone needs to drive the same type of vehicle.

      People love to compare things though, and it's not easy to find something to compare the Tesla too as it's quite simply not like anything else out there, that's not always a good thing, but nor is it always a bad thing either, it's simply what it is. As much as I wouldn't compare the vehicle to a luxury sedan, I think in this narrow use case (how well they hold resale value), it may actually be a decent place to start, simply because it's easiest to see how a $100,000 car depreciates when compared to other $100,000 cars.

    2. Re:Luxury? by Sique · · Score: 1
      The peer group is defined solely based on price, not on features. Yes, that's a common mistake. No, you could have known better.

      The decision of the buyer is: I have $150,000 or $200,000, which I want to spend on a car. And then there is the mentioned peer group of cars there, and apparently (if you look at the raw sale numbers), people with $150,000 or $200,000 at hand to spend on a car decide for a Tesla S more often than any other car in the same price range, making the Tesla S the most sold car in that price range. And apparently, it's quite easy to resell a used Tesla S.

      You can make what you want out of it. But that's just the facts.

      --
      .sig: Sique *sigh*
    3. Re:Luxury? by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      Many people don't need the help of driving assist so they're not very likely to count that as a luxury item. You have to really respect tech to buy a car for tech features. As it was I have a van with regular tech such as automatically opening doors and people told me I was crazy because it would cost me a lot to fix when it broke.

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
    4. Re:Luxury? by green1 · · Score: 1

      And some people love driver assistance features and would never buy a car without them.

      Just because you personally don't want them doesn't mean you can ignore their value to others.

      Different features appeal to different people, that's why not everyone drives the same make and model of car.

  8. Thank you editor by frovingslosh · · Score: 1

    Thanks BeauHD. It is so interesting to know that Teslas sell better than high end cars from Motor Co. As a special thank-you, you don't have to read or edit the next story that you promote. (I figured you were not going to start now anyway.)

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
  9. small market by Tom · · Score: 2

    They are selling fast because there are not many on the market. I checked recently, as I'm shopping for a new car, and the closest one was 150 km away from me. And there were about 5 or 6 in the entire german speaking area (Germany, Austria, Switzerland).

    --
    Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
  10. Best time to sell your sister^W by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    iphone is when the battery won't last very long. Seller knows. Buyer doesn't. Costs a LOT to replace the battery. Hello Tesla used-cars buyers! Have I got a bridge^W car for you!

    1. Re:Best time to sell your sister^W by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      FUD.

  11. Re:Mouthful of Elong MuskKK by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So, a person?

  12. Basic economics by MMC+Monster · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Sounds like basic economics of supply and demand.

    The total number of Tesla Model S vehicles is small. Therefore the number on the second hand market is small. Add that to the hype of the car and associated demand and you end up with user cars that sell fast at a premium of similar priced luxury cars.

    As a Tesla owner, I'm not sure I would trust a Tesla being bought from another owner and would certainly pay a premium for a "certified preowned" model. This is because a damaged battery (due to draining it completely) is not something that would be obvious on physical inspection or even test drives.

    While Tesla batteries are warrantied for 8 years/unlimited miles, the warranty is void if the battery is damaged by draining it to 0%.

    --
    Help! I'm a slashdot refugee.
    1. Re:Basic economics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      the warranty is void if the battery is damaged by draining it to 0%.

      I'm surprised the car would let you do that?

      I guess if it sat parked for a year or so maybe?

    2. Re: Basic economics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nothing like driving around a in old cellphone. Maybe if I install lineage os it'll get better battery life?

    3. Re:Basic economics by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      For a regular car battery in -22F or so, that can happen in a week. Don't know if Tesla batteries are more or less susceptible in the cold.

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
  13. News for nerds, stuff that matters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What is this article doing here?