The Tesla Model S is officially dead, buried, and scheduled to be replaced on the assembly line by clanking humanoid robots. Before pulling the plug, Tesla offered a farewell cash-grab to a privileged few: the invite-only “Signature Edition”. Priced at $159,420, nearly $50,000 over a standard Plaid, Tesla capped production at just 350 total units, split between 250 Model S sedans and 100 Model X SUVs.
For that princely sum, buyers received unique Garnet Red paint, subtle gold accents on the emblems, calipers, and interior trim, carbon ceramic brakes, sub-two-second 0–60 mph acceleration, and the ultimate EV flex: free lifetime Supercharging and Full Self-Driving (FSD).
Predictably, it didn’t take long for the capitalist flipping engine to rev up. As spotted by Teslarati at J&S AutoHaus in New Jersey, one of these ultra-rare sedans with barely 300 miles on the odometer has already hit the used market. The asking price? An eye-watering $259,995. That represents an outrageous $100,000 markup over the original sticker price.
However, this quarter-million-dollar opportunity comes wrapped in a heavy blanket of irony. To purchase the car initially, original buyers had to sign Tesla’s strict no-resale agreement, granting the automaker Right of First Refusal. Violate it, and Tesla threatens $50,000 in damages and a one-way ticket to their buyer “black list”. But the real punchline lands squarely on the second owner: according to Tesla’s fine print, the Signature Edition’s biggest selling points do not transfer upon resale. The moment title changes hands, those high-tech perks vanish into thin air.
Whether Tesla actually unleashes its legal department or simply strips the free electrons remains to be seen, but spending $260,000 to get less equipment than the original owner seems like a questionable financial flex. History offers little comfort either: the original 2012 Model S Signature Editions now trade on used car lots for well under $20,000.
