Going Electric... Richard's EV thread.

[pipsyp]

Nice one Richard sounds absolutely brilliant!

[sharkrider]

sounds very impressive Richard. Do keepgiving us little reviews as you find things out/ live with it etc

[Lady Elanore]

Isn't one of the points of the car, that it absolutely does not sound brilliant, it just is (brilliant) 

Edited 27 December, 2015 by Lady Elanore

[BossFox]

Economy doesn't seem too far out of anticipated figures.

 

 

330 kW per mile translates into 272 miles per charge.

Based on a full battery, not sure if it holds a bit in reserve like the LEAF.

That' not driving as eco as possible either, mixture of 50% open A road and 50% country and town lanes.

 

From the graph on the right you can see I might have used a bit of power a few times too.

 

Picture of the car at the bottom shows items that flag up on the side sonar systems, and show where in your lane you are driving when it can see the white lines.

Once it's locked onto white lines you can engage auto pilot.

No lines showing though as picture was taken on my drive.

[BossFox]

Sent an email to Tesla EU about accessories, wanting rubber mats.

Sent 10pm on a Sunday... answer within 30 minutes!

Wowsers.

[AshVrs]

Sent an email to Tesla EU about accessories, wanting rubber mats.

Sent 10pm on a Sunday... answer within 30 minutes!

Wowsers.

Wow they are as good as Skoda then!

...oh wait, sorry you said 30 minutes not 30 days lol

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[AshVrs]

Is the main screen in the middle if the dashboard glass?

The car looks brilliant by the way. Followed one on the M1 just before Christmas going towards Sheffield and couldn't believe how nice it looked.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[vrskeith]

This should be an interesting ongoing comparison for you Richard.

 

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-reviews/tesla/tesla-model-s-p70d-2016-review/

[B33fy]

Lovely looking car, happy motoring Richard, looking forward to seeing it at the next meet?..

[Lady Elanore]

Is the Sat Nav a portrait ratio as well as the screen? I don't understand why all Sat Navs are landscape in orientation when you really want it in portrait. I want to see where I am going and where the next turn off will be, I don't need to see somewhere 25 miles west of where I am heading :(

[wiilydog]

spotted this at a motorway services over the weekend "Tesla only parking spaces"   

 

 

[Lady Elanore]

I've seen that all new S models are getting free Spotify now

[muffty]

not that anyone cares but I have been fortunate enough to have driven one of these, wow, when you put your foot down there is no lag, instant power, millions of smiles!

Love the info system, sat nav will direct you to a charging point if it feels you need it, and you can quick charge for free in some hilton hotels, amongst other places. Eurotunnel have a few charging spots now too if you fancy a euro trip. Strange how there is a void in the middle of the car where the gearbox should be - you can literally slip over from the passenger seat to the drivers seat! Great car, if my numbers come up i'll be knocking on their door!

Edited 30 December, 2015 by muffty

[Xavier]

I have to say I'm in love with the whole concept. I knew about Teslas but didn't really think much more about them (still on the last year's century's belief that there's nothing good about EVs). That was until I spotted Richard's post on FB about picking one up.

 

Since then, I've had this OBSESSIVE passion finding out more about them and the more I read up / watch videos, the more I'm just amazed at how much a good package these things are. Elon Musk (CEO entrepreneur genius who has done many things like creating Paypal) is a genious and has a refreshingly wonderful ideas and making dreams become reality... The thought of using their "Supercharger" network for free for life charging your car super quickly is genious.

 

If you want to lose days watching videos about Teslas (not that Richard would now he has one!), take a look at Bjørn Nyland's YouTube channel. This guy is a legend and well deserved winning the new Model X as he's certainly Tesla's best marketing weapon by far!

 

I've convinced myself I am going to get one. Maybe not this year (my parking spot is too far from the house and I have no garage for charging at home) so I need to move home before getting the car. Damn, I guess that shows how mad I've become: want to move house for the sake of getting a new car! Having said that, there is the Reading Supercharger station 5 mintes' drive from my house! But when you look at the incenctives, putting this through my business where I can write it off eliminates a year's tax bill. I can also get the VAT back, etc. They're not cheap, but one thing for sure: they are next generation.

 

edit: saying genious too many times :think:

Edited 2 January, 2016 by Xavier

[Dr Zoidberg]

Not long till we get to see something more concrete from Faraday Future.

http://bgr.com/2015/12/31/faraday-future-tesla-killer-ces/

There was a fair bit of speculation about whether they were really Apple when they appeared, and while that's looking less likely it's not out of the question.

[Xavier]

Interesting stuff, Alex Although I do think Tesla have a real head start. Having said that, after the "concept" Roadster, the Model S came out within a few years and litterally was/is light years ahead of anything else.

 

A proper competition in the market can't hurt either...

 

I'm really keen to see what the new Model 3 is going to be like. 2016 is going to be an exciting year for EVs

[BossFox]

Is the main screen in the middle if the dashboard glass?

The car looks brilliant by the way. Followed one on the M1 just before Christmas going towards Sheffield and couldn't believe how nice it looked.

 

Thanks, it's a bit sensible looking but I have to say I've been really impressed by it.

 

Is the Sat Nav a portrait ratio as well as the screen? I don't understand why all Sat Navs are landscape in orientation when you really want it in portrait. I want to see where I am going and where the next turn off will be, I don't need to see somewhere 25 miles west of where I am heading :(

 

You can indeed go full screen on the map with portrait north up.

You also get a 3D N up map (running as a typical sat-nav) on one third of the instrument display to back up the google maps based system on the large touchscreen.

 

 

Excuse the poor quality pic, but old phone and car was moving.

[BossFox]

So, time for another report on the Tesla I guess as we've been away in it, for a bit of a test, and also done over 1,000 miles in it since collection 10 days ago.

 

First off, if you think Teslas are rare, just go and loiter about a Tesla Supercharger on a popular touring day.

I expected to hardly see one...  how wrong I was.

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img903/2862/lukk4X.jpg

 

Drove 170 miles to Bristol, for our one scheduled stop on the way to Devon from Essex and both chargers in use, another Model S parked 8 spaces away and then another arrived behind us.

The bank holiday Monday was clearly a popular day to take your EV out.

 

I opted for loitering knowing they charge quickly and sure enough after 15 minutes a family arrived from The Mall, unplugged, waved and drove off leaving us free to charge.

We were on 11%, car quoted a recharge time of an hour and 20 minutes.  As a former LEAF and KIA EV driver that's very impressive on a 90kW battery.

Cup of tea, jacket potato, a pair of shoes for one of the kids (all done in John Lewis as that's the shop the chargers are in the car park of) and we came back in under an hour to find we had 92%, which was enough so we set off for Exeter.

 

Made a further stop at Exeter (would you believe, two chargers both in use, but one unplugging as we arrived) although we didn't need to, to ensure we could do the next three days of the holiday without having to worry about range.

 

Over the five days we stayed in Devon we were not limited by the car's range at all.  Popped 10 miles back into Exeter on the third evening to charger again and let us until the end of our break.

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img911/3734/LHnu21.jpg

 

Over the five days we stayed the weather was rarely dry for long, Devon had a lot of flooding and the Model S got a good test coping with high winds, heavy downpours, flooded lanes and lots of muck over the roads.

It performed well.

A few things to note is that Auto Pilot uses the camera so with excessive amount of spray and noticeable amounts of standing water it can't lock onto the white lines and so can't be activated, but the radar guided cruise still works very well and makes driving in these conditions a lot less stressful.

 

I was very impressed with how the car went, although the conditions did increase the energy consumption by around 10-15%.

A combination of the winds and standing water to push the car through.  Probably not helped by all the up and downs over the hills around Crediton either.

 

Never had a problem parking it either, but it's clear to see that getting it in a normal size space can prove tricky...

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img910/4006/D9Uxik.jpg

 

We left the farm outside Crediton and headed home on day five with 42% in the battery, heading back to The Mall in Bristol.

Had the usual serious winds and rain, with very poor visibility in places and arrived with 7% left.

Maybe a worry in other EVs but not the Model S as that is still over 15 miles.

Plugging in showed just how much electricity a Supercharger can put in if the battery is almost empty though!

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img633/7743/Qf4TaC.jpg

 

That's some seriously fast charging!

 

We arrived first at The Mall as were there just after it opened, when we came back the usual Tesla crowd had arrived!

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img911/5632/lPjW30.jpg

 

Then an easy 170 miles home with some traffic and plenty of electric left.

 

 

Letting Auto Pilot take the strain in the traffic.

Unlike the Audi A8 you don't have to press the throttle after stopping to wake it up.

It'll just sit there, then go when the car in front does.  Slowing, stopping, steering and going to keep itself in it's place in the traffic.

On the longer sections of Motorway and in traffic I found the Auto Pilot Really good.

Both ways of 250+ miles I felt completely relaxed and didn't feel like I'd done much of a hard drive at all.

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img903/1121/098B7h.jpg

 

Here you can see the car in front is blue (as it's locked on to it) and it's got it's position in the lane.  Sonar is showing other cars around it by the "waves" coming out to each side.

And yes, on the graphic it does show headlights, brake lights and indicators.  Which is kind of cool.

 

Auto Pilot will run with only one clearly visible white line, but currently I prefer two as I'm not that used to it yet.

With one it'll just run a set distance from that line using the camera and sonar to keep a safe distance from any obstacles.

With two white lines (which show on the screen above) it positions itself right in the middle of the lane.

 

 

Using the internet part of the radio service my son has been listening to some interesting things from around the world, from Folk Music all the way from Antarctica to This offering from Egypt...

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img911/5907/ylUtaq.jpg

 

We even found this delightful number on a County Music Christmas station from the USA.  Today, on the 3rd January.

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img910/721/kyA7Ot.jpg

 

So there you go, all in all a very impressive car that I really like.

 

It's a bit big, yes.  But there is loads of space inside (same as the Audi A8 front and rear) but it has better footwells as no v6 diesel and big gearbox to fit in, but it's quieter, smoother and has some cool features while lacking a few the A8 had like soft close doors.

 

On the way back today we ticked over 1,000 miles.

Energy consumption seems OK considering the weather conditions and amount of hills we saw.

 

http://imageshack.com/a/img911/5310/mxAMfR.jpg

 

356 Wh/mi translates into a 90kW battery range of 252 miles.  Less what Tesla hold in reserve.

Which considering that wasn't eco driving I am happy with.  When possible we cruised at 70mph or so.

 

Thanks for reading.

[Xavier]

Thanks Richard for that great comprehensive report. I was wondering how busy SC stations get and it sounds like you can have to queue at busy times.

I'll nip down to the one in Reading and see if anyone's there for a chat.

Still reading up about them and still convinced it's my next dream car. The thought of being able to tour around Europe at a virtually nil cost in terms of money and co2 really sounds appealing.

I'm waiting to hear back from probably the Heathrow branch to arrange a test drive.

Did you go for the ludicrous upgrade and does the newer model have a 12v socket in the boot for a coolbox?

[BossFox]

Did you go for the ludicrous upgrade and does the newer model have a 12v socket in the boot for a coolbox?

 

No, to get the Ludicrous speed upgrade (£8,000) you have to first buy the Performance or "P" model to get Insane mode.

Which itself costs £15,000 over the "regular" one with the same size battery and spec.  And buying a faster one gives no more spec.  Just a quicker 0-60 and red brake calipers.

 

Mine is the 90D, 90 for 90kW and D for dual motor (4x4).

It does 0-60 in around 4 seconds. (Tesla quote 4.2).  With instant electric torque it feels quick enough as a 5 door daily for work and family.

 

To get the Ludicrous mode and a 0-60 of 2.8 seconds would have cost an additional £23,000.

I can't see the point really.  It's something you get to impress your mates then don't use it again IMO.  Which is exactly what I did with the launch control in my GT-R.  Used it 4 times in 18 months.

 

Instead I went for the 90D which with it's slightly smaller motors gets more range, the best of any Tesla at a quoted 350.  The P model in either Insane or Ludicrous form reduces that.

Then I spent a fair bit on options instead to make it a nicer car, stuff I can appreciate every day when driving into London in traffic like Auto Pilot, better seats, better interior, heated bits and bobs, panoramic sunroof etc...

 

 

I've not found a 12v socket in the boot yet, just one in the front.

There are a few things the Model S misses that normal cars have, like door bins and a centre console you can put stuff inside.

But then other things that are really cool normal cars don't get.

Like the ability to see it's +5.2c this morning in the car on my phone and have it up to +20c in about 3 minutes before I came out.

Edited 4 January, 2016 by BossFox

[Xavier]

Thanks, I forgot to re-read the thread and now see the point you make about getting the 90D instead of the P90D. And I agree, it's nice to have that ridiculous performance, but at £23k, it's not cheap!

 

Do you find stuff moves around the centre console storage area which I understand is quite large (in front of the ciggy / USB ports)? I think they put some rubber strips down, but have heard things still slide all over the place. And yeah, I realised there are no door storage bins... Glove box is only just about big enough for, well, a pair of gloves! But so much storage around the seats and in the boot and "frunk" must make it an ideal cruiser with luggage. I suppose performance with family isn't that much lower than driving solo as the car itself is over 2 tonnes so little relative difference with the extra people / luggage on board?

[KenONeill]

Utterly impractical point unless it affects resale, but I think you've chosen the best of the available colours (based on your photos and other examples I've seen). And yes, I'd go for less power and the range upgrade too.

[Xavier]

Agreed, I'd go for the metallic blue or maybe the midnight grey.

 

Also, I think it's nice to know that Tesla guarantee to buy back the car at 50% value after three years on the base price. And it's something like 43% cost of the options on top. So should you buy the silly performance pack, you'd get just under half its worth back on resale should you sell it back to Tesla.

 

If I were to get the silly performance, I wouldn't bother with the 21" wheels nor spoiler. Can't see the point. Also, I think the 19" rims are the same for front and rear whereas the 21" have larger rears making tyre options limited and really expensive.

[BossFox]

Do you find stuff moves around the centre console storage area which I understand is quite large (in front of the ciggy / USB ports)? I think they put some rubber strips down, but have heard things still slide all over the place. And yeah, I realised there are no door storage bins... Glove box is only just about big enough for, well, a pair of gloves! But so much storage around the seats and in the boot and "frunk" must make it an ideal cruiser with luggage. I suppose performance with family isn't that much lower than driving solo as the car itself is over 2 tonnes so little relative difference with the extra people / luggage on board?

 

Yes it does a bit.  The torque delivery is quite savage at low speed so it's easy to get stuff flying around the cabin if you want to.

Have tried it with three adults in and couldn't feel any different in performance at all.  But then like you say, it's a 2,200kg car...

 

 

 

Also, I think it's nice to know that Tesla guarantee to buy back the car at 50% value after three years on the base price. And it's something like 43% cost of the options on top. So should you buy the silly performance pack, you'd get just under half its worth back on resale should you sell it back to Tesla.

If I were to get the silly performance, I wouldn't bother with the 21" wheels nor spoiler. Can't see the point. Also, I think the 19" rims are the same for front and rear whereas the 21" have larger rears making tyre options limited and really expensive.

 

Yes that's right on the wheels.  If doing a longer trip 19" clearly better if you want to take a spare.

As I said before, I think they are an expensive choice considering they are many thousands more than the 19" rims and tyres you already paid for.  And wear tyres out faster.

 

Worth noting the 50% buy back deal is based on a finance package.

Max deposit is 40% and shortest term is 4 years.

If you do this you will pay a bit over £5,000 in interest on a car like mine.

So in the end I just bought it and have decided to take a bit of a chance on resale values...

[900000]

Great car Richard. And thank you for using the launch control on the GT-R once on me!!!  

 

I still can't get over Tesla's American centric way of naming the twin engine a D for Diesel. Did they not not even bother to research this in Europe before doing such a daft thing!?!  T for Twin engine surely!?!? Which in Europe have also stood for Turbo (and extra speed) since the 70s.  

 

Reading about your trip is like night and day with your long distance "ordeal" in the Leaf. Gosh that didn't sound like fun one bit and I for one would NEVER attempt it in a Leaf. But the distances the Tesla covers makes it a no brainer to visit places further afield.

 

So your pre-order in for a Model X?

Edited 4 January, 2016 by 900000