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Oh, I dunno. I suppose its cheaper than replacing the windows with ones made with transparent aluminum. -- Ardie And it isn't just for Star Trek anymore.

Hmmm. I wonder. A hovercar would fit quite nicely in the tunnels of the Boring Company, where it is entirely possible to build the floors -very- smooth, and have the hovercars "hover" about an inch or so above the tunnel floor. It would work out quite nicely in a low-speed version of a...

I think that there's a devil that lies in the details somewhere in the definitions of the term "promise" and the term "offer." I think that one could take the stance that Tesla made an "offer" to msvoyager, and subsequently Tesla withdrew that offer and replaced it with another offer. Yes, its...

Sorry to hear about your mishap / glad to know that everyone is okay. But enough of the bad news. So, tell us all about your trip. -- Ardie

mgeneczko, If you cannot charge at home, then your best option would be to charge at work. Your car is there for 8 or 9 hours, so there is no real need to put in costly fast charge equipment, or even 240v J1772 charging stations. You can probably do quite nicely with a 120v 15A electrical...

Well, since the DeLorean was already chosen, I'd have to go with the Ferrari Modulo. I mean, it looks like its only two steps before Tesla converts it into a flying car anyway.

Are you already a Tesla owner? That is, have you gotten the adrenalin rush out of your system when you stomp on the accelerator? You have? Then great. But ... Do you know how to turn on the headlights? Windshield wipers? Open the glove compartment? Operate the cruise control? Roll the...

I don't see why they are calling this kind of attention to themselves. I mean, they are already raking in the dough by cranking up the rates, waiting for the public to scream, then reducing the rates a tiny bit, but then playing with the time-of-day slots that define Peak, Off-Peak...

While GM's "soon" is a bit more realistic than Tesla's "soon," I'm still not all that excited about needing to pay for gasoline from inside my car. Hey, I'm already outside pumping the gas. It just means that there will be a whole new sketchy landscape of parabolic dishes aimed at the gas...

As much as you will enjoy the car, it will not be yours for the decade you plan to own it. I suspect that one (or more) of your children will learn to drive, and expect that the X will turn into "their" car. As you know, Tesla's safety record is hard to argue with (current crazed news...

At least it works both ways. Your car is secure. I recall many years ago when my car was totaled and dragged to a wrecking yard. I got to it the following morning, and anything and everything of value (sunglasses, flashlight, umbrella, the parking meter spare change) had already vanished. --...

Nah. It'll never pass. There's no enough money in it. (Hey, this *is* California. Nothing happens in Sacramento unless the figures have at least six zeros) Certainly assemblyman Ting knows this, so the bill may simply be an opening gambit. I would go out on a limb and predict that the bill...

In the spirit of the Model 3's minimalism, I think that I would prefer it if it were left without either. -- Ardie "If you don't know what car it is, then you're not worthy."

[EDIT] Okay, so I got a bit carried away. It isn't the Fed. Its the State. The California Clean Vehicle Rebate Project puts a cap of $5,000 on your rebates, or, at $2,500 per car, that's a max of two cars. -- Ardie One down, one to go. (Clean Vehicle Rebate Project)

Well, I'm only hoping that there isn't some hacker that has hijacked several hundred Model 3 deposits. And reservations. But the horrifying idea woke me up and I scampered over to the Tesla website, checked on my order status, and its still there, patiently waiting for Tesla to convert the...

Hmmm. We've heard word that Tesla seems to be stockpiling Model 3s, with the speculation that they are attempting to maximize the number of cars delivered that will be eligible for the US $7,500 tax credit/rebate. Now, if you already own *two* Teslas (wow!), then I believe you have maxed out...

Hmmm. I'm thinking if/when I get my Tesla Model 3, I'll get a "dummy" RFID card/fob. One that will NOT activate the car or any of its devices. Maybe an old ID card from an employer from long ago (or perhaps I'll just get an RFID card that reads 0000 0000 0000.) I'll place this dummy card...

I'm not exactly sure why there is a gun argument in a Tesla forum. Is there a weaponry option that I don't know of? Tesla Guardian? OKAY, I would just *have* to look over the "007" options a bit more closely. Well, the Aston Martin DB5 for James Bond's "Goldfinger" movie *did* have actual 35...

Yeah, the McLarens are wicked. And easier to get in and out of than the Tesla Roadster. It is kind of odd to think that there are cup holders. Like you're gonna let go of the wheel for even an instant to take a swig of your coffee. -- Ardie And the starter. Its hiding somewhere. Not like...

The more believable (and horrible) possibility is going into the water, where most cars nose forward, hit the bottom of the lake/river, and keep nosing forward until it is on its back. Or, if you should happen to swerve to avoid a squirrel/deer/pedestrian/bicyclist, and go off an embankment into...

Plan A: Buy the crummiest, lowest-of-the-low ICE car for the least possible amount. "We are saving money," you say. She will grow to loathe it as the techiest gadget is self-locking doors. At the end of a year (two, max), she will practically leap into a Model 3 -- and by that time, they...

Okay, it seems that there *is* something going on here. I propose that you put the bags of sand back in the car -- but in the frunk this time -- and repeat your experiment. Let's see if your power consumption: [ goes up ], [ stays the same ], or [ goes down ]. I'm gonna guess that it [goes...

Hmmm. I got the same phone call. They wanted to congratulate me on my Model 3 reservation, and they would like to celebrate by giving me a test drive in a Model S or Model X to experience the Autopilot feature. Their evil scheme may be to entice me to embrace instant gratification and pick...

Since the Model 3, production cost is more of an issue (with Tesla anyway), I see this decision as a move to keep the MSRP low. I suppose that the "next model year" Model 3 could get an upgrade to a 40, 50, 1000 (whatever) amp charger, or maybe offer it as an option, once Tesla decides to go...

(Oh, that's easy.) If its an electric (or even a semi-electric) car, then the owner would've gone through the trouble of getting the California HOV Access (carpool) stickers. Its too nifty a benefit to pass up. -- Ardie And I hope he ruins his hood when he backs out, forgetting to remove the...

I get this sneaking suspicion that while operating a vehicle *without* a driver will probably cost less than operating one *with* a driver, the actual cost to the paying passenger will *not* reap all of those savings. The owner/operator will probably keep as much of that for himself as...

For decades, I have always tucked my sunglasses up above the sun visor. No matter what car I've owned, it seems to fit there quite nicely. Its always there, and its always within reach. However, this may not work if you are not the only driver. There have been times that my better half has...

I'm 6'-4" (200 cm), and when the Roadsters were in the showroom, I just *had* to see if I would fit. it is a small challenge to squeeze into the car seat. More so if the car top is on. But once you're in, its okay. But there is no room to spare. If you need to squirm a bit to get...

Nobody seems to be looking at the harsh glare of the bottom line. L2 charging stations are cheap. DCFC charging stations are not. L2 needs only 240 volt, 50 amp circuits. DCFC needs 480 volt, 120 amp circuits. You can install about four of the L2 charging stations for the price of one DCFC...

Let me see... After about 6 years of electric car ownership, there have been three times that I have come out to the car and found it unplugged with about 9 miles of range. I blame myself. But, I simply plugged it in, and then swiped my wife's ICE car. Since my wife goes off to work about 2...

I'm thinking that Hartford may be declining to insure Teslas not because of Tesla's habit of charging wildly high prices for replacement parts. (If that were the case, then Hartford would simply charge their own wildly high premiums to cover their risk.) But that's not all an insurance company...

I can offer two trains of thought on this: (1) This is your secret piggy-bank that your better half does not know exists. Eventually, the cash will come through, but there's no hurry. Okay, so you missed Valentine's day, but Christmas is coming up... (2) Consider it as credit against the...

Oops, Sorry for the typo. You are, of course, correct with 300-400 Watt-hours per mile. But I'll stick with my prediction that battery capacities will continue to increase to satisfy customer desires (not needs). After all we only "need" cars with a 2 gallon gas tank to go that 40 miles a day...

(Sigh.). Driving electric since March 2011. There was a time where I have had to sit in that damned car for an hour and a half waiting for the charging station to free up. And I had to wait another hour to get enough juice to get home. Nearly every day I get home with about 9 miles left...

Rocky_H, Quite true, the amount of power required for a car will (probably) remain in the 3-4 kWh/mile range for now. But the battery capacity will increase from today's puny 20-50 kWh to something more like 500-1,000 kWh. And its going to be a challenge to refill it overnight using a J1772...

I don't know about the rest of you folks, but I foresee a fairly hefty increase in electrical power consumption, and I want to plan ahead for it. Today, we have houses with 80-100 amp circuit breaker panels, and that's designed for homes without an electric car. Tomorrow, fossil fuel will be...

Talk to the BMW i3 folks. Skinny high pressure low profile tires. People who have never had a flat tire are now inducted into the Flat Tire Club within their first year of i3 ownership. Some of them are given this dubious distinction twice. Or more. There are some of us who are beginning to...

The Raptor is gonna make one hell of a tunnel boring machine ...

While I wouldn't be upset if Tesla's March 31st reveal announces "It's here! Right now!" but I don't really think that's gonna happen. With Tesla's history of rather overly-optimistic release dates of other products, and their history of going through about six months of teething problems, I am...

We are (mostly) law-abiding citizens, but pretty much the entire world's population with a driver's license ignores the posted speed limit "from time to time." When it comes to speeding, the cops could probably lock us all up. Blowing through stop signs, traffic lights, ignoring people in...

I still think that Tesla ought to keep their word on their "For Free, For Life" claim. But that doesn't mean that it has to remain convenient for abusers. Since Tesla knows who they are, Tesla can send them a kind note reminding them that abuse of this resource will result in a penalty. I...

We speed demons should be careful of what we wish for. California's Department of Transportation did a study a few decades back on "what is the most efficient speed," which greatly impacts what cities will do when its time to spend gobs of money in an attempt to improve the Interstate Highway...

Yes, I'm beginning to see the shadow of Apple's marketing strategy here: (1) Price the products about 10% higher than what the public seems to consider the highest price they will pay. (2) Just before introducing new models, offer sales on current models. Prices vary depending on the desire to...

I'm not sure if you could improve on that by shipping your S over to Hawaii (the Big Island). Regenning from Mauna Kea (13,700-ish feet) down to Hilo may beat your current record. Its something like 35 miles, and almost every bit of it is going to be downhill. But then again, once you hit...

80, 80D, P80D, 90, 90D, P90D, P100D. Model S, Model X, or hold out for the Model 3 Decisions, decisions. You may think that Insane / Ludicrous / (and eventually, Maximum Plaid) modes are silly, until you get to actually experience them. Its amazing what a few seconds will do to you. So you...

All of these super-modern designs focus on the driver, and seem to forget that there are occupants that will want to tinker with the radio and the climate control. With the Model 3's super-tidy dashboard look, it seems that the passengers will not even be able to adjust the air vents. -- Ardie...

Hmmm. A Model S P100D with Ludicrous mode, offering a 0-60 time of 2.5 seconds (or thereabouts). I'm not sure what kind of performance that the next-version of Tesla will offer to get a "Maximum Plaid" rating, but its gotta require a new definition of "Launch Mode." -- Ardie At that kind of...

Since you will eventually have to return back home, you may wish to plan a different route for each way. Say, use the I-5 on the way down and brave the Harris Ranch stop about 10 minutes south of what seems like 100,000 dairy cows (this is where the Model X's bio-weapon defense HEPA filter...

As a dog owner who takes her with me on rides from time to time, I am interested in how this is going to play out nationwide, and how the media is going to treat this. Let's take a typical, and not-altogether impossible scenario: A) dog in car, temperature is "too hot" as defined by the...

Hmmm. Driverless delivery trucks. I'm not too keen on the idea of a driverless Sears truck showing up, and I get an email that my washing machine is here, and the auto-unloader deposits the washing machine on the sidewalk and self-drives away. Or worse, it informs me that the dolly is in the...