The Tesla Model Y Long Range has become a popular choice for electric vehicle enthusiasts, offering impressive range, advanced technology, and low maintenance costs compared to traditional gas-powered cars. Tesla Model Y owner and YouTuber Ben Sullins, who, after four years and 45,000 miles driving his 2020 all-wheel drive Long Range, told his story. Below are clear indications of his ownership costs and experiences with it.
When this owner bought the Tesla Model Y Long Range, the cost was about $63,190 including features like Full Self-Driving and 20-inch wheels. Ben bought his Model Y in March 2020 and has been using it since then.
Tesla Model Y True Cost of Ownership
Some of the costs that have particularly been keenly observed include the depreciation of the vehicle over four years. At present, a Model Y Long Range is priced at $38,000-$40,000 which stands for a $10,000-$12,000 depreciation. Compared to many other gasoline-consuming large SUVs, this sort of value loss is relatively small, because Tesla possesses a robust brand image and a growing global market for electric cars.
Charging Cost
The ability to charge the car is one of the hallmark features of electric cars that make them one of the best. This owner mainly used home charging solutions, and the electricity rate in the area was $0.13 per kWh. For 45,000 miles, the Tesla used about 12,000 kWh of electricity, which roughly cost $1,560 in total.
Extra expenses like using Tesla Superchargers were calculated and amounted to around $200. All in all, it costs approximately $1,760 for four years of using electrical energy, which is significantly cheaper than maintaining and fueling a gasoline car for the same distance it can travel. Ben said that he saved over $5,500 in fuel costs based on a vehicle averaging 25 miles per gallon at $4 per gallon.
Maintenance and Repairs
It is important to note that one of the most attractive features of EVs is that they require much less maintenance. In his account, this owner organized the car maintenance expenses and stated that he had spent only $2000 on maintenance in four years. He got his tire replaced for $2000, and no other extra repair costs were involved in four years as the vehicle remained under warranty throughout the ownership period.
According to Ben, there were no significant problems with the car. The interior and exterior were in great shape, helped by a ceramic coating. Overall the driving experience has been great over the four years. Despite a responsive and feature-rich experience, he expressed the desire for Apple CarPlay support to simplify app access.
Ben also pointed out that Tesla advises that you should only charge 80% for day-to-day use, which might not achieve the claimed figures. This is especially important for vehicles that employ nickel cobalt aluminum (NCA) battery packs rather than lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries which do not have such restrictions.
Conclusion
After four years and 45,000 miles, the Tesla Model Y Long Range has been an affordable and efficient automobile to own. Since the Model Y needs minimal charging and also has low charging costs with its features that continue to develop as time passes, the Model Y stands out as a contender in the market for EVs.
Ben pointed to great learnings that include the savings of fuel as opposed to traditional gasoline cars. His total expenditure on charging was small relative to the amount of money that could be saved on not buying gasoline. The general performance of the Model Y has been good with few complaints about the car and the company rarely complains about the expenses incurred on repairs during his period of using the car.
