Monday 18th April 2016

Tesla Model S: PH Carpool

How much has this PHer enjoyed the Tesla experience? He's just ordered a Model 3 as well...

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Name: Mike_C
Car: Tesla Model S P85+
Owned since: February 2016
Previously owned: Porsche Cayman S, BMW 335d M Sport Touring, BMW 330Ci M Sport, Honda S2000, Range Rover Sport G4 Challenge and a host of other expedition-prepped 4x4s, a raft of French hot hatches from my early days. Also many motorbikes, including Ducati Multistrada 1200, Suzuki GSX-R750 K6, Triumph Speed Triple, Aprilia RSV and a couple of track bikes.

When your friend has an 85, you get an 85+

Why I bought it:
"A friend of mine purchased a Model S 85 when they first arrived in the UK, and I was blown away. This wasn't just a good electric vehicle, it was a good car full stop! The power delivery, even on his mid-range 85, was brilliant, and it did everything I would need in a car. From that moment, I was hooked on the idea of having one - it was when, not if! I spent ages looking at new vehicle options and working through different configurations on the website, but then my sales contact rang me about this P85+ ex-demo vehicle coming up for sale - fully loaded with every option apart from the third-row seats. It was a deal I couldn't miss out on, so I put a deposit down immediately."

What I wish I'd known:
"Nothing really; due to my friend having one already, and the very helpful staff at Tesla West Drayton, I was pretty well informed. Being such a new vehicle, there aren't many problems and anything that is an issue is fixed under warranty. As an ex-demo, the car was given a full service, check and refurb as required before I took delivery."

Mike's a big fan of the "vast and understated" looks

Things I love:
"Pretty much everything! Mine is a P85+, so has the largest motor of the RWD cars before being discontinued, so it's quick. Really quick! 0-62mph in a tad over four seconds is impressive, but it's the instantaneous torque that is truly shocking! I also think it looks great; it's pretty vast and understated, yet distinctive enough that people take a second look.

"The interior is a lovely place to be; the 17-inch touchscreen is very clear and intuitive, so much better than any other vehicle I've ever been in. Autopilot is a revelation, it makes motorway journeys infinitely more bearable and it even works on well-marked A- and B-roads well too. The mobile app is also good, allowing you to pre-heat the car on cold days (and cool it on hot days), track the car's location, check on charging and so on. Speaking of which, the Tesla Supercharger network is fantastic too!"

Things I hate:
"Not having a P90D with Ludicrous mode? Since the P85+ was discontinued, all the performance variants have been dual motor vehicles (and therefore AWD), so they're the P85D and P90D. It's not really worth upgrading mine to one of these just yet, but 0-62mph in 2.8 seconds is pretty darn tempting... That being said, having one of the last RWD Performance variants is nice - a (distant) future classic, maybe? Rear tyres don't seem to last long; I'm down to 4-5mm of tread after only 2,500 miles, but that might be from showing so many people how it accelerates...

"Weight is also an issue; it's a fairly heavy old beast due to all those batteries, and pressing on down a fast twisty bit of road you can really feel it. Lastly, the steering is pretty numb, the brakes are not up to sustained heavy use and the interior packaging could be improved too, with more storage space required in particular. Oh, and the 'typical range' calculation on the dash should be more realistic, it's not very 'typical' if you ask me!"

Getting Supercharged with friends!

Costs:
"Nothing. Literally, nothing. No fuel, no servicing costs, no repair costs. It's been back for some warranty work and everything was fixed for free. I haven't noticed any increase in my home electricity bills as yet, but I reckon it will cost me around 10 per cent of what I was paying for in diesel or petrol previously. New rear tyres will be around £200-£250 a corner as they're 21-inch wheels and take a 265-section tyre."

Where I've been:
"Several weekends away to the Cotswolds, South Downs and a skiing/snowboarding trip to Scotland. There were not any charging issues, although thanks to bad weather and a strong headwind we did arrive at one Supercharger station with only six per cent battery remaining! Having said that, we could have stopped much earlier at a third party charging station at almost any motorway services. I'm planning a bigger trip into Europe next, either up into Scandinavia or across France and towards Italy."

What next?
"Nothing immediately, although I have put a deposit down on the new Model 3 (along with 325,000 other people!). This may end up being for my wife as I think I'd prefer another Model S, but either way I'm totally sold on the brand, its vision and its products. If you haven't tried one, you really should! I'm also planning on getting an S2 Elise as a weekend toy, I need something light and with plenty of feel as an antidote to the Tesla's supreme refinement!"

[Pooh]

Sounds great, I am test driving one on Friday and I'm very much looking forward to it.

[Pooh]

I test drove a P90D with the ludicrous mode this afternoon and I loved it.
It was very fast from a standing start and at normal road speeds, I could feel it tailing off a little at higher speeds but that is not really much of an issue in this country and the overtaking ability was outstanding. It was comfortable, refined (apart from a bit of tyre roar from the 21" wheels), spacious and the interior build quality was plenty good enough for it not to be an issue.
It was fun to drive both in a straight line and round the corners but it was also very relaxing to drive round town or when just cruising.
It sounded a bit like a very quiet jet aircraft with a hint of milk float at low speeds.
The autopilot was very good but it takes a bit of getting used to, I tried it on a duel carriageway and in traffic at about 40mph on a twisty A road, it worked very well and I imagine that it would be great on a long motorway drive.
Overall I struggled to find fault with it and would very much like to have one.
The only issue for me is the price, I specced up a car with all the same toys as the one I drove and it came out at £112,000, that puts it in competition with a lot of very nice petrol engined cars but I suppose that it might make more sense as a company lease.

[Pooh]

Idonthavencb said:

I HAVE NOT driven a Tesla

So how did you arrive at this opinion?

Idonthavencb said:

there's no feedback, like the one that gives the factor of fun.
Imo 0-60 in sub 3 seconds is awesome but there is no feedback to keep it fun.

There is plenty of feedback, the steering is good and you can feel what the car is doing underneath you.
I enjoyed driving it a lot, I would buy one because it is a great car not just because it has low fuel costs.

[Pooh]

Idonthavencb said:

Pooh said:

There is plenty of feedback, the steering is good and you can feel what the car is doing underneath you.
I enjoyed driving it a lot, I would buy one because it is a great car not just because it has low fuel costs.

There's no noise - so not very interesting imo.

I had a Maserati GranTurismo S which IMO is one of the best sounding cars ever made so I appreciate the joy of a great sounding car, the Tesla was very quiet but I still enjoyed driving it despite the lack of noise.

[Pooh]

Idonthavencb said:

What's the top speed on the Tesla?

Around 155mph, they are very quick at normal road speeds, the acceleration tails off noticeably above around 100mph but that is not exactly a problem in the UK.