I am not a car guy.
I only ever owned a car once - at 21 in graduate school in France so I could drive to more students that I tutored: It was a business asset. I sold the car 2 years in. Beyond that, I briefly leased a car for 6 months while in business school for $400/month.
A year ago, when I moved back to the Bay Area of San Francisco as a financially independent explorer, I decided to buy a car to get around. I got a Tesla.
As the odometer hits 10,000 miles this week, the stats on the Tesla app are looking good: $1,020 saved on gas and I helped make the air less polluted.
This is, of course, not even half of the story. Let’s break down the wins, losses, and the lessons on this electrified journey.
Did I need a car?
Did it need to be a Tesla?
Did I need to own it?
Did it have to be in my private name?
Did I make the most use of it?
Let’s dive in: