Today we disposed of our 2021 Tesla Model 3. That was really painful.
It was initially a consolation buy. We had been on a waiting list for a VW ID4 for a year, and VW just couldn’t get their shit together and delivery just kept getting extended. So we decided to pivot and buy a used Tesla, from Tesla, and hoped we wouldn’t hate it. Tesla was really the last EV we wanted, but it was an objectively solid car, and Elon hadn’t yet gone full Nazi.
We ended up with a dual motor long range Model 3 (an alleged range of 350 miles, but more like 300). Because we bought from Tesla, they software unlocked an “Acceleration boost” which made the thing go from 0 to 60 in 3.7 seconds in Sport Mode. I never ran it in Sport, because it was so damn fast it scared me. With great power comes great responsibility and I’m not responsible enough.
The car seduced us. Tesla was rolling out over the air software updates every few months and the car got better with time. That was a new experience for us. Cars don’t get better, they get worse. We really grew to love that car, despite Elon.
We were able to purchase their Full Self Drive option at a great discount. For much of the time we had it, it was little more than a “party trick”. Not to be trusted. Then a few months ago, Tesla rolled out a FSD update that was just phenomenal. It just plain worked and we started using it all the time. Actually driving the car felt like something of an imposition.
So it REALLY hurt with our second visit to Carvana. Now we are not only homeless, we are carless, which in SoCal is actually a step below homeless. We have a Mitsubishi ICE rental we’ll use until our departure, and while a nice car, absolutely sucks compared to driving an EV. Noisy, accelerates slowly…and it doesn’t friggin’ drive itself! How do people cope with this medieval technology? Yeah, first world problems.
We’re in a transitional stage that really feels awkward, and are looking forward to getting on the other side. I’m getting tired of writing about all this non-Paris stuff, and am looking forward actually writing from Paris. Soon. These are the end times.
