My previous car was the Kia Cerato 2018 Sport+, which was fantastic car! But, it used that thing called fuel and as the world slowly jumps on board the electric life, I had to make a change.
I placed my order for the Tesla Model 3 SR+ (Standard Range +) back in December, 2020, and the wait was roughly three months, with the car being ready for delivery on the 3/3/2021. The date had a nice ring to it.
The original plan was to get finance for the car, but a lot of lenders will knock back those individuals who rely on Uber for an income.
That needs to change as job roles shift to different sectors. In my case, I was still able to get my car because I had the help of my grandad and a large amount saved over the last few years.
At 100%, my Model 3 shows a total range of 432km. It is plenty for me. Charging is mainly done at home as we have the Tesla Wallcharger which provides 8kw @ 32amp, enough for 55km range added per hour, if I need it any quicker I use the Tesla Superchargers which can peak at 167kw on the Model 3, equivalent to over 1082km per hour added ..
Using the supercharger, I was able to go from 18% to 100% in under 42mins. (Editor’s note: At least half of that time would be going from 80 to 100 per cent, as the rate of charging slows dramatically as the battery fills).
Given you can charge this car in a short amount of time it works great for me doing Uber. Brisbane has 10 Tesla Supercharging bays available and more to come.
Sometimes in five hours of Uber driving, I will do around 250km so the car will be around 50% charge and that’s when I top up or go home and leave it on charge. We have just over 10kw of solar on the roof here at home so that also helps lower our footprint and bill!
Statistics for August 2021:
66 Drives – 4,281.15 kilometers – 128 hours and 40 minutes
66 Charging Sessions – 574.09kWh energy – A$100.71 total cost.
These stats don’t take into account solar so my AGL bill for August 2021 was just under $72.50 (included a $50 government bonus), and without the bonus it was $122.00~ keep in mind that also includes power for my home for fridge / cooking / aircon / tv etc.
In comparison, for my petrol car I would average roughly $900+ per month on that thing called petrol.
Maintenance costs so far? A grand total of $49.50 for just one tyre rotation.
I’ve done 40,000km now and last time I checked with my tyre shop they said no need to rotate as I still had even wear. Tyres will need to be done at some stage, and quotes so far indicate I’ll be looking around $280 per tyre.
If I was using the Kia Cerato the log book services were roughly $295 per 15,000km so at 40,000km we are already at $880 in service costs vs $49.50 but who’s counting?
Here is a clip of me showing my Tesla at 15,000km
Yes, the upfront cost of the car is a lot more than a petrol one. But, depending on how much you drive it you start to understand the lower costs involved and the savings are made over time. I used to spend close to $9,500+ per financial year on fuel alone. Think of that for over three years, and you are looking at almost $30k of savings, just on fuel!
The car has good tax benefits as well, but speak to your accountant as I’m not a tax advisor. You can claim the full GST portion of the purchase of the car that will give you some relief on the purchase price (Again speak to Tax advisor regarding this).
I hold a license here in Queensland that permits me to do private pre-booked rides with clients who prefer to book directly with me, some for the green aspect and some for the peace of mind that they know who they are getting.
They can find me directly on my website www.ride4U.com.au (I plan to eventually get more drivers with Tesla’s on board with my brand, I currently have 1 other Driver)
I do Uber as well during days I don’t have bookings, or I have free time in between my direct bookings, doing this maximizes the ability of income, some drivers will operate differently as well we are all individuals! Uber currently offer EV drivers a 50% discount on the service fee they currently charge a driver and that does not include hybrids only full electric!
Note: As told to David Waterworth,a researcher and writer, a retired teacher who divides his time between looking after his grandchildren and trying to make sure they have a planet to live on. He owns 50 shares of Tesla. You can contact Nathanwww.ride4U.com.au.
