He should have let his wife drive 1/2 the time. That is the best way to convince her she likes it too!
For a while, my wife was calling my conversion my "girlfriend" because of the time I was spending in the garage. And that isn't nearly as sexy as a Tesla S. Mike > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On > Behalf Of brucedp5 > Sent: Monday, August 26, 2013 2:14 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: [EVDL] EVLN: My Date With a Tesla-Supermodel > > > > http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-friedman/my-date-with-a- > supermodel_b_3781038.html > My Date With a Supermodel > by John Friedman 08/20/2013 > > Test driving the Tesla S > > I tried to come up with a good analogy to describe the bright red Tesla S > Sedan that I took out for a drive and, the supermodel comparison came to > mind - sleek, elegant, stylish and sexy with a beauty that makes it all to > possible to overlook the intelligence within. Oh, and it made my wife more > than a little uncomfortable (more on that later). > > This is the car that has been getting rave reviews, earning 99 out of 100 from > Consumer Reports, shattering the range limits of other electric vehicles and > driving stock in Tesla ever higher. I made a point of not reading those > reviews > so that I could answer the question for myself 'is it really that good?' And > the > short answer, unfortunately for anyone who does not have the $85 - 100,000 > to plunk down on personal transportation, is a resounding "yes!" > > From the tiny details such as the door handles the ride flush with the vehicle > when it moving, but ease out to allow easy entry, the Tesla S demonstrates > what happens when a company is not constrained by finances or the need to > conform with customers' prior experience and expectations. The control > system resides on a 17 inch screen (with the option of controlling things from > the steering wheel) allowing simple, easy to use touch screen commands to > set temperature, manage GPS, control music, temperature, lighting, and a > host of options including dimmable mirrors, adjusting the regenerative > braking system and even offering 3 different handling modes that instantly > change the way the car steering feels. > > The acceleration is remarkable, even by electric car standards. Having driven > both the Ford Focus and the BMW ActiveE I was prepared for the lack of > 'pedal lag' - that feeling you get between when you step on the gas pedal > and when the car responds. In electric cars, a tap on the accelerator is all > it > takes for the vehicle to instantly jump forward. The Telsa doesn't jump, it > leaps, as if it has been poised the whole time, just waiting for you to allow > it > to run free. And the S offers the same instant acceleration and there's- > plenty-more-if-you-need-it feeling at 60 MPH as it does at 30. > > Handling varies according to the setting (comfort and performance at the > extremes), changing the feel of the steering wheel, instantly transforming > from an incredibly responsive family sedan to a racer ready to cut loose. > > Unlike the BMW, which looked and felt so much like a BMW (note, I drove a > vehicle that had the new technology in a conventional body) that I found > myself missing that familiar engine sound, the modern design of the > dashboard and interior of the Tesla (and the fact that this is their first > car for > the masses) meant that the silence was part of the experience; until we > turned out the better-than-my-home sound system which would have > drowned out any sounds from the motor. > > I did find that the directional signal lever and the one for cruise control > were > confusing. By the end of the ride, I still had not gotten the hang of which > one > informed other cars of my intentions on a regular basis. But I could easily > learn to live with that. Apparently they source their steering wheels from the > same company as Mercedes; so those drivers may not find this confusing. > > I was surprised, as was my wife, with her reaction. Relegated to the back seat > by the accompanying representative of Tesla during our test drive, she found > the headroom (she's 5 foot 8) to be lacking (as I found out that others have). > This is likely due to the sloping roof that gives the Tesla such a remarkable > co- > efficient of drag (part of the key to its best-in-class range of 200 miles). > She > also found that the back seat ended mid-thigh, so she never felt truly > comfortable. She felt in danger of sliding off; a danger compounded when I > asked for - and received - that remarkable acceleration. > > Overall, as with many cars, men seem to be more enthusiastic about the > Tesla than women, a fact that the sales people confirmed when asked; the > vast majority of people they see are men. When women come by, they are > usually accompanying their husbands or with their families. > > The Tesla S is a remarkable achievement in design, engineering and > execution, and knowing that they are built in America (California) is a > selling > point. I did ask, but the representatives did not know the 'green' > credentials of the production facility. And, of course, the batteries which > eventually will need to be recycled or disposed, present an environmental > challenge. Based on what I have experienced, however, I would not be > surprised to find out that Tesla is not only working on it already, but that > they're close to a solution. > > Range issues are a big concern with electric cars, but Tesla has two very > clever solutions. The first is supercharging stations that can charge the car > enough to give another 150 miles in 20 minutes (they cannot charge more > than this at this high speed rate). The second solution is the 90 second > battery swap. Taking advantage of the fact that the battery is mounted > under the floorboards, Tesla is building facilities that can remove it and and > substitute a fully charged one in less time than it takes to fill a > conventional > automobile with gasoline. Whether people who spend the kind of money > Tesla buyers are being asked to spend will be eager to swap out such a major > component of their vehicle is an open question. > > It is already a piece of transportation history and the accolades will likely > pour > in for quite some time. Me, personally, I'll wait for the new model that is > projected to be far less pricey. In the meantime, I hope that the figure out a > way to address my wife's concerns about the back seat. > Otherwise, I'll never get to bring this supermodel home with me. And I could > so easily fall in love! > [© 2013 TheHuffingtonPost.com] > > > > > For all EVLN posts use: > http://electric-vehicle-discussion- > list.413529.n4.nabble.com/template/NamlServlet.jtp?macro=search_page& > node=413529&query=evln&sort=date > > Here are today's archive-only EV posts: > > EVent: 225+ EVs for EVU record attempt 8/31/2013 Oslo, Norway (video) > EVent: Kintner-Meyer of PNNL EV presentation 8/28 6-8:30p Richland, WA > EVLN: 150mi/20min @Fremont, CA 120kW L3 Tesla supercharger > EVLN: i-MiEV won the 15km climb from sea-level to the 400 metre mark > EVLN: LEAF EV causes a real buzz @Whitehaven Festival > EVLN: EV drivers $ave Rs 12k/$188 per month on climbing fuel prices > EVLN: Affordable Smart Fortwo EV Leasing For $139/Month > + > EVLN: Ultracapacitors Amp Up as a Battery-Alternative > > > {brucedp.150m.com} > > > > -- > View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion- > list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-My-Date-With-a-Tesla-Supermodel- > tp4664890.html > Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at > Nabble.com. > _______________________________________________ > UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub > http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org > For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA > (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA) _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
