Tesla has reintroduced a trade-in bonus to kickstart sales in 2026, offering a $3,000 trade-in bonus on Model 3 sedans.
The company reveals that until March 31, interested buyers of a new or demo Model 3 RWD and Long Range will receive $3,000 off the price of that car when trading in a used vehicle.
On Tesla’s website, it says: “$3,000 Trade-In Bonus Available Until 31 March 2026. Offer available when trading in an eligible vehicle towards the purchase of a new or demonstrator Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive or Model 3 Long Range Rear-Wheel Drive vehicle. Order and take delivery by 31 March 2026 to be eligible.”
Another offer that has also been extended is the ability for existing owners of Tesla EVs with enhanced autopilot or full-self-driving (FSD) supervised software to be able to transfer it to a new or demo Tesla.
As of the time of writing, Tesla had multiple Tesla Model 3 vehicles in stock, ensuring that those interested in a Model 3 can pick one up fairly quickly, while making the most of the currency offer.
All new purchases of Model 3 vehicles will also be come with Tesla’s recently upgraded 5-year unlimited km warranty for any buyers that get into a car as of the beginning of 2026.
That’s up from the previous 4-year or 80,000 km warranty on offer and according to Tesla Australia is a global first to be offered in a market where Tesla vehicles are sold.
Tesla’s refreshed Model 3 was launched in late 2024 with the RWD and Long Range vehicles on offer initially, as the Performance followed in 2025.
In October, Tesla officially launched Australia’s longest range EV with the new Model 3 2026 Long Range RWD variant offering an incredible 750 km on a single charge.
The range upgrade was thanks to an increase in the size of the NMC battery to 84 kWh – would provide 230 km more range than the entry-level RWD, and 121 km more than the Long Range AWD variant offered previously in Australia.
Pricing of this long-range variant also saw a drop due to it having one motor instead of two, coming in at $61,900 before on-roads. That was down from $69,900 before on-roads for the Long Range AWD model offered prior.
Tesla’s Model 3 sales have seen a drop in 2025 compared to previous years, with 6,617 units making it onto our roads, down from 17,094 units in 2024. It’s worth noting that 2024 was the first full year of refreshed Model 3 deliveries, hence the elevated sales of the sedan.
Sedan sales have also seen a dip as more affordable SUV models make their way to market. BYD Seal for comparison sold 3,784 sales during 2025, also seeing a drop from its 2024 sales of 6,393.
With overall competition increasing in global markets as well as here in Australia, the latest round of extended incentives is likely to drive sales in the next 3 months.
Would it be enough to help it maintain its lead as the best-selling EV brand in Australia in 2026? Let’s see.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.
