New to Billings

[nowhereman427]

Originally Posted by ericsvibe

In Montana, a Tesla is a toy. Think of it along the same lines as a Corvette, Mustang, Camaro. When the weather is good, it's fine. As soon as the weather turns bad, it's useless. Teslas have very large tires and they aren't cheap. Even electric vehicles have to be maintained, and in extreme cold environments, the batteries take a beating. There are ton's of used hybrids for sale on craiglists, most of them have battery issues. That is the way it works, as soon as the car hits around 100k, the batteries start going bad and they try to dump the car on another person, because dealerships have gotten smart about it and won't give them anything on trade in.


I would purchase an old 4x4 until you learn how to drive in the winter. My wife totaled out our Expedition 2 weeks into the first big winter storm we had, after moving to Montana from Florida. We had just paid it off. She hit the back of a parked truck when she tried to negotiate a corner, and the front tires lost traction and she continued in a straight line. That big truck she hit didn't budge. Because all of the airbags deployed, it was written off.


You haven't found out yet, but in Montana, the state figures that if you have the money to purchase a new vehicle, you can pay over $600.00 a year to register it. A new Tesla will probably run about $1,000.00 to register. The state charges a "property tax" based on the value of a vehicle. New vehicles will make your eyes water.

Corvette, Mustang? Looks like I will need to get a new and another vehicle. A new Dodge Challenger Hellcat $65,000+
New vehicle registration rates over $600.00 a year? That's worse than California

[ericsvibe]

Originally Posted by nowhereman427

Corvette, Mustang? Looks like I will need to get a new and another vehicle. A new Dodge Challenger Hellcat $65,000+
New vehicle registration rates over $600.00 a year? That's worse than California

It is, but a neat side effect is that there are lots of classic cars in this state. I don't mean run down ones either. Last summer at a red light, a fully restored late 80's IROC Camaro pulled up next to me. It looked like it just left the showroom. No rust around the factory T tops. It was nice. Talk about a walk down memory lane.


Most of the classic car insurance companies allow you to drive up to 5,000 miles a year. That is perfect for the summer months. Soon as the weather gets bad, they go back in the garage until next year. You only have to register the vehicle once, and it's good for life.

[nowhereman427]

Originally Posted by ericsvibe

It is, but a neat side effect is that there are lots of classic cars in this state. I don't mean run down ones either. Last summer at a red light, a fully restored late 80's IROC Camaro pulled up next to me. It looked like it just left the showroom. No rust around the factory T tops. It was nice. Talk about a walk down memory lane.


Most of the classic car insurance companies allow you to drive up to 5,000 miles a year. That is perfect for the summer months. Soon as the weather gets bad, they go back in the garage until next year. You only have to register the vehicle once, and it's good for life.

sO in the dry weather I can go all out and get high performance tires that wear out fast (dry only) instead of using these all season wet n dry n snow tires since one cannot drive a car like this in the snow and places that require high ground clearances.