The questions new owners ask most, and the myths that keep circulating even though they're outdated or just wrong.
The basics almost every new owner asks in the first week.
No — for daily driving, a moderate charge limit is easier on long-term battery health than routinely charging to full. Save 90–100% for the day before a longer trip.
There are mechanical backup releases for the doors, frunk, and trunk — it's worth locating and testing them once, calmly, rather than discovering them for the first time during an actual issue.
Yes — add them as a Phone Key or use a card key rather than sharing your account credentials. Permissions are adjustable and easy to revoke later.
Some background activity (battery conditioning, cabin overheat protection, etc.) can produce faint sounds while parked — if something sounds mechanically wrong rather than electronic, it's worth a service inquiry.
Not necessarily — a standard outlet or the included mobile connector can work temporarily for light driving while you compare Wall Connector installation quotes.
Some of these were true once, some never were.
It's not an immediate problem, but it's not ideal for daily use either — the accurate advice is to keep it moderate day-to-day and save full charges for when you actually need the range.
Broad safety statistics and reporting on this vary and are frequently debated — rather than repeating a stat here, it's worth looking at current, cited safety data if this matters to you.
Cold temporarily reduces range and charging speed — this is normal battery chemistry, not permanent degradation, and performance returns once temperatures rise.
The federal new/used EV purchase credit ended for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025, with some exceptions for binding contracts made earlier — but state and utility incentives are a separate, often still-active category worth checking.
It does use some energy while active, but for most owners it's a modest daily draw rather than a dealbreaker — worth disabling only in very low-traffic private parking if you're especially range-conscious.
The cost questions that come up most often.
For most owners, yes — especially charging off-peak on a time-of-use electricity plan. Exact savings depend heavily on local electricity rates, so it's worth doing the math for your own utility.
Generally yes, per mile — Supercharging is convenient for trips, but routine daily charging at home is almost always the cheaper habit.
It varies by carrier and region — shopping quotes annually and asking specifically about EV/Tesla repair experience tends to matter more than the EV status alone.
Ongoing costs are generally lower than a gas car's — no oil changes or engine maintenance — but tires wear a bit faster due to instant torque and added weight, so budget for that instead.
Check the Feature, Charging, Maintenance, and Winter guides for deeper detail on any of these topics — most specific questions are covered in more depth there.