Tesla expands lease-end options: upgrade to a new Model S and Model X

Tesla has published new lease-end options for Model S and Model X drivers that have leased their vehicles through its financing arm. The Palo Alto based electric carmaker created its leasing program back in April 2013, to much fanfare. According to the company’s most recent financial report, leases accounted for 26% of new vehicle sales, up from 18.8% in 2013.

Tesla is offering four different lease-end options as follows: customers can return their vehicle to Tesla, extend their lease, purchase their Tesla, or upgrade to a new Tesla. A new support page published on the company’s website reads, “If your lease is ending in the next few months, now is a good time to start looking at which option best suits your needs.”

Returning your Tesla

Tesla outlines several simple steps to completing the lease return process. Customers can initiate a “self-inspection” of their vehicle by uploading photos of the car and answering a series of questions. Tesla states that this doesn’t complete the process, but it does allow for the process to be simplified and quickened. During this period, a Tesla “Lease End Specialist” will help coordinate the self-inspection and book an appointment at a Tesla Service center to complete the process.

Extending your Tesla Lease

Tesla is offering customers a chance to extend their lease for up to 6 months after their original lease-end date. Only customers that are in good standing with Tesla Finance can extend their lease. One must request this option from Tesla before the end of the lease. Extending your lease will impact the final purchase price of your Tesla at the end of your extended lease.

Purchasing your Tesla

If a Tesla owner decides they want to purchase their vehicle at the end of their lease term, they can contact Tesla to purchase their vehicle before the end of their lease or at the point of maturity. At lease-end, customers are still protected by the 4-year or 50,000-mile New Vehicle Limited Warranty. However, unlike Tesla’s certified pre-owned vehicles, a vehicle purchased at lease-end is not provisioned with extended warranty. Customers can purchase an extended 8-year 100,000-mile warranty.

Upgrading to a New Tesla

One can presume that Tesla would prefer that all leasees roll into a new lease or purchase a new vehicle from Tesla. In order to capture these customers, Tesla is making it easy for leasees to purchase a new vehicle. With leases coming to an end on vehicles leased in 2013 and 2014, Tesla has made significant improvements to their vehicle lineup, new vehicles have a redesigned front-end, bigger batteries, improved seats, and self-driving hardware.

Tesla states this on their website:

“Model S is better than ever. Over the last three years, we’ve added new features like updated styling and interior, Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive, Ludicrous Speed, Self-Driving hardware and more range. We also introduced Model X, the safest, fastest and most capable SUV on the road. View local inventory to take delivery as soon as this week.”

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