Jan Lemkes sold his Tesla Model 3, but it was not easy

My strange car hobby manifests itself, among other things, in a quick tendency to purchase, which automatically means that a car has to be sold quite regularly. With the relatively interesting ‘enthusiast cars’ that this usually involves, this is usually not a problem. After all, even something obscure like a bright red Lexus SC430 or a Ford Flex has its fans, people who know that such an opportunity rarely comes along. However, now everything is different: the Tesla has to go.

We bought that car in 2019, of course mainly because of the tax benefits. However, financial priorities have now changed, we have outgrown the car as a family and the four-wheel drive super EV – it is a Long Range – is used embarrassingly little. Get rid of it! We secretly thought of that in 2023, but the Tax Authorities put a stop to that. Anyone who makes use of a tax bonus such as the Environmental Investment Deduction (MIA) will have to deal with the so-called disinvestment addition if the environmentally friendly good in question is sold ‘within five years after the start of the calendar year in which you made the investment’. Yes: our Tesla, date of birth December 31, 2019, is considered ‘five years old’ for tax purposes from January 1, 2024. Good news for us, but also for the 29,947 other drivers of a 2019 Model 3 who potentially want to sell their car. The significant share of lease cars should not be ignored, because lease contracts also usually expire after five years. The effect of this became visible as early as 2023. Model 3 drivers are getting nervous, because everyone sees that enormous flow of used cars coming from afar. From January things will start happening on the well-known sales sites. Many cars are at dealers who initially charged high prices, but are now forced to lower them. That has everything to do with the non-professional salespeople. Without a profit motive, the goal for many seems to be primarily to get rid of the car that is usually used for business purposes quickly and without hassle. The fact that Tesla itself offers absolute dump prices – we hear trade-in amounts of 15,000 or even 13,000 euros – does not help. ‘Anything is better than that’ seems to be the credo and so Model 3s appear online for far too low prices, which – undoubtedly entirely in line with the seller’s wishes – disappear again a day later.

Everything around 30k is actually fine

On the scale from ‘highway private individuals’ to ambitious traders, I myself am somewhere in the middle. I aim for a reasonable price, but I also want to get rid of the car quickly and don’t have to go all out. I’m still optimistic with an asking price of 34,000 euros for our car, which cost about 61 grand new and has 80,000 km on the clock. After a complete lack of response, the amount is quickly reduced to 32,000 euros, with the resigned thought that anything around thirty grand is actually fine at this stage. However, it still remains quiet. That’s not really surprising, because our car can hardly be called distinctive in any way. Finished in standard white with a black interior, there are several apparently identical cars to be found at any given time. There are only two exceptions to this: the original 19-inch summer wheels that can be seen in the advertising photos and the detachable tow bar. The rest must come from the neat condition, the neat photos and the compelling story that I use as advertising text. After all, you are a car journalist for a reason.

16.7 kWh/100 kilometers over the last 10,000 kilometers, 18.2 kWh/100 over all kilometers. Including journeys abroad and journeys with a cart behind it.

The Tesla Model 3 took Jan everywhere, here on Lake Maggiore.

Offers of 5,000 euros below asking price

The advertisement goes on three different websites and then we have to wait and see. The proverbial chirping of crickets is only interrupted by the apparently obligatory demand for the lowest price, plus some offers of at least five grand below the asking price. Just when I decide that maybe we should settle for less, someone finally doesn’t start talking about money and asks if it is possible to come for a test drive. The phrase ‘I am a private buyer with a family’ is also surprisingly reassuring, because I have had my share of traders and fortune seekers. This buyer indeed appears to be serious and remains so after a viewing and test drive have been completed satisfactorily. This does not mean that there is an immediate deal, because the buyer first wants to consult at home and think about it carefully. Understandable, because it is still a considerable amount of money. Unfortunately, this reflection period does not appear to have the desired effect: the buyer decides against it because he wants to sell his own car first. Although there is now another interested party, I am still disappointed about it. After all, this man seemed enthusiastic and we’ll just have to wait and see about the new one. So I just ask what kind of car it is exactly and what exactly that car should cost.

Jan drives the Opel Zafira alone in the dark.

An Opel Zafira! Plus 23,000 euros…

Long story short: the Tesla is gone and there is now a 2013 Opel Zafira Tourer temporarily in the driveway. Based on the asking prices of comparable Zafiras, I got somewhere between 30,000 to 31,000 euros for the Tesla in total value. Of course, this means that I also have to sell that Opel again and therefore have to spend effort, time and perhaps money on that. However, I hope and expect that the cheaper family bus will be easier to wear than the Model 3. It’s telling: compared to the Tesla, even a silver-gray Opel is scarcer and more distinctive…