Early Tesla Model 3 owners are testing the market with insane resale prices

After we reported on the first used Tesla Model 3 being listed for sale at $150,000 earlier this week, it looks like other early Model 3 owners had the same idea and tested the market with more reasonable but still insane prices.

The listing for the $150,000 Model 3 in Santa Cruz, California was quickly removed by the owner after we reported on it.

It’s not clear if it was purchased or Tesla requested it to be removed. The company refuses to comment on the matter, but as we reported when it was listed, it didn’t comply with Tesla’s agreement with employees buying the new electric car. Tesla wrote in an email to employees about to purchase the Model 3:

“Because employees are receiving special priority, all Model 3 cars prioritized to employees must be registered to you or your family member and may not be resold for more than the original price. Reservation holders will agree to these terms when their order is placed.”

Considering it was listed at about 3 times the original price, it was certainly not complying.

Yet, after the listing was removed, another Model 3 was listed on Craiglist, this time for $90,000 and in the east bay area. It was also quickly removed by the owner.

We also received reports of another Model 3 appearing on Ebay with a starting bid of $90,000. Those prices represent a more than 60% premium on the original price of the Model 3 with options (the Model 3 is currently still only available with the Long Range battery pack and premium interior, which increase the base price to $49,000).

The Ebay listing was also removed by the user yesterday without completing the bidding process.

Would you pay any of those prices to get the Model 3 early? Let us know in the comment section below.

Electrek’s Take

It’s surprising that at least 3 Model 3 vehicles were already listed considering Tesla only delivered 220 units last quarter – and again, only to employees, family members of employees and company insiders.

As we reported earlier this week, we think that if anyone is willing to pay those prices, it’s going to be an automaker looking to benchmark or reverse-engineer a Model 3, which happened to Tesla’s other vehicles in the past.

It wasn’t clear how Tesla could enforce restrictions on the resale price of those vehicles delivered to employees, but it’s interesting to now see those listings being removed rather quickly after being posted.

Were they up long enough for the owners to be contacted and arrange a deal offline? We will likely never know, but maybe keep an eye out for a Model 3 showing up in Detroit, Ingolstadt, or Munich soon?