Three ways to get your hands on a Tesla Model 3 now [Video]

Perhaps you've reserved your Tesla Model 3 but haven't taken delivery of your car yet. Or maybe you're keen on the Model 3 but need to see it in-person before making your reservation. Sure, you can fly to the Tesla factory and hope to spy a Model 3 in the company parking lot. Then again, you don't want to be a stalker. Hmmm... isn't there any way you can get your hands on a Tesla Model 3 now?

Above: The vaunted Model 3 makes its way into the Palo Alto, California Tesla store (Source: Teslarati via Alex Guberman at E for Electric)

If you're outside the United States, the answer is... unfortunately, no. But if you're in the U.S., there are a few ways to check out the car (up-close and personal) if you're willing to try one of these three methods...

Check out Model 3 at your local Tesla store

If you're located on the West Coast, you might have to drive a bit, but, you can (finally) check out a Model 3. Forbes reports that Tesla stores have been "mobbed" with people clamoring to see the car. Brooks Crothers writes: "The Model 3, as of Friday, is being shown at only two retail locations nationwide, the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto and Century City mall in Los Angeles." 

Above: Tesla's Model 3 made its debut Friday at Los Angeles' Century City mall (Youtube: Fox 11 Los Angeles)

Crothers observed that, "there was a long line waiting to get inside the vehicle. In fact, it reminded me of the line that formed in November at the Century City Apple Store (where I waited dutifully in line for the iPhone X). Maybe not quite as long but the Model 3 certainly generated the same kind hubbub as the iPhone X."

Rent Model 3 on Turo

A recent article in the Washington Post recommends an alternate approach, "to plant your buttocks in the driver’s seat of the Model 3." How? "Turo [which] is a San Francisco company that allows people to rent out their vehicles for cash, a practice known as peer-to-peer car sharing. The company already has at least six Model 3s available for rent now in Florida, Colorado, California and Virginia." 

Above: Tesla Model 3 on Turo (Image: InsideEVs via Turo)

And more are coming: "that number will climb to 20 by the end of the month, according to the company’s director of communication, Steve Webb, and an additional 116 Turo members have signed up to rent out their Model 3s upon delivery... Capitalizing on the car’s rarity, people are renting out their Model 3s for a pretty penny. Rental prices range from $213 to $700 a day. Webb said demand for the vehicles — some of which are booked months in advance — is high."

Buy a used Model 3 on eBay

Dan Zorrilla recently took delivery of his Tesla Model 3 and completed a record-breaking cannonball run. However, Zorrilla has three kids and prefers his other (bigger) Tesla Model S. In The Drive, he writes: "I'd been hoping that I’d be able to squeeze my family of five into the Model 3 on road trips the way we can cram into [my] Model S, but the Model 3’s smaller cargo capacity means there just isn’t enough space."

Above: Dan Zorrilla's Tesla Model 3 after his record-breaking drive cross-country (Image: The Drive)

Sooo... if you're dying for a Model 3 right now, you can buy his — he explains, "If I were 10 years younger, or had just one kid, the Model 3 would be the car of my dreams. But, at this point in my life—with three young kids in car seats, and strollers, cribs, diaper bags, toys, and the rest of their junk—I just can’t make it work. So that's why I'm selling my car... I will miss my Model 3... but my loss can be your gain, if you feel like placing a bid for the car on eBay*."

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*Editors Note: It appears since the writing of this article the bidding on this Tesla Model 3 has ended on eBay — you'll have to move fast if an opportunity like this comes up again.