Tesla Autopilot - driven
Discussion
So, today I 'drove' a 85D with Autopilot. It was a relatively brief journey - about 5 miles on a busy-ish motorway doing between 110 - 120 km/h.
How's it like? Well think back to when you first tried to ride your bike without the hands on the handlebars - it's a bit like that. A bit scary and disconcerting but also quite amazing. There was one time where we were passing a lorry and with an S class passing us on the other side - so 3 wide vehicles across a normal width motorway, going round a gentle bend. The side sensors on the screen ahead were going orange and I had my hands hovering the wheel but it managed fine.
I found that the car didn't always hold true to the centre of the lane. At one time we passed a vehicle and it seemed to have moved out a bit to give it more space. I might have been imagining it. At another time when going round a bend it seemed to be doing a series of small turns instead of holding one turn. This felt like it was drifting across the lane.
At one point I indicated to move lane and it changed immediately, giving the car I was pulling behind little space. I'm not sure whether this was a setting but it was closer than I would have done. I also like the indicators to flash a few times before starting the move.
I'm not sure I'd use the Autopilot if I had it. Given you still have to concentrate on the road it doesn't seem to add any value. It's impressive but I'm not sure it adds anything.
The adaptive cruise control, reading the road signs and warning when you get close to a line were more useful I felt.
Apart from that the 85D felt quicker and lighter on it's feet than the P85 that I had driven a year ago. We took it up a twisty road and down a series of narrow hairpins and it felt smaller in that setting than it is. The quality of the interior is a step ahead, the new visuals are much less fussy and the sat nav ahead is a much better visualisation.
Trying not to do the man maths at the moment, whereas when I drove the P85 I felt a bit disappointed. I guess the lesson is leave buying one as late as you can as they're certainly improving.
How's it like? Well think back to when you first tried to ride your bike without the hands on the handlebars - it's a bit like that. A bit scary and disconcerting but also quite amazing. There was one time where we were passing a lorry and with an S class passing us on the other side - so 3 wide vehicles across a normal width motorway, going round a gentle bend. The side sensors on the screen ahead were going orange and I had my hands hovering the wheel but it managed fine.
I found that the car didn't always hold true to the centre of the lane. At one time we passed a vehicle and it seemed to have moved out a bit to give it more space. I might have been imagining it. At another time when going round a bend it seemed to be doing a series of small turns instead of holding one turn. This felt like it was drifting across the lane.
At one point I indicated to move lane and it changed immediately, giving the car I was pulling behind little space. I'm not sure whether this was a setting but it was closer than I would have done. I also like the indicators to flash a few times before starting the move.
I'm not sure I'd use the Autopilot if I had it. Given you still have to concentrate on the road it doesn't seem to add any value. It's impressive but I'm not sure it adds anything.
The adaptive cruise control, reading the road signs and warning when you get close to a line were more useful I felt.
Apart from that the 85D felt quicker and lighter on it's feet than the P85 that I had driven a year ago. We took it up a twisty road and down a series of narrow hairpins and it felt smaller in that setting than it is. The quality of the interior is a step ahead, the new visuals are much less fussy and the sat nav ahead is a much better visualisation.
Trying not to do the man maths at the moment, whereas when I drove the P85 I felt a bit disappointed. I guess the lesson is leave buying one as late as you can as they're certainly improving.
Good points. I think what I was getting at was that the quality of materials etc had taken a big step on in the one year since I last drove one.
As to the delivery time, I'm not sure what the state is in the UK, but here in Switzerland they have a decent range of stock cars. I'm seriously considering getting one of the demonstrators, partly because of the availability and partly because it's the only way of getting any sort of discount. They have one in my preferred colour scheme. I probably wouldn't have specced the 21" wheels or interior luxury pack it has but with the discount I'm not having to pay anything extra for them.
As to the delivery time, I'm not sure what the state is in the UK, but here in Switzerland they have a decent range of stock cars. I'm seriously considering getting one of the demonstrators, partly because of the availability and partly because it's the only way of getting any sort of discount. They have one in my preferred colour scheme. I probably wouldn't have specced the 21" wheels or interior luxury pack it has but with the discount I'm not having to pay anything extra for them.
Obviously the Tesla isn't going to be right for every use case but we obviously looked at a 5 series (touring) during our search. I'm in Switzerland where we don't get any incentives to run electric cars.
We're doing quite a few long trips a year which puts our total mileage at about 25,000 km a year. In the last fortnight I've done a return trip from Zurich to Cumbria for example.
The closest BMW to the 85D was the m550d having decent acceleration and AWD. I personally don't like diesels but do like BMWs and didn't really need such a big car - the last one on my list was a Alpina B3 Biturbo xDrive.
In terms of my experiences with the Tesla I'd say my take on the advantages are:
We're doing quite a few long trips a year which puts our total mileage at about 25,000 km a year. In the last fortnight I've done a return trip from Zurich to Cumbria for example.
The closest BMW to the 85D was the m550d having decent acceleration and AWD. I personally don't like diesels but do like BMWs and didn't really need such a big car - the last one on my list was a Alpina B3 Biturbo xDrive.
In terms of my experiences with the Tesla I'd say my take on the advantages are:
- We save a lot in fuel bills. I've been doing the sums on a monthly basis and for us it was probably equivalent to about £10k over 4 years. Obviously you're doing less and driving a more economical car than i'm used to or probably would have bought.
- Servicing is cheaper as the car is mechanically very simple.
- The Tesla is a higher spec as standard. There aren't many options on the Tesla and every one is an expensive option on a BMW. You could get a very good spec Tesla with just the addition of the metallic paint & leather. The autopilot is a software upgrade so you could even decide on that later as mentioned above. When you've used the Tesla's internet stereo / sat nav etc everything else feels a bit creaky. It's like going from an iPhone 6s Plus to an iPhone 3. The tesla also gets upgraded like the iPhone.
- The Tesla is bigger inside. Storage space is more closely equivalent to an E class estate. The totally flat rear floor is more comfortable if you're using all 3 seats though the sloping roof means headroom isn't so good. I'm over 6 foot and it's OK but not great.
- It's vastly quieter than a diesel or petrol. At motorway speed you get some tyre noise but even that's been reduced over the last year as they've upgraded sound deadening material.
- It's a lot easier to make fast, smooth progress. It's totally linear and there are no gears that need changing. Go to overtake and a conventional car needs to change gear, spin up the engine etc. In the real world this makes it feel faster than it is.
Bringing it back to the original topic, the thought of the autopilot has been on my mind a lot since driving the car on Wednesday. It's such an unusual experience and one I'm not sure I like. I've always thought that steering feel was high up on my list (and had the usual suspects like a Lotus because of this) but there is really no steering feel when your hands aren't on the wheel.
Certainly this is the future (or rather a stepping stone to the fully autonomous future). Change, whether that is autonomous cars or even the rapid rise of car pooling is going to make fundamental changes to the cars that are on our roads and everything associated with it.
Within several months Tesla will probably have good enough data to determine whether, and to what extent Autopilot is safer than not having Autopilot. This sort of data is what will be required to persuade regulators that it's right for our roads. Insurers will take note and price accordingly. I suspect that when the change comes it will sweep the industry faster than many realise.
I feel very lucky to be able to try one of the first cars in Europe with autopilot. Tesla told me it was the first in Switzerland which is one of their major markets. I've decided that there are situations, probably the same situations where I'd use cruise control anyway, where it would probably make driving more relaxing. I'd want the adaptive cruise control anyway and it costs about the same as those systems with other cars. My guess is that as I started to trust it more I'd use it more and more.
Touch wood I should be able to report back soon.
Certainly this is the future (or rather a stepping stone to the fully autonomous future). Change, whether that is autonomous cars or even the rapid rise of car pooling is going to make fundamental changes to the cars that are on our roads and everything associated with it.
Within several months Tesla will probably have good enough data to determine whether, and to what extent Autopilot is safer than not having Autopilot. This sort of data is what will be required to persuade regulators that it's right for our roads. Insurers will take note and price accordingly. I suspect that when the change comes it will sweep the industry faster than many realise.
I feel very lucky to be able to try one of the first cars in Europe with autopilot. Tesla told me it was the first in Switzerland which is one of their major markets. I've decided that there are situations, probably the same situations where I'd use cruise control anyway, where it would probably make driving more relaxing. I'd want the adaptive cruise control anyway and it costs about the same as those systems with other cars. My guess is that as I started to trust it more I'd use it more and more.
Touch wood I should be able to report back soon.
A year ago it probably would have been a stretch for me. I frequently in the winter to return trips to the Engadine to do skiing for the weekend. It would have been at the edge of the range with a mountain pass to go over. I could have got there but probably not back.
A year later there are superchargers at St. Moritz and another one at the other side of the pass making the journey trivial.
We're probably a year ahead of the UK because they started delivering cars here a lot earlier. The roll out of Superchargers has been rapid. I think it's probably when the infrastructure is in place, not if it will be.
Because the car is effectively electronics & has a mobile connection it's possible for Tesla service to run diagnostics / install fixes for many things over the air without you having to take the car in. I believe they have mobile support & that services are much more akin to checking brake pads etc.
From what I've seen so far the cars get informed if a supercharger is OOS so would re-route. I'm sure Google would show up how often people have issues with busy Superchargers.
I've taken the view it does require changes in the way you do the trips, but that these changes are doable. I regularly drive from Zurich to Maastricht for example and I reckon it might take about 45 mins longer on a 6 - 7 hour trip, but that time could be used to grab a coffee, use the facilities or have a nap. (I do the trip late evening mostly to avoid the rush hour around Stuttgart). Realistically I'm going to make a quick stop every couple of hours anyway.
In the end of the day any car is a compromise and what you choose will depend on how you weight different factors.
A year later there are superchargers at St. Moritz and another one at the other side of the pass making the journey trivial.
We're probably a year ahead of the UK because they started delivering cars here a lot earlier. The roll out of Superchargers has been rapid. I think it's probably when the infrastructure is in place, not if it will be.
Because the car is effectively electronics & has a mobile connection it's possible for Tesla service to run diagnostics / install fixes for many things over the air without you having to take the car in. I believe they have mobile support & that services are much more akin to checking brake pads etc.
From what I've seen so far the cars get informed if a supercharger is OOS so would re-route. I'm sure Google would show up how often people have issues with busy Superchargers.
I've taken the view it does require changes in the way you do the trips, but that these changes are doable. I regularly drive from Zurich to Maastricht for example and I reckon it might take about 45 mins longer on a 6 - 7 hour trip, but that time could be used to grab a coffee, use the facilities or have a nap. (I do the trip late evening mostly to avoid the rush hour around Stuttgart). Realistically I'm going to make a quick stop every couple of hours anyway.
In the end of the day any car is a compromise and what you choose will depend on how you weight different factors.
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