Curious about becoming a Steer member and want to know what it’s like?
Already a Steer member, and want to make sure you’re taking full advantage of all the perks and benefits?
Here is the next in what will be a continuing series of interviews with Steer members. We’ll feature real people in the DMV area that use Steer, to illustrate first hand what it’s like to have a membership and how it affects their everyday lives. We hope this series will help give readers a better sense of what it’s like to transition from a gas to an electric car, as well as how to get the most out of your membership.
Name: Noah Mchugh
Hometown: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Current Residence: Washington DC
Favorite Steer Car: Tesla Model 3
One Word Description of Steer: “Personable”
Noah, tell us about yourself.
I’m a government contractor involved with National Security. I’m originally from Virginia Beach. Right now, I live and work in DC in an apartment that’s too small, but you know, it’s DC.
I’m into cars and have been for a very long time. Photography is also a big hobby of mine and I try to do as much as I can. I’m trying to start doing it more now that work is freeing up a bit.
How did you first hear about Steer?
I was looking around at car subscriptions in the DC area and thought it would be an interesting thing to try. There are a couple others in this area but Steer interested me because it’s all-electric and I was getting tired of paying for gas. It seemed like it was definitely worth a try, so I sold my car and switched fully over to it.
What made you interested in exploring car subscriptions in the first place, as opposed to buying or leasing another car?
My entire life I’ve never outright owned a car. I’ve always had a car payment or lease payment or something like that. So to me, the fact that it’s essentially like a lease where you don’t own the car doesn’t really matter to me because once again, I’ve always had a car payment, so why not?
Then the fact that includes the insurance and just the ease of not having to deal with maintenance and not having to deal with all sorts of things. Even leasing cars, all that stuff still ends up being your problem, even though they say it’s not going to be.
I don’t have to deal with the bank, and I don’t have to pay interest and all that stuff. It just made it so much more convenient to me than having to go get another car and put it down payment and deal with finance and all that all the stuff that I hate dealing with. Steer kind of just took all of that away, which I loved.
What were you driving before?
I had an Audi SQ5, a sport SUV, so it was quite the change from what I knew from owning so many Audis but definitely have been enjoying it.
What made Steer seem like a better alternative?
It took so much headache away. Even when you lease a car, you’re still paying interest. It’s only 3 or 4%, but still, you’re paying extra money on top of the money, and you don’t own the car, so it’s kind of money going nowhere.
How long have you been with Steer?
I signed up in July, so a little over six months.
(Fun Fact: Noah was actually our first member on the Preferred 3 Plan)
Now that you have Steer, what are some things that you’re able to do now that you weren’t able to do before?
I have a support team when I have an issue with a car, which is awesome.
If I have a question on how something works or there’s an issue with the car or anything like that, I can just literally text or call the number and someone gets back to me extremely quickly, which I love. When you own a car, Volkswagen or Audi don’t give you a local number you can call or text. I have to bring it in to the dealership and all of that just for a super simple thing.
So I really like that, and if there is an issue with a car, the team is really fast to help figure out what to do or swap me to something else while it gets fixed or anything like that.
Tell us about your experience charging the car as opposed to a gas vehicle.
It’s the first EV I’ve ever had myself. It’s definitely a little bit of an adjustment, you have to plan a little bit better.
Luckily the Tesla does most of that for you when you’re traveling. It maps out where you need to stop and based on battery and distance and speed and all that stuff, but it’s something you need to take into account.
At my apartment building, we can charge for free with level two chargers, which is awesome.
But if I need to go drive 60 miles somewhere and there’s not a supercharger in between here and there, I need to make sure that I leave my car charged, as opposed to having a gas car I can just leave my apartment and go to fill up the tank real quick and be on my way. So it’s just a little additional planning, but I think it’s still worth it. It’s definitely not gotten in the way.
Plus, when you’re doing a long-distance drive, that 30 minute stop at a supercharger is a nice little break every couple hours. I definitely don’t mind a forced leg stretch.
I also like not having to stop for gas, especially when it’s really cold or raining because there’s no standing outside. I just have to hop out of the car real quick, plug it in, and hop back in. Plus the money aspect. There’s no paying $40 or $50 to fill up my tank. It’s only about $10 on the Model 3. It’s great.
Would you say your membership has had any effect on your career?
Not too much because a car doesn’t factor too much into my job, but it is impressive to co-workers every once in a while when I drive up in a Tesla. Even though they’re becoming a lot more common, a lot of people haven’t seen them in person or sat in one, so people always enjoy it.
But at least for me with my career, it hasn’t had too much of an effect, but it’s definitely saved me money, so it’s helpful in other aspects of life.
What about your hobbies?
Now that I have time to get back into photography, from now on, it’s going to be a much larger aspect. I’m getting back into the whole social media thing where I’m going to start building up that back up. I used to be really into it for a while and did a lot of promotions and partnerships, and I kind of let it relax for almost a year. But I started this past week building all that back up so it should definitely have a play in that soon.
Driving to new places or utilizing the car in photos?
Both. I’m going to start doing a lot more since a lot of my following social media is centered on automotive. I normally go to a lot of car shows and private care events around the country, so having it is going to play a much larger role.
What do you think we could do to improve Steer?
To Steer as a company, I can’t think of anything.
The only issues I’ve had are some issues with a car, but nothing as a company. The people are awesome. Every time anyone’s had to bring me a car, I always feel like I’m being needy and apologize profusely, but everyone’s super nice about it and says it’s not a big deal, even though I still feel like I need to apologize.
But everybody’s super responsive and helpful and friendly – just a way better experience than any dealership or anything I’ve ever had, so I can’t really think of a huge amount of things to change. So far, I haven’t had any negative experiences.
What’s your favorite car in the Steer fleet?
For long-range driving, the Model 3, because it has an actual center console and side door pockets. The Model S is definitely more fun to drive, but the Model 3 is more utilitarian.
So for everyday driving around town or hanging out, I’ll take the Model S, but if I need to go somewhere and have things I need to transport, the Model 3 definitely makes more sense.
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