"cazzyodo" (cazzyodo)
11/16/2015 at 09:35 • Filed to: Tesla Model S, P90D
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"cazzyodo" (cazzyodo)
11/16/2015 at 09:35 • Filed to: Tesla Model S, P90D | 2
| 6 |
Yes, that’s right. Elon Musk gave me the D.
And it...
was...
strangely awesome.
I found out that a new Tesla location was opening up in Boston’s Prudential Center a couple weeks ago and I immediately !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . A few days later, I received a call from an unknown number that I let go to voicemail (because Comcast has been calling me non-stop for God knows what reason). The voicemail I received was from a pleasant woman named Tiffany with Tesla Motors in regards to my test drive request. I called the number she provided and it was actually a direct line to her!
Yay! A person to talk to! This was my introduction to Tesla’s customer service and company attitude.
Hint: it’s good.
Fast forward to last Friday and the longest two hours of my life, I totally forgot about the test drive. It wasn’t until almost midnight that I was reminded about the test drive (a welcome distraction).
One cold, 45 minute walk Saturday morning and here we are at the new store. It is exactly what you expect from Tesla now:
After a little while I was approached by a representative who took my information down and passed me on to a taller-than-I (rare) gentleman named Chad (I hope I remembered correctly).
“Which one would you like to take out today?”
“Whichever is available.”
“Let’s go with the performance one.”
Translation: P90D. See the terrible image below (I was too excited to stop and take a pic). Yes, 90, not 85. I’m not even joking. I was going to drive a vehicle 5x’s more expensive and 3x more powerful than my car so anxiety level was through the roof.
With Autopilot.
Chad asked how much I knew about the vehicle and if it was my first EV test drive. Plenty, yes, give me the full N00B rundown. Ratings are subjective so no numbers are used here.
Impressions
Exterior
It’s a nice car. We all know it, we all have opinions of it. I think it looks nice overall but is not exactly remarkable. To me, it is what is inside the vehicle that matters here (though I love the blue).
Interior
Comfortable seats...I mean, very comfortable. It was actually more difficult to get into the car than I thought given its size but that’s a product of myself and the rep being very tall. The giant display using Google Maps was b-e-a-u-tiful. Absolutely gorgeous. The map shows Tesla charging stations (free!) but if you’re in Maine right now you’re s.o.l. Rear-view mirror was frame-less and looked sharOverall, not a bad place to be at all. Plenty of storage space with the trunk and frunk combined. Rear seats fold down, trunk floor can open up (because jump seats need leg room).
Ride/Handling
Smooth. I set the electric steering to “sport” which gave some weight to turning. You can choose from three modes but I definitely suggest the third. The bouncy streets of Boston and Cambridge were pretty smooth and my girlfriend exclaimed that it was extremely comfortable. Handling-wise, you feel the weight of the car (all 5000-ish lbs) but it never feels overwhelming. It’s like driving a freight train go-kart. Very planted with all the battery weight down low and all 4 wheels throwing down power. And ohhhhh that power.
Acceleration
Intoxicating. Next topic.
I jest...more details.
It is immediate. Lane changes at highway speed were immediate. A quick whir of the motors and that space was mine. I was encouraged to drive with some spirit and I made some deliberate moves (but also was wary about this $120k piece of technology). This car changed the way I think about power. I want it. I NEED it. I can’t afford it.
Braking
This is actually a more interesting part than usual. Yes, it has big brakes to stop its heavy ass but it also has a regenerative braking system. There are two settings for it but I stuck it in the most aggressive one. The difference for short drives isn’t significant on range and even for long trips may result in a 10% increase...maybe...so it really was just a change of aggressiveness. At low speeds, it was like some low gear engine braking. At highway speeds it was not as aggressive but certainly something to get used to. At the end of the 40 minute drive it was second nature...but that first 5 minutes was very strange. I didn’t touch the brake in the parking lot.
Speaking of brake, a handy feature is that you can press down the brake fully at a stop to hold the vehicle in place and keep the car in drive. Kind of like a full stop neutral. This is useful because the vehicle settings also has a “creep” mode where without any input from the driver the car will “idle” forward at low speeds. You can have that off or on, your call.
Technology
The whole vehicle is a technological wonder. The screen is large and clear. You can split the screen between two “apps” or displays. The rear camera is an HD fisheye lens and can be viewed while driving and automatically engages in reverse (as they all do). The car is an internet hotspot with a browser (videos disabled), Slacker radio, etc. with LTE connectivity paid for by Tesla. The dash is interesting in how it is customizable and provides information regarding the vehicle surroundings for autopilot mode (a setting I’ll discuss shortly). The parking sensors are always on and are actually the sonar that the car uses for autopilot mode. They will tell you, down to the inch, how much space you have behind your car as you back into a spot. They activate within 32” of an object and even trigger when someone gets too close to you in traffic. Now for the part I really wanted to test: autopilot.
Autopilot
I was terrified. The little wheel and speedometer icons showed next to my speed, signifying the car thought I could use Autopilot mode. Now, I say it “thought” I could. Let me clarify on that statement.
The vehicle will sense your speed, the vehicles around you and your lane positioning. If everything checks out, it can technically take over. However, these icons displayed at a dead stop and in slow traffic...not ideal for autopilot. Autopilot is like an advanced cruise control. I tried the adaptive cruise control, set a speed and safe distance and let the Model S take over the accelerating while I steered. It worked well.
I activated the Autopilot feature at the suggestion of the rep in the back seat...and held onto the wheel. It shuddered slightly as it adjusted to the automatic control.
“You can let go.”
“No...this is weird.”
“Go ahead.”
My hands hovered above the steering wheel and my food was at the ready above the brake. The car maintained a steady 60mph and distance from the Accord ahead of us while we approached a bend in the highway. I braced myself as the lane markers turned to the right and the steering wheel jerked, then adjusted to the turn. By itself.
It was so weird.
The rep apologized for it not being smooth and explained how data is collected from the entire fleet to eventually smooth out the process and make it more seamless.
Then we came to a section of bridge where there were no markers on a turn and we nearly sideswiped a Subaru. I snagged the wheel and brought us back in the lane while the rep apologized profusely.
I understood. It was not that bad, just a little of a drift that nobody was prepared for. We weren’t that close to the Subaru but I can see why people testing autopilot on Youtube complained: they’re idiots.
It is not a full set it and forget it mode. It is exactly what Chad told me: “an advanced cruise control.” It will be refined over time but it’s basically in beta mode right now. Use at your own risk and be conscious of things.
Overall, the drive was fantastic. I had a great chat with Chad about the Model 3 and how we both hope they create a different body style for the varying world demands (hello hatchback courtesy of European demand?). We both started postulating about how Tesla will deal with the demand for a $35k electric vehicle because if it is anything like the Model S, I want one.
Hell, if it’s a fraction of the Model S at that price I want one. Everyone should want one. Tesla would have to crank out models like crazy just to keep up with demand. It won’t make them a dealer but it would change them from a straight up boutique distribution model. I’m excited for the future.
I typed this up quickly so I couldn’t edit my thoughts. Let me know if you have any questions and I’ll get to them!
Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
> cazzyodo
11/16/2015 at 09:43 |
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The interior is great.
Mattbob
> cazzyodo
11/16/2015 at 10:00 |
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Could you tell a difference in brake pedal feel between regenerative braking and when actual braking kicked in? How smooth did it blend the two?
TR3
> cazzyodo
11/16/2015 at 10:35 |
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“how Tesla will deal with the demand for a $35k electric vehicle because if it is anything like the Model S, I want one.”
There is the rub. Ford,GM,Fiat all struggle to kick out cars in that range and make a profit. Moving production to Mexico is one way they are scrambling to cut costs. If Tesla can make a car in that price range that’s worth driving it would certainly be a big seller, maybe even a game changer. Perhaps they have discovered something special the others have not been able to discover. Pardon me if I don’t drink the Koolaid just yet and just wait for this world beater to show up, at that price, on the showroom floor. Better in my mind to perhaps take a slice of humble pie in the future than to drink the Koolaid now.
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cazzyodo
> Mattbob
11/16/2015 at 10:54 |
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Smooth transition. You basically adjust your braking style to the regenerative braking system by learning what it will do and then applying additional pressure as needed. For many cases, you don’t actually need the brake pedal until a full stop or quick deceleration is needed.
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cazzyodo
> Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
11/16/2015 at 10:55 |
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I loved the seats but what got me was the display with speed, etc. It has an image of the Model S and then shows a relative position of the car ahead of you and the sensors picking up stuff around you.
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Mattbob
> cazzyodo
11/16/2015 at 11:38 |
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Good to hear. I test those parts but I’ve never actually felt how well they work in the car.