Tomorrow will mark 10 months to the day since we took delivery of Scarlett, our Long Range, Rear Wheel Drive Tesla Model 3. We also just passed the 10,000 mile mark driving only on electricity. I had always thought it would be momentous to blog about this first 10,000 miles.
Well, as it turns out, it’s kind of average.
Yes, we LOVE our all-electric car. I don’t think we could ever go back to a gas motor again. There are so many things to like about the car and so little to criticize.
It is an amazing piece of technology and engineering. It is unbelievably quiet. It is incredibly quick. We can drive long distances for very little money. There is virtually no maintenance (I did have Les Schwab top off the tire pressure the other day).
So after blogging already about so many aspects of the car, what do you say after 10,000 miles?
Well, first, the only times we’ve stopped at a gas station in almost the last year have been for some snacks or to use the restrooms. Part of me has wanted to pull up to a pump, roll down the window and say “fill it with premium” just to see what they say. But Brenda won’t let me…
I do NOT miss the smell of gasoline at all.
Also, our $62/month average gas bill has dropped to about $8 or so as near as I can tell. Where we charge at home overnight or on sunny weekend days (fewer now this time of year), it’s kind of hard to separate out how much is going to Scarlett’s appetite. We simply plug her in for a few hours overnight or when we aren’t planning on driving for a while and when we’re ready to go, unplug and drive. Simple.
Yes, we’ve had a few minor service issues, but we have a Tesla Mobile Ranger at our disposal. What that means is we text him (he lives in Florence, Oregon) and he makes regular trips into the valley and comes to us to service the car. He can’t do everything, so some service has to go through the Service Center in Portland. But we’ve not had to have anything done up there. The only time we have even been in the Service Center was on February 10 when we took delivery.
And every time I drive Scarlett, I am in amazement at the smooth, quiet power. I can punch the accelerator and be doing the speed limit almost immediately. The headlights come on automatically. They dim or go bright automatically. The wipers start and stop automatically. Instead of braking, we simply let up on the accelerator pedal and the car comes almost to a complete stop. I think the brakes will last a very very long time. So there is little to worry about when people ask about the screen being a distraction; we rarely even have to USE the screen. Most often it’s just to check my speed or change radio stations.
We are pleased to be a part of what I believe will be a global revolution in vehicle travel.
And we are pleased to be a part of accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy.