5 Years & 138,856 Miles on My 2019 Tesla Model 3 Long Range, Where Do I Stand Now?

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Why we still love our Model 3 after 5 years and ~138,856 miles

October 21, 2024, will be the 5-year anniversary of our dual-motor Tesla Model 3 Long Range (see our 2019 delivery day picture above). As of October 14, 2024, the odometer reads: ~138,856 miles. Please find below a review of my maintenance and repair costs across those five years. Don’t stop reading before you get to the elephant in the room. My editor, Zach Shahan, recently reviewed his Model 3 Standard Range Plus, also on its 5^th anniversary. You can use this article as another data point on the reliability of Tesla Model 3s and what you can expect it to cost you as time goes on. In my cost estimate, I haven’t included fuel costs, interest costs, insurance costs, or resale value.

The physical appearance of the car is still good, but not great. I love the look of the car’s front facia (bumper, etc.), and I never installed the front license plate, which would destroy that look. However, that nice, nearly flat white surface collects bugs like crazy, especially in moist Wisconsin. It also has some small dings that look like bugs where the paint has chipped. I would have to have installed an ugly front-end bra to avoid those chips. However, a new front facia for $650 would give me a brand-new front surface. I have the standard black vegan leather seats, which still look perfect. The car has two USB charging outlets under the front console which are no longer working. Fortunately, it has two in the back of the car which still work, so we plug our phones in there. Next time I need to go in for service, I will ask for the price to repair the front ones.

A big plus! No new service expenses in the last 20 months.

I am a huge proponent of green technology, and in particular electric vehicles. I am also a huge Tesla fanboy! Although, Elon Musk is doing his best to drive me away. I still get a big kick out of my Tesla Model 3. Reason #1: the tremendous acceleration. Reason #2: it now has “Full Self Driving.” FSD makes my car drive totally automatically — at least under ideal conditions, as described below.

Full Self Driving (FSD) Supervised V12.5

I have the spectacular Full Self Driving (Supervised) package, now on V12.5.4, which will totally drive my car to any location I put in the navigation almost as well as a good human driver. However, unfortunately, it still screws up occasionally, so I need to be prepared to intervene instantaneously. If I didn’t intervene on those occasions, I could have been in a serious accident. Also, it is a little bit too timid at stop signs and in heavy traffic. I need to give it a little help with the accelerator pedal at intersections. FSD has been improved numerous times over the last 2 years. For example: 1) It now navigates rotaries properly. 2) It goes around cars and obstacles protruding into your lane. 3) It now responds properly to construction barrels closing a lane of traffic on a 4-lane highway. 4) It slows down for speed bumps. 5) However, it still ignores 20-mph school zone signs and the double flashing lights.

My maintenance costs (I haven’t had any new maintenance costs since my report at 90,000 miles, almost 50,000 miles ago).

I know that in principal EVs are much less complex than cars with internal combustion engines. An internal combustion engine is much more complex than an electric motor, and they seldom run over 200,000 miles without a very expensive rebuild or replacement (rebuild cost ~$9000). In addition, ICE cars have very complex transmissions (replacement cost ~$5000). You also have exhaust and emission control systems, radiator/cooling systems, etc., etc., etc., which EVs do not have.

However, an EV has a very expensive battery, do I need to be worried about replacing it? I am treating mine with kid gloves and expect it to last over 10 years and over 500,000 miles. I almost never charge over 80%, and at least ¾ of my charging is done at the Level 2 rate in my garage. However, I have used Tesla’s fabulous Level 3 Supercharger network often for long cross-country road trips. The EPA range of my car was given as 310 miles when new. When your Tesla is charging, you can set the charge limit to 100% and your car will give you a battery range estimate. Mine is reading 271 miles now. Doing some quick calculations, 310 − 271 = 39, and 39/310 = ~12.5% battery loss at 138,856 miles. At 112,000 miles, I had lost ~8%. That means I have lost ~4.5% in the last 26,856 miles. That’s not great. I had hoped that battery degradation would be slowing down at higher mileage.

The drive system and battery warranty on my Model 3 ran out at 130,000 miles. Therefore, I am on the hook for anything that goes wrong going forward. I have solar panels on my roof, so when at my Utah home, I’m driving on sunshine. Driving cross country using Tesla Superchargers, your electricity cost will be similar to driving a gas car. Very fortunately, a number of our readers have used my referral code (see last paragraph), so, for the last year, I’ve been getting free charging at Superchargers. However, the heavy EV battery and fabulous acceleration cause tires to wear out more quickly than for an ICE vehicle, so that is an increased cost for EV maintenance.

In ~138,856 miles, the total cost of the tires and unforced out of warranty repairs for my Model 3 have been $5,290.15. For three of the four sets of tires, I bought economy tires, which worked out just fine. However, I had to pay ~$1,200 for my third set of tires because I had a tire go flat on the freeway and I just barely made it to the nearest tire store. I had no chance to shop for a good deal. Thus, my total cost is more than I expected, but probably not more than what I would have paid driving a gas car with costs for repairs, tires, oil changes, emission inspections, brakes, other miscellaneous items, and higher cost for fuel. The big savings will come going forward, when the gas car will see those costs repeated, plus the costs of a timing belt, muffler, exhaust and emission control system replacement, and eventually transmission and engine rebuild. If I live long enough, I expect to drive my Tesla over 500,000 miles. It is not unrealistic to expect the electric drive system and battery to last that long.

In Figure 2, we see my wife with our dog Zuni, our Tesla Model 3, and my e-bike on back at Zion National Park. We spend a good deal of the winter at our daughter’s home in Saint George, Utah, only 40 miles away.

Below, see my itemized service costs through 138,856 miles. Except for needing another set of tires before too long, I have had no additional service costs since 90,000 miles.

Conveniently, I was able to obtain the dates, mileage, and exact cost of my Tesla repairs from the Tesla app on my phone. Not conveniently, it appears to go back only 2 years. Find below what I paid for unforced issues with my car not covered by the warranty.

1. I had to replace the tires four times. The fourth set should take me to 150,000 miles. However, with winter approaching, I might get tires earlier so that I don’t get stuck on my way up the canyon to go skiing. I have paid $578.93 + $565.44 + $1252.23 + $644.15 = $3,040.15 for the four sets of tires.
2. I also replaced the cabin air filter for $29.00. The mobile service man didn’t charge for the installation. Also note: the cabin air filter comes as two units. I watched the mobile service man do it and I wouldn’t recommend doing it yourself unless you have the right tools and are very handy with DIY repairs.
3. ~April 2020 and April 2021: 4 wheel alignment twice ~$280.
4. November 3, 2021 (54,131 miles): Resealed right front upper control arm ball joint (was squeaking) — $49.
5. November 3, 2021 (54,131 miles): 4 wheel alignment — $90.75.
6. July 22, 2022 (73,149 miles): Removed and replaced Superbottle (battery and drive system cooling valve) because the car wouldn’t go over 50 mph — $672.75.
7. February 2, 2023 (88,705 miles): I had the mobile service man replace the windshield wipers for $23.00. This was a simple operation which most anyone could do themselves.
8. February 20, 2023 (90,029 miles): Removed and replaced PTC/cabin heater (car wouldn’t go into drive) — $1,148.00.
9. March 2024: Replaced the car’s floor mats. The original cloth floormat would no longer stay in place by the driver’s left foot. The Velcro was no longer working. I bought a set of rubber floor mats on Amazon for $49. These look much better, clean easier, and stay in place. However, they cover the rear trunk well, which makes it a little harder to use. Also, there is a slight buckle in one of the mats, but otherwise I’m glad I didn’t pay more.

Note: Ironically, in spite of all the high tech, my Model 3 has an old-fashioned 12-volt lead-acid battery that is used to boot up the electronics when my car starts up. This battery is supposed to last 4 to 5 years. Mine is still working fine, but I am wondering whether I should change it proactively. I believe newer Teslas are using lithium-ion batteries for this function. Lithium-ion batteries are lighter, are more durable, and should last at least 10 years. [Editor’s note: Tesla has a notification pop up on your touchscreen when it’s time to replace your 12V battery. It tells you to do this before your battery actually dies. —Zach]

Repair/Maintenance Cost Summation

• 4 sets of tires: $578,93 + $565.44 + $1252.23+ $644.15 = $3,040.15
• 4-wheel alignment × 3: $370.75
• Replace Superbottle: $672.75
• Replace PTC: $1,148
• Replace cabin air filter: $29.00
• Replace windshield wipers: $23.00
• New floor mats: $49
• Getting picky: 4 bottles of windshield wiper fluid at $2.50 each for a total of $10.00
• TOTAL: $5,290.15

Other Costs

The annual registration in Utah for my 2019 Tesla Model 3 is $318.25. Part of this is the electric vehicle fee of $188. Utah has levied this fee on EV drivers to make up for the fact that we don’t use gasoline and therefore don’t pay the road use tax. Utah offers a mileage-based fee which saves money for low-mileage cars. Mine is high mileage, so I paid the fixed $188 fee.

The Elephant in the Room

I just checked on the cost of my Bear River Insurance policy on my Tesla. In the past, Bear River Insurance was always low cost. I was surprised to learn that I am paying $3,089 per year lately. Therefore, for five years, my insurance cost could be as high as $15,000. This dwarfs the ~$5,200 I paid for tires and out-of-warranty repairs by a large margin. It’s clear that if I thought buying an expensive electric car would be saving me money, I’ve be sadly mistaken.

Please add your experiences with repairs on your Tesla vehicles in the comments section below.

Referral Program: If you are buying a new Tesla, Tesla has reactivated its referral program. If you find any of my articles helpful to you, please use my referral link: https://ts.la/arthur73734 (be sure to use it when you make your order). If you are buying a new Tesla and use my link, I believe you’ll receive $1,000 off the purchase price of a Model S or X, or $500 off the price of a Model 3 or Y. You will also get 3 months of Full Self-Driving (Supervised). Just be prepared to intervene immediately if it screws up.