Considering its relatively low cost of entry, excellent range, and phenomenal performance stats, the Tesla Model 3 is practically the poster child for electric cars. However, it’s still relatively new to the market and some prospective buyers might be wary when it comes to the longevity of these Teslas. After all, there’s no true test for reliability other than time and usage, but luckily, one Tesla Model 3 owner has taken one for the team and posted the ownership costs of his Model 3, which has over 100,000 miles on the clock.

The Model 3 is cheap to operate

Kazi Imam recently spoke with Electrek regarding the maintenance and ownership of his 2018 Tesla Model 3 Long Range that has over 100,000 miles on it after just two years of ownership. That’s a lot of mile in just two years, in fact, it would typically take an average of six years for almost any other driver to rack that same type of mileage. So we definitely know that this Model 3 was put through the wringer.

In total, Imam reported that is cost him $4,732.11 for all the maintenance costs for his Model 3 thus far, including the cost of electricity. When he broke it down, Imam said that the maintenance and repair costs totaled up to $1741.11, while the cost of electricity came up to $2,985.

Where did the money for maintenance go to?

Imam said that replacing the tires accounted for most of the repair costs, which totaled up to $1,200. Other maintenance items included replacing the wiper blades, getting a wheel alignment done, and bleeding the brakes, which all cost $410.61 in addition to replacing the HVAC filter, which cost him $136.50.

How does this compare to a gasoline-powered car?

According to Electrek, a comparable BMW 3 Series would have cost around $8,000 with this type of mileage and maintenance over the course of two years. And we believe it, considering you would technically need to triple the ownership costs every year to calculate a comparable cost for any gasoline-car equivalent.

For example, according to the True Cost of Ownership on Edmunds.com shows us that a fully-loaded 2020 Acura ILX would cost around $5,900 for just the maintenance and fuel costs for the first two years of ownership with that kind of extreme driving. As we can see, driving an electric car like the Tesla Model 3 definitely has its advantages when it comes to the overall costs over almost any gasoline-powered car.

What about the battery degradation?

One other concern from anyone looking to own an electric car until the wheels fall off would be the propensity for the battery to degrade over time. And while Tesla is known for its ability to change its car’s batteries very quickly and efficiently, Imam says that there’s not too much of a concern at the 100,000-mile mark.

He reported a roughly 5% degradation over his two years of ownership, a percentage that you could normally expect after five to six years of driving the car, on average. He also reported that the car still drives like new and is clearly impressed with his findings so far.